The Isle (Chronicles of the Irish Princess Book 1)

In the safety of our room, Kai lit the bundle of sage and eucalyptus that Gran had left. I pulled my back up dress from my closet and placed it on the couch.

"Leah, can the dress wait. Please." He sounded as if he was in pain.

I walked over to him and sat on the bed.

"I love you, with all my heart. It might sting at first, but I promise it wont be for long."

I nodded and took a deep breath. I felt his lips on mine briefly; his kiss was so quick I couldn't even react. I felt him brush my hair away from my shoulder sweeping it to the other side. I tried to stay relaxed as Kai came closer to me. His breath was hot on my neck as he closed in. Just as he said there was a slight pinch when his teeth came into contact and broke my skin. For one fleeting second it hurt, but then it turned to bliss. Sweet bliss. The sensation was unlike anything I'd ever experienced. Heaven and sex would probably never compare. It felt like i was flying and falling at the same time. He pulled back some, licking my neck where he had just sunk in his fangs.

When i opened my eyes, Kai's were glowing a bright blue, brighter than they ever had before. Not wanting to get blood on him i had pulled off his suit jacket and began unbuttoning his shirt. He was quiet as i slid it off his shoulders letting it drop to the floor. I kissed his lips lightly.

"What if this doesn't work?"

"It will, just trust your instincts."

I took another deep breath as he guided my head to his bare neck. I breathed in his deep woodsy scent. Just like he said, my instincts took over me and I found myself gently applying pressure to his neck with my teeth; they broke his skin and warm blood entered my mouth. Instead of a metallic taste I'd been expecting, his blood was sweet like honey. I took in a few mouthfuls of his blood listening to the quiet moans he was making. Then just like he had i licked the wound watching as it healed up instantly.

"That was, incredible. It's like I can feel you everywhere on me now."

Kai nodded, "You will. Now, Mrs. Jeffers let me help you out of that dress."

Nervously, I turned around. I felt him come closer and closer until he was touching me, his hands on my waist. He kissed my shoulders and the back of my head. Kai slowly moved his hands up my arms stopping at my shoulders.

"I love you so very much Leah." He said as he began to slip off my dress. "And beautiful, so beautiful. I can't believe you're all mine."

"I love you too Malakai."

He had me in just my bra and underwear now. My face was so read I couldn't even think about turning around. He whispered a few times again reminding me how beautiful I was. I turned in his arms and kissed him slowly.

"We need to get back to the others. I need to get dressed, and so do you."

I tossed him his shirt and went back to my dress. Unzipping the bag I pulled out the tea length dress made of silk. It had cap sleeves and a scooping neckline.

"Can you zip me up?" I had my back to him.

"Always."

Back in the Hall everyone stood and clapped for us as we entered. There was a melancholy feel to everything, even though everyone was smiling. Kai and I walked to the dance floor and had our first dance. I anticipated the start of the song, it was one of the few things I let Kai pick out on his own. I had wanted it to be a complete surprise. Dan and Shay's From the Ground Up came through the speakers. Tears instantly came to my eyes as we slowly began to spin around the dance floor. He kissed my head and pulled me in for a final spin as the song ended.

We sat and ate with our guests. A few people came up to congratulate us, but most of them sat eating quietly. After we cut the cake we went around and visited some guests. Many of the Alpha's and their packs were offering some sort of peace.

We had been sitting with Alpha Milos and his wife when we heard a clamoring out in the hallway. It was as if an entire plate had be thrown to the floor and shattered. Curious I got up and followed the voices out.

"Sir I'm sorry, but I cannot serve you any more alcohol."

"God damnit! I am your King, I have asked for more and you will give it to me." Luca's voice thundered.

Sarah approached him slowly. She went to take his arm when he turned and started shouting at her.

"You, you did this! You cut me off! How dare you."

"Luca you've had enough to drink, please let's just get you back to the room," her voice was barley above a whisper.

"No! I have plans to see to."

Sarah turned to me in tears. I hugged her for a second before passing her off to Kai who was now at my side. I walked up to my brother and stared him down.

"Remove yourself now, or I'll have you escorted out. How dare you speak to your mate like that. How dare you threaten the staff. I know you are hurting but this isn't how we were taught to handle things. So go sober up and we will deal with it tomorrow."

"I am a king! I don't take orders from you," he spat in my face.

Letting my emotions get the best of me I grabbed him by the ear and started dragging him away from the party back to his room. "You are not king yet, so quit acting like a spoiled Prince and go sort yourself out!"

With one last tug I threw him in his room and slammed the door. I stood there a few moments expecting him to storm back out. It was only when I heard the soft sobs growing louder that I sighed and decided it was safe to find Sarah.

"If he tries to leave force him inside. He is not to leave this room until he is calm and sober."

The guard nodded at my command and took his post outside the door. Coming back to the main hall everyone was talking and partying politely. All except for Gran, Kai and Sarah's mother. She was sitting across from her daughter looking very displeased. I rubbed Sarah on the shoulder and she looked up at me with red eyes.

"He's crying isn't he..."

"Yeah."

"I'm not going to lie and say he doesn't deserve to be alone right now. But I know this isn't easy for him. I should go."

"You're not going anywhere near him," her mother snapped. "He could have hurt you or the babies. Mate or not I don't think its a good idea to be near him if he's so distraught."

"Mom, his father just died not even 5 hours ago. We're up here partying like it never happened. You cant expect him to be ok. You can't expect either of them to be ok. And lucky for you he's not your mate so your opinion is moot."

"Sarah, how dare you-"

"No mother, how dare you. He is my mate and the love of my life. I'm having his children. I am carrying on the legacy of his family. I will not tolerate you speaking about him like that."

Appalled her mother stormed off in attempts to get her way.

"She probably went off to find your father. Why don't you just go give your mate some love and company. Maybe take him some carbs to help sober him up. I'll come and check on you before we leave and cleanse your room."

"Thanks Gran, really for everything."

Sarah kissed her on the cheek and made her way back to Luca. I sighed and sat in her seat. Maybe Luca was right. Maybe we should have just done dinner and called it a night. We could have celebrated all this later.

"Leah, stop pestering yourself. Your father would have wanted you to celebrate this with or without him. Now that you've got all the tradition out of the way maybe you and Kai should call it a night too? We can handle the alphas just fine."

I looked over to my mate who just sat there staring at me. I couldn't tell if he was eager to get me alone again or just was staring at my beauty. I took his hand and he squeezed mine smiling. I knew then he just wanted to be my rock.

"Are you sure?"

"Completely, go child. I'll come by when I check on your brother to drop off another smudge stick." She leaned over and kissed my cheek.

Feeling the love behind her actions I let Malakai take me back to our room once more. Once the door was shut I let my exhaustion take me. I'd only been in my new dress for about two hours but all I wanted was sweat pants and a tee shirt. Sitting down in front of my vanity I began to pull out all the pins in my hair. Carefully I set my crown down on the tabletop and began to remove all my makeup. I felt Kai watching me and I could see him in the mirror. He looked just as exhausted as me, baggy eyes with dark circles under them. Past that all I could see was the love in his expression. It didn't matter how tried he was, he was still going to come and take care of me. He was still going to save me.

I took a deep breath and dropped the now dirty cloth into the wastebasket. My eyes hooded over as the exhaustion came over me. I felt like I could sleep where I was, but there was a small part of me that wanted a warm bed much more than an uncomfortable chair. I jumped a little as Kai placed his hands on my shoulders. They traveled down my arms stopping at my elbows, then he lifted me up to stand with him.

"You look beautiful, Mrs. Jeffers."

I smiled at him, "Thank you."

I reached behind me to begin undoing the laces of my dress, but as I began to pull on the string Malakai stopped me. He turned me around and undid them himself. Placing a kiss on each shoulder he rested his head on mine.

"I love you," he said softly. I hummed in response too tired to form words. "I know this has been a long day, so I understand if you want to wait a little longer. Just know, whenever you are ready, I will be too."

I couldn't stop the flush on my cheeks from appearing. After all the events of the day this was the one we were supposed to want most. Now, after having held my father as he died, it was the last thing I could think about. Underneath my dress was a cute little outfit that Sarah had picked up for me, it was a little sexier than I'd hoped for and I knew that Kai had already seen it. He had already ogled over it and wanted me. The thought of turning him down made me feel horrible and just when I thought I had no tears left to give, more began to spill from my eyes.

Now that we were bonded he sensed it immediately and turned me back around. He pulled me close and tucked my head under his chin.

"I didn't say that to make you cry or make you feel bad. You're exhausted, we both are. We've had a very long day. So why don't you go unwind in the bath I made and I'll wait out here for you."

"You made me a bath?" I asked looking up.

"Yes, I thought it would help you relax some. Ease the tension."

"I love you so very much, Malakai."

I gently kissed him on the lips before heading towards the bathroom clutching my dress to my chest to hold it up. When I entered I looked around in awe. He not only drew me a bath, but he had lit candles everywhere and sprinkled red rose petals into the water and on the floor. He had meant for this to be for both of us, I noticed there was a smudge stick on the counter, this one was made with lavender and eucalyptus. The more I looked at the sight the more my eyes filled with tears again. I took a few deep breaths composing myself before turning back to the room. Kai had begun to get undressed himself, but rather than looking to join me he had pulled out some clothes to get ready for bed.

"Mr. Jeffers," I asked confidently. "Would you like to join me?"

He turned to me as he loosened his tie some more. "Do you want me to?"

"I would like that very much."

Without warning, I reached out and pulled him in with me by his tie. He shut the door behind him and gently pushed me up against it. Then his lips were on mine, carefully caressing them. Being bonded everything was heightened now, my sense of touch especially as he pulled on the cap sleeves of my dress. I giggled as it slid down my body revealing the strapless white lace bra and matching lace panties I was wearing. It was one of the very few times in my life they had ever matched. Sarah had scolded me earlier about it, now I understood her reasoning.

I watched as Kai's eyes darkened with need as he looked me over. He drank in every inch of my mostly naked body. He came closer and rested his hands on my hips. His lips rested on my forehead and I felt him breath in my scent. Carefully he helped me finish undressing, once again his eyes roamed my body, now completely nude. I took his hand as he helped me around the dress we discarded on the floor and into the warm water that was scenting the air with rose. It mixed with the lavender and I was instantly relaxed, closing my eyes.

"You are beautiful."

Kai slowly began to take off his dress shirt and the shirt that was underneath it. I'd seen him shirtless plenty of times over the years working on the farm; and even more so since we started sharing a room. But I was always breathless when he wasn't wearing a top. He heard me gasp ever so slightly when they did come off and he smiled. Then his hands went to his belt and he swiftly unbuckled and unbuttoned his pants. I was watching in anticipation, but I was also nervous. This was the first time we'd both been naked; aside from that first morning at the ranch when I walked in on him in his towel. He dropped his pants and boxers to the floor and I dropped my jaw. He was not on the small side at all and internally I began to panic. That must have shown on my face too.

"We don't have to do a thing tonight. I just want to relax with you in the water."

I nodded as I sat forward for him to climb in behind me. Once he sunk down into the water I felt him relax fully as our mental link became stronger. He pulled me to lay back on his chest throwing my hair over his shoulder and resting my head there. He kissed my head and rubbed his fingers gently on my arm.

"I love you so much, Leah."

"I love you too." I wiggled a little as his hard on pressed into my back. "Seems like someone is enjoying themselves."

"He has a mind of his own. Don't worry about him. Just relax."

I turned in his arms and kissed him slowly. I knew he was worried about me and how I was taking all of this. But in that moment I didn't want to think about anything or anyone but him. I didn't want to think about anything but us. When I deepened the kiss and allowed him access to my mouth, I heard a low moan escape him. He was trying to hold back, but I didn't want him to. I showed him that by touching him there, resting my hand on him. Surprised he jumped and pulled back some, our lips were still touching and he was breathing heavy.

"Leah, we don't have to."

"Malakai, shut up. I don't want to think about my father or my brother or my mother. I don't want to think about any of it. I just want us. Please," I begged.

Malakai didn't say another word. Instead he pulled me in and kissed me again. This kiss was different from all of our other kisses. It felt like he truly wasn't holding anything back from me. All of our emotions were expressed though our bond as well, he had let his mind drift back to those daydreams he showed me. As I wrapped my legs around him the water splashed around us some. I giggled as it splattered onto the floor. Kai had pulled back some, again, both of us trying to catch our breath.

There was an aching between my legs, I'd felt it before, when Kai and I would make out or he'd daydream his thoughts to me. Instinctively, I pushed myself up against him. He gasped at the contact and I could tell he wanted it just as much as me. Reaching behind me I found the plug to the tub and wiggled it loose, letting the water drain a little before plugging it back up. The whole time I was leaning back, I could feel every inch of Kai resting on my core. I wanted more, I needed more. So when I sat back up, I made an effort to rub myself against him. If it wasn't clear to him before it was now.

His response was to push back and the pressure I felt down there got stronger. Kai looked into my eyes as if to ask if I was sure. I nodded in response, I was positive. Being his wife there was nothing I wanted more in that moment. I felt him press up against my entrance, he was being careful not to hurt me. I moaned as he pushed in. At first it stung, once he had settled and began to pleasure me, the sting faded and was replaced with pure bliss. I moaned at how good it all felt, my eyes rolling back into my head. The pressure I had felt before returned and was growing stronger with every move Kai made. It felt like I was getting closer and closer to the edge of a cliff, but instead of feeling like I would fall it felt like I was going to soar. My breaths got shorter, as did his and I heard him grunt a few times.

I knew in that moment he was getting closer to his own edge. I pushed faster and molded his lips to my own. As he pulled my body even closer there was a change in our position and his movements began to feel even more amazing than before. It wasn't much longer that my body could no longer take the pressure that was building, and I exploded. My head fell back as I called out in bliss, Malakai's name falling from my lips. My core got even warmer as I felt him still inside me. Slowly, I opened my eyes and looked at him. He had looked just as pleased as I felt. A smile spread across my face.

"I love you," he murmured in my ear.

"I love you more."

He pulled out then and reached around me to unplug the tub. After getting out he lifted me out and dried me off. With a smile he picked me up and carried me into bed. I felt him pull the covers over me as I accepted sleep as my friend.