“I already feel you,” I snap. “You’re bleeding on my favorite sheets.”
“That’s not what I meant.” His mouth tightens. “It becomes easier for my uncle’s men to find you.”
Cold trickles down my spine like icy fingers. So intense I actually shiver.
“But they can already do that,” I say.
“Yes.”
“Then what’s the difference?”
His eyes lift to mine.
“The difference,” he says, “is how quickly they will come.” His voice drops lower. “If they find you because of me, they will not be kind.”
He screams. The sound rips through the house, raw, broken. Pain and anguish bleeding into one.
“This is stupid.” I shove my finger back into his face. “According to you, your uncle will send men to kill us, including me. Isn’t that right?”
A miserable nod.
“You can help. Protect me, us, but not like this.” I wave a hand at him. “You have to heal. I’ve been thinking about it. We need to run. Draw them away from my mom. They’ll follow us first, right?”
“Yes.” His voice is ragged. “Our scent will be stronger, like fresh earth after the rain. Impossible to miss. Besides, I’m the one they really want.”
“That’s what I thought.” I lift my hand again, this time slower. Deliberate. “This is the plan. Bite me. Heal up. We get as far away from my mom as possible. After that…” I trail off. “We’ll figure it out later.”
“We need to go to the armory.”
“The where?”
“There is an ancient armory here in your land. Left over from—” He cuts off, his features contorting from pain.
“Bite now. Explain later.”
His gaze moves to my wrist. Hesitates.
“Sorren,” I press.
His lips tighten, but then he moves.
The bed creaks as he moves closer.
He doesn’t grab my finger. Instead, his hand hovers over my wrist, close enough that I feel the heat of his skin before he ever touches me.
He turns my wrist so the inside faces up, brushing his fingertips lightly across the spot where my pulse flutters wildly.
“Here?” he asks quietly. “Is this okay?”
The touch is soft. Testing.
My breath hitches. Speeds up.
He lowers his head, and his breath ghosts across my skin. I feel the warmth of it all the way to my elbow.
He stops and looks up at me.
Waiting.
