Vexar’s already standing, cupping my face and tilting my head to get a better look at the damage.
“It’s fine,” I say, as he examines me. “I’m just nervous.”
He nods and rubs his thumb gently over my lower lip. “We are almost there.”
My eyes trace the sharp rise of his cheekbones and the deep shadows they cast. His unearthly beauty is hard to look away from. I drag a finger down the scar that bisects the right side of his face, trying to remind myself that he might not be happy about killing, but I’m pretty sure he’s good at it. If nothing else, I think I can trust him to survive.
His body goes rigid, and my hand stills on his cheek. “They’re coming,” he says.
I don’t get a chance to ask him how he knows because his mouth is already on mine, kissing me with a desperation that makes my chest ache and the pain in my lip fade. This is it. This is goodbye.
I pull back just enough to whisper, “Don’t lose.”
His brows dip in a look of pure determination, and he says, “I will never leave you,” before descending on my mouth again like it’s the last thing we will ever do.
I’m nearly in tears when he breaks away and says, “I am with you until the very end.”
“Until the very end,” I whisper back.
The screech of metal fills the room, and a flash of bright lightfollows. My body jolts. Heart leaps into my throat. Adrenaline pours into my system.
“Stand back!” a voice yells, but the sound is distant. Miles away.
I drop into a squat and grip my knees to my chest.Everything’s ok. You’re ok.I have to calm down. I can’t have a flashback right now.Just breathe. Breath.I suck down heavy gulps of air, feeling my chest tighten with each inhale. It’s not working. Fog clouds my vision. The sharp smell of metal fills my nose.No, no, no.
There’s a tug at the back of my mind, and the cell rushes back into focus. I nearly vomit from the rapid change as I fall forward onto my hands and knees, gasping for breath.Fucking hell.
I turn my eyes up to Vexar’s looming form, standing between me and the guards. Somehow, he pulled me out of a flashback. I don’t know how he did it, but that was definitely him.
I shake my head, trying to clear the remnants of the adrenaline dump. My mouth is dry. Limbs heavy. Stomach roiling. But I’m here. Fully present and in control. Time to get up.
The guards say something else, but Vexar’s ominous growl drowns it out. A fresh pulse of fear chills me. I scramble to my feet, grabbing the edge of the table for stability while trying to gauge Vexar’s state of mind. If his eyes are black, we’re completely fucked.
“Vexar, you must come with me,” someone says as I urge my body to cooperate and move.
Vexar responds in a calm but commanding tone. “Close the door and give us a moment.”
Calm. He’s calm.Holy shit.I grab my chest where my heart is rattling against my ribcage. He’s still in control. His eyes aren’t black. He’s just being intentionally intimidating.
God damn, he’s good at being scary.
“I h-have to t-take you now,” the voice says, and I finallyrecognize who it is. The lizard. The traitorous bastard who duped me and locked me in here.
Waves of raw, primal energy radiate from Vexar, and I’m shocked the lizard hasn’t turned tail and run. Either he has balls of steel, or the threat of not getting Vexar out of this cell is more terrifying than Vexar himself. My stomach drops at that thought, but I shake it off.There’s no way.
“Amara,” Vexar says, his voice gentle but stern, “dress.”
Shit.I’m still wearing a bed sheet.
Regretting waiting until the last second, I grab my nurse’s uniform and throw it over my head, dropping the toga in the process. Thankfully, I’m already wearing shoes.
“Vexar,” the lizard warns.
“Give. Her. A. Minute,” Vexar growls loud enough that dust falls from the ceiling.Why is scary-Vexar so hot?And why am I even capable of thinking about that right now?
Fully dressed, I step up behind my hulking alien.
He spins to face me, and I almost touch him before remembering our plan and clasping my hands behind my back.
