Page 12 of Bounty Hunter’s Match (Vinduthi Captured Mates #6)

BAREK

“ I ’ll miss you.” Camden’s words echoed. “When you leave.”

My blood ran cold. Every muscle locked into place as the implications sank in. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

I was just the security detail for Perfect Match - that had been the deal with Larthul. Nothing more.

I’d walked into Camden’s office that first day determined to get the assignment over with. Just another job. Another bet lost to a crafty Mondian who knew exactly how to play me.

I’d snatched the file, cursing in every language I knew. A month babysitting lovesick idiots while they stumbled through courtship rituals. It would be boring. Tedious.

Temporary.

But then I’d watched Camden work. The way she read people, anticipated their needs, defused volatile situations with a few careful words. How she handled Vask that first week, turning his aggressive posturing into genuine consideration for others.

The twins’ cultural guides might have been disasters, but Camden’s insight was flawless. She saw through everyone’s defenses. Including mine.

My body had known before my mind caught up. The urge to claim her grew stronger each day - the need to sink my teeth into her throat and mark her as mine. To share my strength, my speed, my healing. To watch my markings spread across her skin.

The claiming bite was sacred among my people. More than ceremony or tradition - it changed both partners on a fundamental level. The female gained enhanced abilities. The male’s markings appeared on her skin. A permanent bond, unbreakable by anything but death.

And I’d never once mentioned it to her.

Never told her how my mouth watered whenever she tilted her head, exposing her throat. How my hands itched to trace patterns on her skin that would become permanent. How I imagined her faster, stronger, marked as mine for all to see.

Now she moved with precise, controlled movements as she gathered her clothes. Each piece of fabric formed another barrier between us.

Her shoulders straightened. She wouldn’t meet my eyes.

“The environmental controls should be stable now.” Her voice held nothing of the warmth from earlier. “We should check on the guests.”

Words stuck in my throat. I wanted to explain about claiming bites and permanent bonds. About how leaving had stopped being an option weeks ago. But the space between us grew with each piece of clothing she donned.

The door whispered shut behind her. The sound echoed in my chest like physical pain.

I touched the bed where she’d lain, her scent still clinging to the sheets.

My comm unit chimed. “Assignment complete.” Larthul’s voice filled the empty room. “Report to station security at 0800.”

I’d lost something I’d never admitted I wanted. Something I hadn’t known I needed until it slipped away.

The sound of my fist hitting the wall echoed through the emergency suite. But the pain couldn’t match the ache in my chest where Camden’s warmth used to be.

Where her trust had been before I’d shattered it with my silence.