Lifeblood (Everlife #2)(87)
He was my last kiss. I want him to be my only kiss.
His lips are soft and silken as his tongue thrusts and rolls against mine, his sweet taste stripping away my defenses one by one, leaving me vulnerable and raw; I love it. I love him.
Different sensations pour through me. Sultry heat. Electricity in my veins, pulsing through muscle and bone. Inside my Shell, my skin grows sensitive. Every move I make, every breath I take, creates an irresistible friction that only makes the heat and electricity worse—or better. Yes, definitely better.
My stomach quivers, delicious pressure throbbing in different parts of me. The first pressure I’ve ever enjoyed. I’m caught up in a whirlwind of sensation, every cell in my body coming alive. I’m a girl with a purpose—to love the boy who loves me. And this kiss...the kiss is wild, heady. It makes up for every moment we’ve spent apart, every fight we’ve ever had, and grounds me in a reality I cannot deny: I’m willing to die for this boy.
Whispers, then giggles and cheers slam into my awareness. We aren’t being watched by Troika, but we’re certainly being watched by people. Killian and I break apart, and both of us are panting. His gaze remains hot on mine, and my cheeks flush.
“Let’s get out of here.” He grabs my hand and leads me away from our audience, zigzagging around the tables. On the sidewalk, his pace increases, his stride long and fast.
“The Buckler—”
“Trust me. I’m not ready to die. I’ll avoid the borders.”
“Are your Flankers nearby?” I search the shadows. “Does your realm have an Eye? Is your boss watching you?”
“I told Myriad you might not show up if too many MLs were in the area. And right now, the Buckler is blocking me from my boss.” He throws a wicked grin over his shoulder, and I swear my bones melt. “I think I hoped you’d come.”
I’m in big-time trouble. That grin...
It’s the beginning of my undoing.
If anyone has the power to hurt me, it’s Killian. Since we met, he’s had a strange hold on me, as if we’re somehow linked.
Could he be the fox?
The stray thought knocks the air from my lungs. Killian may have changed, may love me, may be willing to die for me, but even at his best he believes winners are adored and failures are abhorred. He craves the attention and affection he never received as a child. Something I understand.
My parents were good to me...at first. The older I became, the more involved they became in their work. Dad was a representative in the House of Myriad, helping to pass realm laws for humans. Mom had her paintings. One day, I woke up, cooked my own breakfast and realized I had been raising myself for years.
They spent time with me only when I required discipline, and the knowledge had hurt. Badly. I’d become an afterthought to the people who were supposed to love me.
At sixteen, I became a bargaining chip.
Because of my supposed Fusing with a Myriadian General, the realm offered my parents more money, more fame—but only if I made covenant.
I wasn’t a daughter. I was a key.
The look Killian gives me is fraught with anger and sadness, as if he’s reading my mind. “I once asked you to trust me, no matter what. I asked for a good reason. You said you did. You said you would. Have you changed your mind?”
Elizabeth would say he began working on my downfall at the very beginning of my Everlife. After all, what better moment to set me up for failure?
“No,” I say. “I haven’t changed my mind.” So I had a doubting thought. So what? I’m not going to entertain it any longer. I’m not going to allow it to grow into a worry.
It could be foolish to trust him so completely, yes, but I’m going to do it anyway, just as I promised. This boy has more than proved himself.
The alternative? Walking away from him without knowing what could have bloomed between us.
“Good.” He stops in the middle of the sidewalk to cup the side of my face. “Just so you know, hurting you isn’t on today’s agenda, lass.”
“Oh, so it might be on tomorrow’s menu?” I tease.
“I’m planning to hurt you never, yeah?”
I lean into his touch and nod. He gifts me with a soft, swift kiss.
“You do realize we are making our relationship happen, right?” Step out of darkness and into Light, Killian. “Not Fate. Us.”
“No more talking.” He leads me to the alley. To the spot I first appeared. Grinning, he pushes me against the wall. “We have better things to do.”
I gasp as I meet the cool brick...but the hot male in front of me makes me gasp even harder.
His hands settle on my face again, his grip strong but gentle. “You cause me nothing but trouble, lass. You do realize that, right?”
I melt against him. “I thought we had something better to do with our mouths.”
“Oh, we do.” His eyes sparkle as he presses his mouth against mine.
I welcome him, opening. Our tongues thrust together, and this time, we aren’t restrained. We take and give, take and give, the kiss hard and aggressive. The sensations return and redouble, leaving my knees quaking. His breath is my breath, and my breath is his.
Here, in this moment, we exist for each other.
I’m on fire for him. I’m throbbing, aching.
He groans and bites at my bottom lip, staking a claim. “With you, I always want more.” He slides his hands under my thighs to heft me up. In an instant, he becomes my anchor.