Her Heart, His Prey Ch. 03

'Nice one, Mar...' I thought to myself. Sighing, I went to work on my hair, washing it twice while I tried to get most of the tangles out. I began to hum to myself while I carefully washed my body, trying not to move my one arm around too much. It was a shame that I couldn't stay in here for longer, but I knew that if I didn't come out soon, Cassian was going to come in.

And I most personally did not want to be forcibly removed from the shower by a pissy, overprotective werewolf who would probably be more than happy to see me naked.

Turning off the water, I reached for a towel. The mirrors were steamy and I wiped away just enough space so that I could see myself. I felt, and looked, much better than I had before. I searched the countertop for a few moments before grabbing a comb and running it through my long hair. I tried to push all thoughts out of my head, but almost immediately failed.

What did it mean for me now that I was back here? Would he hold me prisoner again? I didn't want to stay here, but now I was afraid of what would happen if I left. The pain from earlier was worse than anything I had ever felt.

Biting my lip, I realized that I had no other clothes to put on, and that I would have to walk back through his room to get more clothes with only my towel. I knew I couldn't very well just walk out there naked, so I took a deep breath and pushed open the door, stepping out into his chilly bedroom. I clutched the towel protectively about me, and tried not to blush when I heard a soft gasp coming from the bed where he was lounging. Instead of giving into my embarrassment, I gave him an annoyed stare. "Men," I muttered under my breath. I could almost feel his boyish grin against my back. 'And my legs and my ass...' the voice in my head continued. I sighed.

"What's that supposed to mean, love?" his teasing voice sounded strained now and I tried not to grin as I opened the door to the closet. My mouth immediately dropped.

"Holy hell," I gasped out.

I heard him snort. "Everything alright?"

"You actually wear all of this stuff?!" I queried, turning so that I was looking at him. He had his arms behind his head, leaning back against one of the pillows, looking almost like a god waiting to be tended to by one of his various worshippers.

He rolled his eyes. "One of the perks of being the next Alpha," he huffed.

I gave him a searching look and he stared evenly back at me. "Interesting," I murmured as I stepped into the vast expanse of expensive silks and cottons.

"What's interesting?" he called.

"How do you not get lost in here?!" I called back, placing my hands on my hips. There was row after row after row of shirts, pants, ties, etc. I noted the smaller section that was for me, and even then it was larger than my closet back at my apartment. I began to search for something more casual to put on.

"I know that's not what you were talking about!" he mused.

"True," I replied. "Your comment earlier just made me pause was all." I managed to procure a pair of jeans and a loose t-shirt. Tugging them on quickly along with a blue silk bra and panties combination, I walked back out into the room. He was lying in the same spot as before. I flopped onto the sofa in the small sitting area, leaning on one of the armrests so that I was looking at him. "I would've thought you loved being given all this fancy stuff."

"It's not all it's cracked up to be you know," he replied softly.

"What happened to you anyway?" I asked him suddenly. He raised a brow, leaning on one arm so that he could look at me. "I meant how did you get hurt in the first place?" I clarified.

He nodded slowly. "Well, when you pick a fight with an angry vampire that ends up belonging to a coven, you don't always come out with mere cuts and bruises."

"So it was my fault that you were hurt in the first place," I assumed with a grimace. I crossed my arms in the loose t-shirt, feeling guilty and irritated all at the same time.

"No it wasn't your fault." I looked up at him. Shaking my head, I went to say something, but he interrupted. "Marlow, your parents condemned you to the vampires as soon as they signed that damned contract. And you can't blame yourself for trying to help your friend, either."

I huffed, blowing a strand of hair out of my face. "You almost died, though. I don't see how you can be so alright with the fact that I practically got you killed!"

He made a strange face. "You almost sound like you care, love. Why is that?" I narrowed my eyes at him.

"It's my compassionate side coming out. I'll try to be less considerate next time." He seemed to always be able to say the one thing that got me riled up.

He chuckled. "Calm down, love, I was only teasing. Anyway, I seem to have come out of it a lot better than you." He nodded towards my arm, and I held it protectively to my chest.

"I've had worse." He raised his eyebrows at that and I fought the urge to stick my tongue out at him. "Was it really necessary to bite me?" I added.

"Yes." His eyes made contact with mine and I raised my eyebrows.

"Well that was straightforward," I quipped.

"That was the other way I knew you were meant to be mine," he declared. "Only the blood of our mate can heal us from wounds that fatal."

"You could have given me a little forewarning; it's not the easiest thing to have some strange man wolf out on you and not have nightmares afterwards," I joked. His eyes darkened for a moment.

"This is not how I wanted finding my mate to be like," he murmured.

"I'm not your mate!" I called softly.

Suddenly he was standing over me. I froze, gazing up at him with wide eyes as he stared hungrily at me. "You are. You are my one and only, you are the only soul my heart can respond to, and I will never let something that important out of my sight for an instant."

"So I really can't leave here at all?" I asked, disheartened.

"I'm sorry," he uttered, kneeling by the sofa and resting a hand on my cheek. I struggled not to move into his touch. I wouldn't let him get a hold over me like David had.

"What about my life, my things, what about what I want?" His eyes saddened as I continued.

"In time you will come to realize what it is you truly want." His cryptic commentary was beginning to aggravate me. "Marlow, it's too dangerous right now for you to go anywhere. I need to know that you are safe. It would literally kill me if anything happened to you."

"Because I'm your mate?" I inquired incredulously.

He gave me a soft smile. "You will come to feel for me too, you know. In time."

"I-" I began, but stopped as I looked into his sincere eyes. I couldn't shake it. Yes, I was attracted to him, but I hardly knew him! This was ridiculous...

"Cassian, I..." I trailed off as I looked into his eyes. I felt a mixture of emotions: fear, intrigue, and for some strange reason, nervousness. I looked away, my cheeks flushing.

"Ocella, look at me." Shyly, I let my eyes lift to his.

"You mean something to me. No!" he added abruptly when I opened my mouth to say something. "You're not allowed to talk right now." He brushed his thumb across my cheek, shifting so that he was ever so slightly nearer to me. "I know you don't like supernaturals, and I can understand why. You had your heart broken. Not only once but several times because of us." His eyes darkened infinitesimally, turning them completely black. "But I want you to know that I'm here for you if you need me."

There was a brief silence in between my calm and the tears that followed. Cassian scooped me up into his arms, pulling me against him while I continued to just let the tears fall. It wasn't full out sobbing, but more of a letting go of the hurt I had felt in the past few months. My heart was going through a lot, even now, and I had resisted the urge to cry about it and get over it for far too long. I hadn't even let David ever see me cry and here I was bawling in front of a guy I had known for only a few days.

His hand rubbed soothing circles on my back while he murmured into my ear. I realized it was in that same undefinable language as the pet name he had given me. I gave a half laugh. "You know I can't understand anything you're saying, right?" I pulled back from him, reaching up to wipe the remaining tears from my face, while grimacing at the mess I had made of his shirt.

He glanced down and rolled his eyes. "It's one shirt, love, I'll live."

I raised my eyebrows at him. Brushing some of the soaked strands of hair out of my face, I smirked at him. "On a scale of not bad to awful how ridiculous do I look right now?"

He leaned forward so that he could nuzzle my neck. I shivered at his touch. 'You feel nothing, you feel...'

"You look beautiful," he murmured as he placed a soft kiss against my neck. I didn't move as he did this, didn't say anything; I barely even breathed.

'Don't do it, don't give in...' I thought to myself. 'But maybe...'

"Marlow, I want to let you know something," he murmured. I didn't say anything as I waited for him to continue. "Marlow, I want you to give me a chance. I am aware of the hurt you are experiencing, and it pains me to see you hurting like this, but I want you to give me a chance. I promise you I will do everything in my power to make you happy again. I want to make you feel loved and cherished the way you should be, and I want for you to see me as something other than a monster."

I felt tears form in my eyes at his proclamation. "How?" I asked.

"How what?" His hand brushed my cheek and I leaned into his touch.

"How do I know that you won't leave me for someone better? How do I know you truly feel the way you do about me?" I asked softly, staring at my hands. He moved one of his own, reaching out to cradle my broken wrist in one of his huge hands.

"Marlow look at me," he murmured. Turning slowly, I did as he asked. His dark, entrancing blue eyes held mine for a moment before he ever so cautiously tilted his head forward.

'Oh damn...' the voice had finally given up trying to tell me between right and wrong.

Something came over me in that very same moment, something I had no idea was inside of me. I filled the void that still remained between us, crushing my lips against his with a quiet moan. He responded instantly, his strong hands grabbing at my waist, drawing me closer to him as our lips moved against each other.

He pressed a kiss against my neck as he drew away. "Did you love him, Marlow?"

I drew my head back at his question. "I-I'm not sure." I told him softly. "I'm not sure about anything anymore." He went to move in to kiss me again, and I very well would have let him, but in that same moment a crash resounded through the house.

Cassian leapt up in surprise as a howl emanated from outside the door, taking a protective stance in front of me. "Shit," he muttered. Looking back at me over his shoulder, I could see his face was partially transformed, his eyes blazing gold and his teeth elongated. "I think your sister wants to talk to you."