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Chapter Thirteen: Mate?

After their top-secret mission in the forest, Luca and Chelsea had gone to join the others in the lake. Damian had come to sit next to me, our backs resting against a log while we stared quietly into the fire. The silence wasn't awkward, but every fiber of my being was aware of his presence and the warmth radiating off his body, even with the distance between us.

Damian spoke first.

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable earlier. That wasn't my intention."

"You didn't make me uncomfortable," I said.

He looked toward me, waiting for me to elaborate. I didn't know what else to say. My brain seemed to stop working altogether whenever he was close. He probably thinks I'm a complete nitwit.

I let out a heavy sigh before saying.

"I wasn't uncomfortable. I guess you made me feel — confused?" I said it as more of a question than a statement.

"Because I asked if you liked Chase?" Damian said softly.

I swallowed, feeling a little embarrassed.

"That, and because of other things," I mumbled, focusing on the fire instead of his dark eyes.

"Because of this?" he nearly whispered as he silently moved his body closer. He reached toward me and brushed a strand of my hair out of my eyes.

His touch was as light as a feather tickling my cheek, but my body reacted as if he had touched me with an electric wire, only it wasn't painful.

I was ready for the sensation this time, and it didn't surprise me as much as it had the last couple of times his skin made contact with mine. But being prepared didn't stop my heart from going into overdrive as it pounded against my rib cage, trying to break free.

I stared at him, my lips parted as I watched him take in my reaction to his touch. He seemed to be breathing heavier as well. The dancing light of the fire cast shadows across him, but I could still see and feel the rise and fall of his chest.

"I feel it too." he rested the palm of his hand against my cheek, and I leaned into it. "I don't completely understand it, but I feel it too."

Without breaking eye contact, his thumb grazed my bottom lip. I sucked in a sharp breath, which got caught in my throat at the sensation, and then his lips were on mine.

It was a gentle kiss, his lips had barely brushed mine before my body began to respond, and I was kissing him back before I could even comprehend what was happening.

Then I could feel him. Not just his warm arms wrapped tight around me or the rise and fall of his chest — but his emotions and thoughts.

I could feel his joy about finally finding his — mate?

I finally found you, his voice said, but he couldn't have said it out loud because his mouth was still on mine. No, he had only thought it.

I gasped and tried to pull away, but his arms tightened around me.

"Don't be scared, Savannah." Damian's voice spoke in my mind.

Momentarily, I relaxed into his hold, desperately wanting to share my real name. Then I began to panic. Since I could feel what he was feeling and thinking, does that mean he could also see into my mind?

"Only a little," he responded. "I already knew that Savannah wasn't your name... You know you can trust me. If you're in trouble, I want to help."

I was vaguely aware that we had stopped kissing and now our foreheads rested against one another, our chests rising and falling in sync with the other.