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Allowing a modicum of self-preservation to trickle in, he squeezed his eyes shut so she wouldn’t see them this close up—in case they were glowing. He took a deep breath before opening his eyes again.
She lay still beneath him, panting, eyes closed.
He slid his tongue over the spot where he’d bit her. An angry bruise marred her skin that pacified something inside him, but confusion swept his mind when he didn’t see anywhere he broke the skin.
Lifting himself from her back, he looked down at her, trailing his hands down her spine, relishing the feel of her sweat-slicked skin beneath his hands. Rolling her face to bury it into the pillow, she hummed a soft moan, responding to his ministrations. She truly acted like a kitten, purring for him when he petted her. So he continued, hoping to soothe her after such an intense moment between them.
As his hands slid up to her shoulder blades, he choked on his own saliva.
His chest seized and his hands trembled as he stared without blinking at the faded black tattoo beneath her hairline at the top of her spine. A circle with a straight line splitting the middle and an upside-down crescent slicing through the base of the circle.
He knew for a fact Charlotte didn’t have tattoos. But he didn’t need to know that to know what was staring him in the face.
The fading mark on her skin called to him, and his entire body responded. His nerves were alight with a mix of desire, fear, confusion, and need. His cock thickened again, still inside her.
Charlotte was his Korrena.
How the fuck does that happen?
The sound of rustling woke Aiden, breaching into the most peaceful sleep he’d experienced in a long time. A nightmare was trying to seize him, but it failed to take root. He rolled his head to the side to look at Charlotte, only to find her side of the bed empty.
His brows drew in, and he blinked a few times, focusing his vision on the darkness in the room. It took a moment for his mind to catch up with the present.
Charlotte was missing.
He bolted upright, and the air in his chest stuttered when he caught sight of her standing in front of the other window holding the sheer curtains open, looking out into the night.
She stood bathed in moonlight, unaware of his gaze on her, her naked skin ethereal under the luminous blanket of night.
“Come back to bed,” he said, voice rough from lack of use. He cleared his throat. “You shouldn’t stand in front of the window like that.”
The curtain slipped from her fingers, and she looked over at him. “Why?”
“If someone’s out there, I don’t want them seeing you like that.”
Her hands came up to rub up and down her upper arms, her arms wrapped around her like a shield. “I didn’t think of that,” she murmured.
He pulled the covers back, urging her to join him in the bed. He didn’t like her so far away so soon after his discovery. “What are you thinking about, then?”
“I feel funny,” she said, crawling from the foot of the bed to his side. He had to suppress a groan at the way her hips swayed with the movement.
“How so?” He pulled her into his arms when she reached him, pulling the blanket over their naked bodies. She put her hand on his chest, snuggling against him.
“My chest. I woke up because I felt panicky.” Her finger trailed down between his ribs and swirled in circles on his abs. “When I snuggled up to you, it went away. I don’t know what happened.”
The thought crossed his mind that the feeling she picked up on was his own panic when the nightmare tried to take root. Did her making physical contact soothe it and drive the nightmare away? Was she already responding on instinct to the Korrena bond?
“Are you okay now?” His lips brushed the top of her head, his thumb stroking her upper arm.
“Mm,” she mumbled, yawning. “Do you think he’s out there?”
His grip on her tightened, and his teeth locked, jaw clenching. “Don’t worry about him. I’m here.”
As long as she had him, nothing would get to her.
She belonged to him now, and he would do anything to protect her. No one would take her from him. He’d kill them.
“Go back to sleep,” he whispered. “I’ll take care of you.”
