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It wasn’t just her beauty that caused the reaction, though. I loved the intelligence that sparkled in her eyes and the stubborn set of her chin when she had made up her mind about something.
I loved the gentleness that radiated from her when she thought no one was watching, and the adorable shyness that caused her to spin the gold bangle she always wore on her wrist.
Was I falling in love with her?
I couldn’t be, could I?
My father told my brothers and me that we weren’t capable of falling in love. Living lightning could experience sizzling passion and could even fall in lust… but never love.
Most paranormal species felt the pull of a mate bond, drawing them toward a mate who was a perfect match. But, according to my father, since he hadn’t required a female to produce offspring, there was no biological reason for him to have a mate.
If Zeus deemed my brothers and me worthy of producing offspring and blessed us with that ability in the future, we wouldn’t need a mate, either. If you didn’t need a mate, the mate bond couldn’t exist.
But if that were true… then why was I drawn to her every waking minute? How had I been pulled outside by an invisible string on the day she’d arrived? How had I been able to feel her presence inside the car before her driver had even opened the door?
Why did my powers go a little haywire whenever she was near me? Why had I developed a tremor when I hadn’t been near her for several hours? A tremor that I fought to hide and only went away after I was near her.
When we were sitting near each other, I could feel her emotions washing through me as though we were connected, but that was an ability lightnings didn’t possess.
My species burned hot, causing our passions and tempers to burn out of control—which made it easier to understand the intense attraction and the overwhelming desire to get her into my bed… and keep her there for a long time. But I didn’t just crave sex. If that was all it was, I’d recognize the fiery emotion.
No, I longed for more.
I wanted to touch her hair, to have her rest her head on my shoulder while we read, to hold hands as we walked, to feed her bites of her favorite chocolate, to see her eyes light up with humor as she laughed at my idiocy, and to hold her while I cried over a sappy movie.
Every fiber of my being wanted to wake up with her in my arms every morning for the rest of my life.
All of those things were the textbook signs of a mating pull. So why did I experience them with Seta if the Fates didn’t intend for me to have a bonded?
Thunder sounded outside my window, shaking the building. A flash of lightning flickered across the sky. The storm was picking up, and Seta still hadn’t returned to her dorm.
What if she was hurt or had gotten lost? She was still new to the campus and might have wandered into the woods without realizing it.
I should go check on her.
Shoving to my feet, I hesitated. What if Seta thought I was acting like an obsessive stalker instead of a concerned friend? She was an adult and could take care of herself.
Except I wanted to take care of her, too.
Need.
My heart constricted as the unexpected emotion curled tight fingers around it.
I rubbed my forehead, hoping to clear the confused fog from my mind. This wasn’t my need I was experiencing.
Was it from Seta? I hadn’t picked up her emotions from a distance before.
NEED.
Suddenly sure it was coming from Seta, I hit the floor running, skidding down the hallway and into the darkening evening light.
I didn’t even stop to think about where she was, and instead, I allowed the bond to pull me toward her as I leaped over the headmistress’s short gate and sprinted down the slick stone path.
The air smelled of petrichor and the wet earth of the forest. Lightning flashed overhead, and I breathed in the heady scent of ozone it left in its wake.
Running through storms was nothing new to me, and in fact, was one of the greatest pleasures in my life. But not tonight. Not with worry for Seta pounding inside my skull and tightening my chest.
Coming to the edge of the clearing, I could just make out a small form in the large pond.
