He rolled onto his side. “Because you’re trying to test my willpower.” He stared into my eyes. “Or breakit. . . ”
“Is itworking?”
“When have you ever failed atanything?”
I smiled, but then I didn’t. Then, in a rush of boldness—or foolishness—I closed the distance between our mouths, fitting mine on top ofhis.
A groan rumbled out of his chest, and he skated his mouth off mine. “Are you staying?” His chest rose andfell.
“I don’t think Ican—”
Hewinced.
“Let me finish my sentence. You didn’t let me finish mysentence.”
His gaze tripped over my face. “Finish yoursentence.”
Heart palpitating against my jaw, my lips, my chin, my forehead, I repeated what I’d said, but added the final word, the one that would changeeverything.
Forhim.
Forme.
Forus.
“I don’t think I canleave.”
I didn’t want to answer to Liam, and I wasn’t sure how I would get around this if I stayed, but I wasn’t ready to abandon August, Evelyn, or Jeb. I didn’t want to lose the ability to transform into a powerful beast, nor leave the home I’d just gottenback.
August clasped my chin with heartbreaking tenderness. “I need you to be perfectly certain aboutthis.”
“This?”
“Staying. Being with me.” He ran his thumb over my lower lip. “I want you as my mate, Ness. Not tonight. Not tomorrow, but before the Winter Solstice. I need to know if you want this too. Because this isn’t a simple crush. At least, not forme.”
He was talking aboutforever. Forever scared the hell out of me. “I’ve never even been in a relationship,August.”
“So you’re notready?”
“Because youare?”
“I’ve been with other people. I know what’s out there, and I understand how precious what I’ve been given is. How preciousyouare.” He caressed mycheek.
“I want to be with you, August—only you—and Ihaveseen what’s out there. I’m not settling for you because you happen to be around and magically connected to me. But I don’t want to promise you forever, because that scares me.” I moistened my dry lips with the tip of my tongue. “If that’s not enough foryou—”
His hand scooped up the back of my head and pressed my face closer to his, interrupting the flow of my thoughts and words. Against my lips, he whispered, “Onlyme.”
“Only you,” I murmured to the man lying beside me, so familiar and yet a completestranger.
He crushed his mouth to mine, and the rope that bound us drew me nearer and nearer. I didn’t know if he’d reeled me in or if I’d done that. All I knew was that each one of our bones aligned; each inch of our flesh molded together to the point where it was impossible to distinguish where one of us began and the otherended.
And that—fitting so perfectly with someone—scared me more than anything, because if we ended, it would tear up more than just our hearts. It would tear up our verybodies.
47
Sleep fellover me as quietly as dawn crept over the horizon and kept me in its arms the same way August kept me in his. I felt safe and calm and sated in a way I hadn’t felt in a long time. All we’d done was kiss, our fingers not venturing across the acres of skin that were now ours to explore. I sensed August was worried of frightening me by going toofast.
I appreciated the slowness. Everything with Liam had been rushed. We’d kissed as though we were out of time, and in a way, we had been, even though neither of us had known itthen.
