“Why would you do that?” Thalia gasped. “Why would you—”
“Because I cannot bear the thought of you getting hurt,” Cassius snapped. His eyes glowed as he gripped the arms of his chair, his face rippling slightly. “Because it makes me sick to my fucking stomach thinking that I almost lost you last night. To know that it was my own mistake—my own foolish, selfish desire in keeping Sybil alive in hopes we find a cure—that allowed you to get in harm’s way. I am no better than Julian. No better than any of the other Vampyrs trying to keep their loved ones alive for a little longer.”
Thalia swallowed as Cassius’s chest rose and fell, his anger at himself washing over his features like slashes on a dartboard.
She rose, her feet padding across the floor until she stood before him. Cassius looked at her, his eyes shining with such deep regret and devastation that it made her own heart crack.
“You are not Julian,” she said. His face twisted, but she placed a hand on his cheek, feeling the rough stubble under her palms. “And you are not like any other Vampyr. You took her away when you found out she was bitten. You ensured that no one would stumble upon her or that she would get out and cause harm. You did not just leave her so anyone could find her.”
Cassius’s throat bobbed, his eyes shining. “But she still foundyou.”
Thalia gripped his face in her hands. She moved, finding herself straddling his lap. Cassius didn’t say anything, but his hands immediately found the curve of her waist, holding tight.
“I was stupid,” Thalia whispered, running a thumb along his sharp cheekbone. “I heard her crying for help and thought a woman had locked herself down there. I was foolish, and didn’t listen when you told me to avoid the lower levels. If I had, none of this would have happened.”
Cassius swallowed. Hard. His fingers clenched around her waist. “You could have died last night. And I would have never forgiven myself.”
Thalia’s own throat bobbed. “But I didn’t.” She grasped one of his hands, bringing it to her chest—to her heart, a steady beat under his palms. “I’m right here.”
Cassius scanned her, blue eyes bright. “Thalia—”
She silenced him with her lips.
Cassius pressed his fingers into her chest, his hand burning as if needing the reassurance that she was alive.
His lips answered her own, a thread wrapping between them, fusing them together like two halves of a mirror. All sense of fear and decorum fled as Thalia nipped at his lips, her teeth snagging on his flesh, and Cassius groaned. His kiss turned fervent. Heated.
He gripped her face with one hand, tilting her head back farther so he could devour her. His tongue slipped into her mouth, and she made a sound in the back of her throat, her body going loose and tight all at once.
Cassius smiled against her lips. “I’ve missed those little noises.” His hand over her heart drifted to her breast. “I missed the taste of you.”
Thalia kissed him deeper, her arms winding around his neck. She felt his hard length right against the soft, aching part of her. She arched against it, needing to feel the friction between them.
“Fuck,” he growled, fingers digging into her flesh.
Cassius’s lips left hers, but he didn’t go far as he tilted his jaw, his hot mouth meeting her neck. Thalia tilted her head back, and his lips traveled down to her collarbone.
Thalia rolled her hips against him, needing to appease the ache in her core—
Pain flared through her body. Thalia let out a hiss, pulling away.
“What? What happened?” Cassius’s brows pulled, immediately stopping.
Thalia shook her head, pushing the pain aside. “Nothing.” She leaned back in to capture his mouth and groaned, the muscles in her back twinging.
Cassius shifted. “Maybe we shouldn’t do this.”
Thalia’s eyes narrowed. “No. I’m fine. It’s fine.”
Cassius caught her chin between his fingers, his eyes shining now for a different reason. “As much as I’d like to continue this, I don’t think your body can handle it.”
Thalia would have argued had the muscle in her calf not begun to cramp. She groaned again, and Cassius stood, picking her up in the same movement.
And she didn’t protest as he plunked her into the tub, the warm water soothing the aches and pain in both her body and heart.
Chapter Thirty-Three
“So what do you think?” Cassius asked. His face remained neutral, although Thalia heard the barest hint of hope in his voice.
