Page 99 of Realm of Wind and Vines
I keep my eyes on his beautiful golden ones as a sense of peace settles over me.
At least it will be over now. At least I won’t have to hurt any more after this.
The blade slams down with a thud.
I gasp.
Draven stares down at the knife in his hand, the blade buried deep in the grass right next to me. My heart stutters.
There is a massive pull on the mate bond.
One last desperate heave over the edge of the abyss.
My magic slams back into my own chest with such force that my vision blacks out. But it’s not just the love that I attached to Draven’s chest that shoots through the air towards me. An explosion of hatred bursts from his chest. I can feel that flame of hatred shatter like a glass sculpture that explodes from the inside, the sharp edges pelting against my magic like shrapnel.
Our mate bond slams back into me.
Light and color and burning unending love floods my chest as Draven’s side of the mate bond restores itself like a lightning strike straight to my chest.
A cry of pure relief tears from my throat.
Still straddling my chest, Draven stares down at me while one hand is still wrapped around the knife that he drove into the grass instead of my heart. Pain and longing and a love so fierce it could’ve burned the world down shine in his perfect golden eyes.
I reach out with my magic and gently prod at his chest.
The red-violet flame of hatred is gone.
Utterly and completely gone.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
“Draven,” I gasp out his name like a prayer.
The moment his name leaves my lips, he drags in a long shuddering breath, as if it’s the first breath he has taken in years. His golden eyes are burning with emotions. But not hatred. Not anymore. Instead, he is staring into my eyes while relief, longing, and deep unending love pulse in his beautiful eyes.
“Selena,” he breathes.
Yanking the blade out of the grass, he tosses it aside and releases his grip on my other wrist. Still straddling me on the ground, he cups my cheeks with both hands and presses his lips against mine in a desperate kiss.
It sets my whole soul on fire.
I gasp into his mouth and slide my hands into his hair. Curling my fingers in his soft black hair, I press his lips harder against mine as I kiss him back desperately.
The mate bond thrums inside me, insideus, flooding my senses with his burning need and inflaming my own until I can barely see the deep forest and the glowing golden spheres floating among the trees around us. All I can see is him. All I canfeelis him.
And I want more. I want everything. I want everything that the cruel universe has denied me these past weeks. I want my mate. I want all of him.
Sliding my hands down his neck, I start pulling at the collar of his armor while still kissing him furiously. My heart stutters when he breaks the kiss but quickly starts fluttering again when he begins stripping out of his armor. I start doing the same with my fighting leathers, but I only manage to get the jacket off before he stops me.
“No.” He grabs both of my wrists, stopping my movements when I reach for my shirt. Desperate longing burns in his eyes as he drags his gaze over my body. “I’ll do it.”
He places my hands back down on the soft grass above my head. I keep them there as he finishes removing the rest of his clothes and then settles himself on his knees between my legs. Pleasure skitters down my spine as he draws his fingers along the sliver of bare skin visible between the top of my pants and the edge of the shirt that has slid up my stomach.
I arch my back, pushing my hips forward slightly as he begins unbuttoning my pants. His gaze rakes across my body again, as if he wants to brand every curve of my body into his mind forever. My skin prickles at the exposure as Draven curls his fingers over the top of my pants and underwear and starts sliding them down my legs.
The leather scrapes against my bare thighs as Draven takes his time pushing the fabric down. I squirm on the ground as need burns through me.
He stops when my pants reach my knees and leans down while his eyes glint in the golden light.
