Kade carried Amina through the forest until the sounds of the rogues faded behind them. His steps were steady, but his jaw was clenched tight. Every few seconds he looked down at her, checking her breathing… checking the bond pulsing between them like a second heartbeat.
Amina's eyes fluttered open. "Put me down… I can walk."
"You collapsed," he said, voice low. "You're staying in my arms."
She tried to push away, but the effort only made her head swirl. "I shouldn't have… whatever that was… it drained me."
Kade stopped walking. His eyes met hers—deep, molten gold in the moonlight.
"That wasn't normal magic," he said quietly. "It reacted to the bond."
Amina swallowed. "I didn't mean to connect to you."
"You think I asked to feel your pain like it was my own?" His voice wasn't angry—just brutally honest. "You think I wanted you to nearly black out in my arms?"
Heat rose in her chest, not from magic this time.
"Kade… I don't belong in your world."
He leaned closer, brushing a leaf from her cheek. His fingers lingered a beat too long.
"You're already in my world," he murmured. "Whether you want to be or not."
The forest around them hummed—strange, alive, as if the trees themselves were watching.
Amina's breath caught. His face was too close. His scent too intoxicating. His presence too consuming.
She forced herself to look away. "We still have to get to your pack… right?"
His expression shifted, remembering where they were headed.
"Yes. But not tonight."
Amina frowned. "Why not?"
Kade's eyes darkened. "The moon is too strong. When a bond is newly awakened, the first full moon can… intensify it."
Amina blinked. "Intensify?"
He exhaled slowly, almost painfully. "It heightens instincts. Emotions. Attraction."
Her heart slammed against her ribs. "Attraction?"
His jaw tightened. "Yes."
A silence stretched between them—dangerous, hot, dragging the air thin.
Amina's throat felt dry. "Is that why you're keeping your distance?"
Kade laughed once—short, controlled, strained. "Amina, I'm holding you in my arms right now. I'm not keeping my distance."
She looked at his hands gripping her thighs, her waist. His skin was warm. His touch almost shaking.
He swallowed hard. "But I'm trying."
Amina didn't know why she whispered the next words. Maybe it was the moon. Maybe it was the bond. Maybe it was him.
"What happens… if you stop trying?"
Kade froze.
Completely.
His breath hitched, and she could feel it against her neck.
"Amina," he said slowly, voice dropping into something deep, dangerous, and honest, "if I stop trying, I will kiss you until the moon burns out of the sky."
Her lips parted.
Her pulse hammered.
The bond throbbed between them, hungry.
But then—Kade tore his gaze away, shaking his head.
"No. Not tonight. Not like this." He gently set her down, though his hands lingered at her waist. "You need rest. And I need control."
She stepped back, but the space between them felt too thin to matter.
Kade scanned the forest, alert again. "There's an old hunter's cabin not far from here. We'll stay the night. Leave at dawn."
Amina nodded, still breathless.
They walked in silence, both avoiding eye contact, both hyper-aware of the bond pulling them closer with every step.
The cabin appeared like a shadow in the woods—small, dusty, abandoned long ago.
But safe.
Kade pushed the door open and let her walk in first. The moonlight spilled in through broken windows, painting silver across the wooden floor.
Amina sat on the small couch, rubbing her arms.
Kade crouched in front of her, studying her face. "How's your body? Any dizziness?"
"A little… but I'll be fine."
His fingers brushed her wrist, checking her pulse. Her breath hitched again. He noticed.
And he pulled back immediately, eyes tense.
"This is going to be hell," he muttered under his breath.
Amina's lips curled. "For who? You?"
"For both of us."
The bond pulsed.
Once.
Twice.
Then a deep, rolling howl cut through the night—far away, but echoing through the trees.
Kade shot to his feet. "More rogues. They're tracking us."
Amina stiffened. "But you said they shouldn't know about us—about the bond—"
"They don't." His expression turned sharp. "But they know I'm far from the border. And they want a fight."
Another howl. Closer.
Kade reached for her hand without thinking—and the bond surged so strongly Amina gasped.
His eyes widened, but he didn't let go.
"Amina," he said, his voice dropping into a rough whisper, "whatever happens tonight… don't leave my side."
She looked up at him.
"I won't."
He squeezed her hand, his eyes glowing gold.
The bond sealed that promise like fire.
Outside, the forest erupted with howls.
Inside the cabin, the heat between them rose like a second moon.