Her head shot up. “Curse?” she gasped. “Like Amara? I’m cursed?”
He shook his head before turning her away from her reflection and into his arms. “Not exactly. It’s more of an additional…burden, for lack of a better word, your line carries.” He frowned as he studied the marks. “I don’t know what each means because that is something from your realm. In fact, I don’t know if I’ve ever heard of a phoenix mating outside the realm before.”
He looked up and into her gaze. “We will figure it out, beauty.”
“But you said I could die.”
He nodded. “Yes, but you can come back,” he whispered. “That’s the thing about phoenixes, they can come back. Your curse is what can kill you in truth.”
She took a staggered step back, her hands over her belly. “I…I can’t breathe.” Her lungs seized and she couldn’t get in enough air. “I…what happens if I’m killed but I come back? How does that work? Malik?”
He crushed her to his body and she grabbed onto him like a lifeline. “We’ll figure it out. It’s going to be okay. I promise you. You’re not alone, Eliana. Never again. Do you hear me? You’re not alone.”
She leaned in to him, her belly making it difficult, but she didn’t care. The baby kicked again, apparently wanting to be near Malik, as well. Everything had changed so quickly, and she felt like she kept running to keep up and couldn’t quite do it.
Malik ran his hand through her hair and murmured in her ear, his warm breath soothing her as much as the words themselves.
“I thought I’d turn into a witch or maybe something that I’ve already met through the group. I figured we’d exhausted the amount of paranormals out there and I wouldn’t have to go through anything too new or scary.” She closed her eyes. “Boy, was I wrong.”
Malik pulled back slightly to look into her eyes. “I think the Conclave wanted to see what each of you could turn into. I don’t think they would have liked repeats.”
Her eyes widened and she held back a curse. “I didn’t even think about that. Damn it. Why didn’t I think about that?”
“Because you’re having a baby and we’re dealing with the fact that I left because I was an idiot. You don’t have to think about everything. That’s what a mating is for. I can help you think.”
She didn’t narrow her eyes at his choice of words but it was close. Hopefully, the man would realize that he didn’t have think for her but with her. One problem at a time, though, and since she couldn’t quite figure out which one to wade through first, she figured she’d go with something out of the box.
“Will you shift for me?” she asked quietly.
He stiffened for a moment before pulling back to look at her. “You want me to shift?”
She nodded. “I…I can’t think about everything at once or I’ll stress myself out more than I already am. So can you shift for me? Show me what you look like as a lion? I know it doesn’t make any sense, but maybe if I see you in your other form, it will make this all a bit more real. Because, frankly, this feels more like a dream than anything else right now.”
He ran his thumbs over her cheekbones and nodded. “I can do that. Then I’ll show you how to glamour yourself so you can leave the house and figure out the next steps. How does that sound?”
She smiled softly. “I think that sounds like a perfect plan.”
Malik let out a breath. “Good, because I’m kind of freaking out, too.” He smiled sheepishly. “It’s been a long day.”
She snorted. “Will you stay?” she asked suddenly. “After you shift back, will you stay? We can figure out the next step in the morning.” She was afraid if he left, he might not come back, but she wasn’t sure that was all of it. She loved this man and wanted him with her. He was her mate now, and that made her feel so many emotions she couldn’t quite quantify them. This man, this lion, was hers, and because she’d taken that leap, she had to traverse the world and this new path at his side, rather than worrying if he’d leave her once more. Because if she didn’t do that, there would be no true happiness in this mating.
He was hers, and he was the father of her unborn child. No matter what happened next, she wouldn’t be alone in dealing with it. She’d find out what it meant to be a phoenix and what the curse meant. She would figure out her powers and how to protect her child in a world where things weren’t just light and dark, but also grey and far wider than anything she’d known before. She’d find a way to fit into Malik’s life and realm. He would be King, he’d said, and she knew he couldn’t walk away from that. He’d told her he had issues with his family and that his father was dying and there was only so long he could stay away from that. He’d left before for a reason, and now she would have to leave with him because there was no way she could stay away again.