Page 76 of Twilight of Embers
She swallowed hard. “They were going to hurt me.”
A muscle twitched along my jaw. “No one is going to touch you. Never again.”
Hayden burrowed deeper into my hold. “I keep feeling him grab me. I can smell his breath.”
I struggled to keep my grip on her gentle. “It’s going to take time, but the memories will fade. I promise.”
That wasn’t entirely a lie. But it wasn’t completely the truth, either. My demons still haunted me on a regular basis, even if they’d dulled a fraction with time.
“You sound like you have experience with that.”
I looked down at my mate. I never talked about my past with anyone, not ever. But I somehow wanted to share a piece of it with her. I swallowed the bile trying to surge up my throat. “I was taken as a child. Tortured.”
Hayden gasped, her beautiful lips parting as she sucked in air. Tears filled her eyes. “Cáel.”
Her reaction was so instant, so real. It wasn’t pity like I’d seen in the past. It was empathy.
A tear slid down her cheek, and I wiped it away. “I’m okay. You help quiet the memories.”
Hayden’s breaths came faster as she moved just a bit closer. Her mouth was so close I swore I could already taste it.
A war lit inside me. Hayden didn’t know the truth yet. And I knew she needed it. But the die had been cast. The fact that Cillian, Mad, and I had all killed for her had cemented our tether.
Still, I should wait.
But I didn’t.
I bent, taking her mouth as gently as I could. But the moment her taste filled me, I nearly snapped. The push to claim her was so strong that I almost shifted right then and there.
Hayden let out a little moan as my tongue stroked hers, and my dick stiffened against the zipper of my jeans.
I tore my mouth away from hers, breathing heavily.
Hayden’s fingers lifted to her lips. “Oh, shit.”
My lips twitched at that, and I kissed her forehead. “Sleep, Little One. Save the freak-out for tomorrow.”
38
HAYDEN
Consciousness pulled at me. I was hot. Too hot. I dreamt that fire licked along my skin, but some part of me knew that it wasn’t real.
My eyelids fluttered, revealing darkness around me. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust and to remember where I was. Cáel’s room.
It was then that my body became aware of exactly its situation. A large arm was slung over my waist, pulling me against a hard, naked chest. I knew it was Cáel without even looking. It was as if my body recognized his energy or something.
But there was someone else in front of me. I registered his scent before my eyes could make out his face. Pine and rain. Knox.
His deep breaths fluttered the wisps of light brown hair that were falling across his face. He looked so peaceful, so relaxed, so beautiful.
Knox’s long lashes fluttered as if his body were attuned to mine, some part of him knowing I was awake. Green eyes took me in. He stared for a long moment. “Are you hurting?”
I took a moment to search my body. “No,” I said honestly.
Concern laced his expression. “What woke you up? Nightmare?”
I shook my head slightly. “I was hot.”
