Page 40 of Plus-Size Sold Mate
Despite the determination I feel to prove myself, the irritation stitched into my ribs only grows the farther I go, and the longer I think about it all.
Back there, I almost let the old conditioning win me over again. It almost sank its claws back in, and it unsettles me to the point of anger.
I’m tired of defending my choices. I’m tired of the sideways glances, the subtle warnings, and everyone waiting for this to implode on me.
As much as I know, I shouldn’t bring this turbulence inside with me, and I should be giving Sera space to sort through everything, but I can’t help it.
Pushing through the front door, the tether pulls with more desperation than I should allow, and all I can focus on is finding her.
She’s in the backyard when I exit through the patio door, barefoot in the grass and idly pacing while she reads. The sun is setting behind her, making her glow with a golden hue that makes me stop breathing for a long moment as I watch.
She looks so peaceful, and more perfect than she has any right to be.
The bond reacts the moment she senses me, and with a flicker of awareness, she pauses her steps to look at me.
My heart feels like it’s in my throat as I step forward, but the overwhelming need inside me keeps me moving until I’m right there.
“I trust you.”
Sera blinks back at me with confusion, hesitating before she murmurs, “What?”
“I trust you,” I repeat, pulling in a shaky breath that makes me feel unlike myself. “I trust your intentions and your abilities. I don’t think you’re a danger to anyone.”
She just stares for a beat, then she swallows. “You don’t know me well enough to trust me.”
“Maybe not,” I say, well aware that our relatively short time together isn’t enough to truly know someone, but with our connection, it feels like I’ve known her forever. “But it’s instinct, and I mean it.”
I catch the jump in her pulse, but her guard stays up as she takes a small step back. “You’re frustrated with them…the others.” When I nod, she continues, “Then why are you here?”
Realizing just how intensely I’m staring at her now, I force myself to pause and try to relax at least a little bit. But right now, the bond is so loud. It isn’t as angry or precarious as it had been, but now it’s so full of wanting and needing that I don’t know what else to do with myself.
I’ve been holding back and giving her space, and while that’s the bare minimum, it’s killing me.
I want to respect her need for distance, but after swallowing every impulse to touch her and swallowing every warning and doubt, I feel like a pressure cooker.
More than anything, I want her.
“Because,” I begin, struggling to hold myself back. “I want you to stop looking at me like I’m your enemy. I want you to stop pretending this doesn’t exist…that the bond isn’t in you, too.”
Her gaze darkens just enough for me to see, but the bond surges like it’s agreeing with me. She can try to hide it all she wants, but she isn’t immune to its pull either.
Still, I need her to want this.
“I hate that it’s there,” she says, just above a whisper, like the words are too acidic for her tongue.
“I know.”
She narrows her eyes, but can’t hide the way she takes me in. “And you’re still pushing. Why?”
Because I’m done pretending I don’t feel the heat between us, even when she’s angry with me. Because I’m done letting everyone assume they know how this will unfold.
I take a small step forward, clinging to the fact that she doesn’t pull back again.
“I can’t keep holding back,” I murmur, eyes scanning her features for any sign that she wants this too. “I won’t do anything you don’t want me to, but I need you to know I’m not resisting how I feel.”
When I step into her space fully, Sera doesn’t say anything. Her lips part as she looks up at me, and before she can school it again, her eyes soften. There’s little air between us now, and she looks so damn tempting.
My mate…the woman I haven’t been able to claim yet.
