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A sob hiccupped in my throat. “I have to stay.”
“You don’t.”
“I do.” I pressed my thumb against his hand, loosening his grasp, easing a pace back. “The gods have given me a task. One I must remain here to do.”
A laugh of disbelief fell from his mouth. “You can’t be serious? We are surrounded by monsters.” He arched a brow at Erianna. “Except for you.”
She rolled her eyes and focused her attention on me. “He will leave. I will ensure it. It is for the best.” How she remained so determined in the face of everything strengthened my resolve. I could taste the desire she held for Draven, but I didn’t let on that I knew.
He looked from me to her. “Don’t I get a say in this? I’ve always protected you, Liv. Now what? I’m supposed to leave you here to fend off these monsters?”
I threw my arms around him, capturing his every scent, and committed them to memory. “You’ve always been there for me, but it’s time for you to start your own chapter now—without me.”
“You don’t understand. There are things I need to tell you.”
Goosebumps spread over my arms as he held tighter. His hot breath hit my temple, and I leaned into his shoulder, tears forming. I knew what he wanted to say. I’d felt it for years, but ignored it. Now was not the time for confessions, and I wouldn’t permit him, or Erianna, to any unnecessary complication of feelings. “Sebastian is my soulmate,” I admitted, saying the words aloud for the first time since I thought them. “He will protect me.”
Draven’s shoulders slumped, his whimpered sigh sending a ripple of sadness into my being. He pulled back, taking me at arms lengths. Consumed by his gaze, I held my next breath. The wind whistled around us, drizzling rain, slicking everything in a gloss. He opened his mouth, his fingers pressing gently against me. “Do you love him?”
The hairs on the back of my neck raised. Droplets of rain caught on my lip and eyelashes, and I blinked them away. “That… That does not matter. He is my soulmate.”
“You are certain?”
“Nothing else can explain how I felt when I woke up.”
“But do you love him?”
Swallowing thickly, I realized he wasn’t going to let me go. He never had. Without Sebastian or anything else, maybe I would have ended up with Draven in a different life. I supposed I loved him, but in a different way. He was attractive, and I’d not given it a chance, but I couldn’t think about it now. Not at the end. I let out a long exhale, hearing the beating of wings flapping against the wind from behind us. Probably those vampire visitors from earlier. I would not let it interrupt our goodbye.
“I love Sebastian,” I said, so he would let me go.
His hands dropped to his side, and he nodded slowly. Wings slowed, and the crunch of shoes hitting the ground slammed into my ears. I turned slowly to Erianna and saw Sebastian in my peripheral vision. My eyes widened, my heart racing into a gallop. Erianna’s lips stretched as she whistled air between her teeth, her expression matching my mortifying realization that Sebastian had to have heard that.
If he did, he didn’t let on. “Hi.”
I forced a smile. “Sebastian.” I looked at him, and then at Zach, whose smirk told me at least he’d heard. “Zach. I didn’t realize you were out flying.”
Zach shoved his hands in his pockets. “Sebastian needed to do some soul searching.”
Sebastian shot him a glare, and my cheeks heated.
Erianna took Draven’s hand and pulled him away. “We can make arrangements.”
I reached out for Draven. “Wait.”
Erianna shook her head. “You’ll have time to say goodbye later.” She glanced from me to Sebastian and back. “You two should talk first. You know, actually communicate.”
Zach blew out a long breath, following Erianna and Draven. “That’ll be a first.”
As he passed me, I gave Zach an extra hateful glance, then wiped the rain from my face. Drizzle turned to thick droplets, and strands of hair stuck to my cheeks and neck. My stomach whooshed as a large, black wing stole the light from the sun, shielding me from the rain. His heat lured me closer, his scent pinching my eyes shut as his arm brushed against mine.
Suddenly, nothing else mattered.
His arm slipped around my waist, curling me into his arms. “Come, Princess,” he whispered in my ear. “Let’s go talk.”
TWENTY
Niall
