Page 35 of Deserted

“Stay close,” I said, pressing one last kiss to her bond-mark. “Trust the connection between us. It will guide us even when words fail.”

She nodded, squeezing my hand. “Lead the way, warrior. Your mate is ready.”

The words—so simply spoken, yet carrying the weight of ancient tradition—settled into my chest like a physical presence. My mate. My kassari. Mine to protect. Mine to cherish. Mine to journey with across this unforgiving landscape and whatever lay beyond.

I opened the shelter door, and together, we stepped into the desert night, bound by fate and choice and something stronger than either—the unbreakable golden threads of a bond that would last until we drew our final breaths.

And even then, the elders said, fate-bonded souls remained together—traveling the stars as one, never to be parted again.

13 /JAS

The stars glitteredabove us like someone had scattered diamonds across black silk as we lay tangled together on the cooling desert sand. Rhaekar’s body radiated heat against my skin, his powerful arms cradling me against his chest while his knot kept us physically joined in the aftermath of our claiming. Through our newly forged bond, I could feel waves of his satisfaction and protectiveness washing over me, mingling with my own sense of completion and wonder. I’d never felt so connected to another being in my life—so seen, so wanted, so completely accepted. And yet...

My thoughts drifted beneath the vastness of the alien sky. We’d paused just beyond the shelter’s perimeter, neither of us quite ready to begin our journey after the intensity of our bonding. The physical need to remain close had overwhelmed the urgency to depart, and Rhaekar had spread his thermal cloak across the sand, drawing me down with him for this brief, stolen moment of peace.

I traced my fingers over the claiming mark he’d left on my collarbone, feeling its subtle heat, the raised edges of skin where his teeth had broken through. It pulsed with a gentle rhythm that matched the golden threads of energy I could now senseflowing between us. His marking on me. My marking on him. Equal. Connected.

His tail tightened slightly around my thigh, the tip flicking with contentment. One large hand splayed possessively over my hip while the other stroked my hair with surprising gentleness. The contrast between his raw power and his tender touch made something twist in my chest.

“I can feel you thinking,” he murmured, his voice a low rumble that vibrated against my back.

I smiled faintly. “That’s going to take some getting used to.”

“The bond?”

“Having someone actually in my head.” I shifted slightly, careful of our still-joined bodies. “Someone who can feel what I’m feeling.”

His chest expanded against my back as he inhaled my scent. “Does it bother you?”

“No,” I admitted, surprised by my own certainty. “It should, but it doesn’t.”

We fell silent again, the desert winds whispering secrets across the dunes. I stared at the unfamiliar constellations, wondering what stories the Rodinians told about them, what legends shaped their understanding of the universe. So different from my world, and yet the stars themselves—distant, burning, eternal—felt somehow familiar.

“You know…back home, I was always a lot,” I said finally, the words spilling out before I could reconsider them.

His rumble was curious, low. “A lot?”

I huffed a small laugh, but there was little humor in it. “Too loud. Too opinionated. Too bold. Too brown. Too much.” My fingers traced idle patterns on his forearm. “Every guy I ever dated made it clear I was something they needed to tone down or tuck away. And I tried, for a while. Tried to make myself smaller. Easier.”

Through our bond, I felt his immediate reaction—a flash of something hot and protective that bordered on anger, though none of it was directed at me.

He shifted, adjusting our bodies so he could see my face while keeping us joined. His amber eyes glowed in the starlight, vertical pupils dilated as they focused on me with unnerving intensity.

“That was foolish of them,” he said, his voice carrying a sharpness that surprised me.

I blinked, unprepared for the vehemence in his tone. “What?”

“The males of your world,” he clarified, one clawed finger gently tilting my chin up. “They were fools to make you feel that way.”

The bond between us flared with the strength of his conviction, washing away any doubt that he might be simply offering platitudes.

“You are not too much,” he continued, cupping the side of my face with a tenderness that stole the air from my lungs. His eyes never left mine, fierce and certain. “You are everything. Your voice. Your fire. Your truth. I would not change one breath of you.”

The words hit harder than they should have. They soaked into my chest like balm, smoothing over scars I hadn’t realized I still carried. For a moment, I couldn’t speak, could only stare into those alien eyes that somehow saw me more clearly than anyone on Earth ever had.

“You can feel that I mean it,” he added softly, his thumb brushing my cheekbone. “The bond doesn’t allow for lies between us.”

And he was right—through our connection, I could sense the absolute truth behind his words. There was no hesitation, noreservation, no hidden wish that I might become something else for his comfort. Just acceptance. Complete and unconditional.

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