Page 51 of Urban Gladiator

“What am I looking for?”

“Ever doubtful, aren’t you? I’ll show you the spell with you outside the circle. So that way, you can relax.”

“This isn’t some trick to try and get away from me.”

I cupped his chin and dropped my shields long enough that he could see my true intent. “No. You’re going to help me leave Avalon. I’m trusting you and your word. But know, if you’re playing me false, I will rain witch fire on the city and destroy it. And I give you my word. I’m not trying to run away. I’m going to demonstrate the circle first so you can see just how solid and strong it is. Then I’ll bring it down and reforge it.”

He studied me for a moment before conceding. “All right, fine. What do you need me to do?”

“Stand over there by that tree, and I’ll show you.” I pointed at the enormous oak tree fifty feet away.

With a nod, he left me by the tent. And even though I worried that I was about to show him my full powers, deep down, I felt I could trust him. It felt right.

I could only pray that was the case.

20

Unease filled me while I stood beside the tree.

For over two hundred years, I’d hated witches. It wasn’t easy letting go of my mistrust. As much as I wanted to blindly trust Ember after everything, a part of me was waiting for her to betray me. But she’d also given me a metric ton of food for thought.

I searched my memories of that time for any clues. Had my father been the one to start the war? Had he hidden his motives from everyone, including me?

To say that my mate had upended my entire world was putting it mildly. She’d changed me on a fundamental level. I knew I would never be the same. When she left, she’d take a part of me with her. And I would slowly descend into madness.

I faced her across the short distance. My mate took my breath away with her beauty. Her dark red hair flowed around her shoulders. There were leaves and twigs in the silken locks. She had a smear of dirt on her face. Her dress was ripped and dirty. And I’d never seen a lovelier sight.

How was I going to let her leave Avalon? I was condemning myself to a lifetime of loneliness and eventual madness. Would it make me bitter and miserly? Would I take my frustrations out on my people?

I could say I would stand firm. That I would stoically bear the separation. But who was to say one hundred years from now that I would be of the same mind? Losing her would literally drive me crazy in the purest sense of the word.

“It will take me a hot minute to bring the circle down. Please don’t panic.”

Leaning back against the tree with my arms crossed in front of me, I jerked my chin in acknowledgment. Ember raised her arms. I was struck again by her beauty as her emerald gaze glowed. I felt her magic swirl and pulse in the air. It raised the hackles of my wolf. He wanted to howl at the moon.

Wind currents circled Ember, ruffling her hair. Then she brought her arms down. And the entire encampment she created and the woman herself disappeared. My heart raced as I left my perch and approached the small clearing.

I ran into an invisible wall.

My wolf went crazy. Howling. Frantic at losing its mate. Desperate to find her. But I wrapped control around myself like a shield. I had to show her that she could trust me and I trusted her.

Because she wasn’t my enemy. I didn’t think she ever was, but I had been made to believe witches were the bane of Avalon. When that was the farthest thing from the truth.

I waited, wondering if she’d played me false. But in the next breath, the barrier fell, and she stood there with a huge grin.

Needing to touch her, I didn’t wait for permission. I strode over, cupped her face in my hands, and kissed her. Her hands went to my chest, sliding up around my neck, and she sighed, kissing me back like she missed me.

But that couldn’t be, could it? Was she coming to care for me?

She pressed a hand against my chest, and it burned, branding me. But then she pushed. I lifted my head.

Her cheeks were flushed, and her pupils were dilated with desire. “Let me put the shield back up before we start on the next round.”

My cock jolted at the thought of taking her again. But I agreed. “Go ahead. And then I want you naked in that tub.”

A smile curved the corners of her lips. “Why don’t you go inside and get in the water. I’ll be right in.”

“No. There’s too much that could go wrong. That fucking griffin is still out there.” Like hell I was leaving her alone and defenseless. Until it was time for her to cross the barrier into the human world, I would be by her side.

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