The Beast And The Blessed

Eleven: Charlie

Charlie P.O.V.

"Did you feel unsafe?" Damien asked, and I shook my head, but there was a slight delay in my reaction. The truth was there were several times that I had felt unsafe. There were more moments during my time in the castle where I was either in immediate danger or was looking over my shoulder for it than I liked to admit.

"Not with him. My brother scared me a lot, he let his anger and beast get the better of him, but he always walked away. He never physically hurt me. He just yelled and shifted to intimidate everyone around him. It's what the pack knows him for.” I kept to myself how many people he had killed in his life because there were too many to count.

Executions alone were in the high double digits; if you bring in all the wars and battles he had fought, Killian had killed at least several hundred creatures, maybe thousands.

Regardless of how cruel he acted at times, he was still my brother. Killian was the only family I had left, and I wanted him to be happy. I wanted him to find his mate so he could see that he could be good.

"Do you feel safe now?" Damien watched me closely. I could still feel his stare when I turned away from him.

I glanced over my shoulder at him. I wasn't sure if he was asking if I felt safe around him or if I felt safe around my men, but the answer, either way, was, "Yes."

That made him smile.

Never in my life had I thought of a man as beautiful before. Pretty, sure. But never beautiful, not until I met Damien. His smile was so pure and genuine that I was determined to see it every day for the rest of my life. It was the kind of smile that would make the Goddess fall to her knees before him if She were to see it.

When I returned to his side, he had stopped chopping and held the head of the ax down on the stump with both hands on the end of the handle.

"Is he your only sibling?”

"Yes, do you have any?" I asked as I grabbed the last few pieces of wood and stacked them in the shed.

"I'm sure I do, but none I have met." His eyes were alight with amusement when he saw my surprise, and he shrugged his shoulders. "My father is a wanderer. I have to assume that I am not his only offspring."

The reminder of our different cultures made me feel sick. Would Damien be like that? Would he walk away once we had children? Had he already? How many women had he been with while traveling who ended up pregnant?

"Is that how all bears live?" It was almost impossible not to offend someone by asking how many love children they might have wandering around.

life." Damien picked up the ax, walking past me to place it in

and 'us.' It was as if he wanted to clarify that he hadn’t been a part of the wanderers that lived their life freely with no concern for those they left behind. But settling down for life? That meant there was a

A chance for us.

at him, surprised that he wanted to continue our conversation even though he seemed done chopping wood. I followed him up the front steps of his porch and sat down on the

swung backward.

next to me, and I curled my legs beneath me as he began rocking us, pushing off from his feet

Sprite causing trouble in the town." My cheeks burned, and I looked out at the forest. It was so peaceful here. Everything about

thigh pressed against my knee as he adjusted in his seat, and I turned to him with

in the camp to watch our stuff and

a fraction of a second to understand the meaning of my statement, and his eyelids lowered slightly as he glanced

a move, to lean in and kiss me after I had practically jumped him yesterday. But he held still, so still, I was questioning whether he

through me at the realization that maybe I was coming on too strong.

on pulling my knee away to give him space, but as soon as I moved, his large hand grabbed my thigh, holding it in place. I cleared my

as I shouted the words loudly, failing to regain control over my

been eating them as

acknowledgment, nodding slowly as

by what they saw. But I had been hoping that witnessing the ogre's death would give them closure and being with their families who loved them and would support

probably wouldn't be any time soon. The trauma those kids experienced would impact the rest of their life. Some would probably wish they were dead at

grip on my knee tightened, I knew my story bothered him. "There is too much darkness in

like the other men I had grown up with made me feel sick. They did their best to lock me in a tower, wanting to keep me from

heir to the crown. That's all I was to

safer than when I had lived in a castle surrounded by guards.

was free and at peace. I had chosen my own family and had been chosen by them

Damien relaxed his hold on my leg, his thumb sliding up and down, unintentionally driving me wild. "You are strong and beautiful. I imagine many evils would want

I would let break me." There was an unspoken continuation to

I understood them, but I wasn't happy about it. Still,

shivers down my spine, and I felt so out of control around him that I knew I needed to address

him in response made a