“What does that mean?” I ask, my voice a near sigh as I breathe through the aftereffects of our soul-breaking sex.
“It has a dual meaning, depending on the context.” Roman plants one palm against the wall beside my head, supporting me with his other arm, his breathing still ragged, his voice low. “Destiny. Or downfall.”
I search his expression, the sudden tension in his jaw making me pause. “Which is it for us?”
He shakes his head, his eyes clearing of darkness, becoming bright green in the steamy light. “I guess we’ll find out.”
I fight the swirling dread within my stomach—not fear of him, but of what lies ahead of me. With a determined growl, I press my lips to his. “Destiny,” I say. “And I want more of it.”
He smiles against my mouth, his hand already stroking my clit as he draws us back into the spray. “Fuck, yes.”
When we finally emerge from the bathroom, I’m dressed in a fresh shirt and jeans and Roman has runed himself new sweats, but he hasn’t put on a shirt yet. Our hair is wet, dripping onto our shoulders. Roman doesn’t make any effort to shake off the droplets. Thethumpof his wings dislodges them in a glittering spray around his torso.
“You can’t enter or leave this place any other way,” he says, wrapping me up in his wings.
I step easily into his embrace, accepting the darkness that surrounds me for the seconds it takes for my feet to find the ground again.
When his feathers separate, I find myself standing in his cabin. My four wolves and Ingrid are basking in front of the fireplace, but they all jump up when they see me, Ace the only one who lags behind as they storm me with licks and growls and purrs.
While Roman waits quietly at the side of the room, I reassert my bond with each of them, but it’s my growing bond with Roman that is at the forefront of my mind.
* * *
For the next three days, I spend my morning hours practicing my nightmare power, my afternoon hours learning the ancient demon language and reading the books in Roman’s possession, and my nighttime hours exploring Roman’s body—and experiencing his exploration of mine.
My demon wolves stay close at first, but after a while, they start to venture around Roman’s home, disappearing for short periods of time into the Wilds. I’m not sure exactly where they go, but they’re never gone for long, and it gives me a sense of peace that they’re settling into this jungle, since it would have been their domain if they hadn’t been taken from it. After all, this is the land of their births.
With each hour that I practice, my nightmare power grows stronger and more controlled. By the end of the second day, I can use it like a tsunami, pouring it forward to encompass a wider area—multiple hypothetical opponents at once—and stopping it as soon as I wish.
Like the first day, Roman invites me to practice on him.
I try. But despite the power at my fingertips, I can’t move him.
Part of me knows I’m holding back. Despite his assurances that he will stop me if I’m about to injure him, I can’t quite let go, can’t quite attack him with full force. In fact, every time he asks me to try, I constrain myself even more.
On the evening of the third day, when my wolves and Ingrid are tucked up by the fireplace, and Roman wraps his wings around me, he is quieter than he’s ever been.
When he transports me to his bedroom, he opens his feathers and steps away from me instead of reaching for me.
I remain where I am in the space between the bed and the lounge, watching him prowl around his room, sensing the increasing agitation in his body language, the rapidity of his breathing, the tension in his jaw, and the slight hunch of his shoulders.
“What do you see when you look at me?” he asks, coming to a halt a few paces away from me.
“I seeyou.”
“What am I?” he asks. “A demon? A mate? A man?”
“You’re Rune.” I take a step closer.
“You’ve never seen me at my worst.” He holds his hand up while his skin transforms, becoming deep amethyst, and his fingernails form sharp tips. “This is just a hint of the demon I am.”
I maintain my steadfast gaze. “Why should that bother me? I turn into a wolf.”
He darts forward and his wings envelop me, shooting around me so fast that my breath catches. His feathers press in against my back, ruffling my hair. Maybe I should find them startling, but I only find them seductive, a new place to explore his body.
“You won’t survive unless you’re willing to find my fear,” he says, a deep, low rumble. “Your nightmare power won’t protect you. Not until you’re prepared to use it to force your enemy to their knees.”
Now, I tense. I refused to cause him pain before and I’m even more determined now to avoid it. “No.”
