Chapter 428:

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“Yes, I know. To drink blood and to have sex,” Aekeira supplied.

Lord Vladya nodded. “Correct. We call them Bloodlust and Sexlust. We must indulge occasionally to keep the mind clear and the beast satisfied. Bloodlust never goes dormant, but Sexlust can. Do you know when our Sexlust instincts go dormant, Aekeira?” She shook her head.

“When two bonded mates are separated by distance, they don’t feel Sexlust until they are reunited,” Lord Vladya told her, his eyes never leaving hers. “Yes, they still get aroused, they still feel lust, but not in its overpowering state—the kind that drives our beasts restless and insane when one abstains for weeks.”

“That’s how bondmates who go to war for months, even years, survive without their significant other,” he continued. “Their souls recognize the absence of their mate and put the instinct to sleep until they are together again.”

“Okay, I understand now. But what does that have to do with you?”

“My instincts are asleep now,” he reiterated. “I have no idea how that happened, but I think being with those females made it clear to my very core that you, Aekeira, were truly unavailable. That’s when my sexlust went dormant.”

Realization dawned, and Aekeira’s eyes widened, as round as the full moon. “You’re saying it happened b-because of me?”

“Because of you,” he confirmed.

Her heart beat faster. “But, we’re not b-bonded.”

“That’s the part I can’t explain, the part I don’t understand,” Lord Vladya said.

Then, he leaned in, his breath warm against her neck. “But I know that if I were to lay you down on these covers and bury myself deep inside you, my sexlust would reawaken.” Aekeira’s breath caught in her throat.

“If I were to take your sweet little body until you’re screaming my name so loud the birds take flight, and the woods listen in to the music you make—just the way I so desperately want—then that driving urge, in all its animalistic, lustful glory, would come roaring back to life.”

Lᴬtєst chαptєrs in gɑlnovє𝓁𝒮.ç𝑜м

“Lord Vladya!” Her cheeks flushed beet red, and Aekeira quickly lowered her head.

He smiled a little and pulled back. “But I won’t do that. That instinct was the hardest to control, to the extent I killed for it. I don’t miss it.” Then, he turned serious. “What kind of connection do we have that even my soulless self recognizes you?”

Fire in his eyes. “How did my instinct know that the one female we truly wanted was far away, and instead of looking for another female to fixate on, it went dormant? What does that mean for you and me?”

“I don’t know.” Aekeira shuddered, her mind reeling. His instinct went dormant because of her.

He rose, pulling her up with him. “I wanted, more than anything, to track you down and drag you back here,” he said. “Ukrae, I was ready to cross into Navia and haul you back, even if it meant taking you against your will while you kicked and screamed. I wanted it that badly. But I couldn’t. I wasn’t fit to travel long distances.”

Be still, my heart. Please, be still.

“You… wanted to come for me?”

“With everything in me. Some days, resisting was as hard as chewing rocks. I have never felt so deprived… until I wanted you but couldn’t go and get you. I could only hope that one day you would return to me.” Aekeira’s eyes watered. Her heart sang.

“But I’m terrified to hope.” Lord Vladya admitted as he stepped closer and inhaled her scent. “What if I let myself hope you were mine, and you turn out not to be, like the others…”

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