She wouldn’t be the first vampire to kill her Maker. Long ago, the Last Vampire King had rid himself of his Maker in a famous battle for power. If he could do it, so could she.
“Maybe we’ll kill her together,” Ryker said gravely.
Brynleigh’s jaw dropped.
It was one thing for him to be present when she killed the Earth Elf—one could argue he’d simply been doing his job—but she was pretty certain society as a whole frowned upon cold-blooded killing.
She probably should’ve been worried that Ryker was willing to commit murder for her, but she wasn’t. Instead, something deep within her warmed at the thought that her fae captain was willing to break one of society’s most stringent rules to defend her.
Fuck, something was seriously wrong with her.
Brynleigh chuckled, “You know what they say, the couple that slays together stays together.”
Alas, the fae captain didn’t even crack a smile at her joke. All she got in return was a stern look of warning.
Her core twisted at the sight, which was highly inappropriate considering their topic of conversation.
Brynleigh would have a chat with her body about that later. It was choosing wildly inappropriate moments to remind her that she desired Ryker. She didn’t even know if they’d ever be together again. Not like that.
“You promise you’ve healed?” he asked.
“Mhmm. I’m good as new.”
Brynleigh made the executive decision that this wasn’t the right moment to mention that shock had set in after she had shadowedback here, nor did she mention the blood she’d cleaned off the wall.
That was over, and she just wanted to move on from that night.
Flicking her hair over her shoulder, she displayed her neck to him. “See?”
He pulled his hand from her grasp and trailed his fingers over her neck. They were still cold but no longer freezing.
“This doesn’t hurt?”
Her skin pebbled as his fingers grazed her flesh. “No.”
Neither of them pulled away as he traced her throat. His mouth parted, and his stormy scent deepened as he drew closer. His fingers pressed deeper into her skin, but the sensation wasn’t painful.
Not. At. All.
“What about this?” Ryker wrapped his hand around the back of her neck and tilted up her head. “Does this hurt?”
Her heart was a drum in her ears. Could he hear it? “No, it doesn’t.”
He moved closer until mere inches separated them and slowly lowered his head. His gaze searched hers, and the promise in it had her core twisting.
Outside, the storm clouds lifted, but she barely noticed.
“I meant what I said on the phone,” he breathed, his lips hovering over hers. “I’m so sorry.”
Ryker had always been handsome, almost to a fault, but when apologizing, he looked like a god brought to life.
“I’m sorry, too,” she whispered. “Not just for lying to you in the Choosing, but for everything. I want to try to be better. For us. Do you… do you think you can forgive me?”
He gazed into her eyes as if he could uncover the world’s secrets if he looked at her long enough.
“There’s nothing to forgive.” Ryker leaned in and kissed the corner of her mouth.
By the gods, that was both far too little and too much at the same time. She wanted more.