Chapter 16 — Doubts in my head

Azazel:

I can’t believe that the woman I’m meant to be with bloody crept away from my room this morning. I woke up hours ago to find my bed empty. I guess I didn’t expect her to run away from me after making love this morning. I rolled over in my bed feeling hard and needy for her, and nearly ripped the room apart when I noticed she wasn’t there. I don’t know how to feel about her departure. Something inside me feels dejected at her easy dismissal of our encounter.

Needless to say, my demon was extremely upset over our mate’s conduct. I cannot believe that I slept so soundly that I did not hear her leave. I am at a loss. I have to presume that the reason why I did not wake is that, for the first time in my immortal existence, I let my guard down. All of these centuries, I’ve looked over my shoulder and guarded my back. I finally find the other half of my soul, and she runs away from me.

Running my hand through my hair in frustration, I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Right now, I’m preparing to go to the club and confront her. It occurred to me that I should have spoken to Zoe earlier, but I was too angry. That’s why I decided to calm down before she and I had words.

Unfortunately, Fallon had to deal with my foul mood this morning. I never thought I’d see Fallon happier than the moment that Mathias called him with some information. Which is saying a great deal about my mood when he’d rather deal with the Council than deal with me. The git rushed out of the room as if the hounds of hell were after him. He texted me earlier and informed me he’d meet me at the club.

I spot my lady the moment I walk into the club. Tonight Zoe’s wearing a short, white servant girl toga dress with gold gladiator sandals. Her legs look incredibly long, and her curvy body tempting from underneath the sheer veil of the dress. I can see the shadow of her nipples and the curves of her breasts underneath her dress. She’s talking quietly to Sahara’s manager and a few of the waitresses. She has yet to notice me, which gives me time to drink in every part of her soft hair, glowing skin, and ocean colored eyes.

Unable to bear another moment of admiring her from afar, I make my way to her and lift her into my arms—fireman style. “Azazel put me down!” She cries out heatedly. The waitresses gape at our retreating forms as I carry her to the locker room. She struggles in my arms, pummeling my back with her small fists. My demon is amused by her attempt at harming us. She’s so small that I barely feel her strikes. However, I don’t leave her unscathed when I settle my hand over her rounded bottom and paddle it with my hand. She squeals in outrage and continues her assaults. All of my senses are attuned to the scent of her arousal. I can smell the sweet rose petal scent of her need. The urge to slide my hand inside her dress and touch her is nearly overwhelming. My demon and I are both aroused at the thought of taking her at that very moment. It consumes me like a sweet fire in my veins.

I step into one of the locker-room showers and close the stall behind me before I let her down. She comes at me, arms flailing. But I don’t let her go. Instead, I take her by the forearms and back her up into the stall. “Stop it, luv, you’re going to hurt yourself.” Her breasts rise and fall with exasperation. “What the hell Azazel? What are you doing?” I shake my head and give her my best glare. “What the bloody hell am I doing? You have some nerve asking me that after you left my bed without a, how do you do. Now answer me, luv. Why did you leave me after what we shared together?”

Zoe shakes her head and opens her mouth in denial. But no words come out. She simply closes her mouth and bites her lip. My eyes home in on her plump, swollen lips with desire. My own lips throb with the need to kiss her. I don’t resist this time. Leaning down, I bite her lower lip gently and utter. “Tell me, luv. Make me understand because I’m going mad with want, and all you do is reject me.” She swallows deeply and closes her eyes for a moment before she whispers. “Let's not get into this, Azazel, because you've rejected me too. To be honest, I don’t know what we’re doing.” Releasing her arms from my soft grip, she turns in the stall and sifts her fingers through her hair with a confused frown. “I don’t even know what you are, Azazel! I don’t know anything.” She cries out in exasperation. “It’s just not possible that I slept with a…” She extends her hand and waves it over me, confused. My nostrils flare at her heated yet perturbed gesture. “…Demon,” I mutter blankly and wait for her reaction. Her eyes flinch, but her body remains still. I have to give her credit for not running away in fear. She exhales a deep breath and places her hand on her neck. “A demon? This is crazy.” She says in disbelief.

My demon rises from the depths of my eyes, ready to prove to our mate that he is here. She stumbles back and leans on the wall for support. “Why are you doing this, Zoe? I was in demon form when we made love last night. I told you that I’d never hurt you.” I reach for her loose hand and lift it to my face. Her arm tenses but doesn’t retract. Her hands look fragile and small under my demon claws. I rub the back of her hand over my jaw and lips to place a soft kiss on her knuckles. “You have me in the palm of your hand, luv. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.” My demon voice blends with my own to make it sound huskier. Her breathing quickens, and her aquamarine eyes become languid. I feel like I’m looking into a mirror.

I slowly release her hand, giving her free reign to caresses my face with her fingers. It feels like she’s memorizing every curve of my face and trying to make sense of it. My demon purrs inside me with every stroke of her silken hand.

I close my eyes, relishing every touch of her warm skin, then open them. They’re no longer glowing, and my claws are gone. All I am now is a man who is desperate for his mate. “I know that your human mind is trying to rationalize this. But I need you to understand that this is who I am.” I say with a hint of pain in my voice. I want to explain to her that what she believes about my kind is inaccurate, but an irrational part of me wants her to accept me regardless of what she thinks she knows about demons.

She takes a deep breath and steps forward as she rests the tips of her fingers over my lips. My mouth tingles at the contact. We’re both now standing close, our breathing erratic as we gaze into each other’s eyes, projecting our need. I place another kiss on her fingers and nip at the tip of one of them. “Kiss me,” I whisper seductively. Her fingers move down my chin until they rest on my neck. I lean down and hover my lips over hers. “Kiss me,” I whisper again. She licks her lips and tilts her head up to kiss my bottom lip. A sigh slips out of my lips as I turn my head and respond to her kiss. Our tongues seek and swirl soothingly. Placing my hand on her neck, I pull her up to her toes and deepen it.

Backing her into the wall, I place my hand on her thigh and lift it over my hip. Our bodies surge together as we grip each other tightly. My hand moves up her thigh, stroking soothingly over her cloth-covered folds. She sighs ecstatically when I swirl a finger over her hard bud and plunge a finger inside her wet heat.

My body hardens at the feel of her body, rubbing and squirming in my arms. I want to rip the sheer dress from her body and plunge inside her warm, quivering folds. Her hands glide down my chest and settle over my zipper, teasing the bulge of my shaft. I close my eyes when the heady scent of her arousal reaches my nose, intoxicating all of my senses.

I move my hands to her hair and wrap them in my fists. Suddenly, the sound of voices erupts inside the room. Several of the gladiators walk by, unaware of our presence in the stall. Zoe flinches back in alarm and gazes at the stall door to see a few shadows pass by. Her eyes widen with panic as she quickly scans the room for a way out.

Adjusting the bulge of my loose sweatpants, I point my thumb towards the door and whisper. “All is well, luv. I will distract them so you can sneak out of the door. Trust me.” She gives me a dubious nod and waits. Giving her a final smoldering glance, I pull her close and give her one last exquisite kiss. “Promise me that you won’t leave without me tonight?” I demand with a scowl. She gives me a reassuring gesture and agrees. “Okay, just hurry up.” I chuckle at her urgent tone and make my way out the stall door.

A few men look up when I make my presence known and nod in greeting. I look around the room and move towards them. “Gentlemen, would you care for a friendly spar before our match?” The men nod their heads in excitement. I assume it’s because they’ve been asking me for sparring sessions for the past two weeks, and I’ve refused. I gesture to the training room near the back of the lockers and signal for them to proceed. “Shall we?” They all nod excitedly and move towards the room, clearing the area. Before I follow behind, I look back at the stall to see Zoe slipping out and wave before she walks out the door.

As I move towards the training area, all I can do is hope that she does not run away from me again. My demon stirs angrily at the thought. For once, we’re in accord that if our mate rejects us, again, we’re going to tie her to our bed and make love to her until she has conceded that we’re the ones that she wants. Bugger me if the mere prospect of that type of confrontation does not exhilarate us.