two
Kaiden
She’s here.
The Commons bustled for the midday meal. Students clustered around tables and the various food stations with oblivious glee. Humans weren’t attuned to the subtle dip in pressure that her kind instigated. It was an unconscious side effect of the strength and nature of her power. The mental vulnerability caused by the presence of a nightmare resulted in the uncontrollable urge by the potential victim—in this case, humans—to grow restless.
They couldn't pinpoint the danger, and the result was a louder, more animated Commons as the sheep instinctively reacted. It was interesting, really, and I would have taken more time to study the phenomena if I hadn’t felt her. Just like at the animal hospital earlier, her presence was a tug in my chest. I recognized what it was at the first pull, having been prepared to find my bond my entire life. To say I was no longer enthusiastic about the experience was an understatement.
I scanned the room, looking for the girl with a head of dark curls and eyes of absolute fire. The emerald in her gaze glowed when she was pissed; a fact I couldn’t tell from the varied portraits I’d collected of her. Finding my little wayward bond was my sole focus these past two years, and I was nothing if not thorough.
“Is that her? Nah, that one’s more of a brunette.”
I rolled my eyes at my annoying, but only tolerable cousin. “You’re drooling, Ez.”
He grinned wider. “Not having a bond means I can look all I want.Shit, I can touch all I want, too.” His fingers strummed atop the table in reflex. “Want me to put in some extra love for you, man?”
“Ez,” I warned.
Hearing about his frequent pursuits hit harder now that I had a bond consuming my every thought. Before, it was entertaining, a vicarious adventure to pass the time. Now, it pissed me the fuck off. No amount of half-naked co-eds with perfect tits could compare. My dick was only interested in our bond, and it refused to rise for even the most tempting of distractions, much to my cousin’s amusement.
“Not to worry, cuz. When I’m pumping into that luscious ass tonight, I’ll put in an extra thrust for you.”
“Ezra!”
His cackle was drowned out by the sledgehammer that hit my heart. There she was. She stood in line for the salad bar beside a curvaceous redhead that would make Ez’s tongue roll out like a welcome mat once he caught sight of her. I took my time checking out my little bond. Petite but not too short, legs I wanted wrapped around my waist, and those curls that fascinated me at first glance. They were tied off behind her head now, but this morning they’d cradled her face the way my hands itched too.
“Holy shit, that’s her. That’s definitely her,” Ez breathed beside me.
A nod was all I gave him in reply, too busy sizing up my prey. I already knew all I possibly could about this girl. Her favorite color: purple—based on the amount of pictures with her wearing it. Athletic according to her yearbooks and a love for animals. That one was obvious. She had no social media, so it was hard to gain insight into her inner thoughts, but I easily hacked her school records and read all the essays and written projects she had submitted so far.
What I learned was that my bond was a passionate, caring, intelligent woman. Or so I thought; before. Before she denied our bond and chose a life of misery and loneliness forbothof us. It was selfish and insane. Who chose to live like that? I knew her parents were bonded: didn’t she want that connection?
When the oracles made their announcement about Eryn, I couldn’t wait to meet her. Then they dropped the bomb that she was a nightmare; a faction all but extinct and feared for their power. I didn’t care. A part of me awakened when I heard her name, and nothing else mattered but finding her. Meeting her. Well, we met, and it changed nothing.
I gave her time to sense me coming before I opened that hospital door, but she didn’t move away fast enough. Her beauty struck me mute, and I felt like a jackass now for not helping her up. It was wishful thinking for her to be drawn to me as well. Her hungry gaze, I thought, was a sign she was ready to concede. The feel of her eyes on me—I groaned at the memory. Exquisite. But she did nothing. Shesaid nothing. No apology, no explanation for why she subjected us to this torture for two years.
It was predictable but somehow still surprising. Her stubborn nature was obvious from her initial denial, but still…I wanted her out of my head. I wanted to forget those lips and that dimple I glimpsed on one cheek when she smiled. A fake smile, but it counted.
“What are you going to do?” Ez adopted a more serious demeanor, choosing to hunch over the table like we were on a stakeout.
“Watch for now,” I told him.
It was also a warning. I didn’t want him approaching her and ruining my plan before I could put it into effect. Eryn Montalli was mine, and it was about time she learned it. She moved up the line, and my eyes burned a hole in the back of her head. If I looked a little lower, I could watch those curls bounce just above the curve of her ass. The bond in my chest lunged at the sight, and I gripped my silverware to keep from lurching to my feet and dragging her from this room. She acted like I wasn’t here when I knew she felt me. I gave a gentle strum to that connection between us, and she stiffened.
Finally.
She covertly scanned the crowd. It was kind of adorable. To anyone else, her wandering gaze and teeth nibbling her bottom lip could be interpreted as curiosity, but I knew it for what it was. She was looking for me. For the source of that ache in her chest. Those green beauties finally landed on me, and they widened. It was about damn time.
I worked to soften my glare so she wouldn’t be too intimidated to approach and apologize. Surely, she must have realized her mistake. A small swallowing of her pride, and we could move on with our lives.
“Fuck.” Ez started laughing, no longer worried about being noticed. “Oh fuck, you’re in for it, cuz.”
My little bond narrowed her eyes and deliberately turned her back to me. She moved toward the damn salad bar like she hadn’t seen me. She wasignoringme. What the actual fuck? Who did this girl think she was? Back straight and stubbornchin up, she marched right past me with the attitude of slighted royalty. This princess had no idea who she was fucking with.
“Easy, Kai.” Ezra threw his jacket over me to hide the black tendrils of my shadows as they bent the metal in my hands.
I pushed away from the table and stormed from the Commons, choosing not to risk a power surge in front of the humans. The cool air outside did little to ease my temper. What was this girl doing to me? Ez caught up in the parking lot and hopped into the passenger seat of my truck.
