Series: The Un Series by Izzy Sweet
Total pages in book: 109
Estimated words: 109192 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 546(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109192 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 546(@200wpm)___ 437(@250wpm)___ 364(@300wpm)
“What did I do?” she cries and tries to kiss me again before I stop her.
Turning my head toward Asher, I ask him quickly, “How fast do humans heal?”
Asher frowns and looks between Alena and me. “What do you mean?”
Moving my hands to Alena’s mouth, I gently pry her jaw open with my fingers.
Her eyes widen and I hear her faint thought. Why is he doing this?
She tries to speak around my fingers, but I hush her. “Let me have a look.”
Even Asher asks, “What are you doing?”
Peering into her mouth, I see the place where I nicked her with my fang is almost completely healed.
Alena keeps trying to talk with my fingers in her mouth, and I know she is quickly losing patience with me. She doesn’t like the way I’m treating her.
And honestly, I don’t blame her. But I had to see.
Just as I’m about to release her, though, I spot the inside of her cheeks. They’re covered in scars.
Scars made from teeth marks.
Fuck me.
She mutilated the inside of her mouth.
Quickly pulling my fingers away, I stare into her eyes.
Those scars were not made by accident. No, there’s far too many of them.
They were intentional.
She caused herself pain and misery.
My human memories are foggy, it being so long ago, but I do remember how bad it would hurt when I accidentally bit my tongue or the inside of my cheek.
Hurt enough that eating and drinking would be painful.
And yet she intentionally caused herself this pain…
Why?
Sensing my distress, Asher says calmly, “Her healing could be rapidly increasing due to your close proximity. The closer I got to Chloe when I found her, the more her vampire powers manifested. Speed, healing, and her vanishing…”
Shit.
Why is my beloved deliberately causing herself pain? I push at the bond for an answer but hit that damn wall again.
The fucking thing is still blocking part of her off…
How the fuck is this possible?
I want to ask outright, to see if she knows the answer, but Matthias says, “We’re here.”
Gravel crunches under the SUV’s tires before we come to a complete stop in front of a huge hunting lodge.
The place appears to be crafted completely out of wood and logs to blend in with the surrounding forest. But it’s both rustic and modern in design. It’s definitely more to a shifter’s taste, but it will do for the time being.
Alena stares at me in confusion and annoyance.
Her emotions pulsing through our one-sided connection.
She’s annoyed I stopped her exploration of pleasure and confused about me sticking my fingers in her mouth and inspecting her like she’s some kind of animal.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I’ll explain when we get inside.”
Matthias’s phone rings and he puts it quickly to his ear.
“All clear,” Caden says loud enough for all of us to hear without speakerphone.
Caden must be still pissed off, and I can’t wait to slap him around a bit.
How fucking dare he almost say I don’t deserve her.
Fucking hells. The way I’ve treated her, I suppose he could be right.
But to say it out loud…
“Close your eyes,” I murmur to Alena. “The sun will be very bright.”
I don’t know why the sun bothers her, she’s still human.
Maybe it’s like Asher said… Maybe it’s my proximity causing it?
She nods her head in understanding and squeezes her eyes shut.
Lifting Alena into my arms, I step out of the car. The sun shines brightly through the tree leaves. It’s still painful even to me after all these years, but manageable.
Alena, though, cringes even with her eyes closed.
“Why does it feel weird on my skin?” Alena asks, before peeking her eyes open.
“It’s…” I say at a loss.
The last time she saw the sun, it hurt her. But now she’s able to deal with it?
It makes no sense to me. I glance at Asher, and he looks just as confused.
“She’s shut down that part of herself,” Ambrose whispers as he dances past us.
Pushing hard against my chest, Alena grunts, “I can walk on my own two feet, you know.”
“But you’re safer in my arms,” I explain.
“Put me down, Raphael. I’ll let you hold my hand, but I want to walk,” she says.
The ache deep inside of me screams, wails, and howls.
Even the monster hates the idea of her not being in my arms.
But I can hold her hand?
What kind of fucking pathetic beast I must be that she’s only willing to give me that small portion of her.
Fuck, I scream into the void of my brain.
Taking in the gravel drive and her bare feet, I refuse to let her hurt herself. “Not yet. The stones will rip up your feet.”
“And that is why you should let me play dress-up with our little sister, dear brothers,” Ambrose sings out to everyone.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Matthias growls.
Carrying Alena to the grass near the front porch, I finally set her down.