Page 48 of The Stone Initiation
“I think another elite grabbed him and made him leave,” Touron said. “Not sure, I was semi-conscious at the time. But Selas told me that—”
“He just left?” My voice rose an octave. “He hit you and left? No apology. Nothing?” My eyes sizzled with anger.
“It’s all right, Cam.” Touron said, smiling with the half of his face not busted up. “He’s not going to claim the mate bond so—”
I headed for the exit.
“Cam, wait.” Sharniza called.
But I was already out of the door because bond or no bond, he had no right to act like I was a piece of meat. No right to hurt my friend and act like he owned me.
He’d barely said two words to me since we’d met.
It was time I changed that.
It was time I said several choice words to his face.
* * *
Yarrow wasclear about not accosting the elites at their residences, but one of them had tried to break my friend’s face. So that rule could go suck it.
I stormed out of the dorm and down the path.
“Cam, stop and think about this.” Palia strode beside me, the voice of reason I didn’t need or want.
“Cam leave it!” Touron called from behind me. “It’s done.”
“Like hell! He can’t just attack you and get away with it, I won’t, argh!” I leapt back as something large and gray swooped at me, and the next moment I was in its grip, boots off the ground and airborne.
“Cam!” My friends’ cries drifted away as every sense in my body focused on the thing…the creature that had me in his grip.
Serath held me against his body. Thick muscled arms crushing me to him.
“Don’t struggle,“ he said. “I don’t want to drop you.”
Struggle? I couldn’t think, let alone struggle. His woodsy scent, his arms around me, his body pressed to mine…
Overload.
“Breathe,” he said with a soft chuckle. “Just breathe.”
I hated him for hurting Touron. I wanted to punch him in the face to even things out. I’d do that as soon as he put me down. As soon as he let me go.
That was right.
That was the plan.
I exhaled and inhaled in quick succession then regretted it because his delicious aroma flooded my mind and my traitorous body melted against him.
“Fuck,” he said under his breath, the word vibrating against me like an intimate invitation.
We landed in a clearing, nature pressing in around us, cocooning us as he continued to hold me. His heart beat like a drum against me.
I was so mad at him. So fucking pissed off. Fuck, this felt good. It felt right. I rubbed my cheek against his pectoral, and he made a soft vibrating sound like a purr.
What was I doing? “What areyoudoing?”
“Having this moment,” he said, his voice a low-grade rumble.
