Being a soldier has taught me one thing.
You fix your target and go after it.
No hesitation. When there is an opportunity, you go in for the kill.
But faced with Starlight, I am paralyzed.
There’s more at stake than I realize. This is one bull’s-eye I can’t miss. This is one female who can lay me low. I can’t let her go and yet I can’t do to her everything I want to.
“What do you need?” She licks her lips as if absorbing my taste.
I drop my gaze to her mouth, to where her chin quivers and the plump flesh of her lips glistens. “I have to kiss you.” Maybe it really is that simple? Maybe I just need to do this one step at a time. Maybe I don’t need to plan this conquest. For once, I simply let my instincts drive and see where it takes me.
“You can, on one condition.”
I curl my lips, “Bargaining, are we?”
She doesn’t reply, just looks at me with those beseeching eyes. She doesn’t know it yet, but I’d never be able to refuse her anything. My heart stutters. I push aside that crazy thought. All she is, is someone I need to tame and make sure the mating bond is consolidated so she cannot live without me. She must become dependent on me. It’s the only way to ensure that she’ll never betray me.
“Well?” I hold her gaze.
“You promise to not stop there.” She bites her lips, and her gaze skitters away. “I can’t believe I just said that.”
“I wish I could tell you why I need to do this. Why it’s important for me to consolidate the bond.”
“You can trust me, Dante.”
“I have never trusted anyone before.”
“No one? Not even your commander?”
“You really were listening in on the entire conversation, weren’t you?” I should feel angrier about that, but strangely, it’s a relief.
“You don’t sound upset.” She frowns.
“No, you did me a favor.” I crack my neck.
“How?”
“You took the decision out of my hands; you sealed your fate with that little stunt.”
The color ebbs from her cheeks. “I didn’t do anything wrong. You’re the one who brought me here and is holding me against my will.” Her shoulders flex, then she straightens her back.
She wants to fight; she needs to feel like she’s being given a choice? Fine.
I raise my hands and step back, putting distance between us.
She doesn’t move, she just stiffens. “What are you doing?”
“Go." I jerk my chin toward the door. "I am not holding you back.”
“You don’t mean it.” Her lips thin.
“Try me.”
She balls her fists at her sides. “You’d let me go, just like that?”
I nod. I am also going to chase her... but I don't say that aloud. I never did play straight, and with this woman, I plan to take any advantage I can get.
Her scent deepens; her chest heaves. She takes a step back, then another as she sidles toward the door.
All the time, her gaze is fixed on my face. There is a frown between her eyebrows as if she’s trying to figure out if what I am saying is true. She holds her fists in front of her. Her tunic rises with the move. The pale skin of her thigh flashes and I can’t stop my gaze from dropping to the sliver of her skin.
I take a step forward, and it seems to snap her out of her daze. Turning, she darts out of the room, down the corridor to the main door.
I follow her and come to a stop just outside the front entrance.
She pounds down the path that weaves past the trees. She's headed for what I know is the edge of a cliff. Worry twists my guts.
I am not sure I know exactly what I am doing, except I can’t take her against her will. I need her to make a choice. I need her to choose me. And I am going about it all wrong. I drum my fingers against my chest.
Why am I even trying to do this differently? I have no answer, except that I am perhaps a better man than I thought. I can’t hurt her…and I can’t let her hurt herself either. I race down the steps after her.
She’s nowhere in sight. Then there’s a rustle from the direction of the trees.
I wait. A second. Two. Then I teleport.
17
Gia
I almost slam into the wall at the perimeter of the property, then swerve at the last minute to avoid it.
I go rolling over the undergrowth, hit a bush, then come to a stop. Springing back to my feet, I gaze at the wall. I have to tilt my neck back, all the way back, to see the top.
It’s tall enough to shut out the sight of the trees that I had seen from the window. I can’t scale this, no way. I break into a run, close to the perimeter.
My feet slip on some sharp stones. I stumble and pain shoots up the side of my leg. I bite down on my lips to stifle a groan. I won’t give the bastard that satisfaction. And he’s listening to me, I have no doubt about it. He’s Fae, and I have no idea what his additional powers extend to. He can teleport, he is stronger than any shifter I have met. His senses are acute, no doubt about that. He told me I could leave. It has to be a trap, but why?
Why carry out this charade and give me this notion of freedom if I can’t actually escape the place?
There has to be a way out. Has to. I run, my steps speed up, my breath comes in pants. I jump over a small brush of thorns, catching the edge of it against my shin. The scent of copper filters into the air.
He’ll find me just by the signs I leave behind. He’ll find me anyway. Fear twists my gut. Focus. Focus. Just find the door, there has to be a door in this wall. I rake my glance over the wall, looking for anything. Any sign of an opening. Something that can be a way out. Another few steps and I come upon iron footholds embedded into the wall.
They go up all the way to the top. I grab one and start to climb.
The iron is rough and scrapes against my palms. Pain shimmers up my arms, and I push it aside. I just need to keep going.
Sweat drips into my eyes, and I blink it away. Push one arm forward, grab, hoist myself up. My biceps scream. My thighs strain with the load I am putting on them. Keep going. Don’t stop.
I fix my gaze on the wall at the top. Keep going. My breath screams in my ears. I grab another step, catch my nail on the rusted metal and lose half of it. Pain burns my palm. A sob catches in my throat.
My arms ache. My legs protest at each step. There is a catch in my side. My stomach heaves and the acrid taste of bile fills my mouth. No, I can't be sick now. This is my only chance. I have to take it. Up, keep going up. I grab another bar, but it comes off in my hand.
There’s a scream, as if from far off. I know it’s me, and I can’t stop.
Then the wind rushes past me, and my body arcs back. I close my eyes and prepare for the inevitable jolt. Only to find myself being caught, then swung upright and placed on my feet.
His scent is all around me again.
My heart stutters. There is a ball of emotion in my chest which I interpret as hope. I should be grateful to him for saving me, right? My body leans into him. The still thinking part of my mind tells me that I walked into the trap he set for me. "You never planned to let me escape." My chin wobbles.
He tilts his head.
“You knew I wouldn’t be able to scale the wall.”