Chapter 31

THIRTY-ONE

Afterward, she lay in his arms, her head resting against his bare chest, her hair draped across his skin in lush tangles of silk.

He savored the aftertaste of their union, his ka'qui thrumming with satisfaction.

For he'd reached a state of complete transcendence, and she'd imprinted herself upon him.

Finally, he understood what the obsession was all about.

Why Tarak al Akkadian had gone so extreme, obliterating the Empire with such ease once he'd discovered the secret of Earth and its precious inhabitants— humans .

It all made perfect sense now.

She was asleep—both here and in reality. He listened to the gentle rhythm of her breathing and the steady beat of her heart. He drank in the aura of peacefulness that had come over her. At last, her fear, worry, and tension had melted away.

And so they should. She was perfectly safe with him. No other being in the Universe had ever made him feel this way. If anyone or anything tried to harm her, he would do everything in his power to wipe any last trace of that threat from existence.

This instinct to protect… he felt it in every fiber of his being. He didn't try to deny it or question it.

It simply was.

It wasn't the first time he'd encountered beauty. Throughout his travels, he'd caught glimpses of the sublime and the unexpected. He'd known these things were out of the ordinary, but he'd never been able to appreciate them to their full extent. If the Mistress had caught him experiencing such frivolous thoughts, he would have been punished.

But for the first time, he was free, and he'd luxuriated in Jade's essence like a man who'd finally found the source after being parched for an eternity. He didn't understand it, and neither could he fathom how she could be so willing.

All he knew, without a doubt, was that he'd claimed her.

Their physical bodies hadn't yet met, but he'd already imbibed her soul.

She was his.

In an instant, everything had changed. The Universe had spun and recrystallized around him.

For the first time, he felt it so very powerfully.

The sense that he didn't want to die.

Whatever designs Tarak had for him, he would not give his life away so recklessly.

If the existence of this so-called Amun Kazharan was a threat to her, then he would take the asshole out. Simple as that.

Dragek took a strand of her silken hair between his fingers and lifted it to his nose, inhaling deeply. Even in dreams, where everything was conjured from his mind, she smelled so good.

He stroked her hair and looked up, extending his senses to take in the wispy foliage of the treetops as they swayed against the backdrop of the vast universe.

Beneath infinity, they were merely specks of stardust.

As he contemplated the unlikeliness of his existence, something strange happened to his second-sight. As always, he perceived the differences in the hues of the leaves. The way the light particles were reflected varied from tree to tree. But just now, his mind started to…

Perceive differently.

It was like before, when he'd seen the world through both her eyes and his at the same time. The presence of things around him was the same but different, and his brain hadn't really registered that everything glowed in a different hue.

Down there, in the stifling, dusty darkness, he'd been able to see in color, just like a human.

Just like his brethren, who hadn't had their sight stripped away from them.

Maybe it was because she'd shared her consciousness with him. Perhaps it was the fact that in the brief time he'd spent in her body, his brain had belatedly recognized the presence of the colors in the mine—shades of dark and not-so-dark.

Now, he started to see the same shades brushing against the sky, only they weren't so dull as the colors in the mine. They were cool and gentle and soothing.

And the sky above… was darkness scattered with light.

Dragek's mind was blown, and he wished he could remain like this forever—with her resting against him—but at that moment, he felt an infernal tug on his attention.

"Jade," he said softly, running his fingers across her smooth cheek, applying just enough pressure to wake her.

Delicate eyelashes fluttered. She stirred. "Mmhm? What is it, Dragek?"

How he loved the way she said his name, like nobody else ever could, without even the slightest hint of malice or guile.

"I have to leave. Someone's rousing me."

"So soon?" She entwined her fingers with his. "You can't stay?"

"I have no choice, I'm afraid. I can't exactly control it when someone forcefully pulls me back into the conscious world. But don't worry about me. You're perfectly safe here. Stay for as long as you like, and sleep. You seem like you need it."

"After what we did together, I can hardly believe I'm still asleep."

"It is what it is, but it's no less real than if we'd been together in the other world."

"This is no less real than the world we usually inhabit?"

"Why should it be?"

"I'll take your word for it, then. Gladly."

"You should. Always."

The cursed pull was becoming stronger. He didn't know how much longer he could remain here.

Which bastard dares? He'll pay for this.

"Look at me," he commanded.

She propped herself up on one arm and looked down at him, and she was the most glorious thing he'd ever seen. Her lips were slightly parted, her cheeks flushed, her hair tousled, and her eyes filled with wonder.

His breath caught.

It was the first time he'd perceived her in full color.

He could have stayed like this for an eternity, content to simply gaze at her, but he was about to disappear, so he kissed her deeply, savoring every last drop of her.

And she did the same.

"Come back soon, Dragek," she whispered as he faded away, forcibly dragged back to the dimension where things were cold and harsh and brutal.

But he could be those things, too. Just not to her. Not ever.

Rest awhile, my Sarien. Don't worry about a thing.

Because even the death-god couldn't stop him from coming back to her.