He screams my name, his face white with shock, and I fight the current, desperate to get to him. But it’s no use. The train of my dress drags me down. I watch, helpless and desperate, as a wave sweeps over his head and the ocean of blood swallows him whole.
I’m sure the premonition lasts only a few seconds, but it feels like an eternity. When I open my eyes, I’m back in the office, sitting on the edge of Donovan’s desk, still wrapped in his arms.
“Rune?” His voice is low, husky. “Are you okay?”
I shake all over, a fine tremor that runs through me from head to toe. Frowning, he takes me by the shoulders and peers into my face. “Did I hurt you?”
“N-no.” I shudder, and he frees one of his hands, stroking my hair back from my face.
“Then what? Talk to me. Please.”
“I c-can’t.” My teeth are chattering, so hard I almost bite my tongue, and Donovan’s gaze darkens.
“If it wasn’t me, then it was someone,” he says. “You don’t have to tell me. But God, Rune, I would never make you do anything you didn’t want to. You know that, right?”
At the sincerity in his voice, tears stream down my cheeks. Wordless, I nod.
“Please don’t cry.” He wipes away my tears with the tips of his fingers, his touch so careful and deliberate. Just like everything else about him, until he lost all of his control in my arms. I want nothing more than to make him do it again. But at the thought of where that will lead—at what my premonition showed me—I cry harder.
This beautiful, infuriating man is meant to be my husband. And then, on our wedding day, our marriage will somehow cost him his life.
Donovan frowns, his teeth sinking into his lower lip. “You’re scaring me, Rune. Did I—did I do something? I swear to Christ, I never meant?—”
“It’s not you.” I pull away from him, trembling, and he lets me go, stepping away from the desk. As soon as my feet hit the floor, I back away from him, giving us both some distance. That doesn’t help: now I can see him clearly, and he looks as ravaged as I feel. His chest is heaving, his lips swollen from our kisses. His hands open and close at his sides, like it’s an effort not to reach for me. The pull between us is magnetic, as if we’re two halves of a single entity that are trying desperately to find their way back to each other. To become whole.
I’ve never felt anything like it. Have never imagined I could.
But it’s the one thing I can never, ever have.
“Donovan,” I whisper, “I can’t do this.Wecan’t do this.”
He peers at me, his features etched with confusion, pain shimmering in those unfairly gorgeous blue eyes. “What do you mean?”
It hurts to look at him. “I mean,” I say, avoiding his gaze, “that this is wrong.”
“Because we work together?” His eyebrows knit. “I know it has the potential for…awkwardness. But I’m not your supervisor, Rune. And there’s nothing in the employee manual saying it’s against regulations. So if that’s the only reason…”
Despite the dire situation, I can’t help snorting. “You looked it up?”
“I read the manual when Smashbox hired me!” He folds his arms across his chest, looking adorably indignant. “Didn’t you?”
“Not in its entirety. And even if I had, I don’t think I’d remember that little detail.”
“I may have revisited it last night. Just out of curiosity.”
My snort becomes a full-out laugh, only slightly impeded by my tears. “And here I thought dishonesty was one of your pet peeves, Donovan Frost.”
“Yeah, well, until ten minutes ago, I thoughtIwas one of yours.” He takes a tentative step closer to me, and then, when I don’t retreat, one more. “What just happened between us, Rune…I want you to know, I’ve never done anything like that before.”
His eyes are wide, filled with wonder, lit with hope. I have to extinguish it. But I don’t want to. All I want is to taste him again. It’s intoxicating.
“What?” I tease, against my better judgment. “Almost have sex in your office? Disturb the order of your pristine desk? I’m afraid you’ll have to be a bit more specific, Mr. Frost.”
“All of that. Any of it. I’ve neverfeltanything like that.” He prowls a step closer, his eyes on my face. “Tell me it’s not just me, Rune. Tell me you felt it too.”
I should tell him I didn’t feel anything at all. That what happened between us was a mistake. That it meant nothing more to me than a meaningless, random hookup. It’s the only way to save his life.
But God, the scorching look in his eyes, the memory of those big hands of his gripping my hips, his body moving against mine…
