Free Odd Melody (Odd Series Book 2) by Virginia Nelson

fears exactly. I hadn’t expected he would feel that way, especially since he seemed so gung ho for the soul mate bit. “You want this, though?” I wouldn’t have asked the question, not even seconds before that, since I’d been so sure he at least knew what he was doing, even while I fumbled and struggled to deny what I felt for him. For the first time, in this state, I was able to look into his eyes, those alien eyes, and not shatter the illusion of light around us. His beautiful eyes shone a green so pure that they seemed lit from within. If I was really honest with myself, I could be very happy just looking into them for the rest of my days. Framed by black lashes except for where they first grew out from his heavy eyelids. There they shimmered, pale amber as if dipped in ink after they had grown or like he had put on mascara, but nothing about Chance said artifice. Everything about him was natural, even his honest to the point of evil selfishness. Even as I looked, I traced my fingertips across his features, gobbling them up with my touch and hungry gaze.
    He stroked a hand over my hair, like the physical touch could balance the emotional upheaval and I curled into the stroke, allowing myself the trembling pleasure of it for a moment as he pulled me close again. “Perhaps I want you. Perhaps I want what we are, but don’t think I’m not terrified that you’re going to eat up who I am. When we’re together like this, when we become one, I am as scared as you are. Anyone would be afraid. It’s too huge not to be scary. Unlike you, I want it because it feels too damn good not to. Also unlike you, this time I remember we did this for a reason, and we have an audience.”
    “They can’t see us in here.” Suddenly I knew that for sure, though I wasn’t sure how. I wrinkled my brow, concern shattering a bit of the wonder. “How exactly do I know that?”
    “Same way I know things about us,” he murmured into my neck, lips brushing the tender skin as he spoke, and sent a delicious shiver down my spine. “You just do. I also know, now that you mention it, that we’re messing with time.”
    As soon as he said it, I knew it too. So long as we stayed in our private circle, albeit minutes or hours, it would only be moments of real time. It would blur for them. All they could see was our light. “We are outside the space-time continuum?” I nibbled my way down his earlobe. He groaned in response and I ground my body against him, needs ratcheting up the longer I resisted taking more of his skin and claiming it with my own.
    “Yes.”
    I wasn’t entirely sure if he answered my question or responded to me physically. I wasn’t sure how much longer I would care. Being so close to him quickly became a double-edged sword. “We can’t stay in here forever. We have to talk, Chance.” I gasped the last as he managed to get a hand under my shirt and find skin, liquid fire searing me and pleasing me because of the trace of his fingertips on my side. I suddenly needed more skin on skin contact, unable to settle for his neck and face any longer. I pulled off his shirt, eager for him. Only after we shed our shirts, ground our half-naked bodies together and fell to the ground breathless for a moment did we speak again. Panting, I lay next to him, trying to resist the pull of all his glowing flesh and hoping closing my eyes would bring a measure of sanity in the whirlwind of needs and ratcheting passion.
    “You have to stop.” I whispered because I could not make full sounds. “Fairy Court. You have to help me. She wants to bargain with me for you. Help me.” We could save each other, I knew it.
    “Help you. Yes.” He pulled us both to our knees. He forced me to my feet.
    I thought he was assisting me up so we could talk reasonably. Then he dropped before me, his fingers tugged down one cup of my bra, his mouth closed over my breast, and I arched back in his hands as my body became boneless. “Chance!” His name