“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
His eyes meet mine, and they narrow. “Would you have wanted to know sooner?”
I consider his question. “I guess not.” I would have likely pushed back a lot harder had he said all this a few hours ago. “So, just to confirm,” I say between little gasps as he starts to kiss my neck again, “you weren’t freaked out because you realized you were bonded to me, right?”
He leans back, brow furrowed, and takes my face in both hands. “Amara, if I could have chosen anyone in the universe, I would still have chosen you. You are the most astonishing creature I have ever met.”
I swallow around the lump in my throat, suddenly feeling far more vulnerable than I did a moment ago. The urge to run starts to grow in my gut, but the urge to stay overpowers it.
“What are you thinking?” he asks.
I blow out a breath between pinched lips. “It’s just reallyhard to believe you when you say things like that,” I admit. “It freaks me out.”
He nods slowly, clearly trying to wrap his head around what I’m saying. “It makes you uncomfortable when I admit that I am entranced by you?”
I rub my thumbs down the sides of his thick neck, trying to formulate a response. “It freaks me out because you don’t know anything about me. When you’re making these big claims, I can’t help but think you must be lying or trying to manipulate me.”
His shock lights up the back of my mind. “I do not say these things lightly. Who you are is as clear to me as the brown of your eyes.” His hands hold my face, keeping my eyes trained on him. “You are a fearless protector and warrior. You would willingly walk into death for a chance to save others from the fate you have suffered. That is your essence, and that is why I respect you the way I do.” His voice is rough with emotion, and I feel my walls starting to crack again. The honesty in our connection is unmistakable, and there’s no way for me to deny he’s speaking his truth.
For a moment, I just sit there, shocked. Then my mouth collides with his in a desperate, hungry kiss. Somehow, he sees me. This entire time I thought I had shown him nothing but my worst parts—my anger, fear, avoidance, and frustration—but that isn’t what he saw.
A clarity washes over me. I have nothing to lose and everything to gain. If we survive this, and if he keeps his promise to me, I will have gained a future I never thought possible. I will live to fight another day, and I won’t be alone.
His hands slide to my waist, fingers digging into the fabric of my dress as I sink deeper in his lap, sliding forward until the bulge in his pants presses between my legs.
Fuck I need this.
He groans, rocking his hips up into me. But a second later,he’s lifting me and pushing me back. “You do crazy things to me,” he rasps, “and I do not want to lose control.”
“Just let go,” I beg, knowing how desperate I sound and not caring. I’m done policing myself and trying to be reasonable. The hottest man—alien?—I’ve ever seen is between my thighs, and his desire is boiling through the back of my mind, blending with my own.
“I do not want to lose control … yet,” he says. Then he winks.
I groan, letting my head fall back. “If you don’t plan on losing control, then you can’t wink like that. It does things.”
He growls. He fucking growls. And goosebumps break out over my skin. “Now I know two of your weaknesses,” he whispers before dragging his teeth down my neck.
My entire body is buzzing. Alive with a thousand bees. I press my hands against his chest, trying to get some space. “You can’t tease me like this,” I pant. “I’ll combust, or have a heart attack or something.”
“I am not teasing, I am taking my time.” His fingers dig into my hips, holding me close and ratcheting up my need even higher. The strength in those hands is too much to ignore, and my horny brain conjures images of riding them a thousand different ways. This poor alien has no idea what sort of Pandora’s box he’s opened.
“This feels a lot like teasing,” I say, even as I try to remind myself that he’s never done any of this. He might be a quick learner, but this is all new to him. He might not even know what he’s doing to me right now. I just need to calm down and let him set the pace.
A cool breeze filters in through the window, brushing over my sweat-damp skin, and I sigh at the sensation.
Vexar’s eyes soften, as if he’s just remembered something. “I never thought I would find you.”
My stomach tightens with the anticipation of another heavy confession.
“You are the only one who could have done this.” He taps his chest with one hand, and I feel a sudden, deep ache that scares me. The way he’s looking at me feels like he’s memorizing my face, like he doesn’t plan on sticking around.
After all of this, if he leaves me here, I will fucking shatter.
I press my forehead to his and whisper, “Don’t leave me here.” It’s a silly wish. More of a prayer than anything. A prayer that he will keep his promise and get us out of here alive.
“I will never leave you,” he whispers.
“Please—” I start, before his thumb lands on my lips. I feel desperate. Terrified. And so vulnerable. I’ve just given Vexar the keys to my own destruction, and I hardly know him.
