Chapter 387: The Thorn in Her Heart

[Music recommendation: Sophie Hutchings – Surrender To The Deepest Blue]

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Aliana swallowed before her face lit up. “Oh my God! It’s a little bitter, probably because of all the cocoa powder I dumped into it, but it actually tastes good! Try it, Gav!”

She picked up another bite and placed it in her mouth to double-check, but as she did, Gavriel’s gaze dropped on the smudge of chocolate stuck to the corner of her lips.

Unable to hold himself back, he leaned over and licked the corner of her mouth, making Aliana freeze instantly.

He drew back just enough to meet her wide eyes, and time seemed to stop between them.

Lifting a hand, Gavriel framed her cheek with his palm before wordlessly sealing his lips over hers.

He kissed her as if he had been starving, deepening it, tasting the chocolate cake that tasted sweeter than any dessert he had ever known. It had always been like this… everything about Aliana stripped away his composure, reducing him to a man who surrendered only to this one goddess in his arms.

Without warning, the long-suppressed fire that had been burning inside him for days erupted, and he found it impossible to stop.

Sweeping her up, he lifted her onto the kitchen counter without breaking their kiss. Positioning himself between her parted knees, he rested one hand at the back of her head while the other trailed down her spine to her thigh, gripping her firmly to pull her close as she wrapped her leg around his waist.

Aliana felt herself melting, swept away by the intensity with which he devoured her.

Her arms were already wrapped tightly around his neck, pulling him closer as she questioned why she had ever denied herself this heavenly bliss only he could give her.

‘Why? Why did I ever think I could keep denying this man what we both wanted?’ she thought, pressing herself tighter against him.

At her touch, Gavriel lost what little control he had left.

Breaking away just enough to breathe, he pressed his lips against the soft line of her jaw and down to the pulse beating at her throat. “I need you, Ana… only you…” he breathed, his voice raw with devotion.

There was so much longing in his voice that something inside Aliana finally gave way.

Outside, a deafening crack of thunder shook the glass walls, vibrating through the counter where they sat, and every buried pain she had tried to lock away spilled forth all at once.

A single hot tear fell onto Gavriel’s cheek, making him freeze instantly.

Slowly, he lifted his head, his eyes widening in alarm as he saw tears spilling freely down Aliana’s face. “Ana?” he whispered softly.

Aliana opened her wet eyes, only to cast her gaze downward in guilt. “I am sorry…” she whispered.

Her arms slipped from around his neck, and she buried her face in her hands. Her shoulders shook uncontrollably as a sob wracked her frame. “I’m so sorry… You do not deserve this. I am trying… I am trying so hard to forget everything… to pretend that everything is fine, but it keeps… it keeps coming back to me.”

She choked on a sob, her voice breaking. “…And I do not know how to stop feeling this… this thorn that refuses to leave my heart.”

Gavriel was stunned by the words leaving her lips.

‘A thorn in her heart?’ he echoed silently.

Unable to bear the sight of her crying, he gently curled his fingers around her wrist and eased her hands away from her face. Yet Aliana stubbornly lowered her head, refusing to meet his gaze, making his jaw clench at the sight.

Gavriel was at the absolute end of his patience, and he knew he needed to pull out whatever had been festering in her heart for so long and understand it.

So he demanded softly, “Ana, look at me.”

When she refused, his voice turned firm. “Listen to me, Aliana.”

Slowly, she lifted her wet lashes to meet his gaze, and the sight of her so broken triggered a terrifying impulse within him… a dark, suffocating need to burn down the world just to stop her pain.

Inhaling sharply, he asked, “Tell me who I need to destroy.”

Aliana stilled, genuine confusion crossing her face. “What?”

Gavriel’s eyes flashed red as his voice dropped to a dangerous growl. “I’ll destroy anything that has brought you to this state.”

Releasing one of her wrists, he lifted a thumb to catch a stray tear rolling down her cheek. “Tell me what I need to obliterate for you, because, baby…” He closed his eyes, lowering his forehead to rest against hers, his voice breaking into a rough whisper. “I am at my limit. Seeing you like this makes me feel so terribly helpless that I can barely contain this burning rage coiling in my veins is driving me insane.”

“I cannot stand knowing that something has been eating away at you from the inside for days, and I am able to do anything about it.”

His voice turned almost pleading, “So tell me… please, baby, tell me-“

“Stop.”

Her weak voice cut through his plea that tore Aliana’s heart just as another rumble of thunder shook the air outside.

She squeezed her eyes shut as fresh tears spilled down her cheeks before shaking her head in anguish.

“It’s not anyone else…” she whispered. “It’s me.”

Gavriel went still before slowly opening his eyes.

He pulled back in silence, and Aliana finally uttered the words she had been holding back.

“Ever since I learned that a soulmate is destined for the Devil… another woman whose connection to you has already been written by the universe… I’ve been afraid…” Her voice faltered as fresh tears welled in her eyes. “Afraid that one day, she’ll appear out of nowhere and take you away from me.”

Aliana’s voice trembled as the truth poured out of her.

“J-just how am I supposed to compete against destiny? And beyond that… she would be the only woman who could ever give you the joy of being a f-father… something a mere human with a demon’s soul like me could never give you.”

A ragged sob escaped her lips as she struggled to catch her breath.

“I tried to reason with myself… to understand that none of this is your fault, that it’s beyond anyone’s control, but…”

She raised a trembling hand and clutched the front of her dress over her heart. “…It hurts. It hurts so much, Gav… knowing that even as your wife, I might never be able to give you that. That I might never know what it feels like to share that experience with you. That I might never be enough. And I am sorry… I am so very sorry, Gavriel. I never meant to punish you or shut you out. It just hurts…”

Aliana’s voice trailed off as Gavriel did something that left her utterly stunned.