Total pages in book: 152
Estimated words: 154368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 772(@200wpm)___ 617(@250wpm)___ 515(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 154368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 772(@200wpm)___ 617(@250wpm)___ 515(@300wpm)
I didn't finish.
The silence stretched between us, heavy and charged.
And then for some reason. . .he placed his hand back on my throat, right over his bite marks.
And I could feel his pulse in his fingertips.
Racing.
Unsteady.
Finally, he exhaled. "You're shaking, Tora."
I was.
Still.
My whole body was trembling despite my firm words, despite my demands. The adrenaline was fading and leaving nothing but exhaustion and horror in its wake.
He pulled me against him.
I let him.
God help me, I let him.
His arms wrapped around me, and I pressed my face into his chest and breathed in the scent of him—not smoke, not burning, just him—and I shook apart in his embrace.
"I've got you." His voice rumbled through his chest and vibrated against my cheek. "I've got you, Tora."
His hand stroked down my back. His lips pressed against my hair. He held me like I was precious, like I was everything, like he hadn't just admitted to burning over a hundred people twenty feet from where we'd made love the night before.
I was still shaking when he tilted my chin up and kissed me. And God help me, it was fire. Not the monstrous blaze outside—not death, destruction, and the smell of burning flesh.
This was the other kind of fire.
The kind of heat that had cocooned me in bed this morning, made me feel safe, made me feel claimed.
I almost pulled away.
Almost.
But his hand was in my hair, and his mouth was soft, and the fire outside was still burning, as the fire within me blazed, and I kissed him anyway because I didn't know how to stop wanting him even when I should.
His lips moved against mine slowly, carefully, like he was asking a question he was afraid I'd answer wrong.
Those soft lips said:
Are we going to be okay?
Do you still want me?
Can you love the man who burns families?
His hand slid into my hair, cradling my skull, and the kiss deepened. Heat bloomed in my chest, spread through my veins, and I understood then that I would never be cold again.
Not as long as he loved me.
And. . .I was also slowly learning in my time with him that fire doesn't just warm.
Fire devours too.
And when he pulled back, breathing hard, his forehead pressed against mine, I knew I was already burning. I'd been burning since the first moment he touched me. The only question was whether I'd survive the blaze—or let it turn me to ash like those people outside.
And then he kissed me again. . .
And I kissed him back because I didn't know what else to do.
Because I loved him.
Because I was his.
Because the alternative was walking away, and he'd made it clear that wasn't an option, and maybe. . .I didn't want it to be anyway.
But my hands still trembled against his chest.
And the taste of ash still lingered in my throat.
And when he pulled back to look at me, I knew he could see what had happened to us in my gaze.
This had caused a break.
A crack between us.
Granted, our bond was not fully broken.
But it was different.
Damaged.
When he reached for my hand, I let him take it.
But I didn't squeeze back.
And I saw the moment he noticed.
He never said yes.
I'd demanded to be part of his decisions. I'd told him we needed to discuss things before he burned over a hundred people.
And he'd kissed me instead of answering.
The Dragon hadn't agreed to anything.
Right as I was about to double down on my demand, someone knocked at the door.
Kenji's whole body went rigid. The dragon-shadow, which had been almost peaceful, flared back to life—wings spreading, jaws parting.
Kenji’s voice came out sharp enough to cut. “What?”
"It's Reo. I didn’t want to bother you, but the Lion wants—"
“Tell him I will talk to him later.” Kenji glared at the door. “I’m busy!”
I almost jumped.
Reo cleared his throat. “Unfortunately, the Lion isn't on the phone."
I felt Kenji go still.
Completely, utterly still.
Even his breath stopped.
Reo continued, "The Lion and his men just landed on the island."
For three heartbeats, nothing happened.
Then Kenji released me and turned toward the door, and the dragon-shadow rose behind him like a tide of darkness, massive, terrible, and ready for war.
Kenji frowned at the door. “Tell the Lion, I will be out to greet him soon.”
What’s going on?
Chapter two
Fractured
Kenji
The Lion is here. What the fuck?
I cleaned up fast.
Wiped down.
My hands moved on autopilot while my mind stayed locked on the conversation I’d just had with my Tiger—the way she'd trembled against me, the way she'd kissed me back but couldn't stop shaking, the way she'd looked at me at the end.
Like she was seeing the end of something she wanted to believe in.
Like she was still choosing me—even while part of her was breaking.
I've got to fix this.
And somehow the fucking Lion was here on my hidden island.