Page 25 of Crimson Mate
His smile is wide and beautiful as he looks up at me, not a hint of fear with me atop him. “You win,” he says, and I tremble at the way that admission makes me feel. “You'll always win with me, Talia,” he says with more determination.
I release him, hopping to my feet and offering a hand to help him stand. “That hasn't always been the case,” I say, the pain catching up and stealing the fun away from the game.
He doesn't let go of my hand, instead drawing me closer to him, his eyes locking with mine. “And I'm prepared to spend an eternity making up for that,” he says.
“That's a very long time,” I say, my voice almost a whisper as I'm caught between the need to get closer to him and the desperation to get away to protect myself.
He gently grazes a knuckle down my cheek. “An eternity with you wouldn't be long enough for me.”
A response gets tangled in my throat, my heart begging me to let him in. To welcome him back as if nothing ever happened.
But it’s the memory of being left behind and alone for centuries that has me gathering enough strength to take my hand back, and walk with my head held somewhat high as I leave the training room and all of Zachariah’s promises behind before I do something terribly reckless…
Like fall for him again.
CHAPTER 9
Zachariah
“Ineed you to come with me,” I say by way of greeting when I find Talia laughing with the girls in the informal dining hall in the residence.
It doesn't go unnoticed that they fall silent the minute I walk into the room, every single one of them looking at me with a mixture of disappointment and anger.
Jesus, I know I have to make amends with Talia, probably every day for the rest of my existence, but now it looks like I have a whole gaggle of females to apologize to.
“Where?” Talia asks, but she pushes away from the table and rises as if the destination doesn't matter, which gives me a little hope.
“The war room,” I explain. “Alek has called a meeting.”
Her eyebrows raise as she glances down at Lyric. “I don't have clearance for that,” she says, looking back at me.
“I do,” I say without a hint of hesitance in my tone. “And I need you there.”
Talia looks at me, interest shaping her features as she dips her head.
The rest of the girls smile at her in a mischievous way, Every single one of the mates at the table, minus Annika, knows howmonumental it is to be let inside the war room. It’s reserved for assassins and hunters alone, with the exception of their mates. And while Talia might notofficiallybe mine, she is in every way that matters.
Talia leads the way out of the dining room before waiting for me to show her where the war room is located. She follows me through the residence, weaving in and out of hallways quietly.
“What were you all talking about?” I ask when I can't hold it in a second longer.
“Mates,” she answers simply as we continue walking.
“Anything specific about mates or just mates in general?”
“A little of both,” she says, so aloof, so casual. “Annika is very interested in the lore,” she continues. “Of course, all she's seen is happy pairings, and it's natural to be fascinated by our situation.”
The knife slips into my heart another inch, but it's no more than I deserve.
I pause outside the entryway to the war room, not yet offering my hand to the biometric scanner. “Talia,” I start, searching for the right words to make her understand?—
“Our king is waiting for us,” she says before I can continue, her eyes flicking to the very intimidating door before coming back to me. “I appreciate you including me on this. It shows that you understand how important this mission is to me, and I’m grateful for that.”
I swallow whatever explanation I'd been about to give her, letting it sink into the recess of my gut. Her words are soft and kind and harken back to the earliest memories I have of her when the sting of what I did to her hadn't affected her.
Times when she would tell me anything, and laugh joke with me. If she’s inching back to that mood with me, thatfeeling, the last thing I want to do is muck it up with more excuses that won't erase what I'd done.
“I'm never keeping you out of the loop again,” I say before pressing my hand against the biometric scanner, the door sliding open.