“So we stay.”
He sighed, leaning forward to rest his forehead against hers. “I wish we could.”
Evylin leaned into him. “Me too,” she whispered.
Knowing they didn’t have time for a delay, Deckard allowed himself to give her one gentle kiss. He really did wish they could stay. He wished they could hide away in this safehouse of the Crimson Clover Hotel forever, letting others care for the troubles of the world. This mission of theirs had already asked too much of them. He didn’t want to let it take any more of their lives.
At the thought, Deckard clenched his hand, the Bonding ring feeling like a vise on his finger.
“What is it?” Evylin asked.
Deckard averted his gaze, not wanting to admit his selfish thoughts. “Nothing.”
Evylin watched him knowingly. “You’re worried,” she said. “I canfeelit now.”
His throat went dry.Thatawareness was a revelation he hadn’t anticipated. Ever since the Bonding ceremony ended, he’d had the uncanny sense that he could feel what Evylin was feeling. Similar to the way her power heightened her senses in the physical world, this was a heightened awareness that gave her emotions a tangible essence. And while he’d already experienced how the new ability was beneficial, knowing just how she felt, the reverse effect was also a nuisance, revealinghimto her as well.
Deckard forced a smile to his lips, deflecting. “And I can feel that you’re tired.”
“Any idiot could tell that I’m tired,” she teased, then took his right hand in both of hers. She ran her fingers along the back, lightly tugging on the moonstone ring. “Whatisit?”
Seeing no point in lying, Deckard set his worries free. “This isn’t what we agreed to,” he said.
Evylin’s touch stilled, and a subtle spike of anxiety reached him.
“I’m not disappointed in the Bond, Evylin,” he promised. “I’m happy with that. But...I feel like Ilain and the Alliance tricked us. Once again.”
Staring at their hands, Evylin considered her words before speaking. “I’m not exactly thrilled with them myself,” she admitted. “However, I will say...I don’t think they meant it that way. And I think the pledge might have been more Ilain’s doing than the Administration’s. Fishere seemed sufficiently uncomfortable when he learned we didn’t want it.”
Deckard nodded, glad to hear she was as against assuming a leadership position as he was. “He did seem repentant. But that doesn’t ease my concern.”
Evylin met his stare, listening.
“We are highly valuable to the Alliance’s aims,” he explained. “You, as a female Warrior, and, to my great shock, me as a Space Mage. It’s no secret that we are extremely rare. In order to achieve their goals, they need a Bonded couple of each resource, and they only have one other Space Mage, who is also a male. As we also learned, the last remaining female Warrior unspoken for in the Alliance is Brea. If she isn’t willing to Bond with that Space Mage, what then? Do we truly believe their goodness will extend to the collapse of their plans?”
Chewing on the inside of her lip, Evylin’s apprehension leeched through her touch. “You think they’ll press us into service at the end of this?” she asked.
“They’re a government,” he replied. “Why wouldn’t they?”
“They’re areligiously motivatedgovernment,” Evylin corrected. “If they believe their tenets, they are morally obligated not to use force.”
“Religion rarely overcomes necessity.”
She raised her brow in surprise. “You’re sounding rather cynical. That’s not like the man I married.”
He drew away, not wanting to face that accusation, no matter how lighthearted its intent. “After everything we’ve been through,” he muttered, “I find I’m unrecognizable to myself these days.”
Evylin sat up to scoot closer. She set a hand on his cheek, drawing his gaze to her tender smile. “Don’t be so dramatic,” she said softly. “You’re you. You’re just an unmatched magical being now too.”
Taking heart in her comfort, Deckard leaned into her hand. “And I have you.”
The dimples in Evylin’s cheeks appeared. “You always had me.”
He kissed her palm. “It’s a little different now.”
“It is,” she agreed.
He leaned closer. “It’s good,” he whispered, “this Bond between us.”
