Chapter 22

"Decebel?" Jennifer's voice was hoarse, like it hadn't been used in a while.

Decebel thought he might be hallucinating, but then remembered that he didn't care. He had thrown rationality out the door.

"Jennifer." Decebel opened his arms to reach for her, but before he could get there, she flung herself into them. She pulled him so tight against her.

"Are you -" He tried to pull back so he could look at her. "Are you real?"

Jen snorted a laugh. "Do you want me to show you how real I am, big guy?"

Decebel smiled and stroked her face. "You are, aren't you? But -" He stumbled over his words as he stared at the woman he thought he had lost for good. "You came back to me."

"Nothing could keep me from you, Decebel. Not even death."

He took her face in his hands and kissed her deeply, then he picked her up and sat her in his lap, lowering himself onto the bed. When he finally pulled back all he could do was stare at her, stroke her cheek, her hair. He leaned his head around to her side where the dress she still wore revealed her markings. They were there, unchanged. Decebel ran his fingers across them and pulled her tight. "Mine," he whispered in her ear.

"Always." She kissed him on the nose and giggled when he returned the gesture.

"I can't believe you're alive." And over and over as he kissed any part he could reach or touch, he whispered, "I love you. You're mine. I'm never letting you go."

Jen let him hold her and do the things he needed to reassure himself that she really was here, in his lap, breathing. She could imagine what it must have been like for him to watch her die and then to realize he had lost his mate, his other half.

Finally, when he seemed to have calmed down and gathered himself, she stroked his face as she looked at him.

"Shouldn't we go tell the others that I'm not dead?"

Decebel nuzzled her neck and kissed the spot where he had bitten her. "I'm not ready to share you just yet." He kissed her neck again and Jen flinched.

"Why does that hurt?"

Decebel actually looked guilty. "I kind of bit you."

Jen narrowed her eyes. "'Kind of' bit me? How do you 'kind of' bite someone, fur ball?"

"I didn't want you to go to the other side not bearing my mark. And I wanted to taste you." he confessed reluctantly. "You're my mate, my wife. I couldn't let you go without having a part of you in me. At least for the little time I was going to be here. I planned to follow you within a matter of days."

Jen gasped. "What? What are you talking about?"

"I won't live without you. I can't. I'm dangerous without you. I would have killed anyone, Jennifer, ANYONE - Jacque, Sally, Vasile - if they had tried to take your body from me. Do not look at me with anger, love. I would be protecting the world from my wrath."

Jen could see that Decebel was really hurting by her reaction. She didn't want to be the cause for anymore of his pain.

"I'm sorry, baby, I didn't realize." Jen ran her fingers through his hair and pressed her cheek to his. "I won't live without you either. I do not hold it against you."

Decebel let out a deep breath. His hand ran up her bare back, reminding him of what she had worn to their bonding ceremony.

"Baby?"

"Hmm?" Jen nuzzled closer and Decebel closed his eyes, letting his senses take over and fill him with his mate.

"Why is half your dress missing?"

Jen chuckled. "I figured it would give you less to have to take off."

Decebel growled and she felt the vibrations in his chest.

"I would have missed that so much." Jen ran her hand up his chest and curled it around the nape of his neck.

"Missed what, love?"

"The growly, chest rumble thing."

Decebel chuckled. "I will do the growly, chest rumble thing anytime you want."

Jen smiled. "I will hold you to that, you know. So, if we're standing in line somewhere and I suddenly have the urge to cuddle, you better be ready to rumble away."

Decebel pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"I really don't want to open that door. I want to keep you in here with me. I want to finish the Blood Rites - with you alive this time," he said pointedly.

Jen leaned back so she could look into his eyes. "We aren't opening that door until the Blood Rites are complete. The other can wait, but not the Blood Rites."

Jen pulled the neck of her dress down over her shoulder and leaned her head back to give Decebel access.

He growled and his grip on her tightened. As he leaned forward Jen felt his tongue run across her skin and then a sharp pain that was gone as quickly as it had come. She wrapped her arm around his neck, holding him tightly to her. She had expected some pain, maybe not horrible pain, but at least some. This felt...good. She knew that Jacque had said that the exchange was intimate, but she never explained the immense pleasure that also came with it. A breathy moan escaped Jen's lungs as she felt Decebel pull her closer. His mouth was warm and, though firmly attached to her, gentle. When he began to pull back Jen was completely unashamed when she whispered to her mate, "Don't stop."

Decebel chuckled. "We aren't blood suckers, baby. We only take enough to complete the Rites and leave our mark."

"Well, if it feels like that when the blood suckers do their thing, then we are seriously underestimating the value of being a blood sucker." Jen's head lulled back on her neck as Decebel licked the bite clean.

"Are you alright?" he asked her gently.

Jen grinned. "Better than alright."

Decebel kissed her. "Are you ready?"

She nodded, then asked, "I have to actually bite you this time, don't I?"

"Yes, love. Just let your instincts guide you."

Jen turned in his lap so that she was facing him with her legs wrapped around him. Decebel raised an eyebrow at her.

"What? This is just more comfortable than turning my neck." Her eyes were wide with innocence, but Decebel saw the slight smirk on her lips.

Jen leaned back slightly as Decebel grabbed the hem of his sweater and pulled it over his head. She tried not to drool on her mate when she looked over his ridiculously toned body. The markings that covered the right side of his chest, shoulder, and arm, all the way up his neck, were undeniably sexy. Jen was forced out of ogling when Decebel cleared his throat.

"Like what you see?" He waggled his eyebrows at her.

"Like is putting it mildly," she admitted boldly. The look in Decebel's eyes grew intense and Jen felt a shiver run down her spine.

"Complete the Blood Rites, my love," Decebel whispered as he turned his head, baring his neck to her.

Jen leaned into him, holding one side of his neck with one hand and bracing herself on his shoulder with the other. She breathed in his scent and when her lips touched his skin, she felt his breathing quicken. She kissed his neck and then opened her mouth. Something deep inside her stirred. Like when she awoke in the morning and stretched, so she felt her wolf awakening and stretching. Then her focus became her mate. Jen felt her teeth lengthen - she wanted to be a little shocked at that moment, but the wolf that had been buried deep inside her had one thing on her mind and that was to mark their mate, to complete this age-old dance of their kind.

She opened her mouth wider and struck. Her teeth sunk into his flesh with no resistance. She felt warmth and wetness flow into her mouth and Decebel's arms wrapped around her, one hand resting just inside her dress over her marks, the other at the nape of her neck, holding her to him. As if she was going anywhere.

Jen couldn't believe how good he tasted. Sweet, but indescribably so. She sunk her teeth deeper and heard Decebel chuckle.

"Greedy little thing, aren't you?" He tugged on her hair gently as he spoke. "Jennifer, baby, it's enough."

Jen pulled back and, as he had done, licked the bite mark. She was grinning from ear to ear when she opened her eyes and looked at him.

"What are you smiling about, beautiful?"

"That was freaking awesome."

Decebel chuckled at her and gently rubbed her back. They were sitting quietly, enjoying each other, holding each other, when suddenly Jen felt a pull inside of her. Her eyes opened wide as the void that had been present since Rachel had severed their bond was suddenly filled with pulsing light.

Jen could feel their bond knitting itself back together and her eyes met Decebel's - their connection was restored.

"Decebel?"

He pulled her close, breathing her scent in.

"I hear you, baby. I feel you."

Jen let out a huge sigh of relief as she slumped against him and began to feel whole again.

"Do you feel it? The bond?"

"Yes," he answered. "I can feel your presence in my mind."

Jen felt nearly intoxicated with emotions as her own mingled with Decebel's. She smiled at him and whispered, "Let's do it again."

Decebel's brow furrowed. "Do what again?"

"You know, the biting and what not." Jen grinned wickedly. "I can only imagine it's probably way more intense when you can feel each other's feelings. I think, as my mate, you owe me the most wonderful Blood Rites experience ever."

Decebel was shaking his head, a smile across his face. "We can't do it again, love. Everyone needs to know you're alive and I -"

Before he could continue, Jen interrupted him with a frown. "Don't you dare tell me you have a headache."

Without thinking, Decebel threw his head back and laughed. His body was shaking and Jen had to wrap her arms around him to keep from falling off his lap.

He continued to laugh while she glared at him.

When the door was thrown open, Decebel's laugh cut off abruptly and - in a movement born into him as a wolf - he instinctively pushed Jen behind him and took up a protective stance in front of her.

Jen leaned forward to whisper in his ear, "Now look what you did. And don't think I won't forget you denying me. Remember, my sweet mate, payback's a bitch." Jen sent him an image of what she had in mind and laughed when Decebel snarled.

*"Quit distracting me, woman."*