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“I know.” Tesq watches me warily, almost like I’m a rabid dog foaming at the mouth and straining against my chain in an attempt to get to him.
“I could loseeverythingI care about. Everyone,” I continue, something hot pricking the backs of my eyes.
Tears, I realize belatedly.
“So could we,” Tesq points out. His tone is still cautious, still concerned, still soft.
It brushes my skin like the whiskers of a paintbrush, adding streaks of light and warmth that set me ablaze.
“I can’t… I don’t…” I’m hyperventilating. I know I am. Fear has grabbed my throat in an iron vise and is now cinching my airways.
But then Tesq’s there. He’s moved in front of me, and we’re standing toe-to-toe. He lifts one cold finger and pushes up my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes.
“Breathe,” he says again.
And I do.
Slowly and surely, the fear percolating inside of my chest begins to fizzle away like water on a blistering hot day. All that remains is an emotion more potent and consuming than anything else is capable of making me feel.
Love.
IloveTesq.
I love the gentle way he touches me.
I love the tender anxiety in his eyes.
I love the way his cheeks darken when he’s embarrassed.
I love him, and tomorrow, he may be taken from me.
I flick my gaze to his lips, and his breath stalls. His eyes dart over my features, never really sticking, as he swallows.
“Aliana…” he whispers.
His fingers tighten on my chin, but it doesn’t hurt. Pleasure migrates from where he touches my skin and shoots straight to my core.
“Tomorrow, everything could change,” I whisper.
“Yes.”
“I don’t want to leave this world without letting you know how I feel.” I press up on my tiptoes, trying to get closer to him. “Do you remember when you first saved me from Dev? When you protected and cared for me, even when I was afraid of you?”
This time, his answer is more hesitant. “Yes?”
“I think I started falling for you then.”
And then I gently place my mouth over his.
32
ALIANA
I just meanto kiss him, to gently show Tesq how much he means to me because the brooding, silent gargoyle will never say anything aloud—and like hell if we're going to die tomorrow with words unsaid between us.
Out of all of my mates, my monsters, I loved him first.
He brings out a side in me that no one else does, a soft tenderness that causes me to cup his cheek and drag my palm gently over the stone-hard curve. He's so sweet and unassuming, this massive man with such quiet strength.
