Chapter 179: The Bond

~ ZEV ~

Zev slumped over Sasha, trembling to his toes, breath tearing in and out of his throat.

What was that? What the fuck was that? Holy shit…

He shifted his weight and braced on his elbows, trying to take his weight off of her, but his head was spinning and he couldn't catch his breath. His side ached where he'd been cut open by that stupid cat but he didn't really care.

Then Sasha blew out a breath and he blinked and lifted his head, stroking her hair off her face. "Are you okay? Sash?"

"I'm fine… I'm better than fine… Holy shit!" She blinked and spluttered a laugh. "That was…"

"I know."

They both stared at each other, panting. Zev stroked her temple with his thumb, shaking his head.

"Damn, you're beautiful, Sash. I just… damn."

She smiled. "I know it sounds stupid, but I was about to say the same to you." She put her hand to his face and shook her head. "I can't believe we made it."

He couldn't believe it either, and he kissed her deeply, slowly, because he didn't know what to say.

When he finally pulled back, she was still smiling, but softer now.

"Seriously, Zev, what was that? Did you feel that?"

He nodded. "It had to be the mating bond. I mean, I've heard brothers talk about it, but I never imagined…"

"It was like… it felt like I got a piece of you."

"I know. Me too."

"Like you're inside me now."

"Well, I mean—" he chuckled, but she slapped his shoulder.

"I'm being serious, Zev. I had no idea. I thought you said we were already bonded. I thought that's why we couldn't let each other go, even after so long."

"I thought so too," he said softly, his breathing finally starting to come back to him. "But I'm not complaining."

"Me either."

She pulled him down and he buried his face in her neck, still holding some of his weight so he wouldn't crush her, but wallowing in the warmth between them. He stroked her hair and listened to her breath and just… rested.

He wasn't sure how long they lay there like that—couldn't remember the last time he'd just been still and felt at peace. He didn't want the moment to end.

But soon Sasha was shifting under his weight, and he realized the trickle on his back was likely one of his wounds reopening, so he rolled off of her and hurried back to the fire to check the water that was finally almost boiling.

Sasha, still in the furs, leaned up on her elbow to watch him, grinning, her hair mussed and rumpled, her cheeks pink. She looked so delectable, he wanted to run back to the furs and jump back in with her and start again. But he couldn't let her see his wound bleeding. So he told her to rest while he prepared the bath, then took a cloth with him when he carried the dirty water out to pour it down the mountainside, and cleaned himself up a little, praying that the bleeding had stopped.

He was still a little shaky when he got the big bath back in front of the fire, but given what they'd just done… there was no surprise.

Sasha must have dozed off, because her head popped up suddenly, eyes bleary, when he dropped the bath to the stone floor.

He shushed her before she spoke and murmured that he'd let her know when the water was ready, then set about filling the bath with enough water to keep them both warm, but not so much that the wounds on his back would get wet.

The water was a little too hot for her sensitive skin, which was good. He took a few minutes to grab some dried beef and fruits and put them on a stool next to the bath, then went back to the bed, pulling back the furs to reveal her face, so peaceful in sleep—and still smiling.

When she blinked awake, her soft smile became a beam.

"Hi," he said quietly, his heart squeezing with love for her.

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"Hi."

"How about a real bath now?"

She pulled him down for a quick kiss first, then pushed the furs back to get up.

Zev's entire body tightened watching her get up, naked, and walk across the room. He could tell she was a little uncomfortable, but when she looked back over her shoulder to make sure he was following her, she grinned.

"Test the water first, it's pretty hot," he warned.

"Like someone else I know," she giggled.

Zev grinned and hurried after her.

It took a minute or two of gasping and Wowing before she was sinking into the water at one end of the long tub—large enough for a Yhet, meant big enough for both of them.

Then Zev lowered himself carefully into the other end, careful to sit upright so his ribs remained out of the water.

Sasha giggled as his long legs slid along hers. She'd pulled her knees up in front of her, hiding her body, but when he sat forward and reached for her, pulling her towards him, she came willingly. When he slid her up between his legs, she let her knees fall open to rest on his thighs.

Then they were sitting there, naked, staring at each other.

He lifted one hand to push her hair behind her shoulder, and water dripped from his fingers to patter onto the top of her breast and trail down, his eyes following it until it joined the rest of the water in the bath.

He swallowed, hard.

"Hi," she murmured again.

"Hi," he rasped, then cleared his throat. "Are you hungry?" He tipped his head towards the stool next to the bath with the tin plate of meat and fruit.

"No, not yet," she said with a grin. "But you help yourself."

He picked up a strip of the dried beef and tore off a strip, chewing as he stared at her. She stared back, searching his eyes.

"Isn't this weird?" she whispered eventually.

"What? Taking a bath together?"

"No. Being able to stare like this and not feel… like… exposed."

Zev frowned and put the rest of the beef down to lean forward until they were almost nose to nose. He held her at the waist, his thumbs stroking her sides under the water.

"I want to be exposed to you, Sasha. Maybe that's the weird part. Because I can promise you, Dunken and I aren't sitting there making goo goo eyes at each other for an hour."

She snorted at the idea, but brought a hand up to his chest. "That must be it," she said softly. "I want to be exposed to you, too, Zev."

He nodded. "That's the way it should be."

Then she lay the flat of her palm at the center of his chest and finally tore her eyes away to look at the spot where she touched her, the faintest frown beginning between her brows.

He waited, but when she didn't speak, he stroked her arm. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Absolutely nothing," she whispered and leaned in to kiss him. "Nothing at all. And it's weirding me out."

Zev snorted, but let himself be distracted by her kisses.

*****

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