Page 137 of May: Bloom & Bane

“You would deny me now, just so it will be my form that claims you?”

“Yes. Because you deserve that, Ash. You deserve to be loved and claimed as whoever you truly are.”

A shuddering breath echoes through the void.

“You really are ním.”

The shadows surge forward again, wrapping around me completely.

“I will shift for you,” he rasps. “However long it takes. I will tear through whatever barrier is keeping me trapped. I will become for you.”

The pressure around me tightens.

“And when I do,” his voice drops lower, “when I finally stand before you in my true form, able to touch you with my hands, taste you with my mouth, claim you with my body⁠—”

He pauses.

“I will make sure you never forget who you belong to. You will not leave my bed until my venya has replaced the marrow in your bones and your blood is the only thing keeping my heart beating.”

“I’m counting on it,” I whisper.

The warmth pulses one last time, and I feel phantom lips press against my presence.

“You need to wake up now, sweetheart,” he murmurs. “Your body needs you to return.”

“Will you be okay with waiting?”

A dark chuckle rumbles through the void.

“I have a feeling I’ve waited longer than either of us realizes, Eden. I can wait a few more weeks to claim you properly.”

Suddenly I’m falling, pulled back from the darkness into⁠—

“Eden! Eden, please!”

Sage’s voice is frantic.

My eyes snap open. His eyes are wild with panic, one hand cupping my face while the other presses against my throat, checking for my pulse.

“Saevúra, thank the gods.” He breathes. “You weren’t—I couldn’t feel you, and Ashán was just gone. I thought⁠—”

His knot has fully released, and he’s kneeling over me.

“I’m okay.” I smile. “Just so tired. Vaelí.”

“You weren’t breathing right,” he chokes out. “Your heart was beating so slow. I couldn’t wake you.”

His hands shake as they frame my face.

“Where were you?” he whispers. “Where did you go?”

“I was with Ashán,” I admit drowsily.

Sage’s hands fall away, his eyes flashing furiously.

—ASHÁN

What did you do? Sage roars. His rage slams into me from every direction.