Velvet Haven

back the emotion.
    “It’s okay,” she whispered.
    Damn it, seeing her in pain, feeling her die in his arms, made him feel murderous. Christ, she’d taken it all . . .
    Pulling the washcloth from Mairi’s body, he wrung it out and wiped her face with it. She moaned and stirred, causing the bubbles to part, baring the white skin of her breasts. The red welt where the blade had pierced her chest had faded. It was amazing how his mouth had done that, healed the burning pain and given her relief.
    “Bran?”
    “Hmm?” he murmured, watching the water sluice along her body.
    “We have to find Carden.”
    “You played a dangerous game, muirnin , making that bargain with Morgan.” He shuddered, thinking of Morgan anywhere near her.
    “She double-crossed me, the witch,” Mairi grumbled as she sank lower into the water. “Instead of telling me where to find him, she gave me a riddle to solve.”
    “Morgan is a selfish bitch. She’s never been known to fight fair.”
    “We have to solve the riddle. Rowan can help—”
    “Shh,” he ordered. “Do not make yourself uneasy. There is still time to find my brother—and we will. But tonight is about you—and us. Close your eyes, Mairi, and enjoy the sound of the water around you.”
    “Bran,” she said, stirring once more. “That feels really good.”
    “Good. You just lie back and let me take care of you.”
    She sank a little lower into the water. He saw her shoulders quiver. “More hot water?”
    “Please.”
    He let the water run, filling the bath nearly to the lip of the tub. “Better?”
    “Mmm. I’m so glad that you have tubs in Annwyn. I’m going to need them if you and your friends get yourself into too many scrapes.”
    He gave her a soft, lingering kiss, then pulled back, watching her relax in the warm water. “I don’t want you to have this power, muirnin . It’s too dangerous.”
    “I’ve had this power since well before I met you. I just didn’t know how to use it. Or maybe it was because I hadn’t met you that I didn’t realize it was a power.” She shrugged. “Anyway, it’s what I came equipped with. I doubt God is giving exchanges, if you know what I mean.”
    “Be serious.”
    She opened her eyes, leveling him with her dark brown gaze, which was now free of pain. “I am being serious. I’ve never been more so in my life. This . . . power,” she said, wetting her lips. “It gives my life meaning, and I want it. I want to be useful to you—to Annwyn. I want to help find this Soul Stealer and defeat him.”
    “By taking on others’ pain and suffering? No, I won’t let that happen.”
    Her hand came out of the bubbles and shackled his wrist. “Let it be, Bran, and be happy that we’re going to be together, and that you’re the one who can heal me when the pain comes. Think of it as a game,” she said, with a teasing smile. “We can play doctor.”
    “This isn’t a game!” he exploded. “This is your life. You’re not invincible, Mairi. You’re a mortal.”
    “I know that.”
    “Then why?” he shouted. “Why would you willingly go through this?”
    “Because this is what I was born to do. This is my destiny, Bran, not yours.”
    The air left his lungs, leaving him feeling deflated. “What if I can’t get to you in time?”
    There it was, out in the open, the crux of his fear and the reason he didn’t want her having this power. What if I can’t save you?
    “C’mon, you’re a magician. It probably takes you—what?—two seconds to dematerialize.”
    “In two seconds you could be dead, and then what?”
    “I don’t know—”
    “You could be taken from me, that’s what!”
    “Then we’ll have to trust that it’s His plan.”
    “Fuck that!”
    “Bran,” she whispered, trying to soothe him, but he wouldn’t let her. Instead, he tore away from her hold and paced the bathroom floor.
    “I won’t lose you. I won’t.”
    “I don’t think you’ll have to.”
    He wheeled on her. “You nearly died tonight. I couldn’t protect you.”
    She stood up from the foam of bubbles, sloshing out of the tub. She stepped out, her legs wobbling as she reached for him.
    “Don’t you dare do this!” she begged. “Don’t pull away from me again. All I want is to be with you. And you did save me tonight. And furthermore, I trust you to be around when I need you.”
    He gathered her up in his arms and held on tight. His heart was beating like mad and his eyes were beginning to sting— again . Shit,