Page 26 of Consume Me
He swirls the liquid in his glass. “I’m the last.”
“Noctan.” I lay my hand over his arm. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
He flinches at my touch, the air between his teeth whistling. As if in pain. I pull back, and he merely grunts then rolls up his sleeve to reveal a rune symbol burned into his skin.
It glows faintly. Seared into his flesh and smelling faintly of smoke, like it’s still hot from the poker.
“What is that thing?” I ask, trying not to recoil as I think about how much it must hurt.
“A locator rune. It’s spelled to guide me to the daggers.” He looks up at me. “This is how I found you.”
I stare at it. At him.
And I realize—I never would have escaped him. Not really. He was always going to find me. I could have run to the ends of the earth to escape this fate, and he would have met me there. For better or worse, death at his hand or not, I am meant to be here with him. But on the other side of that thought, I’m also aware of the silence inside me when I touched him. How the daggers went utterly mute when he held me for that dance. And again, just now…
I reach for him, tentative this time. “Can I…” I swallow hard, aware I’m asking for something dangerous and maybe even completely stupid. “Can I touch you?”
His eyes lock on mine, and there’s no hesitation at all when he answers, “Anywhere you want.”
Chapter 8
Noctan
At my invitation, her cheeks flush. The most delicate wash of color, high on her cheekbones. Gods help me, it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve seen in centuries.
I extend my hand, not trusting myself to speak just yet. She hesitates… then slides her palm against mine. Her exhale is a heavy thing.
“Are you hurt?” I ask, suddenly worried I’ve missed some injury.
She shakes her head. “The daggers… I can hear them.”
I frown, looking around at the room spelled with wards more powerful than any other. “We left the remaining blade in the Earth realm,” I say.
“It doesn’t matter,” she says. “I hear them in my head. But when you touch me…” She looks at me with wonder. “I can’t hear them anymore.”
I find myself caught in her blue-eyed gaze like prey in a snare. “In that case, probably best to not let go.”
Her mouth quirks, and gods, I want to feel that mouth. On several parts of me. My cock twitches at the thought, and it’s all I can do not to shift my body to keep it from pressing painfully against my pants.
Fuck, this pixie-looking fae is going to be the death of me.
Her thumb moves, just slightly against my skin. With my free hand, I reach for my whiskey to keep from shoving her beneath me on this couch and touching her in places that would make her forget all about those daggers.
“Can I ask you something?”
I take a generous swig of the burning liquid and then set it aside. The fire burns just enough to distract me from the urge to take her right here, and I nod.
“How have you never found a mate?” she asks softly. “You’ve lived this long—centuries, you said, but you’ve never found someone?”
“I’ve never met anyone I cared about more than my vow to my people,” I admit. “But I’m starting to think fate was right to wait. That the wait has been worth it in the end.”
The ice in her eyes begins to thaw, and for the first time in my long existence, I allow myself to become vulnerable. Anything to see her look at me like that a little longer.
“I dedicated my life to the safety and protection of others. But since losing my cadre, a new generation of sentinels has come to serve in our place, and when my oath of vengeance is fulfilled…” I pause, tightening my hold on her hand. “I’ll serve only myself—and my mate.”
She doesn’t respond to that last part. I suspect we’re both still trying to wrap our heads around it, so I don’t push her. But I’m not sure I can wait much longer. My beast whines, longing to make his claiming bite. It might have taken centuries to find her, but now that we have, my beast has no intention of waiting around to possess what’s his.
“And you live here in Sanctum? Alone?” she asks.
