15. Chapter 15
After parking his vehicle in the hotel garage, he exited and locked hands with Kate, his mind clearing slowly from the connection.
They had bonded more over stories of their childhood the rest of the way.
But the hotel was a reminder of the fragility of their relationship, and the nerves came back in full force.
After they made it to the lobby, a man in a suit greeted them. “Can I help you?”
“Reservation for tonight,” Raz said.
“I need ID and a credit card.” Raz produced both with one hand.
Kate stretched their arms as she leaned toward the complimentary water. He tried to pay attention to the questions the attendant asked him, but Kate’s constant tugging had him watching her while she worked to retrieve a glass of water, one-handed. Such a dexterous woman.
“Here’s your room key.” Those words couldn’t come fast enough.
“Wow,” Kate said, pausing when another clerk came to the desk. The clerk’s flawless makeup appeared picturesque. “I love that shade of lipstick on you.”
The clerk’s cheeks reddened. “Thanks.”
His lips twitched into a smile. He’d recognize that pink anywhere. In the elevator, he squeezed her hand.
“The iconic Sakura Bloom strikes again,” he said, naming the shade of her lipstick prints.
“I’m surprised you recognize it.” She rocked back and forth from heel to toe. “I didn’t expect to grow as big as I did.”
“Really?”
“I just wanted to do a couple of insider jobs, but Bonnie suggested I create an image. To gain more notoriety. After the creator of RNA Boutique saw that I used her lipstick, she jumped on the opportunity. I still think Bonnie set that up. It’s her favorite shade.”
The sadness in her voice crept across his skin, igniting his protective side. “Who is Bonnie to you?”
“She’s my Coheart…a Fallen’s butler in a way.
When I reincarnate, she and Clyde protect me until my memories return at puberty.
They keep my affairs in order…that sort of thing.
” She scuffed her shoe against the elevator bottom.
“And she’s done things for me that no one should have to do. Now she drinks to bury those burdens.”
He placed his finger under her chin and lifted until she met his gaze. “You know you can trust me, right? Tell me anything.”
The elevator dinged their arrival, and the door slid open.
“Not this.” She stepped away from him. “You already rejected me once.”
Her words pierced his armor, and her walking down the hall twisted his heart into a lump. Cursing, he exited the elevator.
Midnight’s dark hood flashed through his mind. Could it be Bonnie?
Considering Bonnie’s state of being the last time he saw her, he couldn’t picture it, but Midnight was someone Kate knew; he was sure of it. And if Kate was protecting Midnight’s identity, there had to be a reason.
The thought that she didn’t trust him with the information stabbed at him, especially after the conversation in the car, but he was also holding her at arm’s length when it came to his team. Shaking the image from his mind, he strode to their room.
The keycard shook slightly as he unlocked the door. Walking into the earth-toned king room, he held the door open for her. She stepped in behind him, gazing around at their new accommodations. Raz emptied his pockets onto the dresser near the television.
“You trust me not to steal that?” she asked with a scoff.
Her spine had gone straight, arms crossing her chest as if she had already finished their conversation. Confidence covered her like a perfectly wrapped chocolate bar. Candy wasn’t nearly as intimidating, though.
“I’m going to try not to piss you off this time,” he said. “Or hurt you. So, no. I don’t believe you’re going to steal it.”
She snorted a laugh. “It’s all good. I’m a big girl. I was an itch you needed to scratch, but you don’t want a criminal. I’ll take a shower and be out of your hair.”
“Stop putting words in my mouth and let me speak.”
She paused midturn to the bathroom.
“I never meant to make you feel rejected or hurt,” he said. “I left…I left because I want you. Too much. And I don’t want to scare you away.”
Her head tilted, eyes narrowing. “Why do you think you’d scare me?”
“I need you in a deeper way than just sex. And if I take that step with you, we might not be able to step back.”
She stilled, a thief waiting in the shadows. “What do you mean?”
How am I supposed to explain this? “We’re soulmates.” Yeah. Nice work, slick.
“Excuse me?”
He ran his fingers through his hair. “That came out weird. It’s new to the Fallen and dragons. Our soul was ripped in two when you…we? Fell?”
She blinked at him.
He groaned. You’re making it worse. “That’s beside the point. My dragon wants to Mark you. Link our spirit energy together.”
“Okay.” Her expression twisted with confusion and curiosity. “Can’t say I’ve heard that before. And I’ll admit it sounds…daunting, especially given our current working arrangement.”
“It’s just you and me here. Nothing else.”
“I’m probably not the woman you pictured for yourself.”
“You’re so much more.”
Her startled gaze met his. Fucking beautiful.
“I see who you are. A survivor. The bubbliest woman I’ve ever fucking met.
And I want to learn more about you. Be with you.
” Shit. That’s true. His mouth dried. He’d run out of his comfort zone the minute he caught her.
Even if she was protecting Midnight, he didn’t care.
And that was fucking scary. Because Midnight had already killed someone important to him—a team member.
“Raz…” The vulnerability in her voice tugged at his heart. “I’ve done things in my past and don’t know what the future will bring.”
He swallowed. “I’m not perfect either. Like you said, the Dragon SEALs are a vigilante group.”
Her chest rose and fell, breathing deeply.
She ran her fingers through her hair, the bob going askew over her face.
“I’ve never felt this way. And…” she scoffed.
“You deserve better, and maybe I’m being selfish, but I don’t want you to go against your nature.
Because I get it…the pull between us.” She placed her hand on her hip, jutting it out.
“Just make sure you want this pool of fun before you dive, okay?”
His chest swelled with a full, surprised breath. Screw diving. He wanted to drown.
“If you’re willing to take that dive too, come here,” he said, unable to move and mess up again. His dragon prowled too close to his skin, anticipation making him lightheaded.
Eyes locked, she strutted to him without hesitation. His dick swelled to attention, straining against the seams of his briefs. When she stood a step away from him, he hauled her against his chest. His lips pressed to hers in a searing kiss. She opened to him, and their tongues danced.
Shaking, he felt his dragon’s energy heat his fingers as they moved through her hair against her scalp, careful of her injury.
Skin-to-skin, the spirit energy of his dragon raced from his body and met her own greedy energy.
Tingles scored over his chest and down his body like the caress of a lover toward his groin.
Their two powers entangled, snapping and melding into a cohesive link in his mind. The power arched into a pleasurable familiarity that engulfed him like an explosion of nostalgia. Kate gasped as if lost in the same sensation. His dragon felt languid, slow and shaken, but in no way satiated.
He needed to Mark her again.