Page 82 of The Rogue's Curse

“You’re not just connected,” Shoshanna said. “Tell him, or I will. We can’t risk it. Not with your curse and his power.”

“Tell me what? Did your curse do something to me because we…” He trailed off and glanced at Shoshanna, but she looked afraid, not interested in the salacious revelation.

“Soulmates,” Paris said, eyes downcast. “You and are I soulmates.”

17

Not like this, he thought, staring into Misha’s warm eyes, full of fear. That godawful smell, the smell of nightmares made flesh, clung to him, and he hated that he was right, even if it meant there might be the tiniest sliver of light cutting through the shadows. It was sheer cruelty that finding love meant subjecting Misha to pain and suffering.

“If it’s already manifesting, you have to tell him,” Shoshanna said.

“I know that,” he said sharply. Her face fell, and she recoiled from him like she’d been slapped. Scrubbing at his face, he said, “I’m sorry. Can we have a minute alone?”

She nodded and said, “Text me. I wanted to check on Dominic anyway.”

He watched her go, then slowly turned back to Misha. Sixteen hours ago, he’d been buck naked with Misha’s cock buried in him as he groaned unintelligible curses and pleas for more, but now he could barely stand to be in his gaze. “I’m so sorry. I don’t even know what to say.”

Misha sat back on the stool and said, “I don’t understand. Soulmate? As in romantically? What would that have to do with magic?”

Well, at least he hadn’t said god, no, anything but that. “Shoshanna has discovered that soulmate bonds are real. Not just I love you so much and want to fuck your brains out, but a real thread of power that connects two people.” He stared at Misha for a long, aching stretch. The silence hung heavy, waiting to be filled if he was brave enough to speak. “No. Fuck it. You want me to open up, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Misha said quietly.

“It means that Fate wants us to be together. Lovers. Bound together forever,” Paris said. His throat tightened. “And I’m sorry that you’re stuck with me of all bloody people, but—”

“I’m not,” Misha interrupted.

He felt as if the ground had dropped from beneath him. “What?”

“I’m not sorry I’m stuck with you,” Misha said. His brow furrowed. “I’ve never known anyone like you. But being with you feels right.”

“You’re not angry?”

Misha shook his head. “Why the hell would I be angry?” He rose and cupped Paris’s face, kissing his lips gently. “It’s just a shock. Certainly not what I expected when I got sent here. But why was Shoshanna so concerned?”

“The nature of my curse. She figured out that Armina’s curses are contagious, for lack of a better word. It can pass to a soulmate,” he said.

“So you gave me a magical virus? I thought I’d bypassed all that by turning,” Misha joked weakly.

Paris laughed at the sheer absurdity. “Not precisely.” He shook his head. “You’re only here for work so I just figured this was only casual. But when you were attacked near the wall the other night, I knew. Well, I suspected.” He rubbed his temples. “That beast you saw was just like what I see if I fall asleep and dream, right down to the smell. I thought there was the tiniest chance it was unrelated, since you weren’t asleep. I desperately hoped it was because of me. That’s why I asked you to tell me if you saw anything else.”

Misha sat back, his gaze lifted as if he was listening for a distant voice. “So much makes sense now,” he said.

“How’s that?”

“The thing that attacked me this morning smelled like your curse,” he said.

Paris instinctively sniffed at himself. “I smell like that all the time? God, I’m sorry.”

Misha laughed. “It’s not really a smell. Magic manifests to the senses if you’re looking for it. I’ve been hearing voices, smelling strange things along with it. Last night when we were together, I saw you differently. There was this bright red thread. It was beautiful, actually,” he said.

Paris felt the color drain from his face. This was real. “That’s it. That’s what Shoshanna always describes.” He slumped into the stool next to Misha. “I’m scared for you. Shoshanna went blind, and Olivia nearly died. We’re already in such a shitty situation.”

“But you told me Shoshanna knows how to break the curses,” Misha said. “So let’s have her do it. Then we don’t have to worry about it.”

Paris looked up at him. “How are you so calm about this?”

“How are you not?” Misha replied. He sighed and cupped Paris’s cheeks. “You are not responsible for me.”

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