Chapter 8

Icannot sleep. I toss and turn in my bed. How can I sleep knowing my sweet mate is only down the hall? I listened as she ran the water for her bath, heard the noises of pleasure she made as she cleaned herself.

I left a soft shirt of mine for her to wear, and the thought of her in it, wearing nothing underneath…

I throw a pillow over my head, making a low noise of disgust. I will never sleep if I cannot stop contemplating the look on Danielle's face as I tasted her. The look of bliss as I touched her. She is incomparable. She is perfection.

She wants to leave.

She does not want to mate.

I growl, my gut churning. I cannot keep her from returning to her home realm. I would never betray my mate in such a way. If her happiness depends on returning to Earth, then I will make it happen.

I would follow her, but I cannot leave. I am tied to this land as surely as I am tied to Danielle. And if she mates with me, she will be tied here too. Guilt sweeps through me, bitter on my tongue.

I do not want to tell her this: that if I make love to her, if we unlock her powers, she cannot return to her home. I swallow thickly against the lump in my room. The familiar comfort of the whitewash walls and fresh sheets on my own bed would normally be enough to send me off to sleep after a fortnight in the caves.

But all I can think of is how much I want Danielle in these sheets with me, her body pressed against mine.

I need to sleep. Tomorrow I must be as charming and attentive as can be. Tomorrow I will show my Danielle how beautiful Vraya can be. I will take her to market and dress her in the finest silks. Anything she wants will be hers.

I seize on this idea, turning it over in my head. I will win her. She has no mate, no children to return to, friends, perhaps, yes, but I can introduce her to mine, make her feel welcome here. A plan takes shape, and I tug a pillow against my body, wishing it was hers.

Kaus should be in town, least I think he was staying with Castor there, last I heard, with a few troops. I will show her how good it could be between us, and she will no longer want to return to her home. The knot in my chest loosens as I exhale, shoving the pillow back beneath my head. Danielle is the only thing that matters anymore.

Eventually I will tell her what mating means, that it means staying here forever. She will not want to leave, I think, once I prove to her how good it can be.

Satisfied with my plan, clinging to foolish hope, I slide into sleep.

And when I dream, I dream of Danielle, naked underneath me, calling out my name.