Yearning For Her

by Tiffany Roberts

To you, because you’re beautiful.

Because he never truly loved me. He loves what I can give him, loves that I do anything he needs. Loves that he gets to be in charge. That thought made her stomach churn. How could she have been so stupid? How could she have been so blind after all this time? Because I desperately wanted someone to love me for once. To see me as enough.

“I’m okay though. Really. Thank you for checking on me, but you…you don’t have to stand here with me.” “I’m not ready to walk away from you.”

The stranger reached toward her and brushed the back of a finger down her cheek, leaving warm tingles in its wake. “Breathe, Violet.” Willow released a slow, shaky breath. He stroked her other cheek. “That’s a good girl.” Heat pooled between her thighs. Oh God.

“I don’t even know your name,” she said. “Kian. Feel free to cry it out as often as you’d like. Yours?” Blushing, she replied, “Willow.”

“I was supposed to give you the best night of your life,” he murmured, voice thick and gravelly. “Knew you were passionate when I first saw you, Willow, but that fire in you… Fuck.”

Willow… Her name resonated through his spirit. It left its mark on every bit of him, emblazoned itself on his being. This bliss, this satiation, it was because of her. How had she accomplished what no one else had in all Kian’s existence?

A wild urge sparked in his mind. Find her. Make her mine. She is mine.

No more rest, no more sleep, no more futile attempts at seduction and feeding. Everything in him, all the strength and magic he had left, would be turned toward finding her. Kian opened his eyes. “Sorry, Violet. One night wasn’t enough. You’re still mine.”

No. I will find her. I will have her. She is mine, and she will lift this spell, break this curse… And then what? What could possibly come after that? The answer that drifted up from the depths of his soul was quiet, soft, and startling. I will keep her.

Laughter carried to him from amongst the nearby tables, and Kian’s heart burst into motion. It poured fire into his veins, flooded him with delicious heat, opened a well of strength hidden deep inside him. In that instant, he felt more solid, more real, more powerful than he had in weeks.

He felt more hopeful than he had in weeks. That laugh, light, high, and unassuming, unburdened by self-consciousness, that true, heartfelt laughter, belonged to Willow. It was a sound he’d longed to hear for what felt like an eternity, and it washed over him like balm for his flagging soul.

Willow was sitting at one of the patio tables across from another female, her green eyes bright, her pink lips curved into a wide smile—a smile which she bestowed upon the waiter as he returned her card with a receipt. Kian gritted his teeth, swallowing a wave of fury. After all this time, the first laughter he’d heard from her was not for him, the first smile he’d seen on her face was not for him. Her happiness was not for him. Unacceptable.

Kian wanted her every smile, every laugh, chuckle, and giggle. He wanted her pleasured moans, her warmth, her softness, her passion, her everything.

The rules he’d adopted to help him survive in the ever-changing world of humans fell to pieces. There was only Willow, could only be Willow. He shoved away from the wall and strode toward her, each step quicker than the last, powered by need, by lust—his own lust. He’d hungered too deeply and for too long. He would feed now.

Kian’s hand darted out and caught Willow’s wrist. He tugged her back, and she spun toward him with a startled sound, stumbling directly into his chest. Grasping a fistful of her clipped hair at the back of her head, he angled her face toward him. Her eyes widened in recognition an instant before he claimed her mouth with his.

Kian blinked and touched a hand over his cheek, which pulsed with a lingering burn. Not only had she pulled away from him during a kiss—a kiss she had clearly enjoyed—but she’d hit him. No one had ever withdrawn in the middle of any such act with him, much less stricken him. His innate charm should’ve kept her blinded by passion without any effort, even in his weakened state. “You slapped me.” He returned his gaze to her. Her lips were kiss-swollen, spots of pink stood out on her cheeks, and her chest was heaving. She looked so fucking delicious. Worth it.

“I didn’t ask for anything,” Willow said. “I didn’t even know you were there. You don’t just walk up to strangers and kiss them.” “You don’t have to ask.” He eased closer, voice becoming husky. “And we’re not strangers.” Willow put up a hand, palm out, to halt his advance. “We are.” He frowned at her hand before placing his atop it and gently guiding it down. “I’ve been closer to you than anyone, Willow. I’ve tasted your sweetness on my tongue. I’ve filled you, felt you come undone around my cock, and listened to you scream my name in pleasure.”

“Why were you looking for me?” He slipped his hands into the pockets of his long coat and let out a slow breath. “Wanted to see you again. You vanished before I woke, Willow.”

“What do you want, Kian?” “You.” She froze. “What?” “I want you. To touch you again. To feel you, to see the pleasure on your face. You left me with nothing but this…need.”

But fuck, he craved her. He needed her. Something inside him desired her with an intensity he knew he’d never shake, burned for her with a flame that would never extinguish. She was his. His mate. His soul knew it with a certainty that his mind could not dispute, though it defied all logic and reason.

“Because it’s hollow. Lust sparks bright and hot, and then it fizzles out. In the end…you’re left alone. Left with nothing.” A tear escaped her eye, trickling down her cheek. “I want love. The kind of love that doesn’t die. That keeps burning, on and on, and is so much bigger and brighter than any flame. The kind of love that only happens when two souls see each other and know they can’t exist without one another.”

“It’s different with you. I felt it the moment I saw you. I don’t know what you’ve awoken inside me, Willow, but I want you. I crave your pleasure, crave your lust, but gods, those desires are completely eclipsed by how strongly I crave you.”

“Give me a chance,” he whispered before brushing his lips over her forehead. “Show me. Teach me about mortal love. Teach me how to love you.”

“I do enjoy that sound, Willow.” Willow sobered. “My laugh?” “Yes. It’s almost as enjoyable as your cries of pleasure.”

“My eyes are up here,” Willow said. “So they are. But how could I possibly keep mine from wandering when there is so stunning a view to take in?”

“I don’t suppose I could convince you to…drop your glamour?” “Are you going to accept that you’re mine and give in?” “Nope.” “Then you have my answer, as well.”

“I’m sorry, but Willow isn’t home right now,” someone said from the other side of the door in a muffled voice that sounded suspiciously like Willow’s. “How unfortunate,” Kian replied, leaning closer to the door. “But it’s fine. I’ll wait until she’s back. I’ve nothing if not time.”

“And how often do you…do you have to have sex? Do you have to feed?” “Usually every few days. But after I had you, I went nearly a week without needing to feed. When my hunger finally returned, I found that I couldn’t draw from anyone.” A crease formed between her brows. “Why?” “Because you, Violet”—he reached out and placed a finger beneath her chin, tipping her face up so she met his gaze—“are my mate.”

“I already told you, Willow. You unmade my world. I don’t know how the pieces fit back together, only that they don’t without you.”

Ecstasy hammered him in waves, each of which was colored, flavored, and enhanced by Willow. Her spirit, her desire, her essence, her warmth, softness, and feel, her breath, her voice, her scent. She was everything, she was all.

He didn’t yearn for what she could give him…he yearned for her.

For the first time in his existence, he was distraught at the thought of parting with a mortal. How many had he left behind? But he didn’t want Willow to go, didn’t want her to leave him. Not that I’ll allow it. She’s fucking mine.

Every one of her steps amplified his urge to follow her. He clutched the steering wheel, forcing himself to remain in place, to puzzle out what that kiss had meant. It had been so tender, so affectionate, so warm, unlike any kiss he’d ever received.

She’d kissed him like she cared about him—not about what he could do for her, not what he could provide, but him. More than ever, he longed to go to her, to take her in his arms, to kiss her, to hold her. But he couldn’t do any of that. Kian shifted the car into drive. Pulling away was the most difficult thing he’d ever done, and he succeeded only because one thought, strong and certain, repeated in his mind. She is mine.

He wanted to have that simple, casual intimacy with her, to hold her hand as they walked, to look into her eyes and have the world fade away. He wanted to talk with her, to hear her laugh. He wanted to be gifted with the brilliance of her smile, because when she was happy, all the universe brightened. He wanted to learn everything about her, body, mind, and soul. Wanted to hear every story she had to tell, wanted to know everything she found amusing, scary, exciting, disgusting, infuriating, and saddening. He wanted to know her completely—and wanted her to know him in return. To see him like no one, including Kian himself, ever had.

Seriously, Kian? Do you really think they spend every moment obsessed with their own inevitable deaths? A chill formed in his chest, spreading outward like frost creeping across a windowpane. Even Willow would eventu— “Not pursuing that line of thinking,” he growled. She was his mate. All she had to do was accept him, and he could seal their mating bond. Then his lifeforce would be hers.

“I bought you flowers, obviously.” “When you buy someone flowers, it usually means a single bouquet. This looks like you bought the whole shop!” “I did.” “But…but… This must’ve cost a fortune!” “Ah, Willow, what value does money hold compared to your happiness?”

Because right now, he couldn’t imagine himself anywhere across all the realms but right here, with Willow tucked securely in his arms.

“I could spend a hundred thousand years walking every realm and never find another soul as beautiful as yours.”

“Do you know how hard it has been to resist you?”

“Do you know how utterly you have consumed me?”

“Do you understand how fiercely I have ye...

“Anyone who hurts you will learn the meaning of pain. I will rend the flesh from their bones with claws and fangs.”

“I’ve yearned for you.”

“Call me a liar, mortal. Call me a fool,” he said, moving the cloth over her sex. He gently pressed down on her clit. Her breath hitched, and he held her gaze. “So long as you call me yours, I don’t care.”

skin. “I was just thinking about your…talented hands.” “I’ve the hands of a musician, considering the songs they coax from you.”

forehead. “No crying, my Violet,” he said, his voice deep and low, his lips caressing her skin as he spoke. “Your tears would bring me to my knees right here, right now.”

“Here. Try it. It won’t steal your soul.” He halted the glass by curling his hand around hers. “It couldn’t possibly. That’s already yours.”

“Never, Willow,” he rasped. “You will never cease to be the most important thing in my universe. Even after the last spark of my soul fizzles out and there’s nothing left of me, you will be my everything.”