Page 34 of Condemned to Love

My eyebrows shoot up in surprise. I had not heard that she was from another planet. Though the concept shouldn't be that shocking. I was currently in wildspont, a pocket that hid us within our own planet.

"But when we first arrived on Protheka, it became apparent that it was not all we had expected. We thought we'd found paradise, a place where we could thrive. But then we met the dark elves."

"Let me guess, they weren't exactly rolling out the welcome mat?"

"More like rolling out the guillotine," Aldric says dryly. "They saw us as invaders, a threat to their dominance. The war that followed was... brutal."

I nod, encouraging him to continue.

"We fought hard, but in the end, we were outnumbered." His words came out through clenched teeth. It seemed hard for him to stomach the loss. "We could have kept going. No doubt we would have found a way to cut down those gray-skinned bastards, if only because we are immortal and they are not. But then we discovered the wildsponts. They were our salvation and our prison."

"Sounds cozy," I quip, trying to lighten the mood.

Aldric chuckles, but there's a bitterness to it. "Oh yeah, nothing says 'home sweet home' like damp caves and eternal darkness." He sighed heavily. "But the vrakken, even as a warrior people, are apathetic. They did not want to fight when we had found a place to thrive — or so we thought."

"At least you didn't have to worry about sunburn," I offer.

He actually laughs at that, a deep, rich sound that makes my heart skip. "True. But trust me, Red, after a few centuries, you start to miss the feel of wind on your face."

I can't imagine being trapped underground for so long. "It must have been hard, giving up the sky."

Aldric's wings twitch, as if remembering the freedom they once had ripped away. "It was. But it was that or an endless war. The dark elves... they're relentless. They won't stop until they've wiped us out." He shrugged. "The feeling is mutual there."

"Well," I say, meeting his gaze, "they'll have to go through me first."

Something flashes in Aldric's eyes – surprise, maybe even admiration. "You know, Red, you might just make a decent vrakken yet."

I grin, tossing a polishing cloth at his head. "Watch it. I just might take that as a compliment."

17

ALDRIC

After our nightly training, I watch Elowen leave the sparring area, her fiery red hair swaying with each step. My body thrums with an electric energy I can't shake. The memory of her pressed against me, skin on skin, ignites a fire in my veins.

Fuck.

I run a hand through my shorn hair, frustration and desire warring within me. Her scent lingers in the air, an intoxicating mix of sweat and something uniquely her. My wings twitch, aching to wrap around her lithe form once more.

And the scene of her blood… I can tell it would be sweet and rich. Nothing I've ever experienced before. And I am absolutely dying for a taste.

I want to fill her up with me in every way possible. I want to be drunk on her blood while she screams my name, while I'm buried deep in her.

I want her.

I clench my fists, trying to regain control. But all I can think about is the way she moaned my name, how her body fit perfectly against mine. The softness of her skin, the fire in her eyes as she challenged me.

My body responds traitorously, desire coursing through me. I want her again. Now. The need to claim her, to mark her as mine, overwhelms me.

But it's more than just physical. The way she looks at me, like she sees beyond the hardened warrior exterior, unnerves me. She's worming her way under my skin, past defenses I've spent years building.

I pace the sparring area, unable to shake the images flooding my mind. Her fierce determination during training, the vulnerability in her eyes when she speaks of her past, the way she stands up to me without fear.

Dammit. This wasn't supposed to happen. She's human, fragile compared to my kind. And yet, she's proven herself stronger than I ever expected.

I growl in frustration, slamming my fist against the wall. The pain does nothing to dull the ache of wanting her.

But then Raziel's words slip into my mind.Don't deny yourself happiness out of some misguided sense of duty. Perhaps... you've found your own reason to fight.

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