The Forgotten Heiress novel Chapter 84

He groaned when he found it and groaned again when she didn't push him away.

She released her hold on his shirt and raised her hands to bury them in his hair. She kissed him with desperation, trembling with violent emotion, and held on to him as if he was the only thing anchoring her to sanity.

Christian's hands lowered to her rib cage and they tightened around her for a second; he was rocked by her reaction to his kiss. His desperation mirroring hers, he kissed her, nipping at her lips; tasting her tears.

When they finally broke apart, they were both gasping for air.

Dani hid her face in the crook of his neck; he buried his face in her hair, reveling in her scent, and whispered, "I would have stayed if I'd known, I never would have left. God, Dani, I would have stayed."

Dani stiffened, upon his declaration. "It doesn't matter anymore."

His arms tightened around her. "It does matter. I should have been there."

Dani pushed herself away from him and Christian reluctantly let her go. She straightened in her seat, pulled the visor down and repaired, as best she could, the damage her tears and their kiss had caused. She didn't really care about her appearance; she only needed those moments to get her emotions back under control.

"It doesn't matter," she reinstated. She looked at him without emotion, as if their kissed had meant no more than a hello from a passerby, as if he was a total stranger.

A stranger and not her mate.

"I'm moving on with my life," she continued. "And like I told Nick, so is Jessica. This was all a mistake we all need to move on. Forget about each other, forget we ever meant anything to each other and find someone else."

"We mate for life," Christian reminded her. "You'll be the only one I will ever want."

His declaration made her heart skip a beat but she refused to be moved. Once burned twice shy.

"I am not one of your kind." Dani took a deep breath and, knowing he could sense a lie, added with all the conviction she could muster, "and I don't want you."

Christian hid his pain behind a smile, it was an automatic reaction; he couldn't let her see just how much her words gutted him. "I know how to change your mind if you want to give it a try." He wagged his eyebrows. "Just say the words."

"You will never change." Dani shook her head. "It's all a joke to you. But I'm no longer your toy; maybe you should stop playing games and grow up."

"You were never a game."

Dani let out a sound of frustration. "We are going in circles again." She buckled up, turned on the ignition but, and faced forward, her hands on the steering wheel. "Get out. I have nothing else to say to you."

"Fine, let's not talk about us. Let's talk about Jessica, we need to find her, she's in danger-"

"Ha!"

As a mood lightener it fell flat but Axel was disconcerted; Christian's grave countenance was out of character. He could count with one hand the times he remembered Christian being this somber. In fact every time it had to do with the mystery girl...

Axel did a double take and glanced at Christian. "Is that her?"

Christian stiffened but didn't turn to look at him. "Drop it."

It was answer enough.

From previous experience, Axel knew that prying would get him nowhere and decided to change the subject. "So what are we going to tell Nick?"

Christian turned to look out the passenger window and exhaled a deep breath filled with frustration. "The same thing we keep telling him, no dice."

"He doesn't look good. Do you think it's true?" Axel asked. "What they say, that you can die without your mate?"

"It's not true." He told him in a dead tone.

But every breath you take makes you wish it was, he added to himself.