I followed his rhythm, his pace. I leaned my face into his neck, dragging my fingers along his scorching skin. His hands slid down my waist, my hips, until they reached my thighs. I whimpered into his neck as he pushed up the fabric of my gown, inching it higher along my thighs. Then his heated hands were pressing into my skin.
“My Safah,”he moaned down our bond.
I couldn’t help myself. I pressed my lips into his neck and bit down, sucking on his skin. Quazar snarled like a hungry beast. He gripped my thighs, yanking me closer.
“Do that again, and I’m flipping you over this couch. I will bury myself inside you and mark you. Every Disciple, Farasee, and Legionnaire throughout this Hèls-infested temple will know that you aremine.”
Well stars if I didn’t like the sound of that. I was flushed all over. I felt like I was going through Purification with him all over again. I brushed a thumb over where he’d just had a wound. The gash was completely gone.
Shocked, I pulled back. Quazar had let his eyes fall shut. Stars. When he was like this—eyes closed, mouth slightly open, expression relaxed—everything inside me melted, demanding to devour him.
“Hey you,”I teased.“Look who is all better. Guess you don’t need a Raephim after all.”
He opened his eyes and looked down. I couldn’t explain how, but I’d not only stitched up his open wounds, but I’d mended them completely.
“Starling, how?”
“I don’t know. But good thing, right?”
He watched me with curious, twinkling eyes.
“‘Bend, but do not break’,”he said suddenly.“‘Burn, but never bleed.’ You’re always saying this. Why?”
“It’s a proverb Manmi taught me. I think Granmanmi taught it to her. It’s been engrained in me since I was a naive, youngling. It was meant to help me mentally endure the temple.”
Quazar nodded, still taking in his brand new skin with those curious looks he kept sneaking my way.
“You know, the temple forced us to bond as temple-mates. Now I’m starting to see the mistake they’ve made.”
“Mistake?”I asked, wrinkling my nose. I brushed his hair with my fingers.“How so?”
Quazar laced our fingers together, kissing my knuckles.
“The connection isn’t as strong as it would be if we were bonded wingmates, but it’s still a pretty powerful one. Especially with you being a Starfire Seraphim and me being a Shadow Bending Mortent. I’m of a lower rank than you, but our powers are of the few contrasting ones that become significantly dangerous when put together. This shouldn’t be possible. But because we are bonded, look at what you were able to do.”
“But if the Farasees knew that, they’d keep us apart, not forcefully drive us closer.”
“Or”—he worried his bottom lip—“They did it on purpose. They mated us, turning me into a trigger for you. Turning you into bait for me.”
“A trigger for me,”I repeated, my mind racing.
I looked out of his window which had a humble view of the clouds. Twinight was starting to rise outside. I was surprised so much time had already passed. I looked back at Quazar,fyusingback to Seraphim skin.
“I don’t follow. Why in the stars would the Order want you to be my trigger?”
Quazar brushed a lock of my hair behind my ear, not answering right away.
“Quazar?”
“Do you know why they really brought us here?”He looked back at me, his eyes searching mine.
“To prepare for war?”
He snorted.“Please. When have you ever seen a Farasee at war? We’re not here to learn how to work together before we go on the battlefield, Safah. We’re here to hunt.”
I raised my brows in shock.“I’m…sorry?”
“You heard me. The Legionnaires are here to sift through the Disciples and hunt. The Farasees are looking for an angel, Safah. An angel that carries an old power that has recently been detected to have resurrected. A power linked to the Ashiris star. A power that can call out the lavender dragons from exile.”
