Worlds of Obsession (Celtic Otherworlds) (32 page)

He looked at her with a single-minded intensity.  “D
on’t be afraid.  I promise I won’t hurt you… and I promise that I will love you thoroughly, lick and taste every inch of you… later.  But not now.  Now, I make you mine.”

His voice was deeper, more resonate somehow, but still Bastien.  As he lowered himself over her, she caught a glimpse of his cock, already hard and straining
, but it was the horns that she raised a fascinated hand to touch.  As she slid her fingers over the smooth, dark surface of one, he hissed in a breath and bucked his hips against her, lowering his head to her as if he was helpless not to.  Enthralled by his reaction, she took both of them in her hands and put her mouth against one in a kiss, flicking out her tongue as if to taste it.  Bastien groaned as if he were in agony, but from the desperate way he was rocking his hips against her, she knew it was pleasure, not pain. 

She stroked them again, and he pulled back with a sharp breath.  “Inside you, now…
”  And with one powerful thrust of his hips, he joined their bodies, and she took all of him.  It was in that one perfect moment of joining that Liv finally understood what he was, what
she
was.  She truly belonged with this creature, in a world that she had never dreamed existed.  And she reveled in it.  She was
home
. 

Bastien’s hips slammed against hers again and again, and she arched her back, trying to bring him closer still, even deeper into her body, because it seemed so essential that she do so.  She needed this, needed him.  Her fingers dug into the flesh of his back as the intense feeling building in her core
made her restless and desperate for more.  “Bastien… god…”

He looked down…
met her eyes.  His seemed to be darkly burning, like smoldering black coals.  “You are mine, Liv.  I will never, ever let you go.”

They had dozed off in each other’s arms, but Liv woke in the small hours of the morning to find Bastien’s large, calloused hands skimming across her skin.  As she became fully aware, she realized that he was already inside her again.

“It’s so beautiful
”, he whispered, “our bodies together, what we can make each other feel.”

He stopped, perfectly still within her, and looked into her eyes.  Even without words, she knew what he was saying. 
Feel this moment, when I’m buried so deep inside you, and we are truly one.
  Had she just heard him say that inside of her mind?

“I don’t want to move, because I never want to leave you. 
But oh fuck, Liv I have to move”, he said in a strained voice, before his lips crashed down to hers and he was kissing her fiercely, pulling out and plunging back in with a moan that she could feel as if it was her own.

***

             
Liv was dreaming again… or was she? 
No, this was no dream
.  These were memories returning, falling into place one by one, lining up and speaking to her of a past she had forgotten.  She had lived before.  And she had loved Bastien then almost as much as she did now.  She had never stopped, she had only forgotten.  But now she remembered, not only Bastien, but the whole of her life.  Her home… her parents… even the smothering rules that she had hated so much.  The rules that she had tried to escape from for just one night so that she could be with the one she loved, but instead she lost everything…

             
Her eyes flew open and she bolted upright, gasping for breath, clutching her hands to her chest.  Bastien was at her side in an instant, and suddenly everything was all right again.  He pulled her into his big, strong arms and tangled one hand in her hair.  “It’s okay, baby, I’ve got you.  I won’t let you go.”

“Bastien… I… I remember.  Oh god, I remember everything.
”

He must have stopped breathing, he went so still.  “You do?” he said in a voice that was just above a whisper.
  “What do you remember?”

“I remember… us.  I remember seeing you for the first time, Bastien, and
knowing
that we were supposed to be together.  I remember my home, my parents… oh my god, are my parents still alive?”

He nodded, gripping her hands so hard, as if that would ensure she stayed with him this time.  “
Yeah, they are.  But I haven’t seen them in a very long time.  They blame me, almost as much as I blame myself, for what happened to you.”

“No, Bastien.  It was my fault.  I’m the one who went into the woods that night.”  She gave a little laugh.  “I should have known better… every fairy tale and horror movie ever written starts with the girl going into the forest alone at night…
I knew something wasn’t right, but I was desperate to see you.  You were everything to me, Bastien.  I was so happy… so excited for our future together.”

Bastien cupped her face in his hands, bringing her lips so close to his that she could feel his warm, teasing breath on hers.  “Could I be everything to you again?  Is there still hope for us?”

His voice was calm and even, but Liv could hear the fear behind it and the tiny hitch in his breath as he waited for her answer.  It meant more to him than he wanted her to know.  She had just been through two lives and one semi-death, lost her memories and gotten them back, and through all of it, Bastien had always been in her heart.  She just hadn’t always known it.  He was her rock, the one constant through it all, and she couldn’t imagine her life without him.  She leaned closer to press her lips to his, and he responded immediately to the kiss, pressing his body closer to hers and thrusting his tongue into her mouth to meet hers.  She melted against him for a moment before pulling back just a little. 

“And can I still be everything to you, Bastien?” she asked softly.

His expression hardened, but not with anger.  “You will always be everything to me.  For the longest time, I held out hope that I would die, because living without you was more than I could bear.  And I was angry. 
So
angry
… For so many years I lived locked inside a blind rage that slowly consumed me from the inside out.  I hated myself for losing you… for failing you.  I deserved no better than death.  After a time, I just went numb, because it was the only way to survive.  But now?  Now I want more than anything to live.  If only I had known you were there waiting for me all the time, I swear I would have come for you.  I would have fought to the death for you.  Now I can see, I’ve always been waiting for you, so that I can breathe again.  You let me breathe again, Liv.”

She looked up at him, holding his gaze, seeing the love that he held for her… had been holding
onto for two hundred years.  He had spent that time in the hell of his own mind, yet now he could still cherish her and be tender.  Tears welled in her eyes and rolled slowly over her cheeks.  “Karis.  My name was Karis.”

“Yes, and now you are Liv.  The same, but different.  Better and stronger.  I don’t know how it is possible, but I love you more now than ever before.  So much that it hurts not to be touching you.  It’s an actual ache that I feel, a constant need.  You are a physical part of me, something vital and irreplaceable.  I can’t breathe without you
, Liv.  I quite literally can’t breathe.”

“I love you”.

“I love you too, so much.”

Chapter 35

Liv
didn’t know why she had agreed to go shopping with a Witch, a Selkie and a Vampire, but she had, and it had actually been lots of fun.  Now, after hitting most of the nicer boutiques in town, they were seated in a coffee shop, shopping bags at their feet and mocha lattes in their hands.  The day was only half over, and already she felt exhausted.  Of course the past week hadn’t exactly been easy.  She was still trying to mentally sort out the fact that she now had memories of two lives.  Two childhoods.  Two moments of meeting the love of her life for the first time.  And then there was the issue of her parents.  She remembered them now, of course, and she knew that they had loved her very much, in their way.  But she wasn’t quite ready to see them yet.  She needed some time to adjust to everything else first.  It was still all so new, so she asked Bastien to hold off on contacting them, and he had cheerfully agreed.  She suspected he didn’t want to share her time with anyone else, especially since she had definitely confirmed the rumor that Fomoiri males were insatiable.  They had spent most of the last seven days in each other’s arms, making love, but learning each other again too.  Bastien hadn’t wanted to let her go, but he had work to do, and she needed to catch up with Jess.  Carman and Leanan insisted on coming along, and Liv had already expressed her undying gratitude for their part in freeing her from Balor and reuniting her with Bastien. 

She took another thoughtful sip of her coffee, already missing Bastien and wondering what he was doing right then, when her stomach revolted.  She put down her cup and leaned over the table, feeling a fine sweat break out on her brow as she fought down the sudden queasiness.

“Liv?”  Jess still called her that, claiming she had always known her as Liv and would never get used to anything else.  “What’s wrong, are you all right?”

Liv
nodded, sitting up as the wave of nausea receded.  “Yeah, I’m fine.  I’ve just had these bouts of being sick for the past couple of days.  I think it’s just all the changes, and not getting enough sleep.”  She smiled to herself at the memory of just how many times Bastien had woken her up during the night, claiming he couldn’t possibly wait another minute to have her again.  Insatiable.

It took
her a moment to realize that everyone at the table had gone silent.

“What?”  They were all looking at her.  “
What?”
  

Carman was the one to finally answer
, rubbing her chin thoughtfully with one hand.  “Fae don’t
get
sick, unless…”

“Unless what?”  Her heart was thudding in her chest now.  Was there something wrong with her?
  Was she going to die again?

Lean
an smiled.  No, it was more like a huge grin.  “Unless they’re pregnant.”

“But I thought D
emons couldn’t…. oh.”  That’s right, she was his mate.  “But Bastien told me it’s really rare… as in it almost
never
happens rare, and we had only been together a few times.”

“Well”, Jess piped up, “there’s one way to find out for sure.”  She glanced at Carman, who gave her a
conspirational smile.  “Let’s go!”

Not a half hour later they were all crowded into Carman’s tiny kitchen as the Witch mixed together various ingredients from small jars scattered across the table.  She hummed softly to herself as she stirred, and Liv watched her skeptically.  “Does that really work?”

“Yup, one hundred percent accurate, every time, and believe me, I’ve used this recipe more than a few times, over the centuries.  Now, spit.”

Liv stared at the small wooden bowl containing a white mix of powder that Carman held out to her.  “What?”

“Spit in the bowl.  If it’s positive, it will turn pink.”

Really?
  “And if it’s negative?”

“Then nothing happens.
  Come on now,
spit
.”

Liv gave the bowl a dubious look, but gathered some saliva in her mouth and spit into it anyway
, feeling rather silly, especially with everyone watching.  Immediately four heads were leaning in, staring down at the bowl in Carman’s hand.  At first nothing happened, and Liv started to relax.  She knew all along it wasn’t true, what with the odds stacked…  A shrill squeal of delight startled her and she jumped, looking up to see Jess grinning broadly and pointing at the bowl.

“I knew it!  I knew it, Liv!”

Leanan sucked in a breath, and Carman squealed.  “Pink!”

Liv Slowly leaned closer again and looked.  Yup, her spit was now pink.
Bright, neon pink, no less. Leanan caught her handily when her knees buckled out from under her, and helped her to the purple upholstered loveseat in the next room.  “Someone get her some water!”

The commotion at the front door brought Liv back around before Jess could even find a glass.  Carman snorted at the insistent pounding.  “I bet we can all guess who that is.  I’m coming, just a second!  Don’t
you dare break my door you overgrown Demon!”

She had barely gotten the door open when Bastien burst into the room.  “Where is she?”

“I’m here Bastien”, Liv called, and for a moment he almost sagged with relief.  But only for a moment.  “What are you doing here?  Liv?  You look pale…”  He turned on the other three females, who were all grinning at him like idiots.  “What’s wrong with her?”  His eyes narrowed.  “What’s going on?  What have you done to her?”  His eyes darted between them, and then back to Liv.  “Is someone going to tell me what’s going on, or do I have to go demonic on your asses?”

Liv rolled her eyes in exasperation.  “Bastien…
calm down, I’m fine…”

Carman sighed dramatically and shook her head.  “Yes, you need to calm down and stop over-reacting… Daddy.”

“But Liv, I didn’t know where you were and…” he paused in mid-sentence, his gaze shooting back to Carman.  “What?”

Carman smiled and nodded toward Liv.  Bastien pushed his hands through his hair as if he wasn’t quite sure he had heard right.
  “Tell me”, he said.  “Tell me!”

Liv sat frozen by the expression on his face that she couldn’t quite read.  He looked fierce, almost angry.  Was he not happy about having a baby?  Was it too soon?  Or maybe he didn’t really want to have kids… oh god…

But Jess was having no such doubts.  Her best friend beamed from ear to ear and was practically hopping up and down with excitement.  “She’s having your baby!  You knocked her up, you badass!”

But Liv was only watching Bastien’s face, as he drew in a deep breath and his nostrils flared.  He met her eyes with a question, and she nodded slowly.  The change that came over his expression was nothing short of beautiful.  As he started walking towards her, the
fierce joy and pride in his eyes melted her heart, and the grin that spread across his face made it soar.  He was happy, and he was hers.

He swept her up into his arms and kissed her soundly.  “I can’t believe… I just can’t believe…” he stumbled over the words, his voice rough with emotion.  But when words were just not enough, tears began to roll down his cheeks, and he squeezed his eyes shut.  “I love you”, he murmured, to a chorus of cheers from the other spellbound occupants of the room.  He looked up and grinned at them.  “Thank you”, he told them, and he meant it with all his heart.