Gray returned the kiss tentatively, as if studying my lips.
It was probably the most innocent kiss I’d been involved in, but my gods, it sent me to another world. I needed more.
My breath came in harsh, but I forced myself to break the kiss, gauging her reaction. If she was repulsed, I’d probably wilt on the inside. Then, I’d stumble out into the world and let an Endarkened find me.
But if she liked it, then…
Gray glared at me, and my heart withered into dust. I knew it. I fucked up. I shouldn’t have kissed her. What the hell was I thinking? And gods, what about Chrome? He wouldn’t admit it, but I knew he had feelings for her. I couldn’t betray him like that; he was my mission partner, cousin, and best friend. Vines containing venomous thorns of guilt twined around my insides, squeezing them until I couldn’t breathe.
“Why’d you stop?” she demanded, almost sounding mad.
“I’m…sorry?” I hedged, unsure what the correct answer was here.
Gray’s jaw was set, blue flames ignited in her eyes. “Kiss me like you mean it.”
I didn’t need to be told twice. I’d shove my feelings for her away after this one.
I latched onto the back of her head, caressing my lips against hers, parting them with mine just enough to slip my tongue through. Our tongues met and danced, euphoria sending my body to new heights. Thoughts of Chrome drifted away as I tumbled into Gray’s freefall.
Gray laced her hands together behind my neck, relaxing into my torso as she stretched up onto her toes to kiss me. The now-familiar buzzing began its hum at the base of my neck, radiating down my shoulders, arms, and palms.
At least now I knew how to mask the glow with a glamour, thanks to Valik.
The vortex took me away again, promising me that I’d never be the same. Princess Gray had officially made her mark on my soul, and I’d bow to her with a simple look if she demanded it. I was hers in whatever way she commanded, even if that meant this was a onetime thing.
Chapter 29
Chrome
Shadows enveloped me, obscuring me from the side of the training room’s doorway. It had taken me several moments to spot Slate and Gray, but finally, I found them by the sparring beam. It shocked me that Slate had already taken her there. But I reminded myself that she was like me, a hybrid who would be exceptional in her physical ability. Pride for her progress bloomed in my heart.
I didn’t have long to stay and watch, but I just needed a quick glimpse of her. I needed to see if she was okay. Her emotions were all over the place. One minute, they were terrified; the next, sad. And minutes later, they would be full of excitement.
I tensed at the sight of Gray’s deer-in-headlights stare as if she were frozen to the spot by something Slate had said. I felt her confusion and…guilt?
My hands shook against the door. I closed it into a fist, trying and failing to make it stop, but I kept my focus on the princess. What had Slate said to give her that type of reaction?
Finally, she turned to walk away. I released a breath, the relief from my lungs sending a rush of oxygen to my brain.
As soon as I relaxed my shoulders just a fraction, Slate walked toward her, grabbed her wrist, and spun her around to face him. My breath once again seized in my chest, not even making it to my windpipe. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the way he tugged her against him, cupping her cheek the way I had on the rooftop not so long ago.
My heart cracked, straining to withstand the pressure, when Slate leaned down and kissed Gray. But it wasn’t until he pulled back, and I heard her demand, “Kiss me like you mean it,” that it finally collapsed and shattered.
Slate obliged, making things instantly worse when an overpowering sensation of lust from Gray slammed into me like a boulder, threatening to make me vomit. The arm supporting me against the wall fell away, and my hand immediately slapped against my chest, clutching the organ as if I could heal it on the spot. Unfortunately, our magic didn’t heal emotional wounds.
Not from lack of trying, though.
Clenching my jaw and nursing my heart, I forced myself to take a step back. Then another. And another. One at a time until they were no longer in my view.
I felt so stupid for feeling this way. We had only shared one kiss. Only a handful of moments. It was time for me to accept that we were doomed to fail from the start. Slate would be better for her, anyway. I didn’t have shit to offer her, even if by some miracle we were allowed to spend time together. I was broken. A Warrior for the ages, but a Warrior who wasn’t even allowed to own his body, much less his love life.
It was better this way. At least she would be safe with Slate, as much as they shredded any morsel of hope that I clung to.
Before rejoining my sister and Onyx in the corridor, I paused for a moment to regain my composure. I had an important anddangerous mission. My focus needed to be there, or we’d all be fucked.
Closing my eyes, I went to the dark and distant space in my mind, a pitch void where nothing existed. And if nothing existed there, then nothing could hurt me. It was the only place I could find solitude and peace. For years, it had been conjured visions of Gray. But now, that was no longer safe.
I dove deep into my void—deeper than ever before—into dark depths that remained untouched and unexplored. Once I felt the wave of nothingness wash over me, I opened my eyes.
