Page 51 of Hunted
“Done something wrong?”
“I thought, perhaps, I had taken advantage of you.”
I could see his outline more clearly, now. The shape of his shoulders, the shine on the tip of his antlers, the curve of his jaw. “You didn’t take advantage of me, Valerian.”
“I felt like I had. We were arguing, tensions were high, and in a moment of heightened emotions, we kissed. I felt like I should not have, like I should have controlled my emotions better.”
“Because you didn’t want to kiss me…” I said, hiding the way my heart had just deflated like a balloon.
“No,” he said, taking a step toward me. “I did want to kiss you.” He paused, lowering his voice. “I have wanted to kiss you for what feels like a lifetime.”
The balloon inflated again. I found myself holding a breath. “You did,” I said, breathless.
“I did. I do.” He paused. “Call me a hopeless romantic if you want, but I didn’t think our first kiss would be in a small cupboard during an argument.”
“You didn’t…” I breathed. “Which means you’ve thought about it before.”
“I have. Several times.”
“Why are…” I took a proper breath this time, then exhaled. “Why are you telling me this?”
“I have several reasons.”
“Are you going to tell me what they are?”
Valerian paused. “The first one is simple… if grim. I don’t know how much time we have left. I don’t know if we’ll ever make it back to Arcadia. Even if we do, I don’t know if we’ll succeed in our mission—whatever that is.”
“We’re going to make it.”
“I appreciate your optimism, but I am a realist. I always have been. I know what our chances are, and they are not great.”
I paused, swallowed. “What’s the other reason?”
“I… want you to know that… even though we come from different worlds, and we have many differences… kissing you was a privilege.”
“A privilege…”
“I have never been kissed like that before. I have never kissed someone like that before.” He paused. “I’m also not going to pretend like I don’t know why that is.”
“What do you mean?”
“The very thing that hunts us, the very force that wants to destroy us, has also forged a bond between us.”
My jaw fell slightly, lips parting. I knew about the bond. I knewheknew about the bond. Neither of us had spoken about it until now, though. “I don’t know why either,” I said.
“So, you feel it also?”
“I do. I mean, I know it’s there.”
“I wish I knew why, but I don’t. I know little of Fate bonds… only that the winner of the Royal Selection is awarded one.”
“Fate binds the winner to the royal on the other side of it.”
“I haven’t won the Selection. I’m not even in the Selection. So, why do we share a bond?”
“I don’t know.” I shook my head. “I didn’t kiss you because we have a bond.”
Valerian’s pause lingered; his silence filled by the howling of the wind. “You didn’t?”