Page 118 of The King has Fallen

She spluttered a laugh and threw her free arm around my neck, pulling me down into another kiss—soft, sweet, but her breath still rushing.

For a moment there was no war. There was no King. There was nothing but my mate and me, both of us high on the joy of each other and trembling in the wake of the ultimate pleasure. For those precious moments, I was able to forget everything else that we faced, and just thank God in heaven for whatever I had done to deserve… this.Her.

And pray desperately that I didn’t fuck it up.

41.Behind the Bond

~ MELEK ~

An hour later, my skin still hummed and my heart was swelling, but Yilan slept—deeply. Curled into my side and her body completely slack… her trust in me was so touching it made my chest tight.

But when things had been quiet for so long, Jann obviously thought she was killing me in my sleep or something, because he stuck his head into the tent, jaw tight.

Carefully curling a wing around her to keep her shaded from sight and hopefully muffle any sound so she wouldn’t wake, I held up the hand that wasn’t bound to hers and motioned him closer, gesturing for him to remain quiet.

I sighed when Jann reached my side, glaring and hands clenched to fists as he stared down at me and my wing thatobscured her from sight. I didn’t like the anger in him, but I knew we needed to speak, and I didn’t want to wake her.

My chosen brother was the most laid back and easy-going Nephilim I knew. He rarely disapproved or took issue with me or my actions. But when he did… he would not let it go until he’d been heard.

So I just watched him and waited. Speculating in my mind about which problem he’d raise first—and what he’d fight for.

He surprised me.

“How does it feel?” he asked finally, his voice a bare whisper, though the edge it in was still rage.

I frowned. “The bond?”

“Yes. And withher.”He saidheras if she were some kind of mythical creature he hadn’t thought was real, and he was struggling to articulate it.

Unprepared for this line of questioning, I gave it some thought. “It feels like… like I finally found my home,” I admitted.

Jann shook his head slowly. “AFetch.”

“I know.”

“Do you?” he asked pointedly.

I met his gaze to find him staring at me with real fear in his eyes.

“Are youcertainshe hasn’t pulled some magik, or moved your mind or… something?”

I chewed on that for a moment, because it was exactly what I would have assumed if he were in my position, and I couldn’t deny that it hadn’t crossed my mind. But… “No, it’s not. I did worry about it for a time—I felt the bond before she did. But no. I’m sure. There is… this isn’t just a lust for her, Jann.”

“Then what is it?”

I blew out my breath. “It’s as if she’s aliveinsideme. When she feels pleasure, I feel it too. When she feels afraid, it alerts my senses. When she is angry, I’m furious.” I was whispering soquietly, my voice cut out at the end when emotion flooded my senses.

He snorted, then rolled his eyes when I gestured for him to be quiet.

“That’s just your pride,” he muttered.

“No, Jann. It’s my soul braided with hers. We are… one.”

I held his gaze as he stared, a very odd look on his face. “Then how thefuckare you going to leave?” he asked, glancing at the door as if someone might come in.

“What choice do I have? It’s leave and save her life, or stay and watch it taken. Or force her to watch me be killed, knowing that she’s going to be violated anddestroyedwhen I’m gone.”

That thought made my blood run cold. Even memories of the way she’d walked the shadows in front of me didn’t really soothe that fear. She’d admitted the power wasn’t faultless—and could only be used for short distances. If she were in the middle of this camp and they knew what she was doing…

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