“Please,” he begged. He who had never begged anyone for anything did so now. “Please live for me.”
Time stretched out and seconds became an eternity. Still, he did not stop, did not falter. He heard the two bears beside him roar with anger, sympathizing with him at the loss of his mate.
Marko refused to give up. Refused to lose hope. All his focus was on Kellsie and he never wavered as he poured his very life essence into her.
Then he felt it. The lightest flutter. Determination flowed through him. Renewed. One thump. Then another. Marko began to laugh even as he felt himself growing weaker. Kellsie was sucking his power into her at an enormous rate and he gave it freely, offering her all that he was.
She would live. Nothing else mattered.
Kellsie floated on a sea of tranquility away from all the pain and death. She frowned, not quite knowing where she was.
He needs you.
The female voice was familiar. She wanted to open her eyes, but it was too difficult. Who needed her? Everything was a blur in her mind. Nothing had form or substance.
Go back.
Back where? Honestly, you’d think the woman, whoever she was, would be a little more forthcoming with information. Kellsie would be annoyed if she could work up the energy for it.
She felt a tickle in her chest. She frowned, wondering why it was beginning to hurt. What had happened?
Memory struck her like a tsunami, smashing against the numbness enfolding her. Agony pulsed through her body and she jerked upward as though she’d been hit by a bolt of lightning. Her life flashed before her eyes like a movie on fast forward, yet she was able to see and understand it all.
Marko. Hades. The curse. The demons. The fight. The sword piercing her chest. She was dead. She’d died.
Then why was she still feeling pain? That sucked royally.
Her entire body jerked and her eyes flew open. She wasn’t dead. At least she didn’t think she was. Her chest ached like a sonofabitch. She blinked against the brightness surrounding her. It was like being in the intense beam of the lights on a movie set.
She threw her arm over her eyes. “Cut the spotlight,” she muttered.
The light dimmed and she lowered her arm. Marko was above her, his face gray and ashen. His hands were resting on her chest and she could feel the pulse of his power filling her.
Knowledge suddenly filled her. He was killing himself to save her.
She shoved his hands away and he fell back and hit the ground with a solid thud. The two bears he’d called earlier snuffled him in concern. Kellsie sat, ignoring the wooziness in her head and the weakness of her body. She shoved one of the bears aside, deciding if they meant her harm they’d have already killed her.
Marko’s eyes were closed and she couldn’t tell if he was breathing. “Don’t you dare die on me, you idiot.” She put her ear against his chest, trying to hear a heartbeat. “I didn’t save your ass only to have you throw it away.” She fisted her hand and brought it down on his chest.
Tears were flowing down her face. He couldn’t die. Not after all they’d gone through.
She went to thump his chest again but he caught her hand and held it. “Enough.”
“You’re alive.” She threw herself on top of him, hugging him as hard as she could. Then she reared back and thumped his chest again. “You scared the hell out of me.”
Marko began to laugh. It was then she realized what she’d said. “You scared hell completely away,” he told her. He sat up slowly and they clung to one another like two exhausted, drunken fools.
“I didn’t know if I could save you.” He brushed his thumb over her cheek and lips.
“I didn’t know if I’d be in time to save you either.” For the rest of her life she’d see Mordecai’s sword going for Marko’s back.
Marko frowned. “That wound wouldn’t have killed me. It would have been too low for my heart and I would have healed.”
“What? You mean all I did was for nothing?”
He framed her face with his hands. “No, not nothing. You love me. You truly love me.”
She shrugged and could feel her face heating. Now that she wasn’t in danger or dying it was hard to admit aloud. “Yeah, I do.”
“Say it again.” He gently touched his lips to hers. She savored the warmth and enjoyed the tingle that surged through her entire body.
“I love you.” It was then she remembered the blood bubbling from her mouth. She pulled away from him and licked her lips. The blood was gone. She glanced down at her clothing and frowned. All the blood was gone.
“How is this possible?”
Marko smiled and she was momentarily stunned by the sheer masculine power of the man. He was rough and gorgeous and had charisma to burn. “I have all my powers back.” He paused, looking slightly concerned.
Her stomach dropped. “What aren’t you telling me?” Honestly, she couldn’t take much more. She needed at least four or five decades of peace and quiet after the past twenty-four hours.
Marko met her gaze, his deep brown eyes warm and concerned. “When I saved your life I shared my immortality with you.”
She knew her jaw was hanging open, but that had been the last thing she’d expected to hear. “How is that even possible?”
His massive shoulders moved up and down as he shrugged. “I have no idea. Didn’t know it could even be done. I just knew I had to save you no matter what.”
“What does that mean, exactly? Do I have any cool super powers?” She tried to wrap her tired brain around the whole idea of immortality. It would be like being a superhero or something.
“I don’t know. It’s never happened before. Not that I know of.”
So he was stuck with her for eternity. Sucked for him. She’d told him she loved him but he hadn’t said anything back. Kellsie pushed away and stood slowly on shaky legs. He didn’t need to be stuck with her. She could deal with things on her own. Not like she wasn’t used to working that way. Still, it hurt to imagine her life without him.
“That’s okay. I can figure it out as I go.” She ignored the twinge in the region of her heart. Just a holdover from the wound, she assured herself. She brushed off her pants and stared into the darkness, shocked that she could see everything around her. She had seriously superior night vision all of a sudden. She blinked, but everything around her remained the same.
Marko grabbed her hand. “Where are you going?”
“Back to Betsy. My car. That’s if it’s even still there. I’ve got to get back home, and I’m sure you’ve got things you need to do.” She was surprised to see her tote bag lying beside a rock, undisturbed by all the fighting. She started to go toward it, but Marko tugged her back.
He was frowning fiercely as he stared down at her. “You do not love me?”
How could he be such a bone-headed idiot? For an immortal warrior he was seriously lacking in people skills. “No. You don’t love me.” There, she’d said it out loud.
“Not love you?” He roared, so long and loud she’d be surprised if animals ten miles away didn’t hear him. She slapped her hands over her ears at the first roar, but he pulled them away. He wasn’t done yet. “I would have died for you. Would have drained every drop of my power into your body. How could you think I don’t love you?”
Anguished filled his beloved face. She was sorry she’d hurt him. Hadn’t meant to. Kellsie guessed she had a lot to learn when it came to relationships too. “You haven’t said.”
He yanked her against his chest and she nestled her cheek against his heart.
“I did say it, but you didn’t hear me.”
She understood then. He’d said it when she was dying or dead or whatever that numb floating state had been. She’d heard a woman’s voice then, hadn’t she?