“I thought I’d lost you,” he choked out, his forehead touching hers.
“No, never.”
“Do you forgive me?” His whispered words, filled with hopeful wariness, tugged at her heart.
“For what?” She pressed another light kiss to the corner of his mouth. “There is nothing to forgive.”
“Our bond.” He stepped back and ran his fingers through his hair. “I know you weren’t ready, but it was the only thing I could think of. I—”
Gabby covered his mouth with her palm. How had she never noticed that he so easily blamed himself? If only she could go back in time to kick some sense into her past self.
She pulled him back toward her and flooded their mating bond with her love. The darkness within him retreated. One day, she would rid him of it fully.
“I love you,” she said, infusing the same fierceness into her words. She would say it as many times as needed to remove any doubts he had.
Felix’s eyes widened, then softened with tenderness. He cupped her face and said, his voice hoarse, “Say it again.”
“I love you.”
He kissed her again, a long drugging kiss that had her heart galloping against her chest and her soul dancing with delight.
I love you.His love shone bright and warm in the mating bond.
Felix lifted her onto the table and stood between her legs. Their kiss grew heated, her breath quickening in heady anticipation. At the sound of the blinds lowering from the window looking into the other room, they broke apart, their breathing shallow.
Before the blinds completely covered the window, she caught sight of Ahmed with a remote control in his hand.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy for you, but I don’t need to see everything,Maria said wryly.
Gabby’s face heated. She’d forgotten where they were. Felix had that effect on her too often.
Somehow, they had a penchant for starting things in the wrong place.
“We should go to our rooms.” Gabby struggled with the words when Felix kissed down her jaw.
“Why? We’re alone now.”
“We are hardly alone.” Several vampires were a thin wall away who perfectly knew what they were up to.
“They’ll get used to it.”
Gabby’s protest cutoff into a moaning gasp when his teeth scraped over her pulse and his hand applied pressure against her needy center. Then she thought no more as Felix proceeded to show her the depth of his love.
Chapter Thirty
“Ican’tbelievewe’restill doing this.”
Felix smiled at Gabby’s grumbling. “He had to, or he risked a riot.”
They were back in Vegas to attend the Tournament, which was held in the underground arena in the Central Tower. With the attack on Haven and the LA incident, Alistair had delayed the Tournament. Never in a million years would he cancel the vampire race’s most anticipated event.
Two weeks ago, Felix had cringed at the thought of today. Gabby, the Head of a House, asleep for the last four hundred years, would receive the most challenges since others viewed her as weak.
Now he was confident that anyone challenging Gabby would regret their choice. He looked forward to the shock on the challengers’ faces once they realized she wasn’t the easy prey they had envisioned.
“Is it always like this?” Gabby asked as they navigated past attendees to their seats. The bottom rows on the arena’s west end were reserved for the Heads of Houses and their companions.
“Yes, always.” Felix swept his gaze over the excited and boisterous crowd filling the arena to the brim. The anticipation and exhilaration in the air prickled his skin, rousing the vampire to the surface.