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“It doesn’t work that way, Kali.” I arched an eyebrow. “Bonding isn’t one-sided. Both feel the connection.”
“I am not bonded with you,” she hissed out in a whisper, her eyes brewing with the bright fire I hadn’t seen all week. “Pax is wrong.”
“The bond doesn’t fully take effect until both are vampires,” I reminded her. “And even then, it doesn’t snap into place until they…sleep together once they’re both turned.”
A muscle in her jaw clenched. “I have no desire to turn.”
“And if you’re a Shadow?”
Remaining silent, she tilted her head back and looked at the stars. “I guess we’ll find out, won’t we?”
Her blatant hatred at even the thought of us being bonded made my skin prickle for no damn reason. I didn’t think it was true, so why the hell was her reaction bothering me so much? I sucked in a long breath and let it out slowly. I shouldn’t have told her any of this. It would only push her away even more.
“Do you believe it?” she breathed out, her voice barely audible, even to my hearing.
I didn’t respond right away. “No. Amaros is positive that Shadows can’t bond. I’ve never seen it. I don’t think it’s possible.”
Even as the words left my mouth, doubt settled in my chest like a heavy weight. When it came to Kali, I couldn’t explain half of what I’d done. Like how I fucking flipped out on Pax when I saw his hand around her throat. One second, I’d been fine, and the next, all I saw was red. Or the fact that I never wanted her far away from me.
“Why haven’t you had a chance to see if Shadows can bond?” she asked, bringing up what I’d said earlier.
“Shadows don’t act quite the same as full-blooded vampires. They’re wild cards and don’t have as much freedom as the vampires you see in my city.”
Her eyes searched mine. “What does that mean?”
“Not tonight,” I murmured, giving her a small grin. “I’ll tell you another day. It’ll give you a reason to talk to me.”
She scowled. “Really?”
“Yes.”
Her burning glare didn’t bother me in the slightest. This past week had been long as hell because she refused to have anything to do with me. At least I knew she’d want to have a conversation with me if there was more that she still wanted to learn about vampires.
“Bonding sounds like a horrible existence,” she muttered bitterly, changing the subject.
“You’re human,” I said bluntly. “Of course it does to you.”
“You feel differently?” she questioned, her brows furrowing. “About being tethered to someone forever? There’s no love. It seems like control more than anything.”
I scooted closer, catching her by surprise. She went still when I softly trailed my fingers down her cheek, and I didn’t miss the change in her heartbeat when I touched her.
“Bonding is love,” I explained quietly, resting my knuckles under her chin. “It’s your other half. The soul who makes your heart whole. There is no control. No tethers. It’s who you’re fated to be with. There are things in this life that can’t be explained. This is one of them. Just like my existence. Vampires. Humans. Bonds are another one of nature’s surprises.”
“I would never want to be forced to love someone because of nature’s unexplained mystery,” she mumbled, pulling her face away from my hand.
“It’s not by force. You bond with the vampire you would have fallen in love with. The one you’re meant to be with.”
She pursed her lips. “For someone who doesn’t believe, you sure have a lot of positive things to say about it.”
“I’ve seen full-blooded vampires bond. It’s Shadows who I don’t believe can bond.” I climbed to my feet. “Let’s go home. There’s a storm coming.”
“How do you know?” she asked, argumentative as ever.
I chuckled. “I can hear the thunder.”
She slowly got up, and I followed her as we walked down the pier. It began sprinkling, but she didn’t move any faster. Once we hit the sand, I fell into step with her.
“How many other secrets are there?” she grumbled. “The Clovers knew nothing about this.”
