Talia discarded her clothes and went to bed.
She didn't feel like doing anything, including washing up and putting nightwear on, so she huddled under the cover with only panties on. Normally, even the panties would be gone, but this time she didn't feel like getting completely naked. Why would she? Damon was not there and even if he was, she wouldn't get intimate with him.
Talia hoped that sleep will be dreamless and bring some form of relief and that in the morning she will be able to forget all the nasty images that came into her mind.
But Damon's presence was everywhere, not allowing her to relax because it stirred within her unpleasant memories, and for the first time since meeting Damon, Talia didn't want his intoxicating scent of the forest and the dark chocolate.
From the stories she heard, the Moon Goddess gives everyone what they need, and Talia wondered, is this what she needed? Yes, she knew that she was not Damon's first, but did she need to be constantly reminded that he embraced thousands of women before her? Were her struggles in the Red Moon pack not enough?
A lone tear slid down Talia's cheek and she buried her face into the pillow, refusing to cry. She will not cry. Not now, and not because of things she can't change. Her options were to accept the reality or to give up on Damon and reject the bond that was pulling them together but… how can she reject him?
Talia remembered that two days after they met for the first time, Damon took her away from the Red Moon pack, and Talia knew that from that day onward he wasn't sleeping around.
Should she hold it against him those initial days of him not knowing what to do with the bond? And if she thinks about their encounter in the kitchen of the Red Moon pack, then that makes it… one day? He needed one day to accept that he has a mate and to focus on her.
From the day they met, Talia thought of Damon as handsome, yet for weeks after that she was still thinking about exit strategies, leaving the packhouse, leaving the Dark Howlers pack, leaving him… isn't that similar? The only difference was that she was not aware of the bond, but the attraction was there, and she was still thinking about running away.
Somehow, Talia remembered the scene when Damon came to the attic where she used to live. He licked her hand and grimaced with a question if that was poisonous. And then he sneaked her into the trunk of a car, and held her in the back seat so that she can sleep while leaning against him, and she woke up in a hotel room in his embrace. And Damon tended to her wounds, fed her, took her to a doctor and to the amusement park, and they shared cotton candy, and he was caring in an awkward kind of way that could easily be misunderstood for being bossy, but the truth was that he never did anything against her will and she really appreciated that.
Damon knew they were mates, and the urge to mark her was probably driving him crazy, yet he approached her slowly, and the only thing he asked for was that she doesn't leave him.
Talia remembered giving Damon the garland made of flowers, the same one that's dried in the room across the hallway, and that evening he kissed her. Sure, they did many other things after that, but that kiss was something Talia will never forget.
In these few weeks she was with Damon, Talia experienced stress and uncertainty, and she even faced dangers, but on top of it all… she was never happier in her life. Damon made her happy.
No matter how much she hated herself, she couldn't hate Damon.
'KHM…'
The sound of Damon clearing his throat pulled Talia out of her thoughts and she pressed her eyes shut tightly. Sure, her emotions stabilized, and she loved him with every fiber of her being, but she was not ready to forgive him Nora.
'KHM… KHM…'
Talia forced her limbs not to move. She was determined to pretend to sleep, which was ridiculous because if Damon could feel her emotions, he knew she was awake, but if she didn't acknowledge his presence, he would go away… Or at least leave her alone.
"You promised to wear this tonight…", Damon's deep voice sounded in the room and Talia's curiosity was piqued, but she still didn't move. He continued, "Since you are not wearing it, I thought that I should give it a try."
That did it.
Talia moved a bit and cracked her eye open. A second later, both of her eyes were wide open as she stared at Damon who was standing next to the bed in red briefs (that were his) and red lacy see-through babydoll that should reach below his firm ass, but because of his stature, the poor fabric stretched over his pecs and reached his waist. Talia had no idea how come he managed to squeeze in there without ripping the delicate garment.
That was a sexy outfit Talia bought with Maya, but instead of sexy, Damon looked comical.
Talia coughed to conceal the fit of laughter that was bubbling inside her, and she reminded herself that she was angry at him and she should not give in only because of how his eyebrow arched sexily.
"If I knew you are into crossdressing, I would get a bigger size. Maybe I can get us matching outfits next time?"
Damon's lips stretched into a smile. Talia said 'matching outfits' which meant that she already forgave him, at least a little bit. And he could feel that her sadness was dissipating and was being replaced by different emotions such as care, remorse, joy, and longing.
He wondered if him dressing ridiculously will work, and now he confirmed that it will. Talia's mood improved, but he still needed to work for it.
Damon put his hands on his hips and rotated slowly so that she can see him from every angle.
"What do you think? Is red my color?", he asked and stuck his ass out to strike a pose.
Every color is your color, silly. In Talia's eyes, Damon was the most handsome man on the planet. How can there be a color that didn't suit him? "It's OK."
Damon pouted. "Just OK? Maybe I should go with pink next time. Or baby blue?"
"Pft!", Talia buried her face into the pillow to suppress her laughter. How can she laugh when she was angry? But how can she not laugh when Damon was so silly? And she knew that he was doing it for her.
"Kitten…" His voice came from her right.
Talia peeked to see him kneeling on the side of the bed. She wanted to tell him how an Alpha shouldn't kneel, and that reminded her of his words how she is the only one who can get him down on his knees. No matter what they did, Damon always treated her in a special way.
"I love to see you laughing. Don't hide it. I will do anything to make you happy."
"Anything?", Talia asked, and Damon nodded earnestly.
