Blaze (Dark in You 2)

“Which is why I’m never letting you go.”

They spent the next two days sunbathing, swimming, scuba diving, and doing other watersports that he convinced her to try. Her favorite was scuba diving. She’d done it a few times before, so she already knew how to use the equipment. Still, it felt weird breathing through a regulator, and it took a while before she could tune out the bubbling and whooshing of air as she breathed underwater. Having her peripheral vision obstructed by the face mask annoyed her, because Harper didn’t like blind spots. Still, scuba diving itself was awesome.

She loved the underwater paradise with the colorful fish, amazing coral displays, and the rock formations. Loved the freeing feeling of weightlessness – of being able to fly up, down, left and right. As always, she was exhausted by the end of it.

Her evenings with Knox included a seriously delicious meal followed by either a dip in the Jacuzzi, a movie in the theater, or simply having drinks at the wet bar with the sentinels. On their last night, after she’d showered and – exhausted by watersports – pretty much fell face first on bed wearing only a towel, she felt Knox’s warmth breath on the back of her shoulder.

“Wake up for me,” he whispered.

“In a minute,” she sleepily mumbled into the pillow.

“Come on, wake up.”

“I just need a minute. Or an hour.”

He kissed and licked her shoulder. “This is important.”

“What?”

“I have something for you.”

She groaned. Not more gifts. They were always super expensive and it still felt weird to accept stuff from him.

Knox chuckled. “Such gratitude.” Not that he’d expected a different response. He actually found her awkwardness at receiving gifts kind of endearing.

“What is it?” She rolled onto her back to find him sitting on the edge of the bed, a towel around his waist. And he was holding a small, black velvet box. “Not more jewelry,” she whined with a playful smile. Her demon was excited. It liked shiny things.

He chuckled again and handed it to her. “Open the box.”

“Do I have to?”

“No, but I’d like you to.”

She sat up. “Okay.” She carefully opened the box. And swallowed hard. It wasn’t a ring. It was two rings. One was a black-gold band that was dotted with small diamonds. The second was also a smooth black gold and it looped twice, crossing just beneath where a black diamond was set.

Harper cleared her suddenly dry throat. A demon only bought a black diamond for their mate; it was a symbol of their commitment, the ultimate brand. Couples often waited years – even centuries – before exchanging them, as demons didn’t make any commitments lightly.

“You’re that sure of me?” she asked him, astonished. “I thought it would have taken you a long, long time to get to this point.” She knew that he was so used to being alone.

“I want you to wear these. I want you to be able to look at them and remember you’re very important to someone.” Knox hated that her emotional reflex was to expect people to leave her, but who could blame her for that? Both parents had abandoned her as a child. Although she eventually went to live with her completely useless father, she’d then lived a nomadic lifestyle, always leaving things and people behind.

Knox needed her to believe he wasn’t going anywhere. He needed her to understand that it wasn’t because she was his anchor, it was because he fucking adored her. “I want you to always have these reminders that you belong to someone – me. And I want others to see them and know you’re off-limits.” Even humans would understand the rings symbolized she was taken.

Feeling a little choked up, Harper said nothing. She just stared at the rings, moved and warmed by what they meant. She just… she wouldn’t have expected… she just… wow. The whole thing was just surreal. She had no words.

“I was originally going to wait until the night of the event to give them to you. But I knew there was a possibility that you wouldn’t feel ready to wear them yet. I would have understood. Still, you’d have felt bad about it. The whole thing would have made an awkward start to what I want to be a pleasant evening for us.” Knox would like to think she was ready, but there was really never any knowing how his mate would react to anything. He’d bet she was unpredictable even to herself. “So I’m choosing to give them to you early.”

Knox studied her expression, trying to guess what was going through her head. He had no clue. “If you’re not ready, I’ll accept that. No pressure.” But if she didn’t say something soon, he was going to snap. The silence stretched on. Just when he opened his mouth to demand to know what she was thinking, she carefully plucked the two rings from the box and slid them on the third finger of her left hand. Relief rushed through him and his demon. Until amusement flashed across her face. “What’s funny?”

She somehow managed to speak past the frog in her throat. “I’m just surprised you didn’t have ‘Property of Knox Thorne’ inscribed on the rings.”

“I thought about it.”

Still stunned, Harper just stared at the diamond. Her demon was smirking, thrilled that its mate had committed so fully to it. “They’re a perfect fit. How did you guess what size I’d need?”

Knox brushed his mouth over hers. “Baby, I know every inch of that body.” It was imprinted on his brain.