Page 28 of Zar

His home just happened to be an invisible mountain that no one could see or knew about. “Speaking of home. Your brothers seem…nice.”

He shrugged. “They are concerned for me. You aren’t what they expected in my ofelia and that has them on edge right now.”

Whoa. Hold the phone. “They’re afraid of me?”

“Not exactly you, but afraid of what it means to our people.”

Callie set her cup on the tray and held up both hands in mock surrender. “Look, I don’t mean anything to your people. I’m a temporary guest, remember?”

“My ofelia,” he growled low, as if there wasn’t anything to discuss. As if she had no say whatsoever. Ha!

“Here’s the thing, winged-man, women in my society get a choice. It’s not all chest beating and snarls, then suddenly their married. Or soulmates. Or ofelia’ed.” She pointed a finger at him and narrowed her eyes. “And for the record, I have not made a choice. I mean, sure, we had sex but that’s all it was.”

Zar leaned close, his gaze holding her prisoner. “You may not have chosen, but Garra has. His will cannot be denied.”

She latched onto the G word. “Garra? You’ve talked about Garra before. What does that mean exactly?”

He straightened and gave her that all-knowing arrogance that made her want to pluck a few feathers. “It is our deity. The creator of life.”

Ah, now she was getting it. “So, you believe that Garra, or as humans would say God, has chosen me as your soulmate,” she summed up, feeling slightly panicky now. He wasn’t just into her. He hadn’t merely chosen her as his soulmate. No, Zar actually believed they were designed by God to be together. How was she supposed to make him understand that God had nothing to do with any of this? How was a lone woman supposed to go up against the man’s deity? It definitely made escape a whole lot harder. Escape? You had his dick inside you, dumbass. Escape is not even on the table anymore.

He smiled, which seemed totally out of place considering the seriousness of the conversation. “You understand then that we are destined.”

She scooted back a little, putting distance between them. “Nope, I definitely don’t understand that. Nor do I accept it.”

His smile disappeared and he stiffened. “But you said—”

She held up a hand to put a stop to whatever was about to come of his mouth. “All I said is that I understand you better now. I didn’t say I agree, Zar. Try to remember that I’m not Zenarian. Your ways are not my own. Choices, Zar, women get to choose who they fall in love with. We get to choose whether we want to live happily ever after with that person. Ever heard of free will?”

Zar cursed and shot off the couch. He moved to the other side of the room as if needing distance. His wings did a kind of agitated vibration thing and it fascinated Callie. Oh, yeah, he was pissed. When he turned back to face her, his gaze had hardened. “We can discuss this again later,” he stated, in his I’m the ruler of my kingdom kind of way. “For now, you need sleep. In two days’ time the festival begins. You promised to attend as my guest.”

Callie didn’t like the hurt she could see in Zar’s eyes. This powerful being who ruled an entire race alone and she, Callie Wilson, had managed to wound him. On impulse, she got off the couch and closed the distance between them. Callie cupped his now stubbly jaw and smiled up at him. “I think we both need sleep, Zar.”

Without warning he knelt down and put his arm behind her knees and the other behind her back. He lifted her into the air and held her against the solid wall of his chest. “You sleep with me,” he stated, his voice low and edged with steel. Callie didn’t have a problem with that. She snuggled up close and let Zar carry her to his bed. He undressed her and then himself. Callie got pleasantly distracted by the large, muscular body in front of her. His cock, now only semi-hard but no less impressive urged her to reach out and touch. She resisted, only because it would be too easy to get addicted to the man. And there was still so much unresolved. A clear head, that’s what she needed. Not sex.

Zar climbed onto the bed before pulling her in close to his body, spooning her. One large, black wing closed around them and Callie let out a breath and closed her eyes. Her body was exhausted but her brain wouldn’t shut down. She kept going over the whole ofelia thing. How the hell was she going to convince Zar that she was merely Callie Wilson, CEO of HealthTec and not his ofelia, his queen? Her stay was temporary.

“Sleep, little dove,” Zar murmured, as if he could so easily read her thoughts. “Tomorrow is a new day.”

Zar’s arm rested against her breasts and Callie clutched onto it. “I’m scared, Zar.” Why did she admit that to him? Hadn’t she learned to keep her feelings to herself by now?

“There is no reason for fear. I promise, all will work out. Have faith in me, Callie.”

Have faith in someone other than herself. That was something she wasn’t very good at. With her mind in turmoil, it was a long time before she drifted off. A gentle kiss to the top of her head was the last thing she remembered before sleep claimed her.

Zar stroked a hand up and down Callie’s arm. She was asleep finally. Her breathing was even and her body relaxed. It had taken quite some time for her to settle. He hated knowing she was upset and that he was the cause. She was his to protect, but how did he protect her from himself? He’d stolen her from her world and thrust her into a different one. It must be so terrifying. But his sweet Callie had a spirit of fire. She’d faced his brothers without flinching and that was a feat few Zenarians were capable of, much less a small female that barely reached his shoulders. Yes, he admitted, she was his ofelia, but beyond that he was also quite taken with her. Love was an earth-born word and Zar hadn’t understood its full meaning until now. He loved Callie. It had happened sometime between their flight through the forest and when she’d walked into his bed chamber offering to take away his pain. Yes, love, the word fit well.

In Zenarian society finding one’s ofelia often led to feelings of love and happiness, but there were rare cases when those emotions were absent. In those situations, both parties would either agree to stay together as Garra willed it or they would live separately. But neither would take another for as long as they lived. It wasn’t their way to have more than one ofelia. Zar had often worried that he would find his ofelia, but he wouldn’t have feelings for her. That he would be forced to live the rest of his days with someone who didn’t touch him on a soul deep level. He could now put those fears to rest because Callie made him feel. So damn much it overwhelmed him. Love, it seems, meant you were equal parts passionate and angry. Wild and careless. Out of control and possessive. Zar could admit that the intense concoction made him more dangerous than ever.

In the morning, Callie would wake and Zar would make love to her again. Each time they came together it would force Callie to admit that they had something special. Something worth keeping. He needed to figure out a way around her defenses. She was determined to make her own choice and right now she was still choosing to leave him at some point. His wings flexed and curled tighter around her. Yeah, his creature side didn’t much care for Callie’s choice. But if Zar pushed too hard it could drive Callie away.

He let out a long breath. Zar had ruled his people with total confidence in his ability to protect and guide them into the future. He’d never wavered from that responsibility. He’d never second guessed himself either. With Callie, Zar was expected to sit back and hope she made the right choice for them both. It went against his grain. He did not cower in the corner. No, Zar, King of Zenaria, took charge. And yet, here he was, all but trembling in fear and all because of a curvy blonde earth-born female.

Zar stroked a palm over one soft, round breast, distracting himself from the rage that was beginning to fill him. Feeling her softness cuddled up close to his body made his dick hard all over again. She’d brought him to heaven earlier. Never in his three centuries had sex been so mind-shattering. He’d lost control of his creature. Something that had never occurred. Zar had let his turbulent emotions take hold. Callie had that power over him. She and she alone. He could easily admit that it made him unpredictable. And that was dangerous for all.

He curled tighter around her, staring at her sleeping form. His heart tore when he saw the way she clutched onto his forearm. How could he ever let her go? The bigger question, could he live with himself if he didn’t abide by her decision? Callie was everything to him. Keeping her against her will would only cause her pain. He didn’t wish for a lifelong bond with her unless it was by choice. Yes, losing her gave him a twisting ache in the region of his heart, but hurting her by chaining her to him would destroy them both in the end.

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