Page 56 of Stormbinder King
Every step I took I feared another creature coming out from behind a tree, another vampire, or even Jack, ambling in his deceptively casual way.
But I was able to make it to the base of the waterfall without seeing anything.
I clambered up, careful not to lose my footing and slip into the rushing waters.
By the time I reached the top I was panting.
I didn’t have to wait long.
The King soon appeared in his shifted form on the other side of the waterfall, with a massive boar in his jaws.
I tried to calm my breathing, but seeing him there tearing the creature’s heart out meant my own would not stop pounding.
It was only a few beats before he suddenly transformed, spinning to face me. I was transfixed by the predator’s glint in his eyes.
His ability to scent me must be very strong.
I was hoping for that.
I was also hoping he’d be compelled to protect his fated mate, even though he hated me.
Otherwise I might be in serious trouble.
“What the fuck are you doing out here?” Symeon growled, making the hairs on my neck stand on end. “Turn around and get your ass down the way you came. I’ll meet you on the other side and take you back home.”
The sight of him on the other side of the stream, his massive hands on a tree trunk like he wanted to tear it from the earth, made me shiver.
But I whirled around and began to walk along the edge of the stream where it flowed faster and faster toward the waterfall.
I glanced back and saw his dark predator’s eyes narrowly focused on my movements.
He did not run, but there was something about his slow, unhurried pace that turned my spine into ice.
I spun back around and focused on not falling into the stream.
“Andromeda, too close,” Symeon growled. “Get your ass away from that edge.”
But I knew now that he wasn’t going to kill me.
There was something in his eyes, a subtle flaring of his nostrils, but it was there.
He might catch me and spank me until I was black and blue but he wasn’t going to kill me.
Were we truly fated mates?
It seemed unbelievable, but I was reckless enough to try it.
I started to run.
“Andromeda!” Symeon barked. “Stop, damn it! You’re going to fall in!”
But I only ran faster, my feet pounding on the grass.
I heard him begin to run too. Although there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t cross the river here.
Fear gripped my heart as the edge approached.
What if I missed?
