Adam grasped Katya’shand and led her to the bedroom.She trembled slightly, her breath coming out shallow and quick.He wanted to embrace her, shield her from the dread and the crippling anxiety.He yearned to wash away every ounce of pain she’d ever endured.
Mates.
The word was new, yet not unwelcome.It made sense now.The raw emotion, the desperate need to save her, the love which had sprouted out of nowhere without being invited.
Mates.
He would have a lifetime to learn about Katya, to discover everything about her and cherish it.
Except, she had to murder him.When they entered the room, she crouched next to the bed and pulled out a loaded gun and a porcupine quill.
“Dante,” he whispered.
“You know him?”
“We’ve been after him for some time,” he said.“He’s a slippery one.”
“What do we do now?”she asked quietly, scanning the room for the cameras they both knew were there.
“What you were sent to do,” he said, matter-of-factly.
Her eyes widened, the fear within them an endless pool.
“No.”
“It’s me or your sister.So, you do what you were sent to do, Katya.You shoot me and you push that quill deep into my heart.”
“I can’t.”
“You must.They’re watching, remember?”He waved his arm in a circle.
Her face was pale, all color driven from it.Her gaze was red-rimmed, but no tears fell, as if the truth of what she had to do was too much to bear.Her shoulders shook.
“No.”
She took a step, closing the distance between them and wrapping her arms around him, drawing him in for a kiss.Her mouth pressed to his urgently, begging for one last moment.He gave it to her, surrendering to her demands and entwining his tongue into a dance they knew the steps for perfectly.Hot, fiery passion engulfed him.He pulled her closer, every curve of her body pressed to his, trembling with desire and dread.
The steel barrel of the weapon against his left flank under his ribs caught him by surprise, but it was nothing compared to the sharp burning impact that tore through him.Pain exploded and he stumbled backward.
“Katya?”
She didn’t look at him.Instead, she quickly pushed him onto the bed and pierced the bleeding wound with the head of the quill.Her animalist yell mingled with his scream of agony as every fiber of his being protested at the new invasion.His vision swam, dark spots mingling with Katya’s face.
Mate.
What a strange word.What a beautiful word.Unforgiving.Loving.
Blinding, the pain seared through him, spreading like wildfire and tearing through his nerves.
“Katya.I—” His hearing dulled.The world narrowed.Only his mate remained.“Love you.”
“Adam.”She crumbled over him, weeping.“I didn’t want to.I didn’t want to.Please forgive me.I had to.I’m sorry.”
“Me too.”He tangled his fingers in her hair, slipping the strands between them.The faint scent of lotus flower filled his senses.“Little one,” he whispered.“It’s going to be okay.”
