Page 43 of A Song of Air
From herboyfriend’sperspective.
“What was—whatever that was—with thatguy.” He sneered the word like it was some type of venereal disease. His jealousy bled through his words, so obvious, so open.
It made her heart skip a beat suddenly as the man’s words blew through her mind. She’d tried to ignore them, but they pressed against her from every angle, penetrating her defenses like an all-consuming magic she couldn’t shake.
As it was, his presence felt close. His scent choked her nostrils, something spicy and sweet clashing against her. She couldn’t even see the man and she could picture him smiling at her backside. For a brief second, his image flashed against her mind again, like he’d placed it there himself.
And she knew somehow that he had. Probably with whatever magic he possessed that allowed him to speak within her mind.
She shook him off, or as much as she could, and took a steady breath.
“Ev...” Her throat tightened. She wasn’t sure what she was going to say or how, but she knew she couldn’t lie to him. “He’s...”
My mate.
But those words sounded wrong. He wasn’t her anything. He was just a man who Mana happened to place in front of her and bound them with magic. She didn’t know him, and he didn’t know her.
But his voice, his words, he’d been so sure of their conviction as he purred within her mind.
Enjoy it while it lasts. In the end, it’ll be my arms around you and my lips pressed between your thighs.
A shiver slid down her spine at the dark pledge.
“He’s...”
Ev scoffed. “Spit itout, Bryce.”
“A mating bond snapped between us,” she growled out.
Ev stopped then, his feet skidding against the dirt. She stopped beside him, but a moment later, he was gripping her arm, pulling her to the side. He pressed close to her, his breath fanning across her face and tasting like wine. His dark eyes flared in anger, his chest heaving.
“What?” he hissed. “A mating bond?”
His tone was accusatory, and it made her own defenses rise. “Ev, it’s not my fault.” She hadn’t gone out activelylookingfor the man. It wasn’t like she could control who Mana decided to place in front of her.
There was a beat of silence and Ev sucked in a breath. “You’re right,” he whispered, and for a second, she heard uncertainty in his tone. “I—I just—fuck!” He let her go and took a step back. He ran a hand through his dark tresses of hair. She could feel him retreating and it made her heart hurt. She had the urge to reach for him but held herself back. “How can I compete with a fucking mating bond?”
Her body relaxed and she reached for him then, her hands extending. She gripped him by the shirt front, fingers brushing along the coarse, dark hair exposed at the collar.
The others were approaching behind him, and she knew she had to prove where her loyalty in their relationship was, so she hurried and yanked him to her chest.
“Ev,” she began. “I’ll confess, if I touched him, it was because the bond caught me off guard. But I promise that I don’t care about him. I don’t even know him, and I don’twantto know him.” She smoothed her palms over his chest and stood on the tips of her toes so their eyes met. She saw the uncertainty in his gaze and didn’t like it. After everything they’d been through, after everything he made her feel, it wasn’t fair that this doubt had been planted between them. “The bond is optional, so I can reject it.” His hair tickled her cheeks as it fell forward, curtaining them both. “I’m withyou, Ev. And that’s exactly where I want to be.”
Her words eased his mood. His body relaxed against hers. Then his hold on her tightened, his hand going to her waist where he gripped her hip, nails digging in. He pulled her close and his lips brushed down to take hers in a furious kiss.
It was everything it had never been before.
Possessive.
Angry.
Devout.
His tongue tangled with hers, devouring, consuming, and she moaned as desire stirred low in her belly.
But as quickly as it began, it ended, and it wasn’t until he pulled away that the scent of sweet and spicy filled her nose and she knew, even without seeing, that the man had witnessed the kiss.
And she wondered if Everett had done so on purpose.
