Another Taste of Destiny Redeemed

Earlier this morning, I posted an excerpt from Destiny Redeemed where Amon and Thea first meet.  If you haven't read that, check it out HERE.

It's not a typical meeting for a couple as he's beaten and she's brought to him to heal his body, but it doesn't take long for them to begin to see one another as more than patient and healer.  Here's another taste of Amon and Thea, and remember leave a comment on any of my posts throughout the day for a chance to win a copy of the book!

Amon watched as the pale green flecks in Thea’s blue eyes seemed to dance. He hadn’t noticed how beautiful her eyes were before—how incredibly breathtaking she was, overall. Her face was so close, her pink lips just inches from his...

He certainly didn’t mind her touching him anywhere since her touch was naturally pleasing to start with and only became more so because he wanted her. And he didn’t mind the feel of her soft lips on his skin, either. In fact, he had a number of other places he’d like her to visit with those lips.

As he looked into her eyes now, he saw not only beauty but desire and insecurity. What a wonderfully interesting woman this healer was!

Slowly, Amon saw the insecurity disappear from Thea’s eyes, leaving only desire for what he offered. Need filled his cock, making it impossible to leave their little interlude unfinished. Months of loneliness had made him respond to her touch far more than he ordinarily would have, he reasoned. This was nothing more than the simple need to sexually be with another.

But he’d seen the look on her face before, when Sevine had come to him and found he was her destined one. That was impossible with Thea, though. He still had a destined one, regardless of how she’d manipulated him with magick to escape him. He couldn’t be another’s destined one as long as his still hadn’t finished her fifty lifetimes.

He knew it wasn’t right for him to lead Thea on if she wanted more than he could give, but she was so close and she’d felt so good next to him earlier. All those painful nights in Nil had left him with an emptiness he yearned to fill, and he wanted Thea to heal that too.

Leaning in to her, he caressed her pink lips with his before increasing the intensity of his kiss. Afraid she would back away, he cradled her face in his hands as he slipped his tongue into her warm mouth.

She returned his kiss with a passion that signaled she wanted him. When she moaned into his mouth, Amon knew he didn’t want this to end with a kiss. As she began to feast on his mouth, he guided her onto his lap, setting her up against the base of his rigid cock. Realizing her position, she pulled away, frightened, but with his hand on her lower back, he trapped her against him.

“Please let me go,” she begged.

“Why?”

“I can’t do this.”

Amon’s mind listed the reasons why she possibly couldn’t, crossing off all but one. “Do you have a destined one?” he asked, searching her eyes.

Thea dropped her eyes to look at his chest and stopped trying to get away from him. Quietly, she answered his question. “No, I don’t have a destined one. I’ve never had one in forty-five lifetimes.”

“Never?”

Amon couldn’t imagine what mistake of nature had been made to ensure the sweet creature that sat on his lap remained ultimately alone for so long. He’d been a heartless fuck for many of his forty-seven lifetimes, and he’d had three destined ones.

Thea said nothing but continued to avoid his gaze.

“Why?”

As soon as he said it, he hated himself. She most likely wouldn’t know why every life promised her she’d be alone. 

“I’m a healer. It’s uncommon for us to be blessed with destined ones. Our calling is more important than our individual happiness.”

Every word she said dripped duty and loneliness between them. Amon looked up to see her eyes filled with tears, and his heart broke for her. He’d often thought of how unfair his life had seemed in the past year, but he knew he’d done more than enough to deserve his sentence in Nil. Thea had done nothing to deserve her fate.

He wiped the tear that had dropped onto her cheek with his finger and lifted her chin to make her meet his gaze. He couldn’t just sleep with her now. The look on her face showed him that she mistakenly believed she’d finally found a destined one in him.

“I’m sorry, Thea.”

Thea began to cry, her tears flowing down her face from his rejection. God, he felt like a fuck!

“Let me go,” she said sadly as she pulled away from him.

Amon knew he should just release his hold on her, convinced her emotions were bound to begin affecting him at any moment. But he couldn’t. He was responsible for much of her sadness and needed to do something to fix what he’d done.

Putting his arms around her, he pulled her upper body to his, holding her tighter as she resisted more. As she sobbed into the side of his neck, her body softly heaved against his. Wanting more than anything to make her feel better, he stroked her long blond hair while her crying flooded his ears.

     Amon braced himself for his reaction. He’d always fed off others’ emotions and used them to his own benefit, careful to minimize his exposure to sadness. He vividly remembered Callia’s effect on him and dreaded a replay of that with Thea as he was sure his body couldn’t take much more abuse, but with relief he remembered that his destined one’s curse on him only worked if he was in love with the woman. Safe in his belief that while he’d grown to care for her in the short time he’d known her he wasn’t in love with Thea, Amon held her until her crying stopped and she was still in his arms.

Lifting her head, she wiped her tears from her face. “Why don’t you want me as your destined one?

A lump formed in his throat at the sound of the sadness in her voice. There was nothing he’d like more in this world than to have Thea for his. But that couldn’t be.

“It’s not a choice, Thea. It’s just not possible.”

“Why?”

He looked into the beautiful eyes of the one who’d already given him so much kindness and hated what he had to say.

“Thea, I already have a destined one.”

Amon saw the shock register on her face. She had been so kind to him, and he hated having to say those words, more than she could ever know. Obviously embarrassed, she dropped her eyes and climbed off him, saying nothing.

She stood on the floor on the opposite side of the bed and straightened herself. “I...I want to sleep somewhere else. If you’re going to hold me here against my will, I’d at least like to be alone.”

Amon felt the sting of her sadness and regretted telling her, no matter how much she needed to know. But the selfish part of him didn’t want to be without her.

“I need you here to help me heal.”

He knew he was being insensitive, but he didn’t care.

“I can heal you just as well sleeping in another room,” she said angrily.

Amon wanted to refuse her again, but the hurt coming from her crushed any desire to keep her in his room. Concentrating, he silently reached out to Gethen. As he waited for him, Amon watched Thea with sadness, wishing more than ever their world wasn’t like it was.

Check back a little later for posts from the characters themselves!