Page 52 of Healing His Mate

Then it dawns on me. The b’fiko syrup. When he left my shop so abruptly. But I do not recall insulting his intelligence. Did I not compliment him on being so skilled with food preparation?

He must be referring to something else. The words hover above a memory that is just outside my reach.

“You remember that, yes?”

I do, mostly, but I do not feel the guilt I probably should, had the words been mine. “I did not say that. I have never said that.”

“No, you did not. Yignnuf did. He said it, and you laughed.”

Yignnuf? When would he have said such a thing? And how would Waldric have heard it? We rarely ventured outside the facility. “When?”

His chin dips and he answers so quietly that I almost do not hear him. “It was many years ago. We were younger. Much younger.”

“You are serious?” I shout back. It is my turn to be angry. “You have held a grudge against mefor yearsbecause I laughed at that old prick’s terrible joke? That is why you left me naked and covered in syrup that eve?”

“Wait, whaaat? I’d like to hear that story, please,” Vye-let says with a chuckle.

I turn toward her. “You are still here?”

She snaps her lips shut.

I am so angry, I feel as if I could explode like a bomb inside this tiny ship. Closing the distance even more, I take a step toward Waldric until we stand a hand’s width apart. “Do you know what happened when you failed to laugh at Yignnuf’s jokes? Do you?”

He says nothing.

“Two lashings across the back.”

His orange eyes swirl with fury. He steps forward, backing me against the wall of the ship, placing his hands on either side of my head. Then I hear metal crumple under his grasp as he grits out, “He hurt you?”

Varrek clears his throat from the doorway. “Uh, Waldric, I understand your frustration right now, but we will have to replace that panel.”

Waldric does not hear him, though. His gaze is as heated as it is enraged. Perhaps I should be afraid. Instead, I feel my cunt clench around nothing, wishing Waldric was deep inside me.

Suddenly, a strange buzzing sensation forms at the base of my spine. I scratch the area, assuming it is an itch. When the feeling does not subside, my stomach twists with nerves. It spreads throughout my chest, intensifying as it goes down my arms and legs and up my throat. My vision blurs and the room starts to spin. Nothing is clear. Nothing except Waldric.

I suck in a breath.

The tether.

CHAPTER 26

WALDRIC

No. No, this blurring of my vision and electric jolt inside my chest is not what I think it is. It is not the tether. I have hoped for it to appear for so long. I will not be fooled now. It is just my anger taking shape inside my blood. That is all it is.

When Nalba inhales sharply, though, I start to wonder. When the blacks of her eyes expand, almost completely covering the gray, I wonder no longer.

“Do you feel it?” she whispers, her eyes darting between mine.

I nod, awestruck at what I am about to say. “The tether. It forms.”

She chuckles, pressing her palms against my cheeks. “It forms.”

I wonder why it took so long for the tether to form between us. It is not an instant thing for all mates. For some, it takes years before it forms.

Perhaps, letting go of past pain was a necessity before our souls could recognize one another. We had to clear away the anguish first, in order to begin anew as a team.

My mouth is on her in an instant.Her.Nalba.My inara. I can hardly believe it. If I awaken to find this all a dream, I would not be surprised. I have had many dreams like this. A possessive, primal growl builds inside my chest as I haul her into my arms and against the wall. She wraps her legs around my waist, crossing her ankles behind me.

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