Malice kneels on the furs in front of her, careful not to disturb any of the familiars as he takes her delicate hands in his. That glowing red orb searches her face, looking for any sign of uncertainty. “Wildfire… do you really mean it?”

“I do,” she whispers, meeting his heated gaze with a small smile. “If you don’t mind staying.”

“It’s all I’ve been dreaming of,” he answers, his voice an awe-filled hush. “Nothing would make me happier than to lie next to you, my beautiful mate.”

Her lips spread in a rare smile as she reaches up and cups her palm around Malice’s cheek. His eyes shutter as he leans into her touch, a delighted purr rumbling in his chest. “Come on,” she whispers, patting the bare spot next to her. “Join the cuddle pile.”

A wave of pleasure thrums through the bond, filling all our veins as Malice settles down next to his mate, taking her hand in his and reveling in the feel of her after so long apart. We just sit there for the next few hours, drinking and talking and laughing and trying to forget what will happen in the morning.

And the horrors the new day will surely bring.

24. Dagny

24

Dagny

My eyes spring open, watching the shadows dance along the ceiling, frozen in place by the heavy pit of dread spreading from my gut.

Something’s wrong.

I rise slowly, careful not to wake any of my slumbering mates. My head swivels around the room, searching for something out of place, a threat, something to explain the niggling in the back of my mind and the tightness in my chest.

I hold my breath as I navigate the maze of tangled limbs, determined not to make a sound. My steps are silent but hurried, the chord tightening around my heart and urging me toward the exit, down the darkened stairwell toward the bathing chamber.

Heated air smacks into my face as I push off the last step, flowing over my skin and raising the hair along my arms from the temperature change. The thick vapor filling the room partially obscures the beastly outline crouched at the far corner of the pool, and though his face is hidden, the raw anguish rolling from his shoulders lets me know exactly who it is.

The pads of my feet smack against the water-slicked floor as I walk over to the golden-eyed demon, the sound like gunshots against the stifling silence. I sit beside Kaebl at the edge of the pool, dangling my bare feet in the heated water with a sigh.

Kaebl’s stare burns a hole into my profile, but for whatever reason, I can’t bring myself to look at him. Because I know if I do, if I hold the weight of that tortured longing one more time, I’ll shatter.