#Chapter 98 Or What?

Ember "Or what?" Kaine repeats, and the words settle low in the space between us. I mean to answer him, because I have a whole life of practice at answering men who crowd me, and every one of those answers is sharp enough to draw blood. Then his hand comes up and cradles the side of my face, his thumb brushing along my jaw, and all the sharp things I meant to say go quiet in my throat. Kiss him, Nara sighs, and for once she isn't pushing so much as aching with me. He's right here, he's ours, and you have to stop fighting it. I don't fight it, and that's the horrifying part. I let him tilt my face up, let his scent wrap around me—musk and pine and leather—until the hallway, the trial, and the whole rotten day fall away and there's only the pull, the full weight of the bond I no longer have any potion to dull. His mouth is a breath from mine, close enough that I can feel the warmth of him against my lips like a promise I haven't earned. I press my palm flat against his chest an