Infernal

Nina's POV

The space around me smelled good, like orange blossoms and something fainter, but I knew it well. Blinking open my eyes, I curled tighter sighing.

Cameron's smell.

The bed was too spacious and not as warm as when I'd fallen asleep. My arms were loose instead of being wrapped, protectively, around him. Because... he wasn't here. I rose up on my elbow, messy hair falling everywhere around me, stinging my nose with crisp orange smell.

I took in the twin bed across the room. The sheets were perfectly tucked. He wasn't anywhere inside or near, because my neck wasn't reacting to tingles. Letting out a groan, I slumped down and rubbed my temples. Where was he? I hadn't noticed him slipping away...

Giving my body one last stretch, I rolled out from under the sheet.

The strange light of the coral sky and aqua moon came streaming in. It was day.

With no idea of what to do, especially when inside this whole city the bracelet on my wrist mandated my fate, I strolled to the door and twisted the knob. Didn't budge. Frustrated, I saw the key was missing.

Locked from the outside.

"Splendid," I paced back and forth. Looking out the window a couple of times, I saw people passing by, some looking miserable and others looking menacing, powerful. The whole thing was an assert of domination, predator over prey.

When the warmness spread over my spine, I got closer to the door, I heard some boards creak.

Click. Twist.

My blood pressure kicked down when Cam's handsome face poked into the tiny bedroom. I didn't breathe a word until he closed us in again.

"Where were you?"

"Missed me?" He cracked a gigantic smirk teasingly. "I woke up really hungry. Famished-wolf hungry. Since I hadn't eaten in what...? Three days, two?"

His words turned my heart into an iceberg. I remembered the strawberry thing, the way I'd tormented him.

"I'm sorry about that—"

"We're not talking about it." He held up a finger, tapping my nose. Then his chest was all in front of me and I had to look up. Well, at least he was wearing a clean black shirt today. "We're leaving that in the past, moving forward with our lives and all that jazz. Okay?"

I sobered up. Had I heard right? Cameron wanted us to leave the past in the past and move along? I took a minute, studying him. His eyes weren't pained, the expression wasn't strained, his shoulders weren't slouched from tiredness or massive guilt. He looked... different. But the same.

It was a strange thing. But beautiful and glorious.

"Are we talking about just our past? Or does that include yours?"

His eyebrows pinched, "Nina..." his shoulders shrugged in agitation as he looked all around the room, stopping on the bed where I'd spent a whole night embracing him. "For now, let's say I'm a work in progress." He touched my chin, tilting it. "Okay?" He repeated, stroking his thumb across my jaw.

Nodding solemnly, I said, "Okay."

"Here," he stepped back, offering me a blueberry muffin. Color me surprised. "Funny thing to find in Hell, huh? Romeo said something about some Vampires growing fruit trees and herbs behind the city. Apparently, there some plantations there." While he talked, I took big chunks and swore this muffin was the best I'd ever tasted. Could just be the hunger talking.

Cam stepped outside so I'd get dressed. I threw on a hoodie and jeans, stuffing my night clothes in the bag and rushed outside the room, joining him down the stairs. The Inn owner was sitting behind the desk, same as yesterday.

"Came—" A warning glare was thrown my way. I shut my mouth, teeth grinding. "Huh... Master, where are the others?"

"They'll be here in a minute. Come on," he took my elbow, leading me into the street. Throwing a glance back at the man, Cam spun me to face him, leaning himself into the wall. "That wasn't that hard, was it?"

"You're just lucky I like Phillip."

"Just Phillip?" I blushed deeply. Dark maroon once his gaze ducked for mine, smile stretching.

Before an answer left me, my eyes darted for the end of the street, where shouts and whipping sounds pounded my ears. I saw a man with a thick whip in hand, his face was bright red. Only paying close attention, did I see it was covered in blood splatters. The person he was beating—the girl—was lying prone on the cobblestones. Her left shoulder in a raw state, wounds open, dripping blood that ran down the cracks.

As I tried to look away, my eyes ran down the whole length of her arm, catching a glimpse of copper glint.

My breathing hitched. A bronze cuff. The girl was a Psychic, like me.

The blond man's arm swung back, the long strap gaining force and velocity to strike again. Doing it to animals was wrong. Doing it to people...

The teenage girl screamed before the whip made contact. I ran so fast my wrist slipped from Cam's grip like a slippery eel. There were no thoughts of consequences. There was the beating of my heart, the horror in this person's throaty yells and the blond masochist.

The arm I'd thrown up stung. It was a harsh sting, as if a torch's flame was pressed up-close to my skin, burning a hole to get to my veins and arteries. Barely feeling my hand I pulled back, intent on taking the whip from the man. He sneered at my attempt, tugging on the handle. My knees crashed on the hard ground. I looked down to see the clean jeans soaking up blood from the wounded girl. But the fact the that I was getting dirty once more wasn't the main concern, far from it.

"How dare you, human? Interfering with my slave troubles?" He was white with fury. The round blood spatters made me think of a cannibal whose meal had been interrupted. Or of the Angel Romeo had turned into a Ghoul. "I'll teach you to meddle in other peoples' affairs!"

My eyes flinched closed as he ripped the whip from where it had wrapped around my wrist. It left an angry red mark. Actually, there was a little bead of blood...

The whip halted the descent. Only this time, it wasn't me who stopped it. Cameron's manly hand gripped the leather firmly.

"This is my slave," he started, regarding the man with abnormally cutting eyes. "You have no right to punish her, Vampire."

"No right?" The Vampire said abashed. Even more when Cameron took the weapon in one fierce pull. "How dare you, boy! I have every right since she interrupted my punishment."

"Yes, well, I happen to like my slave's body unmarked."

"Perhaps you should plan on getting a new courtesan."

"Perhaps," Cameron dropped the whip at his feet, taking a single step closer. "You should mind your words."

All it took was a buffeting laugh from the abusing Master. Cam's fingers curved around his throat, digging into his Adam's apple—I had to close my eyes as he dug his fingers in. A sick sound I was too familiar with, by now, resulted in the man's death. Once I looked, the Vampire corpse was graying, then like the one he'd killed back at Haven Park, it turned to ash.

My mind was already worried with another thing, though, Cam's heroics would have to wait. I turned to face the girl for the very first time. She was pale, ebon hair splayed all across her puffy face, both from crying and bruises. When I first touched her head—I was too afraid to touch her anywhere else—she whimpered, moving.

"No, no, please don't move!" I called out in the most soothing tone I could. It was hard with all the panic. "You're hurt, bleeding, it will only make it worse if you move. I won't hurt you—we won't hurt you. We'll help." I felt helpless. Swinging my eyes Cam's way, I yelled, "Help me, Cameron! You need to get someone—we can't just watch her die!"

Cameron moved. Kneeling beside me, he delivered me a flabbergasted look.

"Nina," he forced the word. Like he was angry. "Have you gone mad?"

"What? This girl—she—"

"Have you forgotten where we are? Who you are in here?" He hissed. "You're my slave. I told you—I told you not to do anything stupid! And now you're shouting orders at your Master? Because interfering with someone's punishment wasn't enough—forcing me to kill a Vampire wasn't enough."

Breathe, I chanted.

I couldn't stop the loop my brain was stuck on. All I could think was, I need to save this girl. She's like me. I need to help her. Those had been my thoughts before I'd wedged myself between slave and Master.

But now Cameron was pointing out my faulty behavior. And God, I hoped this hadn't costed us Phillip. Cam would never forgive me. I would never forgive myself.

A crowd had gathered. This was interesting to watch. Masters killing each other and "human" slaves giving out orders. Among them, I saw Romeo's tall persona. He was pushing through until he got to us, expression slightly baffled.

"I killed her Master," Cameron informed as the Cambion crouched behind the aspen young woman. "He threatened Nina... after she interrupted his punishment."

Romeo cursed in a foreign language. Or the words were so muted I didn't hear them right.

"What now?"

Romeo's keen gray eyes examined the place where the Vampire ashes were. Among them, there was a shiny thing. He got up and grabbed it. It was a ring with a strange, detailed crest on it.

"You killed a fairly wealthy Vampire. Only Vampires with some fortune have crests." He pocked the ring quickly. "Congratulations, you just inherited whatever money, houses and slaves he had. That's what happens when you kill someone in Hell. You get whatever that someone owned."

I blinked. Wow. Way to win the lottery.

"Cam—Master," I corrected quickly. "If she's your slave now, I'm begging you, don't let her die." I made sure more people listened, wanting to assure our cover among the people of Domain.

Cameron looked at the girl and slipped a hand under her knees, careful with the wounded shoulder. I could hear the moans of pain as he held her closer. Romeo let out a rough breath, then, cut another path through the gathered crowd. Slaves stared, awed. Masters and slave traders looked curious about the boy who had easily killed a decently powerful Vamp, others shook their heads because the show was moving somewhere else.

I followed and Rory met me half way—dragging our backpacks along—asking what happened. I told her everything in a quick ramble, not wanting to lose sight of the boys. I saw the Cambion stop, sticking out his hand as if hailing a cab. What showed up after a sharp curve wasn't a yellow car, but a horse carriage.

It was like a coach had popped out from the eighteen century! Romeo hurried to open the door so Cameron could pile in, I did to, as did Courtney, but Romeo took his time outside. I drew back a curtain to see he was showing the insignia on the ring to the driver. Only when the man nodded, did Romeo climb in—shutting the door.

And we were off. Somewhere.

"I showed the man the crest, he's taking us to the estate now." Estate...? "Where the Vampire you murdered lived. We might as well take advantage of this little accident, plus, it's expected that you claim what was his as yours."

"I didn't come here to become rich. I'm here—"

"For your brother. I know. Give it a rest already." Cameron jerked forward, about to punch Romeo—he ceased moving when the bundle in his arms moaned. "You should worry about that little slave. I will go and search for your twin, he's been brought to Hell and still lives—so he must have been through the slave market."

"I don't trust—"

"I'll go with him." Rory anticipated Cam's distrust. "You can trust me."

"I do."

"Oh, spare me the dramatics. Have I led you astray yet? No."

Tunning out their bickering, I leaned forward in my seat, swatting some charcoal hair to the side. Her eyes fixed onto mine and there was a hard pounding in my chest. Something that hadn't been there when I'd found out Helena was the same as me. Maybe because I knew she couldn't be trusted from the start, but this girl, so young, hurt... She could be saved. Helped.

I wanted to help her.

"Hi," I whispered. Cameron pressed on the shoulder wound with a piece of his shirt. "I'm Nina. Can you tell me your name?"

A beat of silence ripped across the vehicle. Everyone was aware of me speaking to the wounded stranger in Cam's hold.

Her face twisted, her mouth parted. Nothing came but pain, but she pushed it aside, like she'd been taught how.

"Jade..."

"Jade," I repeated with a kind smile. "That's a pretty name."

As the carriage hit some bumps, Courtney and Romeo talked about something, like where they should start asking for Phillip and how not to give away that another Nephilim was here. Mostly, Rory was growing upset because he didn't seem all that worried for Cameron's safety.

"Oh," Jade moaned squirming in Cam's hold. He glanced down at her, a spark of curiosity in his eyes. "I... my blood is staining your clothes, Master—"

"Don't worry about him," I waved it away. "He's always covered in blood."

Cameron gave a grim smile, "Thank you, Nina-kins." I smiled brightly only to tick him off more. "But it's fine. They're just clothes, I just change into new ones. Do you feel light headed?"

"Huh, no. Not much..." the look on her smudged face told me she wasn't used to this kind of contact. "I've never seen a slave talk that way... to a Master before... or stand up for another slave."

"Well, I'm not really his slave."

"Nina!" Cameron hissed.

I knew he didn't trust her. But Cameron didn't trust anyone. No, he did, it just didn't come easy to him. Something told me I could, though, trust her.

"Hush," I told him. I turned my gaze to hers. "We're here on a mission. Maybe you can help us," I whispered, as if I were talking to a child. In a way, I saw it inside her—the fear of one. "Have you heard about a Nephilim being brought to Hell?"

Her eyes doubled in size. "A Nephilim...? I thought they were all dead." My eyes shot to Cameron quickly. Her gaze followed slowly, once it registered, there was something more inside her. Not just pain or gratefulness—it was awe. "You... are one?"

"I..." I gave him a blunt look. "Yes."

"My God," she breathed. "They'll kill you if they know..."

"You don't say." Cam perked an eyebrow at me saying 'stupid much?'.

I rolled my eyes, "And you're a Psychic, like I am." I lifted the silver cuff. "I'm wearing silver for disguise, but I'm like you. We're the same."

She was stunned into silence for a minute, wincing as Cam adjusted the pressure on her shoulder.

"There are a lot of us here." She whispered sadly.

"At the house where we're heading?"

"No. I was the only non-human slave Master Stephan kept. There was my father... but he died years ago." Her father had carried angel blood, passed it down to her. I wondered what Helena had meant about my mother not being able to give me answers I needed.

"I'm sorry," I said truthfully.

Jade brushed it off. Like death was the most natural thing. Here it was.

"I haven't heard about a Nephilim being brought in, but my Master's business didn't involve slave smuggling. It was growing and selling Blood Flower sap, what Vampires drink when there's no source of blood." I remembered that. Rory had some in her bag, we'd picked it up in Sabine's store. "His business is yours now..."

"I don't care—" she flinched when Cam's voice rose. He looked out the window, calming himself he said, "I don't care about some vineyard business. I'm here for my brother."

I touched her hand, "You'll be okay now."

***

Romeo hadn't joked about us heading for an estate. When we got there, black iron gates were open. The horses followed a trail of dirt until we were sitting at the top of a hill, where the marvelous mansion sat upon. It was three times bigger than the Leale household. The size of the front door was agonizing and the number of windows filling the walls, too.

Plus, there were gargoyle statues looking down at us from the roof. How comforting.

Romeo dispatched the coach and ran for the door, where a man in a butler suit waited. He explained quickly what had happened showing off the ring—I finally realized the symbol was an eagle. The man bowed before Cameron as he charged inside. Cam didn't stop to say a thing, he just held Jade and told whoever he found that she needed medical attention. A maid led us, hastily, up stairs, they were decorated with a deep blue carpet.

Cameron burst into the first room he saw, not caring about the maid's yells, about the slave quarters being on the last floor.

"Bring some herb to heal her, bandages—anything." He barked sounding far more masterful than anyone I'd ever met. "Now, woman!"

"Y-yes, Master!" She rushed out, pushing me over—a bit—as she went.

I closed the door for privacy, approaching the bed.

"Nice performance."

"My drama teacher would be pleased." He pulled on an epic smile. Those were extremely rare. And maybe it was a good thing, because every time I saw them, my heart stopped.

I sat by Jade's side. Half-way here she'd gone quiet, too tired to talk. Blood loss finally getting the best of her.

"Do you think she'll be alright?" I asked, touching her clammy forehead.

"I sure hope so. After all the trouble I went through to save you both." His scowl was trained on me. "What you did was incredibly stupid, Nina."

It was a good thing that the maid came back, not just her, two of them. One had bandages and a bucket of water, another was holding a fairly tall vial with some type of brown goo inside.

"What's that?" Cam asked.

"Burdock root—its sap can heal, Master. It's the best we have." He nodded motioning for her to give it. "Master, we are the ones who tend to people not... hum... you... the Master." Maid number 1 mumbled looking lost.

"I'm demanding that sap, slave. Give it to me and leave this room." He stated, his eyes were black ice. "Leave the bandages and water too, my personal servant will take care of her." They looked at me, at how I was so casually sitting beside their new Master. I felt uncomfortable under their gaze, like I was being jealousy's target. "Go!"

They went.

Cameron didn't waste a breath. He tore the torn clothing from her shoulder, turning Jade onto her stomach. He began cleaning her back, arm and shoulder. I watched fascinated. When everything was as clean as it could be, he brushed her whip wounds with Burdock sap, dipping his fingers into the jar several times. He finished by wrapping her shoulder in gauze. That reminded me of the night me and V had snuck into school to prank Daren and Sam's lockers. He'd taken care of my arm, then.

"Ah," Jade blinked open her eyes as Cam applied sap on her swollen face. "I can see now."

"See?" Had she been blind before—?

"My ability," she mustered with a heavy breath. "Is that I can see bonds between souls... I call them Soul Threads because each soul is connected to another by a Thread. I couldn't use my ability before because I was... the pain was too much. I can now." I didn't see why she would use it now, but I was glad she seemed happy. I frowned, more than just happy. It was like she could see something I couldn't and what she saw made her radiant. "The Threads have a color and each color holds a meaning. White is normal, it means their just Soul Acquaintances, blue is for Soul Mates, and red is for..." she trailed off. "Yours is red."

Cameron was up, seemingly ignoring what she was saying.

Licking my lips, I turned to her, "Soul Mates? That's a real thing?"

"Of course. They're souls that you can connect with easily, it means your soul and theirs vibrates at a similar frequency. When you find a Soul Mate, there's peace..." she paused, wincing. "Nothing changes, everything is good." Her eyes flickered from me to Cameron. My heart jumped. "Twin Flames."

"Excuse me?" Within me something stirred and pounded in my veins.

She smiled. That smile I didn't understand. Cameron kept moving slowly around the room, opening every box and drawer, studying every item closely. Like a curious child.

"When a new soul is born it has a male-half and a feminine one. They split up. One soul that shares two bodies." Jade played with her bronze bracelet. "Each soul has only one Twin Flame and finding each other is very rare. But if they do... A Twin Flame doesn't come peacefully, they awaken your soul and plant a fire in your heart. Your world changes in a second. You can't bear to lose them. Because it would be like... losing your best friend, your smile—your everything."

Blood clobbered my ears. Again, I fingered my necklace.

"Twin Flames know each other better than anyone else in the world. They reflect one another, heal each other, feel each others presence. Their minds, bodies and hearts hum as one. The Twin Flame relationship is the greatest gift anyone could ever find. But it's not easy. Not like Soul Mates. With them there's peace, Twin Flames are wild and chaotic. But that's the purpose of souls, I think. Find their Twin and evolve. Grow and love unconditionally."

Across the distance our eyes sought each other. Locking. There was so much passing in his dark pupils, so many things burning in my chest.

"It's... all that, huh?" My voice sounded fragile. "And... hmm... What's the thread color for Twin Flames?" My fingers curled into the mattress—

"Red." Jade exhaled softly, regarding me with a boosting smile.

Red. Like the one connecting me and... Cam. Red. Pretty powerful color. Red. Damn. My heart was hammering. My soul rejoicing because that was the hidden truth all along. The one I could taste, but never get close enough to discover. Cameron's hand released a long silver chain, dropping his arms at his sides. He stared mutely but deeply. I knew his thoughts were just as messy.

"...when Twin Flames are in proximity of each other they feel it..." she was still talking.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled. "What did you say?"

"That Twin Flames can feel each other? It's a unique connection."

I think the mysterious tingle was solved. A breath left me and I wished Cameron wouldn't just stand there looking mind-blown. Jade must've read the anxiety on my face because she twisted around, and became shyer, like when she'd first looked or talked at Cam.

"Once Twin Flames meet, no matter what they do or how long they run and deny each other, they'll always end up in the same place. Whether they like it or not." Her voice lowered and she turned back to me. "I thought you should know. It's the only way I have of... repaying both of you."

I could feel a change in the atmosphere. Suddenly, I could taste electricity in the air.

"Jade," I hurried before Cam's timer went off. "That was a wonderful thing to tell us, thank you. We'll let you rest now."

He made it to the door so fast I couldn't hear Jade's voice thanking me for the millionth time—she'd done it until she couldn't speak on the ride here. The maids weren't anywhere to be seen. Cameron simply "dragged" me to a room at the end of the hall. He didn't even care for the insides.

Leaning on the closed door, I regarded Cameron. Tense, shaken and whatever else that spelled coiled.

"Cam," I began. "Are you okay?"

At those words his head snapped towards me. I gasped when he stood inches apart, breathing hard.

"Do you feel it too?" I opened my mouth only to close it. Because what I was feeling was a very warm flush spread all over my body. "A tingle... Do you get one when I'm around?" Oh. That.

"Yes..." as my lips moved their edges brushed Cam's. Quickly, he pursed them.

My heart jumped to my throat when Cameron, suddenly, was all over the room. Frustration palpable. A shattering noise later, I yelled at him.

"What?" He growled as response. Not at all caring that he'd just thrown a box into a window. "What am I supposed to do with this Nina? With the knowledge that my soul... That our souls are the same? That we're bound to be a chaotic mess!" He would've broken a lamp if I hadn't jerked forward, gripping his wrist.

"Stop," I choked out. His demeanor didn't change. "Stop, Cam. Stop." His wild eyes settled on my face. What he saw made him inhale deeply. As his muscles gave away, I rubbed his hand as if saying 'see? You stopped being destructive'. "This doesn't change anything, Cameron—"

"Are you stupid?" He bit and I felt anger stir. "She basically told us we can't be with other people—that no matter how much we try we can't get away from a doomed relationship."

My hold flattered, "Do you want to be with other people?"

"I didn't say that."

"It was implied!" I whirled around, walking back to the room's center. "And that wasn't at all what Jade said. She said it wasn't an easy relationship—not bad or doomed."

Silence stretched out.

Maybe he was right. Maybe we couldn't be anything but time-bombs. Maybe all those things Jade said about love, completion and oneness wasn't true. Except... my fingers dug into my palms. It was real. I'd felt it. Since Haven Hills, even when we hated each other, we didn't. There had always been an unexplainable connection between us—not just the hot-and-cold down my neck.

I felt it in everything.

How he knew what I was thinking. How he made me stronger. How I could never stop thinking about him even when Phillip and I were together. How he brought me back from the edge. How he drove me over it. No matter how wrong it all sounded, the happy moments with Cameron were worth it.

"I didn't say I wanted to be with other people," the floorboards creased under his boots. "I never imagined myself with someone. But I found you or you found me, and now..." I felt him hovering behind me. "You don't deserve someone who constantly hurts you."

I clenched my teeth.

"We hurt each other. It's a two way streak."

"You see my point." Cam's chuckle had zero humor. "We don't work."

Turning around, with arms firmly crossed over my chest, I blinked.

"You need to stop."

"What?" His brow creased in what I knew to be fake confusion.

"Stop doing what you think is best for me, stop treating me like an idiot who isn't capable of making choices and stop lying!" I felt my cork pop. "You need to stop being scared of hurting me or of being with me! The Universe will not implode because you're happy!" Cameron's mood took another turn for the sour. But this time we were a perfect match. "Don't walk away just because I'm telling the truth," I followed him to the broken window. "I used to think I couldn't be happy, too, but that's downright stupid. Everyone deserves happiness."

"Nina—"

"Don't use what happened to your father as excuse. It was an accident. A terrible one, but it wasn't your fault." I sighed rubbing my eyes. How many times had I told him that? Only since last night! "I told you, I'm done fighting what's between us."

Cameron didn't say a word. But a strong, gentle thumb wiped away something wet from my cheek.

Crap.

I pulled away.

"How can you possibly want something with me? This is proof of what I do." He said, rubbing my tear between his finger pads. "Not just to you, to everyone I've ever gotten close to."

I shook my head.

"Just yesterday you said you were mine."

Before answering, he drew a big breath, "I am."

"Good," I said firmly, advancing the last step to him. Grabbing hold of his hand, I placed it over my chest, where my heart was beating in an outpaced frenzy. "This is yours, too. Even if you don't want it."

"I do want it." He said it like it pained him.

I let his hand fall away feeling a burst of uncontrollable rage.

"Then stop finding excuses not to be happy!" I yelled throwing open my arms. "Yes my life would be easier if I hadn't met you, yes our relationship is complicated—but I can't change any of that!" I walked up to him with piercing eyes and felt every wall I'd ever put up since my dreams started as a little girl tumble. "I can't change the fact that I love you." My throat burned. "I love you. I've been in love with you and fighting it, but I can't and I don't want to anymore!"

Cameron's eyes darted to every inch of me, leaving me exposed on every cellular level. Then his fingertips grazed my cheeks, until he had my face perfectly cupped in his hands. Like I was a priceless, irreplaceable artifact. It sent my heart on a gig.

"Nina Cortez," I loved how Cam tilted his forehead down, its weight against mine, the way his lips curled up when he spoke my name. "I promise I'll get you out of this place safe and sound, and if after that... if you can still say those words to me... I'll..." He was shaking all over. My hands splayed over his chest, to his shoulders. I knew exactly what he was thinking.

Reaching for his face in an equal gesture, I whispered, "I love you now, I'll love you tomorrow and the day after that. Nothing can take that away from me now. Or from you. I've wanted to say those words since I broke Lyra's spell. That's how I broke it, Cam."

I tipped my lips to his, igniting a flame that licked my insides. The sparks of his Power crawled over my curves and edges. They were welcome. A part of him. I wanted them, wanted all of him. His lips were poesy, incredibly soft and tender in their approach to mine, then they grew stronger, demanding.

I'd known what we had was special and uncommon before today. Jade had confirmed it—given it a name. But in no way had it influenced my feelings, or his, I knew.

This was a kiss of promise on his part. But for both of us, it was insatiable need. Something only we felt for one another, no one else could understand. The more I had of him, the closer I was, the more I lost myself and found him.

Until we were nothing but the same person.