Chapter 20 Twenty
The world outside the packhouse faded after Orion carried me upstairs. The chaos from the broken wall, the shouts, the fear, the bond pulling at the edge of my chest, everything blurred into a distant hum. Only Orion remained sharp in my senses. His breath. His warmth. The tremble in his hands.
When he closed the door behind us, something in him seemed to break open.
“Zara,” he whispered, voice raw. “Come here.”
I walked to him slowly. My pulse raced. My hands shook. The world felt fragile, as if one wrong breath would shatter everything.
Orion reached out and cupped my face with both hands. His thumbs brushed my cheeks gently, as though memorizing the structure of me.
“You scared me today,” he said quietly. “You ran toward that creature. You ran into danger. And when I saw it reach for you I thought I was going to lose you forever.”
“I did not think,” I whispered.
“You did,” he said. “You thought of protecting us. That is who you are. Brave. Stubborn. Reckless. And I love you for it.”
His voice broke on the last words. I felt my chest tighten painfully.
“Orion,” I murmured. “Do not fall apart.”
“How am I not supposed to,” he whispered. “You are the one thing I cannot lose.”
His forehead pressed against mine. My breath tangled with his. His hands slid to the back of my neck, warm and steady, holding me close.
I whispered, “I am here.”
“For how long,” he asked. “Be honest with me.”
“I do not know,” I said.
The truth hurt both of us.
But Orion did not pull away. He didn’t let the pain push me out of his arms. Instead he held me tighter, as if the uncertainty made him cling harder.
He whispered, “Look at me.”
I lifted my eyes. His gaze was intense, full of years of love and new fear.
“I have been fighting this bond by myself,” he said. “Fighting Ezra. Fighting fate. Fighting everything because I believed loving you meant I had to win. But maybe loving you means something else.”
“What does it mean,” I asked softly.
“It means holding you even when fate tries to pull you away,” he whispered. “It means letting myself feel everything instead of pretending I am fine.”
He swallowed hard. “It means wanting you enough to fall apart with you.”
My breath stuttered. “Orion.”
His hands slid down my arms slowly, his fingers tracing my wrists as if he were learning me all over again. He stepped closer until his chest pressed against mine. The heat between us rose like a wave, soft and overwhelming.
“Zara,” he whispered again, “tell me you want me too.”
I nodded, breath trembling. “I want you.”
He exhaled sharply, relief flooding his expression. “Then let me love you tonight. Just tonight. No fate. No bond. No pulling. Just you and me.”
My heart ached at the tenderness in his voice.
I slipped my hands into his hair. He closed his eyes as if the touch broke something inside him.
“Orion,” I murmured, “kiss me.”
He didn’t hesitate.
His lips met mine with a softness that made my knees weaken. The kiss began slow, almost hesitant, but the moment my fingers tightened in his hair, he deepened it. His mouth moved against mine with hunger and longing and desperation woven into every breath.
I melted into him completely. His arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer, holding me as though he feared I might vanish if he let go. My hands slid down his back, feeling the tremble of his muscles beneath my touch.
The kiss turned deeper. Warmer. More certain.
He whispered against my lips, “I love you. I love you. I love you.”
Each repetition carved into my skin, my bones, my heart.
I kissed him back with everything I had left inside me.
My voice broke as I whispered against his mouth, “I choose you right now. Only you.”
He let out a shaky breath, pressing his forehead to mine. “Say it again.”
“I choose you,” I whispered.
He kissed me again, harder this time, as if sealing the words into both of us.
For a long moment, we were lost in each other. Our breaths. Our touches. Our whispered promises. Nothing else existed. Not the bond. Not fate. Not Ezra.
Just us.
Just love.
Just the world we tried so desperately to save between us.
Orion lifted me gently and laid me back on the bed. He leaned over me, brushing his fingers along my jaw.
“You are my heart,” he said. “No matter what happens tomorrow.”
Tears slipped down my cheek. He kissed them away.
And just as I pulled him down for another kiss—
The bond surged.
Warm.
Powerful.
Close.
Ezra.
Orion froze above me, breath trembling. “No. Not now.”
I pressed a hand to my chest. The warmth grew stronger.
Ezra was near.
A howl echoed through the night. Deep. Familiar. Calling.
Orion’s face shattered.
“He is coming,” he whispered.
And the door burst open.