Before answering, Stefan placed a kiss along my shoulder. “I love you too,” he whispered.
And when he came, I spilled my own release onto the floor, and we both leaned against the desk as we attempted to catch our breath. Eventually, we lowered to the ground and remained tangled together. I wasn’t ready to let him go quite yet.
“I have to tell her,” I said quietly, laying my head on his shoulder.
Tristan was a god. That meant whathesaid could be perceived aslaw.Maybe Morrigan could help. Maybe she could convince Tristan to change things here…
Or… He could end up just like his father.
But Morrigan… She was nothing like them—nothing likeus. She wore her heart on her sleeve, as bright as the sun itself. It only made sense that she would have a blazing fire within her. That fire burned for those she loved, and she loved so easily.
Stefan placed a kiss on my head, soothing my worrying mind, and I remained firm in my decision. “I’m going to tell her.”
Chapter 54
DEZ
“Are you sure about this, Dez? You almost died while she was?—”
“I want to do it, Kaiden,” I interrupted him. We were alone now. After Naaz, Eris, and Tristan left, Cassius went down to the dining hall. I needed this. Morrigan always put everyone else before herself. It was my turn to do something forher.
I climbed onto the bed and lifted Morrigan, sliding behind her before laying her back down onto my lap. Gods, did it feel good to touch her again. I would never get enough. And after hearing Eris all but confess howhefelt, I got the sense that we might be needing a larger bed. Amuchlarger one.
“If you lose too much blood, I’mtaking over,” Kaiden insisted.
“Too much jealousy for one day?” I teased him, though I probably shouldn't have.
All of my joking aside, this had to be hard for him. Me? I was perfectly content with the new addition to our family—now that I knew Morrigan was okay, of course. Tristan was a god. If there was anyone in this world that could protect her better thanwecould, it was him. Though, I wasn’t sure she needed much protection anymore. With the soul bond in place, it was impossible to imagine just how much power she would have access to now. Would she even be mortal anymore?
I should have told Kaiden what really happened that day with Rosina… Perhaps one day I would.
I brought my wrist to my mouth and made a deep cut with my canines, then placed it against her lips. The blood dripped into her mouth slowly, a few drops sliding down her lips as she remained asleep.
“What if this doesn’t work?” Kaiden whispered, but I had a feeling that he hadn’t meant to say it out loud.
“It will work, Kaiden.”
A couple of minutes went by, and the wound started healing itself. Once more, I brought my wrist to my mouth, cut even deeper, and placed it back against her lips. This time, I tilted her head up a little more so that the blood would have a better stream down her throat.
“Come back to me, baby,” I whispered in her ear. Her heartbeat thumped against my ears, and I could almost feel it in my own chest. It pulsed slowly now, but much stronger than it had before. “You’ve got this, okay? I just need you to drink for me.”
I felt a small twitch against my thigh, and when I looked down, I noticed her fingers shifting slowly. The movement was almost impossible to detect.
“Did she just move?” Kaiden asked.
“There you go, beautiful. Keep drinking,” I encouraged her.
The second I saw her throat bob, I wanted toscreamin relief. She had swallowed the blood on her own.She’s here. She came back to us.Beside me, Kaiden sank down into the chair and dropped his head onto his hands.
Kaidenrarelyshowed emotions in front of others. And, with the way his shoulders shook under the weight of his own relief, I had to fight the urge to reach out and take the pain from him.
But before I could, a pair of lips attached to my wrist, and I almost jumped at the sensation. Morrigan’s eyes were still closed, but she was actively pulling from my wrist now.
“She’s… She’s waking up,” I said under my breath to Kaiden.
His eyes burned a hole in the side of my face as she pulled harder, andgods… did it feel good. It wasn’t something that I could help. The heat blazed through my arm and shot straight into my chest, then crawled its way to my core.
And she felt it, too. I heard a small puff of breath leave her nose. She began pulling harder. In an instant, her hands moved to my arm, gripping it tightly.
