House of Leights (Secret Keepers, #3)(69)

Did I really care, though?

As my tongue brushed against his, a low breathy sound escaped and Chase’s chest rumbled under me. After endless minutes – or days – of pure bliss, he pulled away, both of his hands cupping my face. “We should cool off,” he breathed against my lips. “Because my control is shot right now.”

He wasn’t the only one.

“You need to sleep,” he added, pulling me closer until I was half sprawled across him. “I’ll keep you safe.”

At this point I’d completely forgotten that I’d been nervous to sleep in the same bed as him. Tangled up in his arms was the most right my life had ever felt, and as I drifted off to sleep, I sent out a hope for many more nights like this.





I woke up with less than an hour to go in our flight. It was the first time I’d managed my fear of flying without medication, or a lot of emotional trauma. Chase remained asleep, holding me against his chest. The warm smoothness of his skin, along with his steady heartbeat, almost lulled me back to sleep, but my stomach was protesting too much about lack of food for me to actually doze off.

“I think I’d better feed you,” Chase rumbled, his eyes opening. “Starving my mate on the first day we’re bonded does not seem like a good way to start our lives.”

Groaning, I buried my head into him, blocking out everything else. “Do we have to leave? The moment we get off this plane, we’ll be back to tracking down Laous and trying not to die. I like it better in here.”

In an instant I was flipped over onto my back, Chase perched above me. “What did I tell you before? You’re not going to die. I won’t let it happen.”

His confidence was cute and amusing, and while it bordered on arrogant, I didn’t mind. Chase was just doing Chase, and I happened to like exactly who he was.

“Neither of us will die,” I agreed. “It’s a deal.”

Reaching up, I wrapped my arms around him, pulling his body down onto mine. I wanted to feel his weight while I wrapped my legs up around him and pressed my body to his. Chase did not fight me, and he was strong enough to resist if he wanted to.

“We still have an hour,” I murmured, my lips pressing to his, while my body ached for his touch.

Chase let out a low groan. “We don’t need to rush.”

“We don’t have to have sex,” I reminded him, because he was right about the rushing. “Plenty of other fun things to do to kill time … if you can be quiet.”

I winked, even though it was no doubt going to be me screaming the plane down. Chase pushed himself back up, the muscles in his biceps standing out starkly as he stared down at me. I had no idea what he was looking for, so I just let all of my emotions and love for him rise to the surface.

I might not have said the words yet, but I definitely felt the emotion. In my old life I would have laughed at any girl who said she was in love after knowing the guy for less than a week, but as far as I was concerned, I’d known Chase my entire life. We were destined. He stirred feelings in me that went beyond the normal.

“You’re my everything, Maya,” Chase told me, still holding himself just away from me. “Beyond love. Beyond life. Beyond the worlds we are from. You are my first and only priority, and I will strive every single day to never fail you, this I can promise.”

I pulled him down again, and this time our kiss felt different. Hotter, more intense, and also more emotional. As he moved those full lips across mine, down my cheek, and along my neck, I threw my head back and bit my lip to stop from making noises. He stripped my shirt away, leaving me just in my black bra. I was thankful at this point that I’d taken the time to clean up last night. Not that Chase seemed to really care about a little dirt.

We wasted no time, touching, kissing, learning each other, and before I knew it there were only thirty minutes left in the flight. When I stepped out of the bedroom fully dressed – and wholly satisfied – I was still a virgin. But it felt like everything had changed.

I did agree with him, though. I wasn’t quite ready for that step, and it would be nice for my first time not to be on a plane filled with other people. Although it certainly had felt romantic in our little bedroom. Our bubble.

“Come on,” Chase said, leading me back to our original chairs. Mostly everyone else was seated. I waved to Emma and Callie as I passed them. They both looked more relaxed than before. Callie had white gauze visible behind her ear but didn’t seem bothered by it.

I wondered if they’d enjoyed the use of the bedrooms as well. At least I didn’t have to feel embarrassed to think I might have been loud. Over the noise of the plane, I hadn’t heard anything. So hopefully they hadn’t either.

“Do Daelighters have better hearing than humans?” I asked Chase as we buckled ourselves in.

His smile was knowing. “Yes, but not by that much. No one heard us.”

Thank you, Jesus.

Just before taking their seats, a steward brought us a sandwich and bottle of water. We had twenty more minutes to descend, so there was time for me to get some food in my stomach. And hope I didn’t throw it up as we came in to land. Chase held my hand the entire time, and even when the wheels touched down, bouncing a little – which normally was the point I’d freak out – he kept me from losing it. By the time all the checks were complete, and we’d waited for our turn to taxi into the main hub of buildings, I barely felt stressed at all. Someone needed to bottle these mate bonds; they were ten times better than Xanax.