Oh, God, if he'd failed...
If he'd lost her...
"Dante?"
A profound relief swamped him at the sound of her voice, at the glorious realization that Tess was right there with him, seated at his bedside. He'd woken her from a drowsy sleep; she lifted her head from her arms, her hair in disarray, her gentle eyes shadowed with fatigue.
"Dante, you're awake." She brightened at once, coming up nearer to him and caressing his face and hair. "I've been so worried. How do you feel?"
He thought he should feel a hell of a lot worse than he did. But he was well enough to pull Tess into his arms. Strong enough to bring her onto his lap on the bed, where he kissed her soundly.
He was alive enough to know that what he needed more than anything right now was to feel her nude body pressed against his.
"I'm sorry," he murmured against her lips. "Tess, I am sorry for everything I've put you through--"
"Shh, we'll have time for that later. We can sort everything out later. Right now you need to rest."
"No," he said, too glad to be awake--to be with her--to think about wasting any more time on sleep.
"What I need to tell you can't wait. I saw something terrible today. I saw what it would be like to lose you. That's someplace I never want to go again. I need to know that you're protected, that you are safe --"
"I'm right here. You saved me, Dante."
He stroked the velvety skin of her cheek, so grateful that he could. "You're the one who saved me, Tess."
He wasn't talking about his injuries from the UV exposure, which she had healed with her amazing gift of touch. He wasn't talking about the first night he'd found her either, when her blood had fortified him when he was at his weakest. Tess had saved him in so many ways beyond any of that. This female owned him, heart and soul, and he wanted her to know that now.
"Everything makes sense when I'm with you, Tess. My life makes sense, after so many years of running scared in the dark. You are the light, the reason I live. I'm bonded to you deep, woman. For me, there will never be another."
"We're bonded by blood now," she said, but her faint smile wobbled on her lips. She glanced down, frowning. "What if you hadn't bitten me that night at my clinic? Without the blood bond, would you still... ?"
"Love you?" he finished for her, lifting her chin so that she could see the truth of it in his eyes. "It's always been you, Tess. I just didn't know it until that night. I had been searching for you my whole life, connected to you by the vision of what happened today." He smoothed her mussed hair, letting one of her honey-brown waves curl around his fingers. "You know, my mother swore by destiny. She believed in it, even though she knew her own destiny held bitter pain and loss. I never wanted to accept that belief for myself, that anything was preordained. I thought I was smarter than that, above it. But it was destiny that brought us together, Tess. I can't deny that now. God, Tess... have you any idea how long I've waited for you?"
"Oh, Dante," she whispered, blinking away a stray tear. "I wasn't prepared for any of this. I'm so afraid... "
He gathered her close, sick for everything she'd been forced to endure because of him. He knew the trauma of what happened today would stay with her for a long time. So much death and destruction. He never wanted her to feel that kind of pain again. "I need to know that you are somewhere you'll always be safe, Tess. Where I can protect you best. There are places that we can go, safe houses within the Breed. I've already talked to Chase about securing a place for us in one of the area Darkhavens."
"No." His heart sank as she carefully extricated herself from his embrace and sat on her knees beside him on the bed. She shook her head slowly. "Dante, no... "
God help him, but he couldn't speak. He waited in agonizing silence, knowing that he fully deserved her rejection. He deserved her contempt for so many reasons, yet he'd felt certain she cared for him. He prayed she might, even just a little bit.
"Tess, if you say you don't love me--"
"I do love you," she said at last. "I love you with all my heart."
"Then what is it?"
She looked at him searchingly, her aqua eyes moist but resolved. "I'm tired of running. I'm tired of hiding. You've opened my eyes to a world I never dreamed could exist. Your world, Dante."
He smiled at the beauty sitting next to him. "My world is you."
"And it's all of this too. This place, these people. The incredible legacy that you're a part of. Your world is dark and dangerous, Dante, but it's also extraordinary--like you. Like life. Don't ask me to run away from that. I want to be with you, but if I'm going to live in your world, then I want to do it here, where you belong. Where your family is."
"My family?"
She nodded. "The other warriors here and their mates. They love you. I saw that today. Maybe in time they might love me too."
"Tess." Dante pulled her close, embracing her with a full heart and a gratitude that soared into his chest like it was borne on wings. "You would want to be with me here, like this, as the mate of a warrior?"