Page 108 of Dark Awakening: Hidden Currents

When they parted, Ell-rom rested his forehead against Jasmine's. "I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered. "Sometimes, the intensity of my emotions scares me. You've become my whole world, and I feel like I'm forgetting who I am."

"I don't want that," he said.

"I know." She lifted her head and looked into his eyes. "It's not your fault. It's mine, and I need to work on it." She smiled, but it looked forced. "When you are fully recovered and we move into the village, I'm going to start working for Syssi's company—the Perfect Match Virtual Studios. I hope to become their spokesperson, but I'll settle for a lesser position."

"I hope I will find something to do as well. Maybe I can also work for Perfect Match? You said that trying out their travel adventures will allow me to learn about your world much faster, and since I am a blank page, I can provide them with unbiased feedback."

Jasmine nodded. "That would be lovely because I can't bear to be apart from you for more than a few hours. I start to get restless and anxious."

"I do, too," he admitted. "It's the bond, although we didn't fulfill all the requirements for it to form yet."

"There is no rush, my love." She leaned her head on his chest. "Sometimes I can't believe how much my life has changed since I met you."

"For the better, I hope."

"Of course." She looked up at him and smiled, but this time, the smile wasn't forced. "I'm a trained actress, and I'm supposed to know the whole spectrum of emotions, but I’ve never felt so alive as I do with you. It's almost as if I was sleepwalking through my life before, which doesn't make sense since I've done a lot and experienced a lot. All the productions I was a part of, the people I've met, the Wicca, and yet everything seems meaningless to me now. It's scary."

Her words resonated with him, but in his case, he actually had been sleeping for seven thousand years, and he had awakened to a new world and a new life, and at the center of it all was Jasmine.

Ell-rom leaned down and kissed her forehead. "You make me want to be better, to be worthy of your love."

"You are already worthy, my love, just the way you are. You are kind, brave, and determined, and you have a big heart full of love. You don't need to change anything for me."

That wasn't true, but the moment was too sweet to spoil with reality, like the fact that both of them were enjoying the clan's hospitality and that, at some point, they would be required to contribute to the community and not just take. Jasmine had skills she could offer the clan, but Ell-rom had none.

Well, that wasn't true either.

If they needed an undetectable assassin, he was their guy.

Except, he didn't want to be a killer for hire. He would rather mop floors or do any other menial work, just not do that.

Jasmine chuckled softly. "Stop thinking so hard and kiss me."

He leaned in, kissing her again and trying to pour all the emotions he couldn't quite articulate into the kiss. His hands roaming Jasmine's back, he pulled her closer and reveled in the soft warmth of her body against his.

With a soft moan escaping her lips, she melted into him.

For a moment, Ell-rom lost himself in the sensations, the taste, and the feel of Jasmine, but as his arousal intensified, so did his awareness of his fangs and the urge to bite that always accompanied his passion.

Anxiety began to creep in, tempering his desire with fear.

Jasmine must have sensed his hesitation because she pulled back, her eyes searching his face. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He cupped the back of her head, but she resisted his pull.

"It's not nothing. You are tense."

There was no hiding from this female of his. "The aversion to blood. It's still there."

Her eyes softened. "It's okay. We had fun last night without the bite, right? It was amazing."

Their joining had been spectacular despite his inability to bite her, but Ell-rom had feared that she'd been disappointed.

It was good to hear her say that she'd enjoyed it as much as he had.

"It was," he murmured. "I wonder if that was how I imagined it would be, but I doubt it."

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