Page 69 of Sight of Fate

Making me wonder, for the hundredth time, what happened in her past. “Promise.”

She turns toward the mirror, but I can tell she’s on autopilot, her mind swirling with thoughts.

Leaving her there, I walk into the closet to get dressed and see her old clothes mixed in with the new. Quickly pulling them off the hangers, I toss them down the laundry chute. Then I slip on a pair of jeans and a blue button down.

Walking out of the closet, I lift my arm to button the cuffs, but she stands and brushes my hands away. I look down at her bent head and smile.

“Today’s Thursday, isn’t it?” She blows out a breath and buttons one cuff, then moves on to the other. “There are a lot of projects in the office that need your attention. Maybe you should drop me off at the hospital. I’ll let you know how it goes with Andros.”

I lift her chin, my face set. “No space, remember? How are you feeling this morning?”

Her mouth drops open. “I thought you meant, you know, us living together.” Her forehead scrunches. “Are you going to go everywhere with me?”

“Me or Macklin,” I say with a shrug, noticing she hasn’t answered my question. “Maybe Andros in the future.”

“That’s absurd,” she says, throwing her hands in the air.

“I think you mean, thank you,” I correct her. “Maybe I’ll feel differently once we bond, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up.”

“Bond?” she questions, and I freeze, wondering what she’s going to think. But it’s time. Past time.

“When mates have sex for the first time, pieces of our souls merge, solidifying the mate bond. For you…it also means you’ll become immortal like me.”

Her mouth opens, and she stares at me, then swallows. “I…what does that mean?”

“You’ll never age, and you’ll be hard to kill,” I reply with a frown. “I’ll have to do a little research to find out exactly as it differs between species.”

“Okaayy,” she drawls. “And the bond?”

“It won’t happen until you’re ready,” I promise.

Her fingers pluck at the edges of my cuff. “Why do you block your feelings? From me.”

“I don’t want to overwhelm you,” I reply, knowing she’d bolt if she knew how much I want to sink into her sweet body and claim my mate. I watch the expressions flit across her face. “It will change once we’re bonded. You’ll know more about me than you might want.”

The line between her brows smooths. “Can I block you?”

Every atom in me wants to shout no, but instead, I jerk my chin. “All you have to do is picture a wall between us.”

She peers up at me, and her tongue darts out to lick her lips. “The bond. Does that include fooling around or only…sex?”

An image of me gripping my cock in a blue tile shower comes barreling down the connection from her to me, and I inhale sharply, not realizing I’d forgotten to block her that morning. Given the distance, it didn’t occur to me. I scrutinize her pink face and nearly smile when I see the glaze of desire in her eyes. Maybe I don’t need to block everything…

Stepping in close, I breathe in her light vanilla scent, my body hardening, and place my mouth next to her ear. “Only sex creates a mate bond. The rest. Touching. Tasting. Licking. Whatever you want. Wherever you want.” I send a pulse of heat down the connection.

She gasps, and the little flutter at the base of her neck picks up. I grab her hand and pull her out of the bedroom before I’m tempted to lock us both in here.

Andros is only allowed one visitor at a time. We peer into the window and find Macklin standing next to his bed, gripping the railing, as he listens to whatever Andros is telling him. The metal bends and twists beneath his large hands. Not good.

Andros’ mouth stops moving, and he turns to glare at Charli, like he knows she is here. Then he grits his teeth and turns away, effectively dismissing her. It both pisses me off and amuses me. It’s too late for him to run.

She motions to the chair in the hallway. “I’ll stay here while you visit.”

“He can’t really go anywhere. Go, talk to him,” I prod.

“Okay,” she capitulates, fingering the hem of her sweater.

I rap on the window, motioning for Macklin to step out. He rubs the back of his neck and nods.