Chapter 30: Rekindled Bonds
Vivian Grey’s POV
It didn’t hit me right away what he’d done, what we were doing.
My eyes fluttered shut a beat too late, but when they did, everything sharpened. Every sense turned raw and alive. I felt everything, him. The heat of his body seeped into mine, his chest pressed against me, and his heartbeat thundered like a war drum inside my ears.
His lips, soft and firm all at once, were locked to mine, careful but certain. A shiver rolled through me as his mouth teased my bottom lip, a subtle tug that made my nerves dance and my breath catch. I froze, completely out of my depth. This was my first kiss. What the hell was I supposed to do?
Like he sensed I might retreat, one of his hands cupped my cheek, steadying me, anchoring me to the moment. His other arm supported his weight above me, careful not to crush me, though honestly, I wouldn’t have minded. Not right now.
I stopped thinking and let instinct take over. My lips began to move with his, fumbling at first but slowly finding rhythm. I reached up, my hands grazing his back. He stiffened briefly, then relaxed into my touch. His kiss deepened, lips moving with more intent, and I trailed my fingers down his spine until I gripped his waist. That’s when everything changed.
He growled softly, his teeth catching my bottom lip before I parted it, surrendering. The rush of blood in my veins became thunderous. Every inch of skin burned beneath the weight of my clothes, and still, I felt consumed by something hotter, him.
The bond, our bond, something we’d let grow faint through distance and hesitation, suddenly ignited. It burst between us, wild and electric, golden threads reconnecting like fire meeting oil. I felt it in my chest first, a warmth that spread outward in every direction at once, filling spaces I hadn’t realized were empty. Like something that had been waiting for permission finally got it. The sensation punched the air from my lungs and drew a helpless sound from my throat. His groan mirrored mine, low and unguarded, and that sound alone nearly undid me.
Then came his tongue, sweeping across my lip, and I lost myself. Just that taste of him wrecked me. I wanted more. I needed more. I met him with a hunger that startled even me. I pulled at his hips, urging him closer as our tongues tangled and fought for control.
He pulled back slightly, panting, a low growl escaping him. For once, his eyes were their true shade, a vivid, glowing blue, not clouded with shadow or fury. They locked with mine, and for a long second, we just breathed together, heavy and uneven, our chests brushing.
I blinked up at him, dazed but smiling. Joy shimmered behind my confusion. I could feel my wolf curled up in my mind, completely overwhelmed and probably unconscious from the sheer force of the connection we’d just reignited.
When I finally found my breath, my voice came out low and ragged. "Not that I’m complaining, but where the hell did that come from?"
Zaliver hovered above me, hair falling across his forehead, those hypnotic eyes still simmering with need. His lips were redder than before, slightly swollen from kissing me.
A wave of fierce pride rose inside me. I had done that to him. A possessive instinct followed quickly after. I wanted to be the only one who ever saw him like this, who ever made him fall apart.
Without even realizing it, my hands slid around his waist and tugged him closer, tightening the space between us. He smirked knowingly, like he could read every damn thought I had, which, let’s be honest, he probably could.
"What?" he said with mock innocence. "Can’t a guy kiss his adorable little mate?"
I snorted, rolling my eyes. "You dragged me to the doctor to figure out if you could keep your so-called adorable mate."
He pushed himself up and stood, stretching his arms over his head. My eyes betrayed me, wandering to where his shirt rode up, exposing that perfect hint of a V.
"I was going to keep you either way," he said, voice losing its teasing edge. "I just needed to know what to expect. You never really know with the mating bond. It’s meant to make us stronger together, to balance us, but it also makes us vulnerable. It gives us something to lose. And people who have something to lose," he paused, gaze darkening, "they can be manipulated. They can be blinded by what they think is happiness."
His words hit me like cold water. My breath caught, and for a second, my joy slipped away.
He wasn’t just talking in theory. There was weight in his voice, something worn and specific, the kind that only comes from experience. I turned the words over in my mind, trying to find the shape of what he wasn’t saying. Someone had used that vulnerability against him before. Someone had gotten close enough to reach the thing behind the armor and had done damage there. I didn’t know who, or when, or how long he’d been carrying it. But I felt the echo of it in every wall he’d put up since the moment I met him.
Of course there was someone before me.
I hated how my chest tightened at that. But I held onto the truth of what we were now. We were bonded. Fated. That had to mean more than anything that came before.
Before I could say anything, he changed the subject. "Now come on and get some sleep," he said, tone shifting to something more mischievous. His lips twitched. "Unless you’ve got other ideas?"
I bolted off the couch and flung myself onto the bed, cocooning in the blanket like a terrified but highly amused burrito. "Good night!"
His laugh followed, low and full of amusement, and the sound settled something in me.
Whatever came before, whatever pain or hesitation lingered, for now, we were here. Together. And that was enough.
In the morning, he pressed his card into my hand before I’d even finished waking up.
"I’m giving you this again. This time, actually use it," he said, tone calm but firm.
I looked down at the sleek black card, then back up at him. The first time he’d given it to me, I’d treated it like a weapon I didn’t know how to hold. Now it felt different. Not like a leash. More like a door left open.
I closed my fingers around it and nodded.
Comments