The Beast's Possession

**Aife

pov**

My breath hitched. No, it didn't even do just that. Whatever oxygen I was trying to pull into my lungs got stuck in my throat and refused to move anywhere as I realized what Bane was talking about. I still didn't dare to avert my gaze or look down. He knew how inexperienced I was, he knew no man had ever touched me before, especially the way he already had, let alone went any further. The thoughts that ran through my mind were wild. All of a sudden, my heart started beating so fast, I could hear only the pounding in my ears.

What scared me the most wasn't being thrown out as an easy meal for rogues.

His intentions were what terrified me. I wasn't ready for this, any of this.

The more thoughts assaulted my mind, the more out of it I was. Only when Bane grabbed the sides of my head and shouted at me did I realize I had started hyperventilating and my eyes were squeezed shut. "Aife, open your eyes. Come on, sweetheart, breathe and open your eyes," he kept repeating.

A sense of deja-vu hit me. Those were almost exactly the same words I heard when I was first brought here and lost my consciousness on that darn table. It was Bane, it had been Bane all along.

Somehow, I managed to pry my eyes open and look at him.

"That's it, sweetheart, you're getting there. Now, take deep breaths and exhale as slowly as you can. You can try to do that for me, can you?"

It was so weird to see Bane so worried and calm at the same time. His voice was barely audible and touch as gentle, it almost felt like he was scared to break me.

I had no idea how much time had passed, but eventually, I calmed down. That was when an insane wave of embarrassment washed over me. I had a panic attack because Bane made it clear that he wanted to use my body.

As if he could read my mind, he quickly explained himself. "I wasn't trying to get in the shower with you just to use your body. I wasn't grinding against you to talk you into having sex with me. It was a dumb mistake, but I have no idea how else I could prove that I really want you. All of you."

Looking over his shoulder and focusing my gaze on anything but his face, I muttered a weak, "I'm not ready. Not yet, at least. Don't ask me when, I have no such answers."

Bane jumped away from me and raised his hands. "No pressure, no such questions."

I nodded and finally let out a sigh of relief.

"I won't ask you to join you for a shower either. Take your time if you still feel up for it."

I shook my head. "No. I just wanted to stall a little because, honestly, I have no idea where I could go if you would throw me out. I don't have a pack to return to, you know. And besides, all these products here-" I caught myself before I said anything stupid.

Bane frowned and looked around as if he saw the bathroom for the first time. "You mean your products? I had no idea what shiny magic shit you liked so I just ordered everything they had."

My gaze snapped to Bane. The moment he realized I was staring, his cheeks turned light pink and he brought his hand to the back of his neck to scratch it. "You don't like anything here, yea?"

Was it even possible for my eyes to grow any wider than they already were? "My products?" I asked, just to double-check with him.

"Yeah," Bane dragged. "I mean, I couldn't say I have that much experience when it comes to living with a woman or whatever, but I googled some shit and the blogs say women love loads of products in bathrooms. I might have turned one of the rooms into a craft room if you like that shit, but if you don't, there is no such thing as a loaded craft room on the main floor of this house."

A little hesitant, I approached Bane, raised my hand and pinched his cheek. "Ouch, what are you pinching me for?" He hissed, covering his cheek with his hand.

"I'm just trying to figure out who you are and what have you done to my Bane," I muttered mindlessly.

I understood my mistake when it was too late. The bright smile that spread across his lips was all the proof I needed to know something cocky was about to spill over them. "Your Bane, huh?" Rolling my eyes, I spun on my heel and walked to the door. "Nevermind."

Just as I reached for the door handle, Bane appeared behind me and placed his hand on the door to keep me from walking away. "Nope, you don't get to walk out after making statements like that."

"It was a question," I corrected him, barely suppressing my own smile.

"Question, statement, no big difference if the meaning behind your words is still the same,” Bane said as his chest pressed against my back. He leaned down and ran his nose over the skin of my neck, inhaling deeply and letting out a deep growl. "Your Bane. I like the sound of that."

One thing I was sure about was that the shivers that ran over my skin weren't supposed to set it on fire, but all of a sudden, the exact thing happened.

My mind understood that feeling attracted to Bane was wrong. He didn't deserve that. However, it seemed like trying to convince my heart about the same thing was useless.

"Can you turn around and look at me, please? I believe I have made it pretty clear that I want you, and not only in a physical way. I'm not good at discussing feelings, really, but I have them and I'm pretty sure I feel a lot, very strongly, about you. I'll be bold enough to assume you might feel the same, maybe less, most likely less, but the same. So," he sighed and stopped rambling for a moment. "I need to confess something before you make any decisions."

Unsure if it was a good idea, I slowly turned around and looked up at him. I couldn't read the look on his face, but his eyes didn't lie - Bane really had a genuine confession, one he was fighting himself to vocalize.

"I'm listening," I whispered, sort of trying to encourage him.

His gaze captured me, but all he did was look at me. I could see different emotions flash in them, but his lips didn't move and the silence that surrounded us slowly became deafening.noveldrama

"Bane?" I slowly brought my hand to his cheek and he instantly leaned into my touch. "You can tell me anything. I can't give you promises about reaction to your confession, but I can promise that I genuinely appreciate honesty. I'm sure we can discuss anything for as long as you're honest."

He closed his eyes and let out a shuddering breath as I held mine, patiently waiting.

A few seconds passed until he managed to ground himself. Bane opened his eyes to look at me and offered me a sad smile. "I want to tell you," he whispered and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into a tight hug. I could hear him swallow before he continued, "but I'm scared this will change everything."

I didn't have to be a genius to understand how much he was struggling. Instead of trying to get away from him and give him an attitude for stalling, I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him back. "All I can give you is the promise that I will appreciate your honesty. My reaction depends on how bad your confession is and if it's even connected to me."

"Okay," he muttered and hid his face in the crook of my neck, inhaling my scent. For a brief moment, I didn't believe we could get anywhere with this conversation until he whispered, "your family, I didn't kill them. They're alive."