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"Before you go?" I prompt, heart hammering against my ribs like it's trying to break free.
"Kiss me, Luka."
It's not a request. It's a need, raw and desperate, hanging between us.
I don't hesitate. Our lips meet, and it's a collision of everything unsaid, every confession we'll never make. She tastes like the promise of a future filled with maybes and what-ifs. My hands find her waist, pulling her closer, as if I can somehow imprint my essence onto her very being.
It ends too soon.
She smoothes her clothes, then stands up and tosses her hair as she steps back. “I’ll tell Rook you’re up,” she says. “He’ll want to know…and he’ll take care of you for the rest of the trip.”
She’s at the door, fingertips on the doorknob, but I call out.
“Aisling?”
“Yeah?”
She turns to look at me, blue eyes sparkling.
“One day, we’ll make it work,” I tell her. “It’s fate, remember? I still believe that.”
She bites her lip and shakes her head. “It’s a nice dream, Luka.”
There’s nothing else to say.
I watch her go, the woman who upended my world walking away as if she isn't taking a piece of my soul with her. But she is—she always does.
The door closes behind Aisling with a soft click, and I'm alone with the echo of what we had and the silence of what's to come.
Chapter twenty-nine
Aisling
Rook’s place is somehow everything and not at all what I expected.
Nestled in the desert outside of Celestial Hills, it’s a sprawling modern home with a massive underground portion that makes up his lab and a few saferooms. The guy is obviously paranoid as hell—and I guess he has good reason to be, given how many times we’ve found our lives on the line.
The guest room is well-kept, though I guess Rook has a drone that does most of the cleaning for him. It’s got a view of the mountains through a floor-to-ceiling window, a massive bed, a just as massive TV…
…and somehow, it feels empty.
Because Gunnar’s not here.
I lie in bed beside Oberon, his tan arm slung over my waist from behind, his breath against my neck. It feels good to be with my mate again, but this specific position isn’t as comfortable as it once was. It reminds me of a night not so long ago, when Luka went feral and…
I shift away from Oberon, resisting the urge to run screaming from the room.
I wonder when I’ll get over it.
Oberon rustles and moans, and I feel his eyelashes flutter against my ear as he presses a kiss to my neck. I tamp down the adrenaline rush—but I guess he scents it, because he pulls away and props himself up on an elbow, gazing down at me with those rich brown eyes.
I look up at him.
“I like you with a beard and long hair,” I breathe, trying to break the tension. “It’s more cowboy, less bouncer.”
He doesn’t smile. “What’s wrong, Aisling?”
I sigh and roll onto my back, looking into Oberon’s eyes. It’s amazing how he’s always been comforting—even when he was a little scary at Dreamland, even when he was on eros. He’s a good man; I’m lucky to have him.
