Maybe I’m trying to convince myself. Part of me wants to stay. Part of me feels the pain deep down inside Aelon and wants to heal it. I feel the pain that surfaces as violence and rage. All three of them have it to varying degrees. I wonder what happened, that day with the Toads during their hundred years of service. Aelon told me a little – but I wonder if I’ll ever get the full story.
“Don’t be late, Tasha,” Sawoot warns, “or he might just spank you again.”
I lean in to push her, but she darts back, laughing.
Instead, I respond: “You know… I didn’t tell you at the time, but you know when he was punishing me? Right about halfway through, I couldn’t handle any more – so I asked Aelon to go easy on me. He did. All that yelling and screaming was just an act.”
Sawoot grins. Laughing about me getting spanked has relaxed her. I’ll take a bit of humiliation if it keeps my crew happy and ready.
Sawoot winks.
“Of course I knew. You think you can fool me? You wouldn’t have been crying like Theme unless it was an act.”
I scowl. “Don’t you start with him! He’s going to be the reason we get our asses out of here.”
“I know, I know, I’m awful. Alright – go see what your Aurelian wants. I think I know, though...”
“Shut up,” I say, leaving her behind.
I open the doors to the hallway and step out. Garrick averts his eyes from me.
“Would you escort me to the captain?” I ask. It’s weird not to be looking into Garrick’s eyes as I speak to him. Despite his exemplary behavior, I still expect even this Aurelian to stare at me considering what I’m wearing.
Garrick nods, wordless as usual. He walks behind me towards the captain’s quarters. He’s close to me, shadowing me tightly. It’s not because he wants me, though. He just wants to keep me safe.
As we walk, I study the layout. My mental map of The Instigator is getting more and more precise. I’m getting an idea of the innards of the ship. That mental map might save our lives later tonight.
The Instigator has seemingly countless twists and turns. It’s a convoluted old beast. The ship might not be the prettiest, but I’ve never been more thankful that it’s an older model with flaws we can exploit.
The closer I get to Aelon, the more his aura intensifies in my mind. I can feel the lust building in him. It excites me and scares me at the same time.
Garrick stops in front of Aelon’s quarters. “Thank you,” I say, and he steps back soundlessly. The big man can move silently – as deadly as a cat.
I raise my hand to knock on Aelon’s door – but before my knuckles make contact, the door opens. Aelon can clearly feel my presence when we’re this close.
If only I could be Bonded to a man like Garrick. I hope beyond hope that Sawoot is. If she is, I wonder if she’ll still want to escape the ship. The three Aurelians linked to me for eternity have their own demons to conquer – demons that surface in their lust for battle. They’ll never be content. All they want is to lose their minds in the life or death struggle of combat. The three of them were calm only once – when they were seeding me. At that moment, and that moment alone, they found their peace.
I step into the captain’s quarters.
Aelon isn’t wearing his usual combat-style uniform that can block blows. He’s dressed simply, in black shorts and a black t-shirt – colors that contrast sharply against his pure, ivory skin.
Every time I see him, he’s more handsome. Aelon’s jawline is chiseled, as if his features were carved by an artist. He had only one flaw before – his bland, slate-grey eyes. Now, they’re colored from our coupling. They’re now a symbol of our Bond – a reminder that only his death will remove him from my mind.
I might have to kill him if he won’t give me up. I get the feeling Aelon’s not the type to let his Fated Mate slip away. I’ll have Aurelian Law Enforcement chasing me down on one side, and an obsessed ship’s captain on the other. One thing’s for certain – I’m not going to be bored even after thousands of years of running.
Aelon is oblivious to my thoughts – because he can sense my feelings through the Bond, but not my individual thoughts.
“You look as beautiful as I imagined you would,” Aelon purrs, standing up from the sofa. He drinks me in with his hungry eyes.
I feel even more ridiculous in this dress. It’s something that would be worn by a socialite – or a woman entering an Aurelian harem.
“I’d feel comfortable in something more sensible.”
He takes in my words, stepping closer. The big room suddenly seems smaller with Aelon in it. It’s so weird seeing his blank expression and yet being able to feel his emotions. He can’t hide them from me any longer.
“You don’t need sensible anymore, Tasha – unless you’re planning on pulling off another heist that I don’t know about.”
Fuck.
Panic surges, but I get control of it. I don’t want him to think I’m up to anything, and that’s going to be difficult since he can feel my emotions through the Bond.
There are layers to this interaction – subtleties that flow way beneath the surface. I don’t feel any suspicion coming from his aura – but he’s got hundreds of years of practice in hiding his own emotions through the Bond, so who’s to say I can trust what I sense.
“Sit down,” Aelon says, motioning towards the sofa. I sit down gingerly. He goes to the corner of his room. There’s a hiss as he opens a chilled compartment. After everything, I’m expecting him to come back with a weapon or some fiendish sex toy. Instead, he returns with two bottles of
