It is selfish of me to refuse her soul and force her to continue living. Perhaps it is selfish of me to continue living in the shadows as she goes through her day with reality nowhere in her mind. I can take her pain away, but I won’t. Not until she decides to live and she chooses to want me, not for what I can give her, but for who I am.
I leave her for a moment to return to her room while she continues to stare blankly at her phone. Shadows morph and flicker in front of me like a ravenous cloud, until a rolled parchment is floating in the middle of the air.
The hard paper is so insignificant in my hand. It is difficult to believe that something so small has the ability to bring out emotions in her so strong that it shakes her soul, be it rage, joy or even fear.
I lower myself next to the pile that she created and hide the letter beneath a crimson petal. Lilith deserves more than roses or lilies. Would diamonds suffice?
The shadows form once again. A wad of cash appears in the air, held together by a silver money clip with a raven embossed on it.
Her brown bag sits on top of her desk, frayed and peeling, looking as if the handle will snap any second. I hide the money inside with another letter telling her to get something for herself. She never does.
The black bag I made for her is hidden at the back of her closet—the woman’s bag that Lilith complimented. As is the winter coat that I made her. Same with the leather boots. Lilith has never knowingly worn anything I’ve given her—not until the necklace that she still hasn’t taken off. She couldn’t take it off if she tried, though it appears that she hasn’t figured that out yet. There is no clasp, and I have made sure that the thin chain will never break.
However, my little storm has been wearing things that I have made without her even knowing. Replacing the same thing that she has, only better: her jacket now has extra stuffing to keep her warm, the zipper of her jeans no longer catches, and contrary to her belief, she has not gotten over her allergy of cheap metals, for all her jewelry is now made of silver.
Now that she wears my necklace, perhaps she will begin wearing more of my gifts.
What has this Evan gotten her in the year and a half I have watched her? Some voucher to a diner that didn’t even cover Lilith’s meal? Harsh words when she can’t provide his fix?
The phone chimes again, and from another room, I can hear her sigh, followed by the sound of her phone clattering on the bench. My sad flower walks back into her room, gaze distant and devoid of emotion—until her mask breaks when she looks at the rose petals. She sucks in her bottom lip as her cheeks turn bright pink.
I smirk, knowing exactly what it is that she’s thinking about.
Her head tips to the side as she edges closer to the petals, clearly seeing the latest addition to the pile. I move closer to her and smile, smelling my scent all over her. Does she truly not notice that her robe feels different?
Lilith stands back up and unrolls the letter with hesitant fingers. Her cheeks are no longer a soft pink but a deep red.
She sucks in a sharp breath as she reads it.
Now that I have had a taste of you, I will never let you go. We will be united soon, my storm.
My dark love can tell herself that last night was just a dream. She can fool herself into believing that she has never felt the touch of my lips or the feel of my fingers inside of her. She can even try to forget it.
I never will.
Neither will she, however hard she tries.
She’ll convince herself that my note has a different meaning, that I might have done something without her knowing. But she was a very willing participant, and I bet a thousand souls to say that she wants her dream to happen again.
I step behind her, letting her feel my presence. I press against the shell of her ear and whisper, “You’re mine.”
Lilith freezes in her spot like a deer caught in headlights. Her breaths turn erratic as I skim my finger along the outside of her thigh. When I reach the place where my soul’s hand marked her skin, her eyelids flutter and her body relaxes into mine ever so slightly.
I follow the curve of her behind until I reach her aching heat. “Are you wet for me, my love?
A response isn’t required, because her entire being shudders when I slip my fingers beneath her underwear. As I thought, she’s wet just because of me. Moisture coats my finger as I run it through her seam.
Her excitement was so potent when my soul joined our fun last night. Did she imagine that it was my cock instead of my fingers? Did she wonder what it would feel like to be filled with two cocks at the same time? She will scream in both pain and pleasure, but will her eyes roll to the back of her head? Will her own fingers traverse the planes of her body before finding purchase on her clit and rubbing it until she no longer knows the difference between life and death?
She feels so right in my hands—soaked and trembling. Fuck, she has no idea how much she drives me mad, blind with need. I have craved her for so long that to finally have her is the most otherworldly experience.
“Please,” she whispers.
Being here with her, skin to skin, soul to soul, is invigorating. Last night we were both split in half, partly here and partly in the place where I wanted to worship her. Not true skin to skin, but soul to soul. We felt each other in the way that mattered.
I run my nose along the column of her neck, breathing in deeply. “Your words.”
Her breath catches like it does every time. I slip a finger inside of her and a soft moan leaves her lips that I want to capture and have on repeat forever. Her arms stay locked at her sides while the rest of her melts into me at the smallest touch.
My fingers aren’t enough, I need to feel her whole body quake on my cock as I give her all the pleasure that she deserves.
“Words,” I warn.
She blinks rapidly as I start picking up my momentum. “What—” she hiccups when I thumb her clit, moving in slow circles that draw bliss and agony all over her features. She’s practically riding my hand, and her hypnotic groan makes me add another finger for her to wind herself upon. Her legs shake like she wants to take my fingers deeper as if she needs to be stretched even more than she was last night. “What do you want from me?”
My night monster doesn’t wish to deny me. Does she know that she’s mine already? Has she submitted to me at last?
The curve of her body is pressed so perfectly against mine. Hell could come between us, and I still wouldn’t move.
I massage her heavy breasts as she trembles for more—more of the pleasure that only I can give her. She’s so breathtaking. Vulnerable and needy. Dark brown hair tickles my hand as I mark my claim over her swollen flesh. How have I gone a thousand lifetimes without this pleasure? How have I kept my hands away from her for so long?
“My dear Lilith, I told you already. I want everything.”
I bite the soft skin of her neck and remove myself from her to hide once more, leaving her hunched over and gasping for breath.
I am a selfish lover. I have given her everything she needs without asking, but I will not give her what she wants unless the words come from her pink lips.
She snaps upright, turning furiously as if I’m not standing right in front of her. The floorboards creak as she storms out into the living area, then the kitchen, as if I might be hiding in the pantry.
Leaving her in a state such as this pains me just as much as it pains her. When her pussy pulsed on my fingers as she came, I knew there was nothing else in this world that could compare.
Lilith belongs to me, wholly and completely. And when the day comes that I claim her, every breath that she takes will belong to me.
She crushes the letter in her hand as she whips open one of the drawers to pull out the orange plastic bottle.
My body tenses as I watch her put one of the pills between her teeth, then flush it down with water.
“Soon,” I promise even though she cannot hear me.
Because soon, Lilith will be all mine.
Chapter six
Lilith