Forged by Fate (33 page)

“Well, that’s rather limiting, isn’t it?”

She laughed. Finally free of her bathing suit top and jeans, she slipped the silky dress over her body. She felt totally human at the moment, standing in the bright bathroom, all dressed up and about to
walk the aisle
to Theo.

God. Eighteen and getting married.

“Well?” Dasha called in from the bedroom.

Sadie smoothed her hand down the front of her dress and stepped into the doorway.

Dasha’s eyes widened, and she sucked in a breath. “Oh yeah. I’m hereby appointed your fashion coordinator. Screw school. I’m staying here and dressing you forever. Wait. Are you immortal now?”

She gulped. “I will be in a few hours. I mean, living forever until someone chops off my head.”

“Shit.”

Yeah, that’d be weird watching Dasha grow old while she stayed the same.
Eighteen forever.

Dasha shook her head. “No thinking about that stuff. It’s your wedding day. Are Mom and Dad going to pop in to walk you down the aisle?”

“No.” Sadie stopped in front of the vanity mirror. As much as she’d wanted her father to walk her down the aisle, she knew they couldn’t come. But she knew they’d be watching.

Mom had kissed her cheek after whispering her approval and blessing of Theo. It was almost as if she knew Sadie needed that. Not needed it, wanted it. Just like the fairy-tale wedding.

Sure, it wasn’t a church and a fancy wedding gown with a long train trailing behind. But it was fine. None of those things mattered now. Only Theo.

And once they were together, truly and completely mated, Sadie and Theo would figure out how to find the words needed to vanquish Aggie to true death.

“You nervous?” Dasha brushed her hand down Sadie’s bare arm.

“No. Well, maybe a little.”

“Don’t be. Theo will take awesome care of you. I can tell. Look how quick he came when you knocked over that vase. Not to mention the shower thing. No man would have been able to refrain from tackling a naked woman like that. You know I’m right, right?”

She nodded. He had been amazing. Such restraint, despite the amount of desire she knew was coursing through him.

Over nine centuries of it.

“Okay, then. Let me tell them you’re ready.”

She gathered Dasha into a hug. “Thanks, Dash. For everything. You’re a huge part of the reason I found my parents.”

“Sure, hon.”

“I’m so glad you’re here with me.”

“I love you like a sister, girl.” She dropped a kiss on Sadie’s cheek and hurried toward the door. “See you at the altar.”

Sadie faced the window again, drew in a deep breath, and watched the purple fade into gray across the sky. No clouds. A picturesque scene perfect for a wedding day.

And night.

Her body warmed at the thought. Soon she and Theo would be bonded in the most intimate way. She finally belonged somewhere, with someone, and her life had meaning. One bigger than having a six-figure-a-year job. One bigger than having the best car or house or all the toys one could ever want.

Eternal meaning.

And she would use all her new powers, and the ones she got from Theo, to wipe Aggie off the face of the earth. So he couldn’t hurt anyone ever again.

“Okay, Sadie,” Justin hollered out from the hallway. “We’re ready for you.”

She stepped toward the doorway and made her way to the top of the stairs. There stood Justin, watching her, a big smile plastered across his face. He was a fine stand-in to walk her to Theo. He was Theo’s Companion, after all. He’d watched his back for all those centuries.

The stairs didn’t give her trouble, but the minute she made it to the doorway leading into the library and saw Theo, her legs morphed into wet noodles.

He stood, wearing a black suit, with his hands clasped behind him. He latched his focus onto her and swept a gaze down.

“Hold on. I’ll get you to him,” Justin said.

She clutched his arm. “Let’s just hope my wings don’t shoot out and ruin my dress.”

Chapter Fifty-one

“This is for us?” Sadie turned a circle, her arms out to her side, in the middle of a huge hotel suite. It was bigger than her entire group home.

Theo laughed, and she stopped, hands on hips, and smiled. “Sorry. Still getting used to all the luxury.”

“You’ve been in want for a long time. But that ends here and now.” He stepped toward her, having shed the bags near the door. His hands slid around her waist and rested on her lower back.

She still wore the thin wedding dress, so she felt every bit of heat his hands emitted. The crisp sea air rolled in through the open windows, filling her senses with salty goodness. She’d never seen the ocean. The Pacific side of the United States was a great place to start.

Her stomach roared with hunger, and Theo let out a smile. “Eat out or order in?”

“In. Definitely in.” She planted a kiss on those yummy lips and held him close. “Later.” On the flight to California, she’d gotten a little taste of him, but now she wanted all of him. No more waiting.

“I won’t have my wife starving.” Theo leaned back.

“You’re all I want,” she whispered against his neck. He’d been waiting for over nine centuries, and she’d allow him to wait no longer.

He slid the zipper down her back. “You sure?”

“Never more sure.” She nipped at his lip. “I love you.”

He took the kiss deeper, cradling her head with his strong hand. His free hand dipped in where he’d unzipped her dress and caressed her lower back.

Heat bloomed low in her abdomen, a fire she knew only he could sate.

He leaned back slightly, then rested his forehead against hers. “I’ve loved you for 911 years, Sadie. Only you.”

“Thank you, Theo. For keeping yourself for me and me alone.” She unbuttoned his shirt, exposing his sculpted chest. She ran her hands over his pecs and shoulders, relieving him of his shirt, then pressed her cheek against the Mark on his neck.
Their
Mark.

He said they’d change after they made love. Everything in her world would change. And that was okay.

“I give myself to you, Theo. Mind, soul, and now my body.” She stepped back, and he pulled the strap of her dress over her shoulder.

His eyes flared with swirls of orange as he watched the fabric slide down her arm. He shifted to the other side and guided that strap off as well. “You’re beautiful.”

Leaning forward, he kissed along the column of her neck and her collarbone, then nipped at her Mark.

A thrill shot down her spine, and she pulled in a sharp breath. He offered a sexy grin as he pushed her dress the rest of the way down.

It puddled at her feet, and she stood in only a bra and undies before her husband.

Husband
. Wow, that sounded amazing.

Hopefully she wouldn’t disappoint him.

His eyes bathed her in a slow gaze from head to toe as he stepped toward her, a little growl rumbling through his body. God that was sexy.

She backed toward the king-size bed as he worked his pants down, keeping his focus on her. The connection was palpable, the air crackling between them. She might have been imagining it, but at this point, she wasn’t sure. And didn’t care. All she felt was flooded with love.

The backs of her knees hit the mattress, and she stopped. She reached for the front of her bra, but he stayed her hand. “Let me,” he whispered, his voice strained.

He flicked the clasp, releasing her breasts for his perusal. His heated stare ignited a flush that crept up her neck.

His fingers hooked the straps still on her shoulders and slid them off, following the trail with light kisses. “God, you’re so sexy.”

He caressed her body to the point she feared her legs might turn to jelly. Heat coiled around her stomach. Her vision tilted beneath the ministrations of his tender hands.

Theo trailed a line of kisses from between her breasts to her shoulder, making contact with her throbbing Mark. Cupping the nape of her neck, he guided her down to the bed, holding her steady in his strong, encompassing arms.

“Scoot back, love.” He breathed against her lips.

She did, positioning herself in the center of the massive bed. He removed the last of his clothes and crawled toward her. Each inch he neared, he stopped and placed a kiss on her.

First the ankle, then the knee. He nipped at her inner thigh, and she couldn’t hold back a squeal.

“You like that?” He licked where he’d bitten at her, then sucked hard.

She nearly shot out of the bed. He looked up her body and grinned. Inching higher, he made a stop at her belly button. He paused there and worked his hands around her bottom. “May I?” he asked as he started to slide the panties down.

All she could do was nod. Oh God, this was it.

Featherlight kisses dusted along her waist while he turned her as needed to remove her panties. With the last bit of fabric peeled away, she lay before him bare. Not only in body but in spirit.

He drank her in as though she was the water he needed after forty nights in the desert. Her body softened beneath his intense gaze, heating to the point of near pain.

“Theo,” she whispered, not sure what to do next, but wanting to do everything.

He propped himself beside her, his hand tracing up her leg, over her waist and to her breast. He dropped a thigh between her legs as he leaned in to kiss her.

She met him with a burst of energy, the need to taste him driving her. Her hands grazed over his shoulder, absorbing the feel of each corded muscle they encountered.

His mouth replaced his hand, and the moist heat of his tongue on her flesh ignited an even more intense heat deep in her abdomen. She trailed her hand around his waist to his butt and pulled him against her, feeling every hard line of his body against hers.

He let out a moan as his hand drifted down her stomach. “Finally,” he whispered. “After all this time.”

“I’m yours.”

His hand found her heat, and she arched into him with a gasp. “You’re ready for me.” He kissed her chin. “So ready.” He claimed her lips as he shifted over her, still touching her intimately.

Oh, God
. She shuddered beneath his ministrations. “Theo.”

He looked down at her, his lips swollen and shiny. She brought her hands to his face and urged him closer. He eased himself over her and gripped the back of her thigh. “Open for me, love.”

She let out a long breath and relaxed into the bed, ready for him. A spike of fear of what she’d become tried to pry through their bubble of love, but she chased it away.

No, his tender kisses chased it away.

She opened her eyes and found him so close, their noses nearly touched. His elbows were planted in the bed on either side of her face, while his hands combed back her hair. Her hips cradled him, waiting for him to move. To join with her.

“You okay, love?” He kissed her cheek, then her earlobe.

“Mmm.” She arched against him, reveling in the feel of his smooth skin. She slid her hands down his spine to his firm butt again, then back up. “You feel amazing.” She’d never get enough of touching him.

Orange wisps swirled around his dilated pupils as he shifted his weight. “I love you, Ahavah.”

A single, gentle movement, and they were one. In every way possible. He crushed his mouth to hers, chasing away the sting of their connection. Fangs grazed her bottom lip and tripped a trigger deep in her core. Vulnerable. Completely open.

No longer one soul existed within her, but two.

He pushed up and gazed down her body, his eyes wide with wonder. “Okay?”

She nodded, and he eased back slightly, keeping his focus on her, then moved forward. The rush of the movement sent a jolt of pleasure through her body.

He leaned down, resting on one elbow while his other hand followed the curve of her hip. Finally in reach again, she claimed his lips.

She brushed her tongue against his fangs, and he started moving a little faster. He gripped the back of her thigh again, allowing an even deeper connection as he found a rhythm.

That set off a shower of lights in the corners of her vision, and she tensed around him, free-falling into bliss. A rush of heat clenched her stomach and rocketed through as she gave every bit of her soul to her husband.

For eternity.

Chapter Fifty-two

“You okay, love?” Theo asked as he rolled onto his back, taking Sadie with him.

She nodded into his chest and leaned into him more. “That was…
wow.
”

He was thinking the same thing, and already looking forward to round two. His body roared to life at that thought. “Are you sore?”

“I’m okay.” She nipped at his neck. “God, that was about as awesome as I could have imagined.”

“It was.”

“Did I live up to the nine-hundred-year wait?” She jerked against him. “Wait—”

What felt like a thousand needles jabbed his neck. Tendrils of heat sprouted from his Mark, coiling around his shoulder. Their Marks…yes, finally.

“Ow,” she said. “Theo?”

“It’s okay, love.” He cupped her neck. “It’s our Marks.”

Black lines crept over her shoulder. Waves, both thick and thin, intertwined, resembling a rope, and crept up her neck. He gasped for breath as he saw the ink pool at her neck. The lines continued, forming a picture. A symbol.

The Ahavah Mark, only smaller and on her neck, exactly where his Mark was. He glimpsed his shoulder and saw the same thing. The ink had crept down his neck and pooled in a smaller version of the Mark right where hers was on her shoulder.

“It’s amazing.” She pushed up, propping herself on her elbow as she watched his markings develop. “Hurts a little, but I feel warmth flowing through my blood.” She closed her eyes, then looked up. Her free hand trailed from her neck, between her breasts and to her abdomen. “Mmm. So good. Connected.”

That sight nearly did him in. His body roared to life, needing to be inside her. “Sadie.” His voice was choked with desire. “I—”

“Need you,” she whispered as she crawled over him. “
Need
you.” She bit her bottom lip as she pulled the sheet down and sat astride him.

His spine tightened as she eased back. Her hands groped his chest as if she had to touch every surface. His skin lit up, absorbing the energy wafting off her. The burn of the ink marking him faded from awareness, his focus solely on his wife. His Mate.