lifetime was different. The Awakening had come and she was his as she had always been meant to be.
She drew a breath and his thumb dipped lower to smooth the tip of her pebbled nipple. Teresa’s eyes slid closed on a sigh and Rune’s body thickened to the point of aching.
“Enough talk,” he muttered, dipping his head to claim her mouth in a kiss designed to wipe away centuries of misery. “I must have you.”
Their mouths met in a frenzy, as if neither of them could ever taste or feel enough. And when she finally broke away, gasping for air, Rune was teetering on the edge of madness.
She lifted both hands to cup his face and looked into his eyes as she said, “I made a vow this time, Rune. We’re mates. In this together. This time things will be different.”
Her words inflamed him as much as her touch did. If he’d had a beating heart, it would have been crashing against his rib cage. But his hunger was alive and growing and that was all he needed at the moment. He tumbled her back on the bed and let the future take care of itself.
Chapter 32
They spent two days in Aladdin’s cave, as Teresa thought of it. And during that time, they pushed the mating brand into showing itself fully.
“Lightning bolts,” Teresa murmured, glancing down at the tattoo on her bare breast. There was one complete bolt jutting up from the edge of her nipple and beginning to curl into yet another bolt that was just starting to bloom onto her skin. Linked together, they would make a chain of sorts, like a storm cloud of lightning on her skin.
She smiled at the brand and, running her finger over the tattoo, she felt caged power within her, humming in the design itself. Ancient magic was sliding through her system with every passing moment, settling itself into her body at the cellular level.
Teresa felt stronger, more vibrant somehow. As if she was becoming what she’d always longed to be. She could feel her body waking up. Everything in her was reaching, stretching and growing. Her soul was sparklingly alive for the first time, awakening even as the magic within arose.
And the magic was breathtaking.
Rune had been right. She was gaining control of it, beginning to know how to wield the massive electrically charged bolts that seemed to dance to her whims. The thrill of magic sliding through her was something she thought she would never get tired of. This time with Rune was bringing her closer and closer to the witch she was destined to be.
And she hungered for it.
Just as she hungered to know more. To remember more.
Her Eternal had become the center of her life. She hadn’t expected that. But there was more to him than his nature as a warrior. He protected her. Taught her.
She cared for him. His quiet voice. His steely eyes. The patience he showed when he taught her the very magic she needed to survive. His quick smile and fierce lovemaking. He was so much more than she had thought he would be.
Glancing over her shoulder to make sure Rune hadn’t returned unexpectedly, she turned her gaze back to the mirror hanging over a low marble-topped table against the cave wall. She looked into her own eyes and realized that she was in some danger here. Yes, she was stronger, and her powers were blossoming like a waterstarved flower experiencing spring rain.
But there was something more, too. A seed of something dark that scratched at the edges of her soul. Niggling temptation. Seduction. She felt it every time she called on her powers. Something as dark as the lightning was bright. And it knew her. Teresa felt it.
“You won’t give in,” she told her reflection, lowering her gaze to the tattoo on her mirror image’s breast. She had come too far. Lost too much already to surrender herself to the past. Whatever attractions the pull of dark power had over her, they were nothing compared to the need to find justice for Elena and everyone else hurt by those chasing after this Artifact.
Feeling her twisted nerves settle, she pulled up a chair in front of the table. She had already laid out six of the white votive candles they’d gotten at the store what seemed like a lifetime ago.
While Rune was out gathering supplies and checking to make sure no hunters were near, Teresa was going to work a spell. Enlightenment. That’s what