Moon Of Misfortunes

Chapter Sixteen: Worship

Rosia left a week ago, declaring that she had business to attend to since the members of the Royal family and High Council had seemly disappeared. She said something about having to oversee the revival of the Kingdom and integration of new leadership before her departure. 

I had fully recovered from all of my injuries while Rubio and I remained within the palace. We were totally unsure what to do now that there was no Council. Should we stay or should we leave? 

At the moment, we were lounging the room, trying to digest what had happened over the course of a week. How did I go from being publicly hanged to being a Lycan practically overnight? What do I do now? Silence hovered over both of us; we were still utterly speechless at that new revelation, to say the least.

I glanced over at Rubio, who appeared to be engrossed in thought. I cleared my throat, which failed to gain any of this attention. His eyes were still fixed forward and his hands were interwoven into a fist, which was placed before his lips and his thumbs cupped his chin. His hair was a mess of chocolate curls and his facial hair had become unruly when compared to his normal clean-cut look.

"Rubio," I spoke out, waking my hand over his line of vision.

"Hm," he hummed out, unphased by my hand waving.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

"But a dollar for your insight," he huffed.

"What are you thinking about, Rubio?"

He inhaled deeply and raked his large hands through his hair. I watched him carefully, as it was the first sign of movement I had seen from him since Rosia left. He avoided my gazed and quickly stood up from the sofa. In a fast few strides, he arrived at the window and just started out. I furrowed my eyebrows roughly, confused due to his change in behaviors. Normally, Rubio was a talker but now seemed too cautious in revealing his thoughts.

I stood up and approached him. The closer I got to him, the tenser his back and shoulders looked. His black shirt was taught, causing the muscles to appear as if they were handmade from marble by a Greek Goddess. I softly placed both hands on his upper back sliding my hands up the ridges of his shoulders and allowing them to rest on his upper arms. He relaxed slightly.

"Why are you so tense? Why won't you even talk to me?"

"What if you are my mate, Adaline? Like a second chance," he sighed.

I stiffened slightly. I adored even the remote possibility of that being true. Rubio sucked in another breath sharply.

"I know it sounds crazy and maybe I am overstepping, but I do feel something towards you."

"Rubio," I began, "I don't think it's crazy. Hell, we might be mates, but we won't know until Nikolai is dead. That could be years from now."

He turned to me sharply and stared at me.

"I can kill him," he said in all seriousness. I groaned at his outburst. Of course, he would offer to do that.

"We can't do that. It wouldn't be right."

"You still think highly of him, even after all of the bullshit he has put you through? Are you serious," he ridiculed, crossing his arms over his broad chest.

"I am over him, trust me. You couldn't even imagine the hardships I've had because of him."

"How could I ever believe that you are over him? You never accepted his rejection. You guys are still mates," he said plainly.

I clutched his face between my palms and smashed my lips onto his. Rubio froze for an instant, unsure of the newly chartered waters we were venturing into. He relaxed and began to fully dive into the kiss. He grasped my waist within his hands. In one greedy moment, he pulled me into the warmth of his body. I could feel his accelerated heartbeat thumping through his strong chest and knocking into mine. Our lips resumed dancing in a low rhythm waltz. I reached for his jaw and began to blindly trace his features until I found my fingers tangled in his mop of hair. He groaned in primal approval before breaking our lip's embrace.

Rubio's eyes explored the depths of green and wildfire of brown of my hazel irises. My hand fell onto the tops of his shoulders. His gaze was intense as if he was searching for permission to proceed with his sudden urges. His eyes flicked between pools of honey and burnt coal as he attempted to contain himself. I leaned into him raising my head past his shoulder. I softly began to nibble on his earlobe.

"Stop holding back," I huffed out by his ear.

Rubio placed his palms on my collarbones and lightly pushed me away from him. He shot me a stern look as he swept strains of my blonde hair away from my features.

"Then accept his rejection," he strained, "what are you holding onto, anymore?"

"I, Adaline Shultz former Luna of the Riverwood Pack, accept the rejection of Alpha Nikolai Emerson of the Riverwood Pack."

A small surge of pain rushed through me and I felt my wolf stir from her depths but it all dissipated within seconds. Rubio gazed at me in disbelief. I don't think he ever expected me to accept Nikolai's rejection because I never uttered the words of acceptance, even after the months of torturous cheating and the loss of my twins. 

"I only want you Rubio, not him."

Rubio nodded in lustful approval. He dipped his stature downward to place his palms on the underside of my thighs; in one swooping motion, he lifted me onto him in a straddling position. He gently took a few steps toward the bed and laid me down on top of the sea of satin. My legs hung loosely against the sides of the bed as he stood in-between my thighs. He stared down at me and grinned. Slowly, he reached his hands behind his neck and, in a single pull, he yanked his shirt off by its collar, dropping it onto the cherry hardwood below. I silently observed Rubio's body; his light caramel skin plummeted in some areas, which only reflected how tone he had become over the years. I was almost obliged to touch him for myself, but before I could make any moves, he had already leaned down and began to grope my thighs, pushing my dress up. I wrapped my legs around his hips and propelled myself upward.

"I have been waiting for this since I first laid my eyes on you." 

Rubio grinned down at me. A single hand reached up and grasped my chin as he leaned down and placed a passionate kiss on my lips. I grabbed for the hem of my charcoal gown and pulled it off of myself, barely suspending our kiss for a second. I threw the gown onto the ground. Soon, I unhooked my bra and Rubio had tugged my underwear onto the floor. He pulled away and observed nakedness of my body.

"Let me look at you," he groaned.

I displayed myself further, causing Rubio to inhale in a breath sharply and hold onto it for a few moments before audibly exhaling. His eyes roamed every centimeter of my body as if he was memorizing it. I shivered underneath his intense gaze. His arms stretched forward allowing his hand to make contact with my left breast. He cupped it softly as he rubbed his thumb over the bud of my nipple before pinching it in-between his fingers and rolling it. I sucked in a breath to suppress a moan.

"You are absolutely remarkable, Adaline," he almost moaned out lowly.

I lunched forward, grabbing the waistband of his pants and ripping them down to the floor. His boxers revealed a bulge that he had been semi concealing behind his dark denim jeans. He leaned down, causing our chests to touch, and kissed me just seconds before I heard him shuffle out of his final remaining article of clothing. He pulled away from me for a bit, presenting his nudity proudly. He smirked at me and then began to speak in a husky voice.

"Fuck, I am going to worship you all night."