feel like I know you well enough to make that decision right now, but it’s really not that simple. This whole thing is…”
He dropped his hand when he didn’t finish his sentence. Liam inspected her from head to toe instead and Zoe did the same to him. He was still hard, and his eyes glowed in the dim light of his bedroom.
“The magic that makes up the mate bond is aggressive,” he explained. For a second it looked like he wanted to take a step forward, but then managed to control himself before he did. “The more we’re around each other, the more it will deepen. I spent days holding you while you slept. It’s already stronger than it should be for two people who don’t know each other.”
Her eyes narrowed and Zoe tried to feel this bond between them, but she didn’t understand how it worked.
Liam pointed at her chest. “You have an ache you keep rubbing. It’s the pain the mate bond causes when there is distance between us, or strain put on the bond. You probably feel drawn to me but don’t know why. It will keep pushing us to get closer until we give in.”
It sounded ridiculous, but he was right. There were times she’d had a random ache in her chest. Zoe didn’t like that it gave them physical symptoms, but she supposed it was better than manipulating her thoughts.
“If we are sexual with each other, the bond strengthens exponentially and soon it will feel like you don’t have a choice and you have to choose me or lose your mind.” Liam closed his eyes and this time when he opened them, they were back to his pretty human blue.
She tried to figure out if that made her feel a certain way or not. Zoe considered and then refocused on him. “Is that everything?”
It was adorable to watch him think about it for her. Liam really wanted to make sure she had all the information and knew all the rules. “I can accept or reject the mate bond without saying it, and so can you. Usually, we tell each other though. When we both accept, it will become permanent, and we’ll claim each other which involves a bite. If we both reject the bond, it shatters. Some wolves can move on just fine, and some are broken beyond repair.” He shrugged like it was no big deal, but she could see the fear in his eyes.
Zoe smelled something slightly sour and realized she could smell his fear too.
“That’s everything,” he said quietly, watching her with that intensity that made her feel all hot and bothered.
“Okay, can I come closer?” Zoe pressed her hands to the door to force herself to wait patiently. All the information was swimming in her head, but it made sense. There were risks, she just had to be aware of them.
Zoe had always had to weigh the benefits against those risks whether it be in her work, or in her personal life. There was a chance this could end very badly, and she wouldn’t be able to come back from it.
But she was already there. Zoe couldn’t go back to the life she’d had even if she didn’t know that Liam was supposed to be her mate. What was a little more risk at this point? If he was who she thought he was, this could be everything she’d wanted and then some.
Was it just last week she’d been crushing on the one guy she knew she couldn’t have simply because she was bored? It felt like a completely different life.
“Zoe…” Liam looked unsure, but she watched the way his body leaned toward her.
“Can I tell you something?” she asked, feeling her nerves rise as she considered telling him why she was so interested.
Liam nodded, but he watched her warily.
“I used to think I liked Chris, but I was trying to be someone I wasn’t,” she admitted, pressing against the door so she didn’t move toward him no matter how badly she wanted to. “He wanted that sweet romantic kind of love with a girl who was shy and blushed for him. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s not me and we both knew it.”
She shook her head and took a deep breath. This was going to be rough, but Zoe felt like she had to tell him for some reason. Liam was a sweet guy with jagged edges. Like the hard candy that tasted so good on her tongue