Page 105 of The King has Fallen

And I had to know… Was my mate terrified ofme?Or of the situation in which we found ourselves? Because she had me by the balls and she didn’t even realize it.

“Stopthinking, Yilan,” I hissed. “Stop reacting in your fear and just…measure this.If there is truly a soulbond between us—which I am certain there is—we will never be free of it. We can face it together or apart.But we cannot pretend it doesn’t exist.”

“I… this isn’t… you can’t just—”

Unable to resist, I reached up, cupping her jaw with both hands and opening my mouth against hers—softly this time. Not the deep, demand of lust, though that fire blazed in my belly. This was a question, a taste, arequest.

Lips open and hovering over hers, I sighed into her mouth and barely traced her tongue with mine.

She sucked in and froze, but did not pull away, and so I did it again.

I kissed her not as a conquest, not even as a lover.

I kissed her as the precious twin to my soul that she was.

And to my delight, she melted against me, her breath short and sharp, but her kiss soft, tentative,questioning.

“Yilan,” I breathed,“please.”Fighting myself for restraint, I slid one hand into her hair, and the other around her waist, pulling her against me, pinning her to me, and deepening the kiss.

And, joy of joys, she responded, arching back over my hand on her spine, the skin on her neck pebbling, and opening her mouth.

Her hands slid up my chest to lace behind my neck, her nails digging into my skin, but even that bite was a desperate pleasure.

I rumbled, arching her backwards and leaning over her, unable to be close enough, my body quivering like a boy, desperate with need.

I felt the moment she accepted me, felt the thrill of her body turning liquid in my arms, and the delight of her needy whimper. Felt the shift in my chest, as if a piece of my heart had been nudged aside to make room for something—a warm presence still coyly hidden in shadow. But present now. Making itself known.

I groaned again and dove for her throat when her head tipped back and she let me take her weight—her featherweight. There was nothing to her at all, which was terrifying, and also so fuckingadmirable.She was a little wisp of nothing, yet she kept me thinking, kept me moving, continued to surprise me.

Mate.

Soulbond.

Mine.

She gasped when I nipped at her neck and her nails dug harder into the back of my neck, pulling me closer. I chuckled and kissed my way up to her throat, the corner of her jaw, the nipped at her ear before whispering.

“It has been torment listening to you breathe every night, knowing how close you are and what I would do to you if you were willing.”

Her breath caught and she dropped one hand to the side of my leg, drawing her fingers up slowly in a way that set my blood on fire, but also reminded me of the danger that she was in. That we were both in.

I made myself take her face in my hands and lift my head to meet her eyes, staring down at her, pleading with her to trust me. Tohearme.

“Yilan, you are in danger even I cannot be certain to protect you from. The bond… the bond exists. If he were to take you—or kill you… I could not survive it,” I croaked.

She blinked, her eyes, which had been glazed with lust, now wide and wary. She searched my gaze as desperately as I’d searched hers moments before.

“I will not leave you with the King—and that statement alone is tantamount to treason. Do you hear me, Yilan? Youmustescape before I leave. Youmust.Walk the shadows, kill the guards, whatever is needed, youmustbe away from here, and soon. If he changes his mind—”

“I cannot simply walk out of here, Melek,” she whispered hoarsely, then cleared her throat, still staring at me. “It takes a great deal of power to move as I just did—I can only do it for short distances. And I am not invisible to anyone who knows how to look. And besides… you push me to accept that there is a bond between us, then insist that I leave you?”

“There is no other choice!” I growled.

“Yes, there is!” she hissed. “You could lead. You could control. You could take the Nephilim in a new direction—”

“God, you don’t get it at all, do you?!” I growled, releasing her so that she stood straight, though I couldn’t step away, my body wouldn’t allow it. “So intelligent, so certain of your path—but so fucking stubborn. Think it through, Yilan!”

“I have! That’s why—”

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