KASTIEL
The imp was nothing but ash on the stone floor, but the rift’s echo still hummed in my subconscious. I should have been focused on the fact that a breach had just torn open inside the hotel I was sworn to protect on the single most dangerous night of the century. Instead, every instinct I possessed was locked on the woman pressed against the wall as though she wanted to disappear into it.
For the first time in centuries, my duty to The Abyss felt distant and secondary.
I could feel her desperate attempt to pull her aura back under control. My demon didn’t like it. He wanted to wrap her in shadows until she stopped trembling.
Isolde was fated to be mine, but she looked like she’d run from me at the first chance she got. She wouldn’t get far if she tried, though. My demon was possessive of things he coveted—that trait just had never extended to a woman before.
But my territorial instincts were bound to be amplified to the extreme when it came to my fated mate.
“Whatever you want to call it, you should get as far from me as you can.” Her eyes held so much sorrow, my demon roaredinside my head. “I was already having issues controlling my aura, and it’s even harder with you near.”
I’d never met a succubus who resisted their power. Even without her demonic allure, Isolde was stunning. She was a full foot shorter than me, with a delicate bone structure and soft, generous curves that made my hands itch to pull her close. Her long hair fell in dark chestnut waves over one shoulder. Her pale skin glowed faintly in the low light, and her full lips were pressed tight with stubborn restraint.
But it was her emerald-green eyes that truly undid me. They were wide with fear, swirling with black as her succubus half pushed for dominance, reaching for my demon. For me.
“We’ll have to figure it out because even Lucifer himself couldn’t drag me away from you.”
She shook her head, her eyes widening. “You can’t possibly mean that.”
All it had taken was one look across that ballroom, and something inside me had recognized her on a level that went deeper than thought or reason. My demon already clawed at the inside of my chest with an unrelenting demand to claim Isolde.
“I mean every word.” I stepped closer despite every warning in my head. “You’re my mate, Isolde. That bond doesn’t come with conditions. It just is. And right now, it’s telling me to keep you safe—whether you want me to or not.”
I caught the slightest softening in her expression before she lifted her chin. “I suppose only time will tell if I can trust a word you say.”
“And we’ll have plenty of it since you’re coming with me.”
She stiffened. “What? Why?”
The veil between realms was paper thin, making the gate beneath us more vulnerable than it had been in a hundred years. It was already a major security risk without her aura issues. I should be focusing on the safety of the demon guests I was swornto protect, but I was fighting the overwhelming urge to pull this woman against me and never let her go.
But at least I had the perfect excuse to keep her close.
“I’m not letting you walk around The Abyss alone tonight.” I took one step closer, watching the way her aura flared brighter in response before she wrenched it back. “Your power just tore a hole in the wards. Until I know exactly what’s happening with it, you’ll stay in a secure suite on a restricted floor.”
I told myself it was protocol. The gate was vulnerable, and her unstable aura made her a security risk.
My demon laughed at the lie. He didn’t give a damn about protocol. He wanted her close. Every instinct I possessed demanded I keep her where I could guard her myself.
Isolde swallowed hard, the delicate line of her throat working. “I’m not a threat. I swear I’m?—”
“I didn’t say you were,” I cut in, fighting the urge to reach out and brush away the lock of hair that had fallen onto her cheek. “But I’m not taking chances. Not with you.”
She tilted her head, her brows drawing together. “If you don’t think I’m dangerous, what chance would you be taking with me?”
“You’re only a threat to my self-control.” I didn’t understand why she looked so confused. Fated mates were sacrosanct among demonkind. It should’ve been obvious that her safety would be my top priority. “Which is as it should be. Same with me protecting you above all others.”
“Forgive me if I’m a bit skeptical.” Her aura pulsed again as sadness poured from her. “Parents should want to keep their children safe too, but my father will be more worried about how my aura glitching at such a public event will impact his image than if I’m okay.”
The demon world was small enough that I would’ve recognized her surname, even if I hadn’t investigated eachguest in attendance tonight. Thalvor Virelyn traced his lineage to Leviathan and had a thirst for power. Unmated after three centuries, he had a child with a succubus two decades ago. An heir with the hypnotic capability paired with supernatural charm appealed to him. One he should’ve wanted to protect.
Her certainty that he cared more about appearances than her pissed me the fuck off. “You don’t need to worry about your father’s reaction. I’ll handle him.”
“Good luck with that.” She snorted, the slightest gleam of humor in her green eyes. “He wouldn’t be receptive to being handled by you under the best of circumstances. He’ll probably flip out if you tell him you’re my fated mate since he was hoping for an alliance that would gain him more power.”
My demon surged forward, demanding I pull her against me, wrap her in shadows, and brand her so no one else would ever dare come near what belonged to us. The need was so strong it physically hurt—a deep pull behind my ribs that made my hands flex at my sides. But I couldn’t act on it yet. She wasn’t ready.
