Page 138 of The Heir's Bargain

"You see now. Don't you, Fynneares?" she asked, her voice quiet and careful, as if I was made of glass and would shatter if she spoke too loudly.

My throat seized up as my heart thundered against my ribcage.

For years, I had been looking for that missing piece, waiting for it to fall into place.

I had thought it would feel like floating on a cloud, like the wind on the breeze. Blissful and peaceful.

But what I felt—what I had been feeling since Dani and I had started courting each other—wasn't blissful.

It wasn't sunshine and rainbows or as sweet as strawberries.

Instead, it was earth-shattering.

It was the ground being torn apart.

It was the pressure building inside a volcano.

It was destructive.

Uncontrollable and unpredictable.

I looked up at my mother, and finally, I understood.

I finally understood the chaotic feelings that had been consuming me, the adrenaline that coursed through my veins, and the way everything went silent when I was around Dani—and only Dani.

I had almost voiced the truth when yelling at Lance, but the word had gotten stuck in my throat as if my conscience had pulled it back. As if it knew I wasn't ready.

I didn't know if I was ready now either; however, I didn't think I had the choice to deny the inevitable.

Dani was more than my best friend.

She was my everything.

The missing piece I had been searching for, waiting for, hoping for.

My soul bond.

And the only thing I could think about at that moment was that I might have realized it too late.

Chapter 39

FYNN

My knees hit the ground as the tears rolled down my cheek and spilled onto the quilt. With a shaking hand, I reached out and grabbed Dani's hand as she lay in her bed, unconscious.

She was here. She was severely injured, but she was here. She was home. And that was all that mattered.

Her curls were flattened and spread across her pillow. Her brown skin was tinted with a sickly hue. Her lips were chapped, and old bruises peppered her skin. A thin blanket lay atop her, covering her legs and stomach. Above it, though, a long cotton bandage wrapped around her entire torso from the stab wound she had suffered. And although I could not see it, there must have been a ghastly scar beneath the wrapping.

I kissed the top of her scarred knuckles. Scooting my stool closer, I leaned over the bed, resting my head upon my other arm.

The Bull King would pay. He would pay for all the pain, suffering, and anguish he caused.

But right now, Dani needed me.

Hours went by as I sat beside her bed. The afternoon turned to dusk, yet I did not move.

At some point, someone called out to me. Someone tried to pull me away.

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