Chapter 35: 35: Relief

My stomach was a mess of fluttering butterflies as I ran out the front door of my apartment building barefoot, searching for my mate.

“Grayson?” I yelled. Tears were streaming down my cheeks, and, for the first time in months, it wasn’t because I was sad.

My heart raced in my chest when I couldn’t find him. “Grayson!” I yelled a bit louder, not caring if anybody around me heard.

A sudden burst of wind and a blur of movement in front of me made me jump back and scream. When I opened my eyes, I met Grayson’s dark-red ones with a gasp.

“What’s wrong?” he demanded, scanning my form. “What is it? Are you hurt?”

I didn’t think about it before launching myself into his arms.

He stumbled back a few steps, obviously not expecting my abrupt attack. For a second, he just stood there, his massive chest rising and falling with small growls against me.

I was almost afraid I had jumped to conclusions too quickly, but then he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me closer to him.

And I burst into tears. With my arms around his neck and my face stuffed into his chest, I let all of my emotions free. And then I pulled his face to mine and kissed him soundly.

Grayson growled against my mouth, tugging me closer.

He pulled away after a few seconds. “Belle,” Grayson groaned, his forehead pressing against mine. “Don’t cry. Please don’t cry, love.”

“I can’t help it,” I replied, nuzzling my face into his chest once again, taking in his spicy scent that I had missed so much.

I smiled up at him, wiping my tears away the best I could. “I just really missed you.” I paused.

“And I’m really glad you’re not an evil vampire anymore. That really—” I took in a deep shuddering breath. “That really sucked.”

His jaw tightened. “You…believe me?” He seemed to hold his breath as he waited for me to answer.

I nodded, cupping the side of his face, the tips of my fingers running through his hair. “I believe you. I believe you, Grayson.”

His mouth split into a huge, breathtaking grin. “Thank God,” he whispered, searching my eyes. “Thank God.”

I expected him to kiss me again, but he didn’t. Instead, he swept me off my feet, pulling me chest to chest, wrapping my legs and arms around his huge, muscular form.

The only reason I didn’t fall was because of his hands supporting me beneath my butt.

“Kyle. Go home,” Grayson grunted.

I whirled my head around. I hadn’t even realized Kyle had also exited my apartment and was watching us from the doorway.

“I just got here!” Kyle complained.

“Kyle doesn’t need to go. I want to catch up with him, too,” I argued.

Grayson didn’t reply. He was already walking in the opposite direction, taking me with him.

“Wait!” I shouted, looking back at Grayson’s poor beta, who he was leaving behind. “What about Kyle? We can’t just leave him after he came all the way here!”

Grayson’s reply was two words, growled and low and leaving no room to argue. “Don’t care.”

I glared at him, ready to keep arguing. I just decided to forgive him, and this was how he wanted to act?

I gasped when Kyle suddenly appeared right behind us. I hadn’t even seen him move.

Sensing his presence, Grayson turned and bared his teeth at him threateningly. He gripped me to his body so tightly that I was almost worried he would start bruising me soon.

“Whoa, there,” Kyle said, taking several steps back. He bared his neck. “I meant the Luna no harm, Alpha.”

“Put me down, Grayson,” I demanded, wiggling in his arms.

Grayson growled yet again and then buried his face into my neck. He started to suck on my mark.

I gasped. “Grayson!” I pushed at his shoulders even as my body lit up with pleasurable flames. “Stop it!” My face bloomed with heat at Kyle witnessing this.

“It’s all right, Luna,” Kyle said, trying to comfort me. “Now that you’ve given into the bond, he’s going to be like this for a while. Possessive and only worried about making sure you’re okay.

“He’ll only get mad if I stay.”

“So you’re leaving?” I asked, trying to ignore the man who was sucking on my neck like some sort of leech.

Kyle shrugged. “Someone has to take care of the pack.”

Grayson started to walk away before Kyle had even finished his sentence. I glanced away for a single second to see where Grayson was taking me, and when I looked back, Kyle was gone.

I searched for him, but he was nowhere to be seen.

I sighed and leaned my head on Grayson’s shoulder, giving up. A small smile appeared on my lips when he started to purr.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“Hotel,” Grayson growled.

“But my apartment is right back there. Why don’t we just go there?”

“I’m never fucking allowing you to go back to that bullshit apartment ever again.”

I leaned back in his arms so I could look at him. “You’re never ~allowing ~me?” I repeated.

He nodded, not even bothering to respond. Then his hand gently gripped the back of my head and led my face into his neck. “Keep your eyes shut tight, baby, okay?”

“Why?” I asked, my lips moving against his skin as I spoke, causing sparks to shoot all the way to my toes.

“Just keep your eyes closed and trust me.”

And then he started running. I could feel the wind whipping around us, and for a second, I thought he might have put us on some sort of vehicle based on how fast we were moving.

I made the mistake of peeking over his shoulder. That was when I realized what was really happening.

Grayson must have been using his newfound vampire powers to run faster than I was even able to comprehend.

I shrieked and tightened my hold around his neck.

Grayson’s huge hand automatically clamped onto the back of my head and pressed my face down into his neck, blocking my view of the world flashing past us as he continued to run.

I could feel the vibrations of his purrs starting against my chest, although I couldn’t hear them due to the wind in my ears. He shushed me soothingly, one of his hands petting up and down my spine, trying to calm me.

Mere seconds later, we were standing in front of a door. A hotel door. My breathing was ragged, still shocked by what had just happened.

“Did I scare you? I didn’t mean to, I promise,” Grayson said, gently brushing my messy wind-blown hair from my face.

I looked up at him. “Maybe a little,” I admitted softly, still breathing heavily. “New vampire powers?”

He nodded. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t wait any longer to make sure you were taken care of.” He pulled out a key card from his pocket, then let us in.

“When did you get a hotel room?” I asked him as he carried me inside.

“Three days ago. When I found you.”

It was a nice room, reminding me of the one we had stayed in while in Paris, only not nearly as large.

It didn’t have a kitchen or multiple floors, but it did have a living room with a large dining table and two rooms connected to it.

Grayson brought me over to the table and set me down. He kept his body between my spread legs so he was pressed up firmly against me. My cheeks heated at the intimate position.

“Come here,” Grayson said, tucking his hand under my chin and leading my lips to his. I sighed in pleasure.

He kissed me thoroughly and passionately, successfully taking my breath away and making my entire body tingle.

“God, I’ve missed you. I’ve missed you so fucking much,” he spoke when he finally pulled away minutes later.

“I’m never letting you out of my sight ever again. It would take the Moon Goddess herself to ever take me away from you. Even then, I would fight like hell.”

I smiled up at him, feeling at peace for the first time in an extremely long time. “I’m okay with that.”

I hadn’t even realized I was crying until Grayson frowned and wiped one of my stray tears with his thumb.

“Why are you crying?” He leaned his forehead down against mine. “I can’t stand seeing you cry. I can’t stand that it’s me who keeps making you cry.”

I shook my head. “I’m just happy. They’re happy tears.”

His nostrils flared slightly. “I still don’t like it. I’m going to fix everything. I promise. You’ll never have to cry ever again.”

And he kissed me again.