“I've been waiting for you.”

The words hung in the air between Raven and Aaron and she felt her entire body go stiff with shock.

How could he have known she was coming and why wasn't he alarmed or afraid or doing anything besides staring at her with those cursed eyes of his?

Before she could even think about what to do next, Aaron's hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. Everything happened so fast that she barely had time to register it.

He twisted her arm and flipped them over in one smooth motion, and suddenly her back was pressed against the soft mattress with him hovering above her, the dagger she had been holding clattered somewhere on the floor.

Raven’s breath caught in her throat and she simply stared up at him with wide eyes. This was not how things were supposed to go. She was supposed to be in control.

She was supposed to have the upper hand. But now she was pinned beneath him and she couldn't move.

She couldn't think or do anything except look into those steel blue and hazel eyes that haunted her dreams for so long.

The moonlight streaming through the window made his blonde hair look almost silver. His pale skin seemed to glow and she hated how beautiful he looked.

She hated that her heart was racing for all the wrong reasons. She hated that her wolf was practically singing inside her because her mate was so close.

Move, she told myself. Do something. Anything. Reach for another weapon. Knee him in the gut. Headbutt him. Just move.

But she couldn't. Her body refused to listen to her mind and all she could do was stare at him like some helpless fool.

Aaron's weight pressed down on her and she could feel every inch of his body against hers. It made her skin burn.

His chest rose and fell with each breath and she realized that his heart was racing just as fast as hers.

"I knew you would come," He said softly, his voice was low and rough in a way that made her stomach flip. "I've felt you watching me for days now."

Her mouth went dry and she tried to speak but no words came out. He had known all along that she was stalking him and he did nothing about it. He just let her follow him around like some kind of game.

That was so embarrassing. She was an assassin. Her profession was all about stealth and blending into the shadows, but yet, she managed to get discovered.

Some assassin she was.

"What do you want from me?" She finally managed to croak out, her voice sounding weak and breathless, Nothing like how she wanted to sound.

Aaron's eyes searched hers and there was something in his gaze that made her chest tighten. Something warm, intense and completely terrifying.

"I want to know who you are," He whispered, his face so close to hers that she could feel his breath on her skin.

"I want to know why you're trying to kill me. I want to know why I can't stop thinking about you since the ball."

Raven should have laughed in his face. She should have spat at him. She should have told him exactly who she was and what he did to her family and why he deserved to die.

But the words wouldn't come because all she could focus on was how close he was and how good he smelled and how badly she wanted to close the distance between them.

This is wrong, her mind screamed at her. He's the enemy. He killed your family. He deserves to die.

But her body didn't care about any of that. Her body only cared about the fact that he was her mate and he was touching her and every cell in her being was begging for more.

"Let me go," She said, but it came out more like a plea than a command.

"No," Aaron said simply, his thumb brushing against her cheek and the touch was so gentle that it made her eyes sting. "Not until you tell me why you were at the ball. Not until you tell me why you're here now with a dagger."

She tried to turn her head away, but he caught her chin with his fingers, forcing her to look at him. Those mismatched eyes bore into hers and she felt like he could see right through her and into her soul.

"You felt it too, didn't you?" He asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "At the ball. The pull. The connection."

Raven wanted to deny it. She wanted to tell him he was crazy. But she couldn't lie when he was looking at her like that.

"It doesn't matter," She said instead, hating how her voice shook. "It doesn't change anything."

"It changes everything," Aaron insisted, leaning so close that her heart nearly stopped beating. "You're my mate."

No. No. No. This couldn't be happening. She couldn't let this happen. She needed to get away from him before she did something stupid.

But then his lips brushed against hers and every thought in her head vanished.

The kiss was soft at first and tentative and questioning that it made her entire body tremble.

Heat exploded in her chest and spread through her veins like wildfire and she felt like she was burning alive from the inside out. Her wolf howled in pure joy and clawed at her to get closer and closer.

She should have bitten him. She should have shoved him away. She should have done anything except what she did next.

She kissed him back.

Her lips moved against his and she felt him tense in surprise before he deepened the kiss and suddenly, it wasn't soft or gentle anymore.

It was hungry and desperate and consuming and she couldn't get enough. Her hands reached up and tangled in his hair and she pulled him closer even though there was no space left between them.

Aaron groaned against her mouth, the sound sending shivers down her spine and heat pooling low in her belly.

His hands were everywhere. On her waist, sliding up her sides and leaving trails of fire on her skin.

When his tongue swept into her mouth, she gasped, kissing him harder and forgetting about everything except the way he tasted and the way he felt and the way he made her feel alive for the first time in years.

This was insane. This was wrong. This was everything she swore she would never do. But it felt so good and so right and she didn't want it to stop.

His hand slipped under her shirt and his fingers brushed against her bare skin. She arched into his touch without thinking.

He kissed down her jaw and to her neck and when his teeth grazed the sensitive spot just below her ear, she let out a sound she didn't recognize.

"Tell me your name," Aaron murmured against her skin, his voice rough with desire. "Please. I need to know your name."

And just like that, reality came crashing back down on her.

What was she doing? What the hell was she doing?!

This was the man who helped slaughter her family. This was the man she came here to kill. And she was letting him kiss her and touch her and she was enjoying it.

Despicable.

Disgust flooded through her and she wasn't sure if it was directed at him or at herself.

Raven shoved Aaron hard and he wasn't expecting it so he stumbled back. She scrambled off the bed so fast that she nearly tripped over her own feet.

Her chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath. Her lips were swollen and her body was still on fire and she hated herself for wanting more.

"Don't," Raven growled, her voice harsh and broken. "Don't ever touch me again."

Aaron sat on the edge of the bed, staring at her with wide eyes. His hair was a mess from her fingers and his lips were red from kissing her. He looked just as shaken as she felt.

"Wait," He said, reaching out his hand toward her. "Please don't go. Just talk to me."

"There's nothing to talk about," She snapped, taking a step back when he started to stand. "This was a mistake. All of this was a mistake."

"It wasn't a mistake," Aaron said and there was something in his voice that made her heart clench. "You felt it. I know you did. This bond between us, it means something."

"It means nothing," She lied, the words tasting bitter on her tongue. "You mean nothing to me."

Pain flashed across his face and she told myself she didn't care. She couldn't care. Caring would ruin everything.

"I don't believe you," He said quietly, standing up from the bed. "If I meant nothing, you wouldn't have kissed me back. You wouldn't have touched me the way you did."

Raven’s hands clenched into fists and she wanted to scream. He was right and she hated that he was right.

She hated that he could read her so easily. She hated that she was so weak when it came to him.

"Stay away from me," She said, backing toward the door. "If you know what's good for you, you'll stay far away from me."

"Why?" Aaron asked and took a step forward. "What are you so afraid of?"

Everything. She was afraid of everything. She was afraid of what she felt when he touched her. She was afraid of what it meant that he was her mate.

She was afraid that if she stayed any longer, she wouldn't be able to leave.

She didn't answer him. She just turned and ran.

She heard him call out behind her but she didn't stop and didn't look back.

She raced through the corridors and past the guards she had knocked out earlier and she didn't stop running until she was far away from the palace and far away from him.

Only when she was alone did she let herself collapse against a wall and slide down to the ground.

Her whole body was shaking and her lips still tingled from his kiss. She could still feel the ghost of his hands on her skin.

She brought her fingers to her lips, closing her eyes and trying not to think about how much she wanted to go back.