“We’re bonded. You and I,” he says, his blue eyes shadowed. “A bond of fire and betrayal.”
My chest suddenly squeezes and my breath stills. I’m reminded that we are both dark creatures, born to lie and cheat and betray each other.
Born to be alone.
But I will defy that.
Take or deny—that’s what he asked me—and by fuck, I’ll take everything and deny the risks.
I breathe through the tightness in my chest and softly arch an eyebrow at him. “That sounds mildly ominous.”
The shadows clear from his expression. His chest moves beneath me, a sudden rumbling sensation as he gives a light chuckle. “It does.”
“Although I’ll agree with the fire part,” I say, attempting to press kisses to his chest while he laughs. Difficult while his torso is bumping up and down.
His smile slowly fades as his fingers trace the curve of my hips, a hint of desire darkening his eyes again. His lips press to the top of my head, then to my neck as he pushes me onto my back, his mouth traveling languidly down to my breasts, nudging against my nipples.
I’m surprised when my body responds and a needy ache builds between my legs.
“I can’t possibly go again,” I say with a soft laugh.
He arches an eyebrow at me. “If you’re certain?”
I narrow my eyes in thought.Am I?
While I give it some serious consideration, he presses a kiss to my jaw, his lips whispering a path up to my ear, then across to my jaw, then briefly to my lips.
His voice is hushed as he speaks, and I become very still to listen.
“When I saw you… broken and bloody… I felt something I didn’t expect to feel.”
I meet his eyes, my heated thoughts banished by his solemn tone. “What was that?”
“Fear,” he says.
A little confused, I tilt my head, my hair fanning out against the floor. “But you had nothing to fear in that situation. There was no threat to your life.” I rethink what I just said. “Well, not until I asked you to rescue Lucian.”
“Nothing to fear?” he asks, moving swiftly, his arms sliding around my back as he pulls me up into a sitting position, my legs around his hips.
His hands cup my cheeks, run through my hair, and slide down my back. He grips my hips and pulls me closer to him, grinding my core against the top of his length.
His voice is rough, his breathing rougher. “You think I had nothing to fear when I saw you so broken, I thought I might not be able to save you?”
My eyes widen. “You were afraid… forme.”
“Why did that not occur to you?” he asks.
His cock is hard beneath me, the press of my core against him creating the intense temptation to defy my own boundaries and slide back enough to take him inside me.
My response is ragged. “Because love is a lie.”
I run my hands across his shoulders and upward, pressing one palm against the back of his head and wrapping the other around the back of his neck. “Dark creatures can bond, form alliances—even have family. But we can’t love. Or be loved in return.”
His hands tighten on my hips, a rough pull toward him, as if he disagrees.
I wait for him to say so.
The glare in my eyesdareshim to tell me I’m wrong.
