“Yours.” He surged into her, filling her utterly. His hands found hers, fingers closing tight. “All of me, yours. Forever.”
“And I’m yours,” she gasped, pressing against him, pulling him deeper. White light leaked from between their joined palms. “Always, yes, Aodhan!”
Blinding ecstasy crashed over her. He came with her, carrying her through the pulsing waves. As they cried out together, the light between their hands spilled over, spiraling up their arms. She felt the bond open like a flower in her mind, in full bloom at last, so bright and beautiful that she couldn’t tell where she ended and he began. He was hers, and she was his, and they would never be parted again.
Her bliss ebbed, fading into languid satisfaction—but that sense of connection didn’t. Even as Aodhan pulled out of her body, she could still feel him buried deep in her mind. Her arm tingled, little aftershocks of pleasure shooting across her skin.
If Aodhan had noticed anything different, he didn’t comment on it. With infinite tenderness, he laid her back down on the bed, spooning around her with a groan of exhausted contentment. His arm wrapped around her, pulling her close.
Cathy looked down at his muscled forearm, and her breath caught. She wriggled out of his embrace, sitting up. “Aodhan. Aodhan, look.”
“Let me guess,” he mumbled. “There are roses. What a surprise.”
“Yes, but not around the bed,” she said, staring at her own arm. “Aodhan, you really need to see this.”
With a guttural groan, he struggled up to his elbows. He peered groggily at her wrist for a moment, then his eyes flew open. He sat up as well, putting his forearm alongside hers for comparison. His bond mark was still green, as hers was still gold—but now roses bloomed along the twining vines. In the darkened room, the tattooed flowers shone with pure white light.
“What does it mean?” Cathy asked him.
Aodhan didn’t answer. He stared at their altered marks for a long moment, mouth hanging open.
“It means,” he said at last, and stopped there. Burying his face in his hands, he let loose a long, heartfelt string of expletives—or at least, Cathy had to assume that was what they were, since she could only recognize about one word in ten. “It means that I am an idiot.”
“It looks…” Cathy bit her lip. “It looks a bit like Tamsin and Cuan’s mate bond.”
“That’s because it is a mate bond.” Aodhan dropped his hands, revealing a distinctly aggrieved expression. She would have been worried… except that down the bond, she could sense his slowly dawning joy. “I should have realized the truth the moment I first saw you. We’re not just knight and steed. We’re mates. True mates, fated to find each other. I should have known. Did you?”
“Not for certain.” She felt her cheeks color. “But when Cuan and Tamsin started dropping those hints today, I couldn’t help hoping they might be right.”
“Cuan knew before I did,” Aodhan said in tones of deepest gloom. “Herne’s balls, bloody Neifion figured it out before me.Neifion. Cathy, you are mated to quite possibly the greatest fool in all the realms. I can only suggest you send every goddess a strongly worded letter of complaint.”
“Absolutely not.” She snuggled against him, admiring their matching marks. “I wouldn’t change a thing about you.”
“Just as well, since you’re stuck with me now.” He drew her close, tracing the roses along her arm with a soft, wondering touch. “A mate bond can’t be formed by accident, you know. Both people have to want it, and each other. With all their hearts.”
Cathy tilted her face up to kiss him. “I love you too.”
He frowned at her. “That’s ungrammatical. I have to say ‘I love you’ first.”
“You just did.”
“Impossible woman.” He captured her mouth in a long, sweet kiss. “I love you. There. Now you can say ‘I love you too.’”
“Then I’d be repeating myself.”
Aodhan growled and tackled her. Laughing, Cathy tried to break free, but he pinned her to the bed. He kissed her without mercy, hard and demanding, until she finally relented. She softened against him, kissing him back.
“I love you too,” she whispered against his lips. Then she pushed at his shoulder. “But we really should get some sleep. Kevin will be no doubt be up early, and there’s so much to do. You’ll need your strength.”
“I have all the strength I need right here.” Aodhan folded his fingers through hers. The soft light of the bond shimmered across his smile. “My Cathy. My knight. My mate.”