Levi couldn’t stop pacing about. He had sat in his truck at the meet-up stop he and Eden had agreed upon for three hours. Continuously, he told himself that she was caught up in something and would arrive any minute. But as morning turned to afternoon, and afternoon drew near to evening, worry began to settle in. What if Carlyle had somehow found out about the two of them, and he had imprisoned her as she’d feared? What if that Darian guy had hurt her?

Levi’s mind ran through every possible scenario imaginable, bringing him to the brink of his own sanity. Time dragged on, the day seeming to take weeks to tick by. Levi’s hands stayed clasped behind his back as he walked the length of his cabin again and again. Wracking his brain for an explanation for Eden’s disappearance and radio silence, he came up short. Soon enough, he was trying to figure out how he could reach her to make sure she was okay. By phone was risky, knowing that if she had just gotten tied up with family matters, it was dangerous for them to speak. Taking a phone call could spark questions, ones that Eden didn’t have answers for.

Realistically, there was only one other way, and that was to go in person. That was abhorrently reckless, though, and Levi knew Eden’s fury would be imminent. But he couldn’t calm himself. Every time he began to assure himself that she was fine and merely busy, ten new dangerous scenarios would pop into his head. The worry was so all-consuming that he hadn’t even noticed he had yet to eat or drink anything.

Reaching a boiling point come night time, Levi cursed aloud and moved outside with a backpack. With only just a split second of hesitance, he leaped into the sky and began the flight to the Tallant estate. He was a risk-taker, always doing what was needed of him, no matter what. This, however, was hands-down the most insane thing he had ever done. Levi felt like a kamikaze as he soared through the air like a bullet. This very well could be a suicide mission, and the only pay off would be knowing whether or not his mate was safe. The urge to check in on her had become unbearable, and he needed to do something productive.

When he drew near to the royal estate, Levi slowed his paced and kept his eyes peeled. He circled the estate, taking a survey of how many people were there and how he could land without being seen. Thankfully, the security of the estate was almost entirely at the gate down the driveway, with only one guard standing immediately outside the house. He was by the front door, and Eden’s room was on the back side of the mansion, so as long as Levi was silent in his descent, he could potentially get in relatively easily.

Once he was confident in his plan, Levi swooped downward, opening his wings high above the house so that the sound was deafened in the space between himself and the lone guard at the estate. It surprised him how light security was, but then again, most of the top dragons resided inside, and everyone in the Kingdom knew better than to infiltrate the estate. They would be swiftly put to death before being shamed in some way postmortem. That thought weighed heavily on Levi as he silently tried to glide down to Eden’s balcony while trying to keep himself as small as possible so that he was less likely to draw attention.

Levi only eased once his feet touched the cool metal of the railing. His claws dropped his backpack cautiously to the ground before he began his transformation back to his human state; once again, he was thankful he had grown numb to the pain of sudden shifts. Dressing quickly, Levi stepped toward the door and cupped his hands to the glass. Curtains mostly blocked his view, but he could see just a sliver of the dark room inside. A worrisome doubt bubbled in his stomach, wondering if he had the wrong room. However, as he scanned about, he noticed the chaise lounge where he and Eden had sat together and had felt their bond fully for the first time. That was Eden’s room, but where was she?

Anxiety spiked through Levi. It was nearly ten o’clock. Where could Eden be at that hour? He had already learned from their conversations that she was almost always at home. She found comfort in the familiar and didn’t see the point of trying to keep up with the ever-changing human world. It was unlikely she had been called away from a rare business meeting so late. Levi’s heart thumped painfully in his chest.

Eventually, he sat in one of the patio chairs, keeping out of sight of the yard. Levi’s fingers quietly drummed against the arms of the chair, unsure what to do with himself as he waited. His heartbeat was in his ears in a woeful rhythm. The only comfort he had at that point was that he wasn’t in any physical pain. From what he had gathered from stories shared about soulmates, one would be in immense pain if their mate was dying—one would literally feel a part of their own soul dying. Besides the all-consuming anxiety, Levi felt fine.

At some point, one thin beam of light appeared on the floor of the balcony. His head jerked in the direction of the door. Standing up, he peered through the crack in the curtains. Eden was there, slouched against her bedroom door with her hand to her forehead. By the looks of it, she was emotionally defeated. Her hair was damp, and she wore only a bathing suit top and shorts with a cardigan. Had she spent the day in the lake? Why couldn’t she have sent him a message to let him know that she needed to meditate? Levi was an understanding man, and they had seen one another every day. He wouldn’t have had any problem.

As Eden started to remove her cardigan, Levi rapped on the door. He didn’t want her to get indecent. They needed to talk. Eden jumped like a frightened deer before reluctantly making her way toward the balcony. Levi stood back so that she didn’t get startled again. One of her eyes appeared in the glass as she peeked behind the curtain to see who it was. The door then flew open, and Eden reached an arm out to pull him inside with one heave. Once the door was shut behind them, Eden was face to face with him, her eyes on fire.

“What in the hell are you doing here?! Are you actually insane?” Her hands thumped against his chest in an attempt to shove him, but Levi didn’t budge.

“You didn’t show, and I didn’t hear from you. I had the right to be concerned,” he defensively remarked.

“So you show up here? Are you trying to get us caught?” Her hands thumped his chest again.

“No, I’m not. I had to know you were okay! I was as careful as I could have been. Did I get caught? No.”

“Not yet, maybe! What about when you leave?” Eden questioned. “This place is way too dangerous for you to be here! I was going to message you when I was finally home; I’m sorry I got swept away.”

“For twelve hours?” Levi accused, folding his hands over his chest.

“Yes, I was. I couldn’t get out of it.”

“With who?”

“That is none of your business.” Subconsciously, Levi broadened his chest.

“Who were you with, Eden?” Levi flinched when Eden broke out into a bitter, hoarse cackle.

“I’m so impossibly tired of men thinking they are entitled to know my every move!” She ran her hands frantically through her hair. “I mean, really! Is every little decision going to be made for me, my every day planned for me, and my every task monitored and reported?”

“I’m not them, and you know that,” Levi growled. His eyes closed as he tried to cool his temper. Then, he felt the slightest movement of her feet and a sharp inhale. His hands flew to his chest, catching Eden’s wrists before she could strike him. He stared into her eyes. Violence wasn’t exactly uncommon in their culture; however, it was out of character for Eden, despite her attempt to strike him a week ago. She was suffering immensely and was cracking from all the pressure on her shoulders. Levi could tell this wasn’t her. “I am not your brother. You do not strike me just because you’re angry.”

Though Eden seemed to regret what she had thought of doing, her eyes remained furious. Snapping her hands back from him, she rubbed her wrists.

“You’re right, I… I shouldn’t have tried to slap you. I’m sorry…” Her resolved cracked even more, tears stinging her enchanting blue eyes. It was clear she hadn’t been aware of what she was doing. Levi reached out a hand and stroked her bicep attentively to show he wasn’t upset, that it was okay. Her eyes were anywhere but on him. “I still stand by my point, though. I’m not going to tell you or anyone all that I do. I deserve to have some control over my life.”

“I didn’t mean to make it sound like that. I’m sorry,” Levi apologized, caressing both of her arms. Eden didn’t shrug his touch away but didn’t lean into it, either. “You’re right, I don’t have the right to know who you spent your day with. That question was out of line. I’m sorry. I was just worried. My mind went wild when you didn’t show up.”

Eden stared down at the ground. “I’m sorry… I thought you would… I really didn’t have a way to tell you. I-I was with Darian, and it felt too risky to try and use my phone, in case he saw me. Then we were on a yacht, and I had no signal at all.”

Jealousy brew in Levi, but he kept his face calm. He hated that the man who was in line to marry Eden had spent the entire day with her instead of him. He was aware that she hadn’t had any other option than to go with Darian, though that didn’t make it any easier to picture her having a romantic outing on a yacht with another man.

“It’s okay, don’t worry,” Levi assured her. “I understand. I know I let my anxiety get the best of me. Just the thought of you being hurt…” His hand went to stroke her cheek. Eden turned her face away from his approaching touch.

“While that’s sweet, this… this…” She searched for her words but fell short. She covered her face with her hand for a few seconds before dropping it and clasping both of her palms together. “This is not okay. This is… too much for me. You were willing to risk your life, not to mention getting us caught, because you didn’t hear from me in less than twenty-four hours. Do you know how that sounds?”

“You make it sound as though I was irrational to be worried—” he began.

“It wasn’t irrational to worry, Levi,” Eden interjected. “What was irrational was your decision-making that led you to show up at my home! Which is filled with people who want to see your head on a spike.”

Suddenly, Levi was the one feeling defeated. “I know that. It felt worth it just to know you were okay.”

“See? That is not okay,” Eden insisted. “I know we’re mates, but you’ve just given yourself to it. While it’s… flattering, it’s too fast. How am I supposed to know how much of it is you having true feelings for me, and how much is you being in love with having a mate?”

“You don’t know how I feel,” Levi answered. “I will give you that. You clearly don’t, or else you would know that nothing I feel is anything less than genuine. Why can’t you trust me or your own intuition? You don’t believe I’m genuine in expressing my feelings, and you don’t seem to believe the simple fact that we’re soulmates, either.”

Eden shook her head side to side as her bitter laughter returned. “I am brought back to wondering why I’m even discussing this. My god, what have I been doing this past week and a half? I’m betrothed, with absolutely no way out of it. I have no idea why I agreed to give you a chance, let alone until the wedding. This is utterly ludicrous.”

“What are you trying to say?” Levi asked firmly.

“What do you think?” she cried. “This is over. There is no way there can be anything between us, and I might as well save myself the stress of trying to find some magical way to make this work.”

“You do not mean that,” he said—pleaded, almost.

“Don’t try and act as if you know what I think or feel!” Eden snapped. “You hardly know me.”

Levi stepped toward her. “I think I know you better than you think I do. We’ve spent a lot of time together, Eden. We’ve talked a lot, and I think I know some things about you that even those closest to you don’t.”

“Stop it.”

“Stop what?”

“Stop acting like you know me! You just don’t!” she cried out.

Levi closed the distance between them, lifting her from the waist. Before he could kiss her, Eden’s lips were on his, hungry and urgent. Levi groaned, kissing her back passionately and eagerly. One hand traveled up her spine and into the hair on the back of her head, keeping her close to him as he deepened the kiss. His other hand greedily traveled down to her bottom, groping it liberally. Before Levi realized what he was doing, he had Eden pinned against a wall. Her fingers were nimbly unbuttoning his flannel. Ripping away from Eden’s lips, he attacked her neck in kisses and licks. When he bit down sensually, Eden shuddered and moaned as she pressed into him.

Levi was lost in a sea of hormones and emotions. He used his body to keep her against the wall, his hands exploring her legs before massaging her inner thighs. Eden’s fingers gripped his short strands of hair, jerking his head back from her neck and causing a jolt of excitement to go through him. It was becoming a conscious effort to resist the primal urge to throw her on the bed, rip her clothes off, and ravish her. Then her hot breath was in his ear, causing him to grip her legs tighter.

“Levi,” Eden gasped. “I—I can’t, I’m… I’m sorry.”

He stared at her, the weight of her words having to drift down through the thick fog of testosterone before he could digest what she had said. Levi had gotten so swept away in the throw of passion that he was disoriented by the change of direction.

“It’s okay,” he breathed, resting his forehead against her collarbone while he collected himself.

“It’s just… I am engaged,” Eden reminded him. “And yes, I don’t exactly want to be with him, but it still doesn’t feel right.”

“That’s honorable of you,” Levi said with a nod. He lowered her to the floor, pressing a kiss to her forehead. He could still feel her plush lips on his. He sighed and scratched the back of his head. “I don’t mean that sarcastically, either. It shows how loyal you are, no matter the level of the relationship. That’s admirable.”

Eden leaned into him, her arms wrapped snuggly around his ribs. He embraced her as well. “I don’t know what to do, Levi. Darian is… an all right guy. There’s nothing I can find on him to get out of this marriage. It’s hopeless.”

“It isn’t entirely hopeless,” Levi insisted. “What will help is for you to stop doubting what we have. You’re resistant to it, and I know it’s because you’re trying to protect yourself. But you’re compromising your own emotions if you do that. Your directive becomes clear: that what we have is worth the danger as well as the stress.”

Eden buried her face against his chest. Then her body began to tremble, and Levi’s shirt grew damp. His heart broke in half at the sight of her crying. Scooping her up, Levi moved Eden over to her bed. Setting her down on the edge, he sat next to her and kept one arm locked around her as the other hand rested on her knee in a comforting manner. He had thought that she would need a few minutes to compose herself, and then they could talk about what had upset her so bad. It had to have been something he’d said, but he wasn’t sure what had constituted such tears. No matter the reason, Levi felt horrible for making her cry.

Eden’s arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him closer to her. As patiently as possible, Levi remained silent. She would talk when she was ready, and he didn’t want to pressure her and cause her to grow even more upset. Soon, it became clear that Eden had no intention of talking about it. She moved to lie on her side, and it pained Levi not to be touching her when she was in such distress. Taking a chance, he lied down behind her and draped an arm over her before spooning her from behind. In response, Eden rolled over to where her face was planted into the crease of his neck.

There they remained, his hands caressing her sweetly and comfortingly as she cried. He stayed awake until her tears stopped. He could tell Eden was still awake, though, and he continued to rub her soothingly. It was at that point that they both began to slip out of consciousness, their breathing synchronizing. They fell into a deep slumber, cuddling one another close. Levi even dreamed of Eden.