31
Kade lay with Jessie in his arms, and his mind filled with wonder.
Within him, the beast was quiet. Peaceful. Contented. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt like this. Balanced and whole.
Not since Isa had been alive.
He’d been skating the edge for so long. Been secretly terrified of the beast once again seizing control. But Jessie had not only seen it but reached for it. Wrenched the wild animal out of him, turned it free, and embraced it with her heart and soul. In doing so, she’d healed him faster than anything the Gryphon or Cara had ever done. Or could do.
He tightened his arms around her and turned his nose into her soft, ridiculously red hair. She was a precious gift. If this was Fate’s doing, he was now her biggest fan.
Jessie stirred. “Effing hell. And wow.”
Kade laughed. It rumbled up from inside him. Pure joy. “No guy minds hearing that.”
Her eyes widened. “You have a great laugh.”
“Don’t do it often.”
She reached up to trail her fingers along his jaw. “You require more opportunities and suitable inspiration.”
“Don’t think that will be a problem now.” He breathed her in. Which had an unintended side effect.
Jessie purred at him, fingers drifting across his stomach. He grabbed the seeking fingers, and wrapped them in his own.
“We have the future.” He squeezed her hand. “But Braden will know what we’ve done. He’ll have sensed his connection to you snap.”
She grew very still. “He’s going to come after me, isn’t he?”
Kade nodded. “Yes. I think he will. And we need to be ready for him.”
* * *
Jessie wanted to hide in the glade, while the candles guttered and the dawn sent questing rays through the sheltering leaves. Could she ignore the world until this was all over?
But when Kade rose, she went with him. The euphoria of their mating had carried on through her body and thoughts as they walked, hand in hand, across the pasture. At the back porch, he stood for a long while with his arms around her before finally bending low to kiss her. He pushed his forehead against hers and stayed like that. As though he were trying to blend himself with her.
“Sorry about this, babe.” He finally pulled away. “But I have to check on a few things. I’d feel better if you stayed in the house with Cara.”
No one had ever called her babe. She used to think terms of endearment likebeautifulandbabewere silly. But when it rolled off his tongue, she tingled inside.
Then Kade stepped back and let her go. He turned and walked across the yard, pulling his phone from his pocket.
Reality descended on her, leaving her adrift. Jessie entered the house. Despite Kade’s assurances that the Were virus already inside her would stave off infection, she went upstairs for a shower, to wash and disinfect the wounds. She was a nurse, after all.
Afterward, she wandered into the dining room. Kitani was peering closely at the puzzle pieces. In a fog, Jessie sat down and selected a piece.
Hours later, she was still at it. Every time she thought she’d had enough, and planned to leave, she spotted another piece that just might work. Had she become obsessed? The mug beside her was a clear symptom of just how tired she was. She normally hated coffee. At this point, it was the only thing keeping her awake. And Zach was all out of cocoa.
As the morning ticked by, it slowly occurred to her that she was feeling kind of lousy. Her head ached, her body twitched like hell, and her shoulder throbbed. She likely would have noticed it sooner if it weren’t for the relief of Braden being gone from her head. The urge to join him had vanished. When she thought of him, her only reaction was one of disgust.
An entirely different urge replaced it. Kade.
Even thinking his name evoked a maelstrom of images and emotions. Her heart pounded, and Kitani shot her looks, nostrils flaring as though she scented Jessie’s thoughts.
As sex went, it had been pretty damned mind-blowing. So amazing that she wanted to do it all over again. And again. But it wasn’t just sex. It was as though her soul had connected to him on a fundamental level. Was this the mate bond? A merging of spirit, as well as soul?
She’d sensed his reluctance to leave her on the porch. Which led her to believe he’d had much the same experience. It wasn’t just the physical act, although that had been amazing as hell. There was this connection thing—a sensation of being part of the other person. Like now, she knew Kade was out by the hay shed, conversing with someone. Ryan, she thought.
