Thanks to M&M for their comments!

"And tell me, Prince Edward," Queen Carmen of Kingdom Denali says dubiously. "How are we expected to believe this claim if you weren't confident enough to bring your bride here before us?"

A growl rumbles from deep inside me, but Bella bombards me with soothing waves of green. I inhale through my nose before replying, "My mate is carrying my cubs, and as such, she will not be traveling anywhere, least of all here."

"Are you implying something, prince?" King Eleazar lifts a brow.

Before I can respond, King Billy of the Black Kingdom, our closest ally and Emmett's homeland, puts in his two cents. "There's no question in my mind that news of a mated pair is anything but truthful…"

I see his mouth moving, but there's no sound coming out. Confused, I look around the room and realize everyone else is fine. It's me who has the problem. It takes me a second to understand what's happening, but when I do, I crumple to my knees.

The bond with my mate has gone completely dark. Shadowy black fingers extend toward me, swirling around to drag me under, smothering me in a thick layer of smoke. I start coughing, hacking, reaching out in hopes that someone will come to my aid, but no one's there.

I'm completely alone.

There's no air.

No light.

No life.

I jerk awake, my breath coming out in deep, horrified gasps as I sit up, eyes frantically searching for Bella who I find sleeping peacefully beside me. Her chest rises and falls soundlessly, and her long, dark curls frame her peaceful face.

My breathing calms.

My heartbeat slows.

Then skips a beat.

The urge to reassure myself she's safe is overwhelming.

My nose flexes as I inhale her sweet honey scent.

My cock thickens.

I run my nose along the smooth line of her arm, inhaling deeply. Bella's smell is ingrained in me. It's home. It can mean so many different things and extract so many different emotions. Right this moment, it's erotic, enticing, all-encompassing. I'm delirious with need, and dark purple pulses through our mating connection.

Her eyes pop open. "Edward," she murmurs, her fingers fisting in my mane. "I need you."

"No, love," I reply, a deep purr rumbling in my chest. "It is I who needs you." My fingers flex as I palm her tits. "Desperately." An unbidden growl explodes out of me, and I gnaw at her shoulder. "Mine."

She cries out.

My cock throbs.

"I can't be slow," I rasp, barely restraining myself.

She tugs, pulling me to loom over her, and locks her long legs around my thighs. "Take away the worry that plagues me. Use your body to promise me that you'll come back. To us. Fuck me into a daze so I can bear to let you leave me."

She presses her slick center against my sheath, seeking any friction she can find. My pupils expand and contract, painting a detailed image of the ways in which her body fits so perfectly against mine.

I snake out my tongue, plunging it inside her luscious mouth as I draw my hips back and slip my palms beneath her ass. Her needy moan only spurs me on as I tilt her delicious ass up and thrust inside her insanely tight pussy.

I throw my head back in a roar and bury my cock deeper before pulling back and pushing inside again. Each thrust pulses between us like an electric current, and my cock throb, throb, throbs.

"I want you to come before I knot you," I growl, pumping my hips furiously.

Her head rocks back, her mouth open, fingers clenched so tightly to my mane that they'll take hours to untangle. "I'm … oh." She seizes, her heels digging into my hindquarters, her eyes locked on mine. "Love you." It's barely a whimper, but it spurs me into action.

I thrust hard, burying myself deep.

My knot swells, pulse, pulse, pulsing as it forms a solid lock inside her.

So tight.

So fucking right.

I still press down with my hips, my knot moving in such tiny increments that you'd think it means nothing, but it's everything all at once. Bella cries out again, her sweet pussy convulsing around my knot.

The deep purple waves that shimmer around us start to fade the closer to orgasm I come. Dark becomes light, glistening and glimmering, swirling around us like a tornado that lifts me up and sends me flying.

A maelstrom of sensations bombards me.

Love.

Loss.

Fear.

Ecstasy.

It all swirls together to create the single most erotic orgasm of my life. Cum pulses from my cock, and the throbbing is so intense that light from our bond engulfs the entire room in a burst of white that momentarily blinds me.

I'm obliterated.

Nothing.

Nowhere.

A body with no soul.

A soul with no memory.

Until I hear it.

The voice of an angel.

"Edward, are you okay?" Soft fingers brush my nose, and there's a deep rumbling sound coming from somewhere. "I love you."

A gust of honey blows across my face and infiltrates my mind, sending me crashing back to Eclipse as a being who's been eternally altered—for a second time. "Bella," I rasp, flicking my tail up to brush down the length of her arm. "My love, my life."

She sighs, nuzzling her cheek into my chest. "That was amazing."

"That word is inadequate," I reply, my mind still reeling from the high. "I've never felt anything like that in my life. Not even during any of our other trysts. I don't know. It's hard to put into words."

"Like our bond was locked before but now the key has been thrown away?" She looks up to meet my eyes. "I felt it too. I'm suddenly okay with your trip because I know it needs to happen."

"Two days, tops," I promise, taking a deep breath and pushing away the awful dream that woke me earlier. "I just hope I can convince them."

She palms my cheek. "If anyone can, it's you."

She projects nothing but confidence, and I give her a soft smile.

But inside, I still worry.

Something new will post tomorrow. I'll share the banner and the good AND bad news later this morning on my Fyrebyrd Fics profile.

You should friend me!

See ya tmr :)