The bond burns through my chest like godfire, flooding my senses with her—her gasps, her pleasure, the taste of her moans on my tongue.
Who's touching her?
I crash through the door like a beast set ablaze. The door splinters under my force. Wood cracks, the hinges scream, crystal webs explode under my hooves.
I can't thrahking breathe in here, her scent is everywhere. It’s thick, cloying, and every breath I take makes it worse.
She's slumped in the tub, shaking, lips parted, hands still between her thighs, water still sloshing around her.
Her eyes fly open, but they’re empty of understanding.
I step toward her, and her body jolts upright. The words rip straight from my throat:
“Who the thrahk is Tyrian?”
“Huh?” A small crease appears between her brows as she tilts her head, her wet lashes clumped together.
I stalk forward, silent on the old wooden planks. My eyes stay locked on hers.
“You heard me, Lumi.” My voice crackles with something not human. “Who else was here?”
She shakes her head, stunned. “I—you? You were the only one here?”
“No,” I growl. “I wasn't.”
She doesn’t say anything.
“Don't lie to me, Lumi. Don't ever lie to me.”
I take a step toward her, and she flattens against the tub.
She's scared of me?The bond writhes in protest.Wrong. This is wrong.She should never look at me like that—like I’m a threat, not her mate. The ice spreading from my skin falters, melting at the edges as something more painful than rage takes hold.
I inhale deeply, just once, to calm myself.
There's something else in the air beneath her arousal, beneath the panic. All the warmth I gained from her before I fell asleep drains from me in a single, devastating rush.
No.
No, not that.
My eyes fall back to the tub. Water still swirls around her thighs, cloudy and disturbed. The sweet scent curls like a ribbon through the air, unmistakable to any Rhavari.
“Gods,” I breathe. “You... you let him bring you to peak?”
I stagger back a step, barely breathing. The beast thrashes beneath my skin like a caged animal. My knees struggle to hold my weight.
No, not just release. Vaelis’thrae.
That kind of release doesn’t just happen. It can’t be forced or faked. The soul has to yield. The body has to forget every wall, every fear, every safeguard. It’s what happens when a mate feels so safe, so utterly trusting, that they open themselves completely through the bond.
Most mated pairs don’t reach it for months... some never do.
And she just gave it to a voice in the dark. Someone who wasn’t me.
My hands curl into fists at my sides. I stare at her, but I can’t thrahking move.
She's still panting. I hear every. single. labored. breath.
