"Ava. There's more."
Her lips part. "Tell me."
I kneel beside the bed, letting the truth settle between us like something solid and real. "When I found you, I felt the bond.Thurok'hai—an instinct older than any story humans remember. It ties one heart to another forever, but it doesn't take by force. You must choose whether to accept it or reject it."
She studies me with eyes deep and searching. "And you? You don't get a choice?"
"I don't want a choice." My voice cracks despite my best efforts. "I want you. But I'll let you walk away if you choose freedom over me."
Something flickers through her expression. Disbelief, shock, and something dangerously close to tenderness. "Garruk," shewhispers, sliding her hand fully nto mine. "I don’t want to walk away.”
Heat detonates through me at those words. Her pulse flutters at her wrist, and her scent floods my lungs. I cup her jaw gently, offering her every chance to pull away.
She leans into my palm.
"Come here," she whispers.
The last of my restraint dissolves. I lift her carefully into my arms with her injured ankle protected and settle her onto my lap. Her thighs bracket mine, and she gasps softly at the movement—not in pain, but inwanting.
Her hands slide up my chest with fingers trembling. "You're so warm," she breathes.
I groan, quiet and desperate. "You undo me."
I kiss her. Not careful this time, not holding back. Her mouth opens under mine, soft and hungry, and her fingers dig into my shoulders as I pull her closer, devouring the taste of her, the sound of her breath, the way she melts into me like she was made for this moment. Forme.
Because she was.
She breaks the kiss on a stuttered inhale. "Garruk—"
"Ava." Her name trembles out of me.
She grips my tunic hard. "Don't stop."
I lift her chin, needing to see her eyes clearly. "You choose this?"
Her voice is barely more than breath. "I choose you."
Something inside me breaks wide open. I slide my hand beneath her shirt, fingers tracing the warm curve of her waist, and she shivers, arching into my touch. I kiss down her jaw, slow and reverent.
"You're beautiful," I murmur against her skin. "Soft. Strong.Mine."
She exhales on a shiver. "I want—" Her breath hitches when my thumb brushes inside her bra. "God, Garruk—yes. I’m yours."
Her shirt comes off in one fluid motion, and I take my time then, tracing every inch of exposed skin, learning the softness of her stomach, the curve of her ribs, the perfect weight of her breasts under my hands. She moans softly with her head tipping back, inviting more.
I lower my mouth to her chest, kissing a slow path along the top of her bra and savoring the sound she makes when my tusks graze her lightly. "Garruk," she gasps, tangling her fingers in my hair. "Please."
I groan against her skin, desperate with need. I ease her onto the bed, bracing myself above her, careful of her ankle, drinking in the sight of her—flushed, breathing hard, eyes dark with lust.
"Tell me if anything hurts," I say.
"It only hurts when you're not touching me."
A growl slips out, low and primal. The rest of our clothes go fast—hers first, each layer revealing more warm skin, more soft curves I want to worship. Mine after, her fingers shaking as she pushes my tunic up, desperate to feel me.
When her hands finally trace the lines of my chest, my breath breaks completely. She looks up at me with wide eyes. "You're huge."
I manage a strained laugh. "I won't hurt you. I promise."
