I’d felt the presence of another just before it erupted, stirring chaos throughout the room. There’d been a dark note to it, a sense of spirit that I didn’t recognize.
But I knew with certainty that it didn’t belong to Claire. My power had tuned into hers over the last few weeks, braiding our essences together and merging our spirits. I knew her now. And that destructive energy dancing through the room had possessed an entirely different elemental pattern.
“Exos?” she murmured, her eyes still closed.
“I’m here, princess.” I pressed my lips to her forehead and held her tighter. “How do you feel?”
She seemed to consider for a moment before saying, “Hungover. Like, really, really hungover.”
I chuckled and reached for the water I’d left on the nightstand for her. “Here.” I pressed the rim to her lips and helped her take a few sips while brushing my spirit over hers in a way that had become second nature these last few weeks.
She stretched beside me, a low moan of approval emanating from her throat. “Thank you,” she whispered, snuggling into me more.
I returned the glass to the table and folded my arms around her again. “You did well today, Claire.” Unfortunately, while I believed that, the Council would disagree. The incident on Air Quad had Claire’s fingerprints all over it, which they would most likely use to banish her from the Academy.
“Today?” she asked, her voice sleepy. Then she went stiff. “Oh no…”
“Shh,” I soothed. “It’s going to be okay.” Because I’m going to figure out who actually created that spiral and break the culprit’s neck.
It occurred to me as well that the other incidents may not have been Claire at all, but the person who had interfered today. The fire and water episodes happened before I fully understood the extent of her powers, so it was hard to say for certain. But given the events on Air Quad, it seemed likely.
“I didn’t do it,” she blurted out, squirming backward to stare at me. “I mean, I thought I did. I created the spiral, but I don’t know how it blew out of control. And when I tried to stop it, I couldn’t find my essence inside of it. Like… like… you know, yesterday? With that energy ball in the courtyard? You told me to wrap my fire around it, remember? And I could because I recognized my own powers. But this time…” She trailed off, her expression falling. “I sound crazy, I know, but I swear it wasn’t me, Exos.”
I touched her chin, gently nudging it upward to capture her gaze. “I know, baby. I felt it, too.”
She must not have remembered the part where Vox also claimed it wasn’t her. How fascinating that he could sense it without a bond. Either it proved him to be a potential mate for Claire or it was related to his own incredible gifts.
Regardless, it made him perfect for her team.
Which was why he would be joining—with or without his approval.
“You did?” she whispered.
I kissed her softly before pressing my forehead to hers. “My spirit knows yours, Claire.”
“Because of the bond,” she translated.
“And the last few weeks of training. But, yes, mostly as a result of our connection.” I licked her bottom lip and continued to stroke her spirit with mine, eliciting a contented sigh from her. “It’s deepening,” I told her on a hush of sound. “Can you feel it?” There were different levels to the mating bond, and ours was teetering on the edge of something more permanent.
“I don’t really understand it,” she admitted softly. “But yes, I can feel it. Is sex what pushes it over the edge?” Her cheeks flushed beautifully with the query, her blue eyes sparkling with life. “That came out wrong. I just… I’ve wondered if that’s why you and Titus are holding back—so we don’t accidentally intensify the link.”
Her confession surprised me. “You think we don’t want to take this to the next level?” It applied to both sex and the mating.
“I, uh, well, yeah.” She swallowed. “I mean, I get it. There are two of you, and that just makes this even more confusing, right? And you never really had a choice in our bond, since I kissed you without permission. Not that I knew this would happen. Oh, wait, that came out wrong, too. I don’t regret it. What I mean is—”
I captured her mouth with my own, silencing her little rant. While it was adorable, I didn’t want to hear her second-guessing the nature of our connection.
Was it my choice? No.
Did it bother me? At first, yes. But now? No.
No, now I wouldn’t have this any other way. Her gift for spirit rivaled mine, making her an ideal princess in my court. Apart from the other competing elements, what we had was so unique, so different, so much more powerful than anyone would ever understand.
And it was with that knowledge in mind that I rolled her to her back and worshiped her with my mouth. I unleashed all the emotions I hid from the world, including how I felt about her. Oh, Titus had an idea of how badly I ached for her. But his knowledge only skimmed the surface to the depths of what I kept locked away inside.
A warrior couldn’t afford a weakness.
Yet, at some point, Claire had become mine.