Page 80 of The Echo of Forever

“I’m understanding now that we can create new memories and they still feel like we’re the same as before.”

He was smiling now as he moved to do exactly what I’d done for him, twirling his finger to give direction.

“Turn for me, baby.”

I did as I was told and spread my arms, loving every second of being in his care more and more.

“This is something we haven’t done before?”

He hummed and stepped in front of me to tie the mask. It was lace and covered the forehead, around the eyes, and up to the bridge of the nose.

You’d have to be looking hard to know it was us behind them.

“That’d be correct. I hope you do it more often.”

I sat on the edge of the coffee table to slip into my thigh-high leather combat boots with slots for my knives in the sides. My skirt was a little on the short side, and it was chilly out tonight.

Guns weren’t permitted, but Demetrius had one tucked. They wouldn’t check during entry, but if someone died by your hand in their territory, the act of having a gun on your person is weighed along with the crime.

The goal wasn’t to kill tonight but to gain the clarity Lucien all but promised.

“Everything that happens tonight is something we’ve never experienced before,” I said, looking up to find him watching me already. “I hope we get to continue doing that afterward.”

His smile was slow but so goddamn beautiful once on full display. I loved the way whatever he was feeling reached his eyes.

Looking into them was like seeing everything he feltfor mein a flash.

I wanted to feel that way for him, too.

“You have my consent,” he said, licking and pulling his bottom into his mouth. “Even after tonight.”

A legit giggle slipped from my lips, and I contemplated killing him for making me act and feel like a school girl.

Had I felt this way the first time we did this dance?

Demetrius pulled me up and tugged the dragonfly pendant from inside my robe.

“Promise me you’ll never take this off,” he murmured, bringing it to his lips. “It’s how I’ll be able to find you if anything goes wrong.”

I leaned into him.

“I promise.”

He tucked the necklace back and took my hand.

“My driver will take us to a checkpoint and wait in the safe zone until I call for him,” he continued, setting the alarm with his free hand and then leading us to the elevators. “I’d rather you not leave my side tonight, but if the situation permits, I’ll allow it.”

He went on and on, and I listened, because it was the first time a man wanted to protect me so fiercely.

Everyone else in my life saw me as someone who didn’t need protecting, but maybe this was what I’d needed all along.

He helped me into the black Escalade truck and took my hand again once he was inside.

I stared at our fingers peeking from inside the wide robe sleeves for most of the ride. It wasn’t until the driver called out Demetrius’s name that I snapped out of my trance and took in our surroundings.

Dark robes that matched ours filled the streets, some red while others were a midnight blue.

“We’re at the black entry point,” the driver said.