She shook her head, her face turning serious. “No, Gargs. I can’t explain it, but it just… I don’t know. It just feels right. Like, as soon as you said it, something clicked in my mind, and I thought, ofcoursewe’re fated mates.”
“In that case, I need to ask you something, babygirl, and I need you to be real straight with me.”
“Always,” she whispered.
“The way I see it, you got a choice to make. And whatever you pick, I’m good with it—no questions asked, no pressure, no awkwardness between us. That night when I told you I got you? There’s no expiration date on that. I’m here for you no matter what.Thatis a promise.”
She nodded. “And it means more to me than you know.”
“Here it is, then.” I blew out a breath. Jumped in headfirst, no net, hoping like hell I wouldn’t crash and burn. “You’re either gonna ask me to kiss you right now, or you’re gonna send me to bed with a broken heart. Pick one.”
I smiled to let her know I was kidding—sort of. But she just… well goddamn, her whole face lit up like I’d just told her I found a way to bust us all out of here.
“That’s it?” she asked. “Just two choices? No third option, no clauses or sub-clauses, no contingencies?”
“Just the two. So what’ll it be, beautiful?”
“Hmm.” She smirked. “I may be bad, Gargs, but sending some poor, defenseless gargoyle home with a broken heart?Thatwould make me downright terrible.”
“Agreed.”
“And I’m not terrible.”
“Not in the slightest.”
“I think I’m more—”
“Haley? I love hearing you ramble. I swear it. But right now, Ireallyneed to kiss you. So if you could make your decision and put me outta my misery, I’d appreciate it.”
“Ireallyneed you to kiss me, so that works out well. And also—”
I didn’t get to know what she was planning to say after that. Swallowed up her damn words with a kiss so deep, so devastating I thought maybe we created a whole new galaxy with the explosion.
The bond, fate, the stars, destiny, whatever the fuck you wanted to call it…
That shit hadnothingon this.
Yeah, she was mine to protect. Mine to watch over. But what I felt right now as she slid her arms around me, as she parted her mouth, as I deepened that kiss and unleashed a sweet little moan from between her cherry-red lips?
That was more than the bond.
That was love, or a good deal of the way to it.
When we finally broke for air, we were both a little bewildered. Took us a minute to realize we’d accidentally knocked over one of the bowls of blood. It mixed with the Midnight dirt, glowing brightly.
“Hudson, look,” she gasped.
And there on the ground between us, a whole ’nother mess of them black roses of hers bloomed in the moonlight.
29
HUDSON
Hudson?” She glanced at the flowers, then back up at me, her eyes filled with a mix of wonder and fear. “I know you said there’s beauty in darkness, but this whole black-roses thing is seriously starting to freak me out.”
I stared down into her pretty face, her sparkling eyes. My lips still tingled from her kiss. Hell, she was honey and spun sugar and all the brightest stars in the blackest sky.
But she was my spooky little monster girl too, and right now, I needed her to know just how much I appreciated it—all of it.
