The Blessed And The Beast

Chapter 151

Forty-Four: Tobias

Tobias’s P.O.V.

The last place I wanted to be was walking through the city with Natalie on guard duty. I loved my job and would do anything to protect our queen. But fuck, I wanted to go back to my woman and celebrate. Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

The mark on my neck hadn’t faded overnight, even with my expedited healing. The skin scarred over and glinted in the bathroom light as I got ready for the day before sneaking out of the house and leaving my sleeping mate in our bed.

It was real. She had done it.

I could feel Natalie’s eyes on me all morning, and while I respected her, I also wanted to call in another guard to replace me so I could go back and take the honeymoon that Joselin and I hadn’t gotten but had earned. As soon as Rona was dealt with, I would be demanding it.

‘You smell different.’ Natalie said through the pack link to me. I didn’t care to explain; it was no one’s business.

I kept my chin up as she stared at me, moving closer to sniff me again. A look of horror came over her face as she looked down at my neck. Her hand lifted as if she were planning on pulling down the collar of my button- up shirt to see my neck before changing her mind and letting it fall to her side in a fist.

She was probably as shocked as Joselin and I had been, but by the look on her face, I didn’t think she understood it was Joselin’s mark.

Chosen mates marked each other all the time. Joselin being a witch made us think she couldn’t mark me back, but we were wrong, and I would wear her mark with pride.

‘I never would have thought…1 Natalie said again before spinning away from me and going to the next store. She had been trying to find something for Killian’s birthday but couldn’t decide. Now, her focus appeared to be on me more than her own mate as she kept glancing at me over the shelves in the small store.

It was her tone that was irritating me. She sounded disgusted that I had allowed my mate to mark me. I didn’t need to explain myself to her.

‘You’re very angry this morning,’ Joselin’s voice came through my head, and I felt my shoulder relax. ‘I know not to talk to you while you’re working, but I wanted to make sure you were okay.’

Natalie’s eyes narrowed at me again, and I kept my emotions masked as I looked away from her and scanned the store. The owners and employees were behind the front counter, over the moon that the queen had graced them with a visit. I knew even if Natalie didn’t find a present there, she would still buy something to show her support for them.

‘I am fine, sweetheart.’ I couldn’t help my cheek twitching when I felt her irritation. I knew what she wanted to hear and couldn’t help teasing her since she had been asleep when I left. ‘Is there something that you wanted to talk to me about?

Natalie walked by me, slowing as she passed. Her fake interest in the knickknacks on shelves closest to the wall I stood by was obvious, and I watched her nostrils flare as she tried to investigate the change in my smell.

‘No.’ The pout in Joselin’s voice was adorable, and I couldn’t wait to see her face when she noticed that her mark was still on me.

Another she-wolf walking between the aisles approached us, seeming to know precisely what she was looking for as she moved with purpose. I watched her closely, examining her to see if she was a potential threat until my line of sight was disrupted by Natalie moving to stand in front of me.

Thomas and George moved closer, prepared to protect their queen, but I shook my head. This woman was no threat.

Natalie let out a growl, turning to her side so her shoulder was facing me before glancing from me to the woman with suspicion.

Oh, this was too good.

‘Something you want to tell me?’ Natalie asked, holding my stare and forcing me to look away out of respect. She seemed angry and very put out, defensive of Joselin. When I refused to answer, she picked up a few items before checking out at the front counter.

I followed behind her as she stormed back to the castle.

Killian was waiting out front for her with a smirking Joselin by his side. I bit back a groan, knowing nothing good would come of this, not for me, at least. But I could keep my emotions in check long enough for Joselin to have her fun.

Natalie stormed up to Killian, pressing a harsh kiss to his lips before turning back to glare at me as Joselin stepped forward.

Thomas and George backed away, making themselves scarce as they waited to see if they were still needed.

“I will never get over how good you look in a suit.’ Joselin purred, strutting toward me. I knew better than to assume she had good intentions. Still, I couldn’t help but enjoy her touch as she wrapped her arms around my neck and pressed her body against mine.

Fuck, she felt good.

I met her halfway as she pushed up on her toes to greet me with a kiss.

The sound of a throat clearing made me want to growl, but I was in no place to do so when the noise had come from the furious queen only a few feet away.

Joselin pulled away, a look of mischief in her eyes as she hugged me tightly and shoved her face into my neck. Her body stilled, and she pulled back slowly. Natalie was still glaring a hole into the side of my head, and I ignored her as I held Joselin’s hips to mine, looking down at the incredible woman before me.

‘What are you up to, sweetheart?’

The corners of her mouth twitched as she bit back her smile, and she moved her hands to the front of my chest before pulling down my collar, exposing her mark.

Natalie gasped when she saw it, but Joselin was beaming with pride. I watched as her eyelids lowered and the knots and runes on her skin vibrated excitedly. Her smell grew stronger, and my hold on her hips tightened as I restrained myself from throwing her over my shoulder and taking her back to our house.

“What the fuck is this, Tobias? Are you kidding me?” Joselin snapped, her nails digging into my chest deliciously.

‘You’re begging for a punishment, sweetheart.’ I purred into our bond and watched as goosebumps rose along her skin. She didn’t respond to me as she moved my shirt further down and ran her finger over my mark.

“Maybe you should take this inside to be more private.” Natalie offered, but neither Josie nor I looked up at her. Queen or not, she didn’t seem to understand what was happening here, and Joselin was getting a kick out of it.

My woman was playing a game, a dangerous game. One that I would win, no matter the outcome.

“You let someone mark you?” Joselin’s voice wavered, and I scowled down at her, keeping my hold on her hips as she pretended to fight me off to get away.

Tm going to make your ass so fucking red for doing this.’

She licked her lips at my promise, but she wanted more. “I can’t believe, after everything we have been through, that you would do this. I’m going to kill any woman who dares to touch you. Do you not understand that you belong to me? How could you?”

‘You’re not going to be able to sit when I’m done with you.’ My eyes burned as I felt my beast coming forward, and I moved my hands around to her lower back.

“Please, come inside. I think this should be a private conversation.” Natalie said weakly, the panic in her voice laughable. She had been openly angry at me for the past hour, but now she sounded worried.

“No one besides me should ever touch you,” Joselin stated, her finger pressing harder into her mark as she continued to circle it.

I nodded as her body relaxed slightly, allowing me to grab a thick strand of her hair and wrap it around my finger, pulling on it softly. A warning.

“No one should ever have their mouth on you besides me.” She stated again. The excitement flooding between us had me worried. I couldn’t tell if it was because she was happy that her mark stayed or if something else was running in her beautifully wicked mind.

Once again, I nodded. This woman owned me as much as I owned her. No one should touch her, and I would rather rip their throat out than let another woman touch me.

‘You love seeing your mark on me, don’t you?’

Her glare shot up from my mark to meet my eyes. Oh, there was a challenge there. One that had me reluctantly growing hard in my pants.

“I think that if you are wearing a mark,’ She leaned in, her lips brushing against my jaw. “That it should be mine.”

My head fell back as she latched onto my neck, her teeth biting down into my skin and making me curse out loud. “Fuck!”

Wave after wave of pleasure shot through me as I tightly held my mate to my front. Her perfect breasts pressed against my chest, and her hands laced into my hair to keep me in place. I was throbbing for her, dying for her. I wanted to rip our clothes off and sink into her to feel her warmth wrapped around me.

It took every ounce of my willpower not to cum in front of everyone as my woman publically claimed me.

“Well, shit.’ Thomas laughed, the sound of him smacking his knee bringing me back to the present. “He can talk.”

Joselin pulled back, running her tongue over my mark before placing a wet kiss under my jaw. I could smell the blood, but she didn’t seem to mind as she leaned back. “That’s better.”

“It’s your mark? I thought it was…But you’re… This is incredible!’ Natalie exclaimed, holding Killian’s hand as she grabbed his bicep and shook it. The smile on her face made him laugh, and I turned back to my mate. I knew what she had thought. From the glares she had sent my way, she had assumed that another had marked me.

‘Are you ready for your punishment?’ With one eyebrow lifted, I watched as she shivered, her lips pursed together.

“Let’s go home.” She whispered, and the world faded around us.

The empty white canvas we passed through was significantly more comforting than the darkness she used to deal with, and I was proud that she had mastered it. It flickered once, and I looked down at my mate in my arms. Her eyes were closed, and the skin between her eyebrows was scrunched as she tried to focus.

“Josie,” I whispered, not wanting to break her concentration. This was the longest we had staying in the in-between, and she had never had to focus this hard on it before.

Instead of fading in, the work flickered around us, like it had when she had used the darkness to travel. My eyes widened when I saw that we had only moved a few feet in the courtyard and in the wrong direction.

Her eyes opened, and she looked terrified as her body went limp in my arms.