Page 38 of Insurrection
She giggled at that answer and tipped her head up to look at me. I tilted my chin down as she moved. Once again, I fell deep into the pools of warmth reflected in her eyes. At this moment, it was only her and me. The world could burn down around us and I wouldn't notice anything other than the treasure in my arms.
"May I kiss you, Ama?"
A multitude of emotions crossed her face, flashing from intrigue, to fear, to uncertainty, and finally landing on disappointment. Had I fucked up and tried to make things physical too quickly? I hadn’t had any intentions of taking it further than a polite kiss, but she likely didn't think that.
"Damnit, I'm sorry." I cursed under my breath and dropped my arms, backing up to give her space.
She shocked me by tightening her grip around me and demanding, "Stop. It isn't you, it's me."
I couldn't help the laughter that ripped through me at the cliché line. That most definitely meant it was me, but she didn't want to hurt my feelings. I tried to not overthink her rejection. I couldn’t blame the woman—she’d just met me today. Just because I was losing it completely, didn’t mean I had to drag her down with me.
Vulnerability seeped into her voice as she admitted, "I can't kiss you because I could kill you. My hybrid powers are something I don't have a true grasp on yet. I have a..." she trailed off and looked away for a moment. Looking back at me, she continued, "I have mommy issues, to put it bluntly. I have shunned the Succubus side of myself because of it, and due to that, I almost killed the first boy I ever kissed. I began sucking his soul from his body without even trying."
Oh, it reallywasn'tme. In that case...
Before she had a chance to object, I held her face gently between my palms and melded our lips together. I didn’t fear her. Why would I fear something that was so natural? I refused to believe that she would hurt me. Subconsciously or otherwise.
Her small hands tried to push against my chest as she mumbled against my lips, “I don’t want to hurt you. I can’t hurt you.”
“Ama. I feel no pain. No pulling on my soul. Just you. Your lips on mine,” I murmured, opening my eyes to stare directly into hers.
Shock reflected back at me. Softly, I pressed my lips against hers, giving her a chance to react and understand that I was okay. A single tear rolled from the corner of her eye as she rose onto her tiptoes, wrapping her arms around my neck and returning the kiss.
Sparks danced behind my eyes when they closed.
I’d been wrong.Thiswas our purpose in life. To find the other half of your soul that made life worth living.
Could this be what I had read about in my studies? The concept of fated mates?
Chapter Seventeen
Ama
Iwas kissing someone.Holy shit.I was kissing someone and he wasn’t dying. In fact, as I pulled back for a moment, overcome by emotions, tears streaking down my face and out of breath, I realized he looked more than healthy. He seemed to be vibrating with energy and power. There was an intensity to him that should have been intimidating but instead had me feeling ten times more turned on.
“Adrien,” I whispered as he pressed his forehead to mine. I felt that telltale prickle of heat across my body as my Succubus magic came alive, but instead of seeming to affect Adrien, it just wrapped around the two of us comfortingly. Just like with Finias, my magic seemed to not only accept Adrien, but also embrace him.
Oh man, I was so in over my head here.
“You are so exquisite.” He groaned, and I let out a small happy sound at the heat and comfort that radiated between us. How had I only known this man for hours? That was impossible. I felt like I had known him for years. Longer than Drayven.
Drayven…why wasn’t Adrien being affected by my kiss like Drayven had been?
“Where did you go, beauty?” my Wraith prince whispered softly, the question reminiscent of the one I had asked him.My Wraith prince? He really did feel like mine.
I met his gaze again and, on an impulse, I tugged him back down to me, the kiss quickly turning from delicate and teasing, almost cautious, to something deeper and hungrier.
A low, vibrating growl tore from his throat as his tattooed fingers twisted around the length of my hair, his grip unyielding.
There was something so dangerously seductive about this man, and it was paired with a quiet intensity that was so much more predatory than he let on. I could feel his shadows wrapping around us, and my fingers dropped down from his neck to dig lightly into his chest. I moaned against his lips as he pinned me to the nearest wall, his breathing as uneven and rough as my own.
I was losing myself in this man. Or maybe finding myself. Recreating myself. The limits I had imposed on myself for physical affection were gone, and with them the immense weight on my mind that told me I could never have a normal relationship. I hadn’t realized how much it truly impacted me subconsciously until the tears of relief had streamed down my face.
When the door swung open, slamming into the wall, I jolted and then let out a surprised scream as I was pulled rather violently away from Adrien.
Oh shit.
I groaned as I slammed into a ridiculously hard, large body. Drayven’s entire frame vibrated beneath my touch, and I blinked, trying to steady myself. I was getting high off my own magic or something.
