The kiss had put all of Kyren's senses into overdrive.
He was feeling everything and nothing all at once. He was hyper aware of his hand on Lira's waist and her hands on his chest.
It was like there were hot coals on the parts of his body touching Lira. He was searching his scrambled brain for adequate words when Lira kissed him again, harder this time.
He fought to match her intensity. He relished the feeling of her soft velvety lips on his and her soft body against his own.
Lira slid her hands down to the top of his jeans, earning a groan from Kyren. She lifted his shirt up and took it off.
She moved forward and he moved backwards until he fell on the bed with Lira on top of him.
Kyren's pulse quickened as he saw Lira remove her tank top in the dim lighting. It quickened even more as he caught sight of her full mounds.
Kyren growled as he flipped her over and straddled her, leaning closer to her neck.
'This is it!' Lira thought in a mix of fear and anticipation.
Kyren's lips trailed from the base of her neck to her jaw and right back, leaving a smoldering trail.
"Kyren," Lira shuddered. "Mark me please."
Suddenly Kyren jumped off of the bed like a bucket of cold water had been poured on him. He started groping around in the dark for his discarded t-shirt.
"Kyren?" Lira called out felling confused and a bit chilly without the warmth of his body.
"This isn't right. Go to your room Lira." Kyren sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Not right? How? We're mates." Lira protested.
Kyren remained silent and continued his difficult search for his shirt while avoiding eye contact with the bed and the person on it.
It would be less tedious if he turned the light on but Kyren currently couldn't bear that.
"You don't want to mark me?" Lira demanded.
Kyren exhaled heavily in frustration. "Yes. That's exactly it"
"But why?" Lira got off the bed and moved towards him. "Mark me Kyren. You have to."
If he marked her, then their bond would be stronger. And a stronger bond meant that Kyren might be a little less averse to dying.
"I don't have to do anything." Kyren grabbed a piece of cloth but it was just Lira's tank top. Even better. He flung it at her.
"How could I possibly mark a Moonborne?" Kyren snapped. "There's your shirt. Please leave."
Lira glared at him as she put it on and he could feel it. "Fucking coward!" she spat as she left.
Lira knew what Kyren felt when they were on that bed.
Possessiveness so raw that something as flimsy as being different species couldn't have stopped him.
He has probably resigned himself to death and doesn't want her getting weaker because of their bond after he dies. She had hoped that he wouldn't realize it.
In the guest room downstairs, Lira couldn't sleep.
Aside from the pain of rejection still being fresh in her mind, she just couldn't seem to forget Kyren's lips.
They were surprisingly soft. She brought her fingertips to her lips and shuddered. Then she rolled her eyes and sat on the bed.
Lira looked at the folded piece of paper on the desk.
The letter from Silverstone.
The guest room would be her home until the damaged part of the temple is rebuilt. All of her stuff had already been brought here.
Her clothes and the overnight bag she took to see her father. The closet was bare except for her ceremonial white dress was hanging in there.
Alpha David was annoyingly persistent.
Speaking of which, he wasn't home yet. Lira hadn't sensed him.
One of the perks of being a Moonborne is the ability to sense creatures through their aura even if they mask their scent.
Just then an idea popped into her head. She decided to run away again.
This time it wasn't out of hopelessness or feeling weak, it was to protect her big, dumb, pig-headed mate Kyren. She would do as Priscilla said and stay away from all alphas.
She grabbed a backpack from the corner of the room and started shoving clothes into it. Then she realized folding them would be more productive and started over. She crept out and went to the kitchen for rations.
She felt bad about stealing from Kyren's family but she was sure they would understand.
After all, who wouldn't want the honor of helping the Moonborne on her journey to restore the moonstone?
She hurried as she raided every cupboard and drawer. Just because she didn't sense Alpha David's aura didn't mean that she won't.
She looked around frantically, going over her mental checklist trying to see if she had forgotten anything.
She turned toward the front door and saw Dom's lean frame. He was a tall lanky teenager with light brown hair and green eyes.
"What are you doing?" he asked in a calm voice.
"I'm uh… going to see the Alpha. He needs supplies over at…The temple, so I'm going to bring it to him."
"You're lying," Dom stated and walked upstairs.
Lira's heart lurched in her chest. "Wait." She called out. "Don't tell Kyren." She meant to add his father too.
He ignored her and continued walking.
Now how the fuck was she supposed to explain this? Stealing from the Alpha was a capital offence.
Even her Moonborne status couldn't get her off with just a slap on the wrist.
Lira thought about just leaving before Kyren came downstairs but it would be futile.
The point of running away at night was to give yourself enough time before border patrol is alerted and hauls you over to the Beta. Maybe she could just apologize and cry a bit.
Dom came back alone holding a thick parcel. He threw it at her and inside was a dark cloak.
"It'll conceal your scent so you can pass through without alerting anyone. Father uses it for recon work."
"Wait, why are you-?"
"I have a feeling why you're leaving. I don't want Kyren to die too." With that he turned around and walked back to his room.
Lira gave a silent thank you to the Moon Goddess and disappeared into the night.