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“You were grieving,” she said, but he shook his head.

“I was a coward. My people needed every healthy adult to rebuild. I should have stayed to help. Instead, I ran.”

“You were young and you’d lost everything,” she countered. “That’s not cowardice.”

“I betrayed my family and my duty.”

Indignation flared on his behalf. “That’s not fair. No one should be expected to just… function after losing their entire family.”

“But it was my fault.”

“That’s why you live alone,” she said quietly, piecing it together. “Why you keep moving. You’re punishing yourself.”

His head snapped up, eyes narrowing. “I’m not seeking your pity, Kara.”

“Good, because I’m not offering it.” She met his gaze steadily. “I’m offering understanding. I know what it’s like to carry guilt that isn’t yours to bear.”

Something shifted in his expression, a softening around his eyes.

“When Rory’s father left,” she continued, “I blamed myself. I thought if I’d been a better partner, if I’d somehow made Rory more ‘normal,’ he would have stayed.”

He growled low in his throat. “That’s different. Your mate was weak and unworthy.”

“And the expectations of your people are cruel and unreasonable,” she countered. “Grief isn’t a weakness, Thraxar. It’s proof that you loved deeply.”

He stared at her, and she had the distinct impression that no one had ever spoken to him this way before.

“Today, when we found Talia,” she said more gently, “you didn’t hesitate. You saved her without a thought for yourself or the consequences. That’s not the action of a coward.”

“It doesn’t erase what I’ve done. Or failed to do.”

“Maybe not,” she acknowledged. “But it shows who you really are.”

She reached out slowly, giving him time to pull away, and placed her hand on his arm. His skin was warm beneath her hand, the tiny nubs tickling her palm.

“And who I see is someone good. Someone worthy of forgiveness—especially from himself.”

His breathing had deepened, his chest rising and falling in a slow rhythm. His tail wrapped itself around her waist.

“You don’t know me,” he said, but there was no bite in the words.

“I know enough,” she replied.

Their eyes locked, and something electric passed between them. Before she could second-guess herself, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his.

Unlike their first kiss, this one wasn’t tentative. He responded immediately, one large hand coming up to cradle the back of her head. She slid from the arm of the chair down intohis lap and his other hand tightened on her ass, pulling her against the enormous ridge of his erection. His erection…

The realization penetrated the haze of her desire and she pulled back.

“I thought only a Cire female would arouse you.”

“Arousal is possible, but not completion,” he murmured, rocking against her and a wave of pleasure washed over her.

“But…”

He kissed her again and her thoughts scattered in a haze of pleasure. When she regained her senses, she pulled back just enough to search his face. She hadn’t planned this, hadn’t meant to complicate their already unusual situation. But looking into his eyes, feeling his tail wrapped around her, she couldn’t bring herself to regret it.

“Kara,” he murmured, her name sounding exotic and melodic on his tongue. “I’m not… I’m not a good male. I’ve done things I regret.”