“Was that Jamal?” I finally asked. “Or Killian?”
“Jamal,” he said quietly. “I did a cloaking spell. He wouldn’t have seen us even if he’d walked in.”
“But he would’ve heard me?”
“Possibly.”
And because Jamal didn’t like being in other’s heads, he probably never even thought to reach out that way. Of course, I was kind of glad he didn’t, because of what he would’ve heard. “I need to go clean up,” I said. Not waiting for permission, I put one hand on the arm of the couch and lifted myself off of his lap, wincing as Alex slid out of me.
His hands gripped my thighs and he dropped a kiss on my bare ass just before I yanked up my slacks and stepped over his legs, heading for the bathroom.
I held it together until I got inside and shut the door behind me. A little bit numb, I kept my mind empty as I opened the door to the small linen closet and found a towel, then I turned on the shower, half expecting the water not to work. But it did. Even the hot water.
With jerky movements, I set my glasses on the sink, removed my shoes and clothes, and left them on the floor as I stepped inside, not caring if my hair got wet.
It was only then, as the warm water ran down my face and body, that I let the tears come. My thoughts too chaotic to release the myriad of emotions inside of me any other way.
But one thing did break through and kept repeating itself over and over.
Mine? How could he be mine?
What gods would play such a cruel joke as to bind me forever to a male who, despite his attraction to me, couldn’t care less if I lived or died? And the worst part? I was bound to him now that I’d had his blood. I wouldn’t be able to survive without him. Drinking from other humans or from bagged blood, if I could choke it down, would only extend my suffering.
I was already craving Alex again. For blood and for sex.
I don’t know how long I’d been standing there when I heard the door open, then the rustling of clothes. The curtain pulled back and I stiffened as Alex got in behind me. With his hands on my arms, he turned me around, slid one hand up to cup my face and lifted my chin until I had no choice but to look at him.
In his dark eyes, I saw none of the chaos I was feeling. “Don’t cry,” he told me. “Please don’t cry.”
I made no effort to stem the tears still running down my cheeks. I even sniffed loudly for good measure. “What do you care?”
He caught his bottom lip between his teeth, his eyes full of indecision as they roamed my face. I had to give him credit. He hadn’t looked at my boobs once yet.
Finally, he settled, and I could tell by the set of his jaw a decision had been made. “I need to ask you to do something, Kenya.”
I sniffed again, and waited.
“I need to ask you to trust me.”
I couldn’t help it. I laughed out loud through my tears. “Trust you? In what world would you ever think that was possible?”
“I won’t hand you over to him.”
“Isn’t that exactly what you’re doing?”
“It’s not what you’re thinking.”
“But you plan to go back with him, don’t you?” The djinn was his family. And family was what mattered above all else. This was something I understood, even if I didn’t agree with what he was doing. If I had the chance to build a relationship with my blood relatives, I would do it.
He didn’t respond to my question, but he didn’t have to. I could see the answer in his eyes. And that meant only one thing. I would have to go with him, or I would die the true death.
“Kenya…” He trailed off, for once at a loss for words, and dropped his arms down to his sides.
The steam rose around us, trapping us in our own little reality far away from the cruelty of the real world.
“Is it true?” His eyes roamed over me again, this time dropping down my body, lingering on my breasts and the tight curls between my legs. When they came back to mine, there was fire in his gaze. “That I’m yours?”
Chapter 21
