Chapter 64: Chapter 64

IRIS

“Avery… Look at me,” I panted. My whisper was barely more than a breath, tender and yet full of urgency.

His cheek lay heavy in my hand, warm and wet with tears he could no longer hold back. He bit his lips together and pressed his eyelids tightly shut, as if he could prevent me from seeing his pain.

“Please…” I added, caressing his cheekbone with my thumb.

Slowly, as if he was struggling, he lifted his eyelids. His eyes met mine, and it felt like I was looking into an abyss just as deep as my own.

His pain pulsated between us, as tangible as if it were my own. I could feel his heartbeat under my fingertips, each throb an echo in my own chest.

“Do you remember the first time we met?” I asked softly.

His brows drew together, a fleeting twitch, but I felt it—the memory rising in him. The first time he saw me.

The way his gaze devoured me as if I were a miracle he couldn’t grasp. How he watched me while I admired him, silent, breathless, as if the world had stopped turning for a moment.

“You are the reason I smiled again…” I said, my voice breaking under the weight of my emotions. “The reason why I found peace again. Because of you, I found family… And friends. A future.”

Avery’s eyes roamed over my face, searching, as if he still doubted the truth of my words. But then his gaze lingered on mine, and I saw it—the unwavering affection that continued to shine in him despite all the darkness.

“Everything’s better with you…” I whispered.

“Everything’s better since you… I’m so incredibly happy to have you. You’ve got the purest soul I’ve ever known. My time with you has healed my broken heart… and I love every moment by your side,” I added.

My fingers clutched tighter into his robe, as if I’d fall off otherwise. “If soulmates were a choice… I’d still choose you. Every single day. In every lifetime… Every time you. Because I love you, Avery,” I said.

A sob escaped my throat, and his tears flowed freely now, glittering in the dim light like broken stars. “I will always love you…” I breathed.

“Till the day I die. And when death takes me… I promise you that I will find you. In every life,” I said firmly.

His arms wrapped around me, pulling me so tightly against him that I felt his heartbeat against my ribs. Wild, violent, as if it wanted to escape from his chest.

His breath was hot against my neck. His hands trembled.

“I love you…” he whispered, his voice rough from suppressed tears.

“I treasure you. I have faith in you. I admire you, Iris… And I feel so blessed to have a mate like you,” he replied.

I closed my eyes and pressed my forehead against his. “I’m so sorry Timorax used your love for me against you… That you fell because of me,” I whispered.

His fingers stroked gently over my back, soothing, calming. He left a trail of kisses over my neck.

“Loving you never felt like falling…” he mumbled against my skin.

“My heart has been waiting for you for so long. You are not just my life, Iris… You are the peace in my chaos. The home I didn’t even realize I missed,” he said.

His voice broke, and he hugged me tighter, as if I might otherwise disappear. “Even when Timorax possessed me… in my every thought, in the dark dungeon of my being… you were the only sunshine,” he whispered in my ear.

I dared to look at him—and all I could find in his eyes was this unwavering, tender love that left me breathless.

“My heart will always find its way to you…” he whispered.

Then his lips were on mine, not demanding, not greedy, but slow, as if he wanted to hold on to every moment. A kiss that shattered all shadows, erasing all memories of pain and loss.

His hands clutched at me as if I were his anchor in a stormy sea, and I returned the kiss with the same desperation, the same devotion. Then he opened my mouth with his, slowly, almost questioningly, and I surrendered to him, let him dive deeper, let him feel every breath, every tremor inside me.

His tongue brushed against mine, not aggressively, but tenderly, exploring, as if he wanted to memorize every part of me. A low moan escaped his throat, and his fingers clawed into my back as if he needed to make sure that I was really there.

That this wasn’t a dream. That we had survived Timorax.

When we finally parted, his breathing remained uneven, his forehead pressed to mine once more. Avery’s eyes were closed, his lashes wet, and I could see his lips quivering.

Not out of weakness, but out of an emotion too big to contain. “I missed you so much,” I dared to say.

Avery’s eyes opened, and I saw my reflection in his violet eyes. No trace of doubt anymore… no fear dragging him into the depths.

“I know, baby,” he replied before his lips landed on mine again.

This time it wasn’t a soft kiss. He took what he was so greedy for.

I let out a moan as his hands slid into my hair. “You and me… we’ll love each other forever,” he said between passionate kisses.

My fingers clawed into his hair, holding him closer—not begging, not asking, but with a demanding longing that robbed me of my breath. Lust spread through me, hot and numbing, and I could feel it devouring every thought, every spark of sanity inside me.

Avery moaned softly, a dark, vibrating sound that cut straight to my core. The certainty flooded through our mate-bond; he knew how much I wanted him.

He sensed it as if my desire were his own. Then he got up, with an effortless grace.

Before I could even form a thought, I wrapped my legs around his hips, clinging to him as if he were my only support in this world. His hands gripped me, firmly, possessively, and I felt his fingers digging into my flesh as if he wanted to absorb me forever.

“I want you so badly,” I confessed, my voice hoarse with desire.

A slow smirk spread on his lips as he smiled into the kiss. “I know,” he whispered against my mouth. “I can’t just feel it… I can smell it.”

His own thoughts were flooding through me. My desire was like an addiction to him; with every second, it only grew stronger.

Everything about me attracted him… my smell… my body… my voice. Avery was a mess, just like me.

Then he laid me on the bed, gently yet with unmistakable determination. His purple aura burst out of him, enveloping me like a second skin, but this time it was different.

More intense. More powerful.

It pulsated around us as if it were distorting the room itself, and I felt it creeping under my skin, making me glow from the inside out.

His hands glided over my body, as if they wanted to memorize every inch. Slowly, almost reverently, he pushed the fabric of my clothes aside, exposing me piece by piece.

Every touch left a purple shimmer on my skin, as if his magic was marking me, cleansing me. He pulled the clothes over my hips, running his fingers over the exposed skin, and I trembled under his touch.

The tension between us was electric, as if every contact sent a spark flying.

Then I was lying naked in front of him, and his eyes were burning—not just with desire, but with something fierce.

“You’re so beautiful,” he murmured as his hand roamed over my hip. “So damn beautiful.”

My skin was aflame wherever he touched me, as if he was lifting the burden from my soul and replacing it with pure, unfiltered ecstasy. I could feel my muscles tense, goosebumps creeping over my body—not from the cold, but from the overwhelming closeness of him.

His breath was hot as he bent over me, his lips exploring my neck.

“Patience’s never been your strong suit, has it?” he asked.

Avery’s voice was low, rough with desire. My trembling fingers tugged impetuously at his robe. An addictive smile played around his lips as he looked at me—so greedily, so desperately for him.

With a few purposeful movements, he slipped the last piece of fabric off himself, and suddenly he was kneeling naked in front of me, in all his breathtaking, unmistakable perfection.

My breath caught in my throat. Every line of his body was chiseled, the broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist, the defined muscles playing under his skin as if they were alive.

His gaze burned into me, dark and full of promise as I ran my tongue across my suddenly dry lips.

~Please ... take me~, I thought.

The thought flashed through my head unfiltered, and his reaction was immediate. His pupils dilated, almost black with lust, as he heard my unspoken plea.

A deep, guttural growl escaped his chest, and in one fluid motion, he was on top of me—his heat, his weight, his desire bearing down on me as if I already possessed him.

“You don’t have to ask, darling,” he whispered, his lips only a breath away from mine.

“I’m already yours. Every breath I take. Every beat of my heart. Everything... I won’t let go of you... Not today... Not in a thousand years,” he added.

His body shifted between my legs, which were instinctively open to him—no resistance, just demanding yielding. His hips pressed against me as he leaned over me, resting his forearms on the bed on either side of my head.

Not hard enough to crush me, but enough for me to feel every tense muscle. The warmth of his skin, the silent trembling in his arms as he held back—everything so utterly perfect.

His breath hit my mouth. No kiss yet, just the hint of one.

It was a game that made me thirsty.

Then he finally lunged for my lips, not gently, but greedily, as if he had been waiting for this for months. He sucked on my bottom lip, gently sinking his teeth into it.

I bit back, feeling his lips against my mouth while his hands explored my body. Not caressing, but demanding, like he wanted to possess me completely.

Avery breathed deeply and closed his eyes.

And when he opened them, I saw again that sparkling purple with golden sparkles around his dilated pupils.

“You smell so good,” he whispered.

His face was even more beautiful in the soft moonlight. So beautiful, so masculine.

He groaned when he heard my thoughts. His own were blurred with images of our bodies entwined.

His lips crashed against mine, the passion between us literally burning on our lips.

Avery’s body was so warm, so smooth with every touch.

A soft moan escaped me as I felt him pressing his dick against my entrance. He uttered a soft whimper as he felt how wet I was for him.

“So ready for me,” he breathed out, his warm breath hitting my lips. “But this time... I will make love to you so deeply... you will feel every second of how much I have missed you.”