Without preamble or flourish, Emon attacked me head on, his brutal force ringing through each deflection. But I shifted and moved with him, not against him, letting my body flow with his attack. His size and speed were his advantage, his reach was great but I was small and the closer I could get to his physical self the less ability he had to use his weapon. If I continued to play defense he would tire me quickly and win this charade.
For that was what it was.
Ducking beneath a deadly arc of his blade, I stepped into him, leveling my sword to slice low at his feet where he could not deflect. I could practically feel my victory, his blood would be mine and so would all his damned secrets.
Until his hand slammed heavily down on my wrist and the hilt of his sword punched heavily into my back, shoving me into his chest. Dropping my blade, I launched my knee straight into him, slamming it hard into his upper thigh. I was too close to him for my true target but it still felt fucking good.
He hissed, and in a move I had never seen before, I found myself with a blade across my throat and a shifter pressed against my back. The delicious scent of him falling around me in a thick cloud.
I sucked in a deep breath. Sweet goddess.
Chapter 22
“DoIreallyneedto draw blood, little umbra or do you yield?”
“Screw you shifter.”
Emon inhaled, his nose trailing along the outer curve of my ear. “You know my response to those words, Remnant. Care to try again?”
I huffed, the fury that was once there slowly dissipating into hurt. “Why did you not tell me?” I whispered, staring out at the beautiful grove, full of sunlight and warmth. The opposite of what I felt inside.
Growling, Emon threw the sword across my neck away, hugging me closer into him. His face buried in my hair and his chest rumbled against my back before he spoke. “Little umbra, in a span of just a few days, you gained a daughter, a soulmate, were forced to kill a fae you had just gained as a friend, you were reunited with your family who happens to reside in Sheolwith towers full of soulless fae including our own friends, and then learned that I also will succumb to this in a few short days.” His arms tightened around me more. “And here you are, sacrificing a piece of yourself for others…again. Goddess, Remnant, if holding back my inability to shift gave you one fucking moment of peace in the chaos of your long list of worries then I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
Defeated, I closed my eyes and let my head fall against his chest, my hands reaching up to hold onto his strong arms.
My chest rattled when I let out a long sigh. A sound drawn straight from the warring agony inside of me.
He was right, goddess damn it, I didn’t want to admit it but he was right.
The trees shook softly and hummed in agreement, blowing my dark hair across my face, and, whispering the secret music of life upon the wind.
Unfolding his arms he trailed his fingertips along my own before threading his fingers through my hands, and spanned them over my abdomen. “Dance with me," Emon purred huskily, his hot breath sending pleasurable shivers through my entire body.
The grove seemed to answer for me. The sunlight sparkled and the wind increased to gently push us with the sway of the trees.
I simply nodded, not wanting to whisper a word that would break the sudden enchanting moment we found ourselves in.
"Breathe,” he whispered against my skin and I exhaled. “Move with me, little umbra."
I nodded, moving with Emon, our bodies swaying together, following the shift of the wind within the grove—its warm air guiding us in a series of steps, twirling and cutting to music that only it knew the sound of.
Soon I was lost in the moment and began to glide along without the support of the breeze, Emon falling in step with my rhythm without hesitation. My hips rolled and his followed, my arms drifted low and his engulfed me, hovering his gigantic body just inches over mine. And when we arched backwards, the movement was so fluid that together we opened our hearts up to the sky, to the world, and to the universe.
Enthralled by the feel of him, our bodies twirled and swooped, curved and bowed, the flow of the wind following us this time, the trees dancing inward drawn by our grace, and the glade whispered its joy while our soulmate bond burst into life. Emon’s breath was my breath, his heartbeat was my heartbeat, and whenhis hands trailed over my body…pushing and pulling us as one, I dared not open my eyes, wanting to be lost fully in this moment.
Never returning.
Stepping into me, Emon spun my body to face his, his leg pressing between my own. Rolling my hips, he dipped me to the ground, his nose trailing up from my stomach to my chest, his other hand sliding up my leg, gliding over my calf, burning deliciously over my heated skin. His hand moved higher, teasing over the hem of my shorts and moving upwards to lovingly spread wide over my womb, pausing there longer than any other place, as if he was willing his golden light to heal the scars and the emptiness from what had been taken from me—from us.
Tears prickled behind my closed eyes and I felt Emon's warm shaky exhale against my cheek before his hand moved upward again, grazing over my breast, and settling between them over our joined beating hearts.
This was love…this waspower.
My eyes snapped open, seeing my same realization reflecting in Emon’s golden stare.
"Do it," Emon bowed his head, whispering against my heated skin, his chocolate spiced scent dominating my senses. “Command the shadows just as you command my heart.”
Breathing deep, I reached out to the darkness. I beckoned to their cool, simple existence, letting them come to me through the flow of my body, gentle and peaceful waves of shadow that embraced me in their purity.
