Embrace the Wild (The Blood Rose Series Book 6) by Caris Roane Page B

ever, as though he’d come home after being away for centuries.
    Was Willow his home ?
    Even if she was, other memories intruded of how her father had died and that Malik was responsible for his death, of his need to stay focused on his realm, and of his deep commitment to prevent The Society from hurting Ashleaf one more time.
    Slowly, the feel-good of the moment faded and his responsibilities returned. He should call Evan and see how things were going. “I have to get back to my men.”
    She rubbed both of his shoulders. “I know. And I need to shift my focus to the wraith … that is, to those families I’m protecting.”
    He eased out of her and went into the bathroom. He found a cloth in a woven basket below the sink and brought it back to Willow. He tucked it between her legs, smiling down at her. “Thought you might need this.”
    She smiled softly, her gaze full of affection. “Thank you. For everything, Malik. This was extraordinary. I can’t tell you how much this meant to me. I feel now as though I could continue another century because I swear your blood has given me some much-needed strength.”
    At first her words pleased him, then suddenly they spoke to his own condition. Putting a hand to his stomach, a terrible suspicion ripped through his mind.
    She leaned up on her elbows as the last of the vines slipped back through the window. “What is it?”
    “I’m not sure.” The suspicion worked in him badly, disrupting his peace. But he didn’t want to speak the words out loud. “I just feel a need to be going.”
    She reached out and grabbed his arm. “Then do that, Malik, but without any guilt. And please, don’t set anything aside for me or worry about offending me. Please. This is very important to me.”
    Her words stunned him. He’d had a few, brief relationships over the decades and usually the opposite words fell from a woman’s lips, always demanding more not less. He knew then that whatever this was between them would never be simple.
    He nodded. “I have to go.” But panic had started eating up his heart. He touched his stomach and cringed once more. This couldn’t be happening.
    He went into the bathroom and cleaned up, then returned to don his clothes. Once he was dressed and ready to get the hell out of there, Willow caught his arms and kissed him once on the lips, a full kiss.
    “Malik, I can feel your distress. But truly, you don’t have to think of me ever again. This finishes things. We’re agreed on that, right?”
    “Absolutely.” Her words sort of eased him. Somehow he’d make this right, despite what he’d begun to believe was the horrible truth about who she really was in his life.
    He moved unsteadily to the doorway and once on the bridge, he drew in a deep breath, willing the truth away.
    He flew, but almost crashed straight into a thick branch of oak that would have had no give. Talk about distracted.
    He’d meant to go south, to return to his Guard facility. Instead, his mind was so muddled with this latest bizarre turn of events that he flew north.
    What he believed might be true felt almost tragic to him. He had nothing to give Willow and he’d been the cause of her father’s death.
    But he kept going north because he had to think.
    As he flew, he used his cell to let Evan know where he was and that he’d be back in about half an hour. Evan related that things in Birchingwood had calmed down considerably and that most of the villagers had started going about their business. The RIU agent had finally returned to complete his investigation. “Otherwise, the realm is quiet. No Invictus sightings tonight.”
    “Good. That’s good.” He took a deep breath. “I’ll talk to you later.”
    When he reached his destination, he landed on a massive slab of granite that protruded from the hilltop of one of Ashleaf’s highest mountain ridges over a mile high.
    He placed a hand on his stomach once more and shook his head slowly in complete disbelief. He wanted to