Caleb was tired.

Everything ached his skin, his lungs, his eyes. His whole body felt as though it were burning.

Desperate gasps for air, whimpers of pain.

His heartbeat was pounding like a drum in his ears.

Sweat covered him.

He dropped to his knees unable to keep standing, the chains burning away at his wrists and ankles. He gritted his teeth through the pain and closed his blurry eyes.

Her scent hit him suddenly; her heartbeat joined with his in the echoing chambers of his ears.

He felt her close to him in a way he had never experienced. A shockwave of pain and pleasure ripped through him, the sensation so strong it forced a howl from the deepest parts of him.

His mouth salivated at the thought of her. His breathing was more labored as his body responded to the natural impulses of the bond.

‘This is torture,’ he thought to himself.

Tears rolled down his face, a soft whimper escaped his lips.

Caleb gasped loudly as he woke up with a start. Sitting up in his bed, he looked around him. He was still in his bedroom. No chains, the moon wasn’t full.

He took several deep breaths, calming his pounding heart._.

It had been three nights in a row that he had had this dream. Each one was a bit more intense than the last. He knew it was about the night of the full moon, but he didn’t know why he kept dreaming about it, or how to make it stop.

Caleb felt the frustration in his body, he was a man after all. But more than that, he felt it in a place he couldn’t do anything about. He felt the bond in a way he could never have prepared for.

‘When you meet her, you will understand.’

His mother’s words echoed in his mind.

Shoving the blankets aside he got up and walked over to his small balcony. Caleb opened the doors and stepped out, breathing in the night air felt refreshing. He leaned on the railing and took a deep breath, lifting his head to the sky.

The moon took her place high above him, her ethereal glow lit the sky in a way that on any other night would bring him comfort. But tonight, she mocked him.

Caleb growled before heading back inside for a long cold shower.

An hour and a half later he crawled back into bed. After his shower, he had done an intense workout hoping to exhaust his body beyond dreaming. He desperately needed sleep.

“Dreamless sleep, dreamless sleep,” he whispered to himself in quiet prayer as he yawned.

The swirling blackness of sleep embraced him, and he smiled as it took him away.

Heartbeats, gasps for air, pain, pleasure.

Tears rolled down his face, a soft whimper escaped his lips.

“Caleb?” a gentle whisper broke through the echoing heartbeats.

That voice sang to him.

The weight of his head felt as though he was lifting his entire body, slowly he was able to raise himself enough to meet her eyes. Her entrancing hazel eyes.

His pain, his fear, his arousal. All these things he saw reflected in her eyes, but they belonged to her.

Each step she took towards him made his body heavier, his breaths deeper, his desire stronger.

Tears streamed down her face, he longed to touch her, to wipe the tears away and hold her in his arms. To press his nose against her throat and breathe her in.

She reached her hand out to his cheek, her fingers lightly touching him, his eyes closed at the touch. A tingling spreading from her fingertips through his body.

He looked up at her once more, every part of him aching to be with her. His heart was beating so hard, his lungs burned with his desperate gasps for air.

‘Are you mine?’ he heard the words in his mind asking, it took him a moment to recognize his voice.

A look of sadness, pain, and confusion fell over her eyes. She placed both hands on his face, and suddenly the air around them was breathable once more.

Her hands were on his skin, the air around them, the feeling was indescribable. Every part of him felt a sigh of relief, of pure calm and joy.

He looked into her eyes once more, pouring his warmth into her.

She smiled back at him, a soft warm smile.

Had he ever seen that look before? He wanted to see it every day, every moment from now on.

“Ashleigh,” he whispered, smiling back at her.

“Caleb,” she let out a small sigh and smiled again.

Ashleigh put her arms around him and hugged him, Caleb closed his eyes, feeling a warmth spread through every part of him.

‘You are what I want,’ he whispered in his mind.

Caleb tried to put his arms around her, but suddenly became aware of the chains once more, as the sting along his wrists renewed, he hissed.

Ashleigh pulled back, she looked at his face and then up to the chains.

“Oh goddess,” she whispered as she saw the burns.

She reached up to remove the chains, he pulled back.

“Don’t!” he called out. “They’ll burn you too.”

Ashleigh smiled at him, then reached her hands up once more. She quickly loosened one hand, and then the other. He watched closely, feeling a stabbing pain in his heart as he saw her wince each time her skin touched the metal.

He stopped her from releasing his ankles, doing so himself. Once he was free, he didn’t wait to take her into his arms. He rushed towards her, wrapping his arms around her waist, and pressing his nose into the crook of her neck, breathing her into his lungs deeply.

She laughed at his impatience, before wrapping her arms around his neck and laying her head against his.

They stayed like this for a long time.

Caleb had never known a feeling like this, a closeness, a connection so deep that he was left unguarded, and unafraid. With her he felt complete.

Though he wished to remain forever, his body was tired, he felt weak and heavy. She noticed it too.

“Let’s sit down,” she whispered against his hair, sending warm vibrations through his skin that his body reacted to.

He nuzzled into her neck once more, drinking her in, tasting her scent. He nudged her neck with his nose until his lips grazed her throat tenderly, she moaned softly. A sound that once more sent a rippling pleasure through him.

He pulled her against him tightly. His hot breath tickling her throat, she let out another soft moan. He felt her swallow, her breathing becoming ragged.

‘Mate,’ he whispered in his mind.

He knew what he needed, what they both needed. His eyes looked at her beautiful neck, his tongue slipped out from between his lips, touching her ever so lightly. She let out a shuddering gasp.

Caleb knew what to do, he felt it. This spot, he touched it lightly once more with his tongue.

Ashleigh shuddered again, this time she also pulled him tightly against her as her lungs drew shaky breaths.

All he had to do was mark her, and she would be his. No one could keep them apart.

He kissed that precious place on her neck, her reaction making his body ache.

Caleb pulled away from her, she looked into his eyes. He saw her desire, he saw her need, at this moment he knew she would accept him.

He led them to a place against the wall, he pulled her down to sit beside him.

When she sat down, he laid his head on her lap. She moved her hand to his head, running her fingers through his hair. He smiled at the comforting touch.

“I’m tired,” he whispered.

“Sleep,” she whispered back.

He reached for her other hand, bringing it to rest over his heart and holding it tightly there.

“My heart beats for you Ashleigh,” he whispered.

She gasped, her fingers stopped moving for just a moment. He felt a panic beginning in his heart at this reaction. Her fingers moved once more, and he could breathe again.

His head, his eyes, his body, everything grew heavier. His eyelids were beginning to close, his consciousness drifting away.

“Please, don’t leave me…” he whispered as the darkness took him.

Caleb woke with a gasp and hollow feeling in his gut. He took long deep breaths, bringing his hand to his face. He wasn’t surprised to find the wetness left by his tears.

It wasn’t a dream, it was a memory.

“She lied,” he whispered to himself, a painful sorrow settling over his heart.