Page 28 of To Hell and Back
Hearing his voice inside her head startled her. She knew that was part of the mating bond, but she hadn’t been prepared to actually experience it.
Then, in a flash, their mating bond was complete.
Not letting go, Killian continued to kiss her with a fervor that heated her blood. Pleasure surged through her as he rubbed against her core, and she couldn’t help moving her hips against him in a desperate plea for more.
She didn’t realize she had started tugging at his clothes until a loud pounding on the bathroom door jerked her back to reality. When she tried to pull away, he held firm and refused to release her.
“Hey, Seneca! Why is this damn door locked? Are you in there? Did you fall in the toilet or something? Can you hear me? Answer me, damn it!”
Seneca wasn’t sure if she wanted to laugh or cry at the sound of her best friend’s loud voice coming through the thick wooden door. It was a relief to know that Shadow was alive and well, but her timing left a lot to be desired. Killian finally broke the kiss and rested his forehead against hers with a sigh.
“I locked the door as soon as I entered,” he explained. “I should have soundproofed the room as well. Clearly, that is an oversight I will not make again.”
“She won’t stop until I answer.”
“I already told her to go back and wait for us in the dining room.”
Seneca couldn’t help but frown at that. “You can speak to other people telepathically?”
“Anyone I choose to, yes. But it is not the same as our connection.” He smiled as he rubbed his thumb along her lower lip. “Are you jealous?”
She was, but she wasn’t about the admit that out loud.
“You don’t have to say it out loud.”
Oh, god. She was fucking doomed.
Groaning, she closed her eyes. Now that they were bonded, he was going to be able to hear all the weird stuff inside her head. She wasn’t ready for him to figure out just how crazy she could be when she was talking to herself. Especially when she was planning out a storyline for one of her graphic novels. When she was plotting, she could sound like a fucking serial killer or someone with multiple personalities.
“I find you utterly adorable, mate.” He brushed his lips against her forehead, then grabbed hold of her waist and lifted her off the counter. Once her feet were touching the ground again, he said, “Don’t worry, I can refrain from being inside your head all the time until you get used to our bond.”
“So, we really are fully bonded? Just like that?”
“We shared magic and branded one another with our mating marks, so, yes.”
She glanced down at her hand and saw a circular mark with an ancient symbol made of silvery iridescent light in the center of her palm. The mating mark was beautiful, but it was more than just a pretty adornment.
It was proof of their magical bond.
“But I thought we had to…you know.”
His lips curved into a seductive smile. “A lot of mates bond while having sex, but it isn’t necessary. We can mark each other again while we—”
“Okay, we can talk about that later,” she said, cutting him off. “Our friends are waiting, and we have a not-so-natural disaster to stop. We don’t have time for any of that.”
“Any of what?”
He chuckled as she stepped away from him. She immediately missed the heat of his body pressed against her, but it was better to avoid temptation…for now. They really did have more pressing things to deal with.
That reminder was enough to counteract her lust.
When she turned back toward the mirror, she blinked at the sight of the two holes in the marble countertop near where she’d been sitting. She quickly realized that had been the sound she’d heard while he had waited for her to kiss him. He had literally pulverized the marble with his bare hands to hold himself back.
Again, that should have been scary, but she found it extremely flattering.
“I’m glad you think so,” he said in response to her inner thoughts.
She shot him some serious side-eye. “I thought you said you could stay out of my head.”
