Page 314 of Primal Bonds

Luc’s face had been hard as stone, closed up tight. The man had always been grim, but now he looked like he’d been scrubbed clean of emotion.

Gods, it sliced at Adric, to leave a friend with the fae, especially Luc. During the Darktime, Adric had risked his own life to rescue Luc from Leron. If it would do any good, he’d do the same thing in a heartbeat.

But Luc had accepted Lady Blaer’s geas of his own free will to save Marjani in Iceland. Now Luc was bound to her for the next decade, and Adric couldn’t do a damn thing about it. Only Luc could break the geas, and his former lieutenant would never do that. The man would die before breaking his word.

Adric tightened his jaw. If only he hadn’t sent Luc to Iceland after Marjani.

The clan needed you in Baltimore. And Luc insisted on going. You probably couldn’t have stopped him if you tried.

But Adric was alpha. The final decision had been his—and because of it, he’d lost Luc to that fae bitch.

That’s when it hit him. Luc was Blaer’s man. He must have led the fae to Lewes—and Adric.

His lungs contracted. He pressed the heel of his hand to his chest, telling himself that it wasn’t Luc’s fault. He was under Blaer’s control.

But it felt like Luc had shoved a knife into his heart.

He grimly set his hurt aside. Rosana was waiting for him. Rolling up his jeans, he jogged barefoot into the bay until it reached his calves before setting out for the Breakwater Light. If Luc did return, the water would erase Adric’s tracks.

He hadn’t gone far when he saw the river dolphin slipping through the waves, a sleek smudge against the lighter gray of the night sky. He should’ve known she’d come back for him.

He dropped the bags on the sand and signaled her with his quartz. She immediately headed in, shifting a few yards offshore. She rose from the bay, water streaming down her naked body, and everything in him stopped.

Breath, heart, even his mind.

All he could do was stare in helpless longing.

She strode through the waves toward him, all long legs and curves, wet hair snaking like seaweed over high, firm breasts. Water droplets shimmered on her skin, the charm a silver glint on her wrist.

She was a siren with ocean-colored eyes, come to land for one short night.

Sorrow squeezed his insides. She was so beautiful, so at home at the water.

So different from him.

They could never have more than these snatches of time.

But his feet were already moving, taking him to her.

Chapter 10

Adric was okay.

Rosana’s knees went weak with relief at seeing him unharmed.

Their eyes locked, and her spine tingled at the need and heat in his. She walked toward him, a moth to his fire.

He met her halfway, hauling her up against his lean, sinewy frame. The water sucked at their ankles. The icy wind whipped around them.

She had time to draw a breath and then his mouth crashed onto hers. One kiss spun into the next, and the next. Hard, drugging kisses that took her deep and whipped her around until she clung to him as if he were the only solid thing in the world.

His hands gripped her hips, molding her to his body. His erection pressed against her belly through the placket of his jeans. She rubbed against it and he groaned.

The wind picked up, scouring her exposed skin. She shivered and pressed closer, tunneling her fingers under his T-shirt, seeking his warmth. She might be a river fada, adapted to cool streams and caverns, but even she got cold on a night like this.

He lifted his head, swore. “You need to put on some clothes.”

“Clothes.” Dazed, she rested her forehead against his chest. “Right.”

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