Jachai spots her and heaves a sigh. His nerves are getting the better of him and he wants nothing more than to turn tail and flee. But he didn’t, he barely managed to restrain himself. Instead he swallows and takes that first step closer to her. “I’m sorry,” he calls to her hoping she turn her attention away from the river and to him.
Spades slowly lifts her head, her jaw soaked from lapping up water. She glances at him, arches an eyebrow before turning her head away. “You say that a lot,” she comments dryly. She doesn’t want to do this, she doesn’t want to have this conversation. She doesn’t even want to look at him because she was scared that she was going to give in to him.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispers moving just a little bit closer to her. He wants nothing more to race over to her, to knock her over and lick her face. He wants to be close to her again, like they were before he saw the lightly tan colored lioness again. He wants things to go back to when they first met.
When the electricity between them was so thick that it was impossible to go unnoticed.
“You said that to her too,” she tells him shaking her head. It’s all she can do than to let her head droop and her shoulders sag. She feels like crying, she wants to cry. She wants to scream at him, beat at him with her paws, leave scratches on his skin for hurting her. But she won’t. She’s more dignified than that.
“It’s different,” he tells her. He’s so desperate and it’s obvious, especially when she looks at him. His ears are pressed back against his head, his head is drooping and his shoulders are sagging. It looks like he’s barely holding himself up. “I realized that you were the one I really loved, you’re my other half Spade,” he explains barely glancing up.
Then she suddenly standing next to him, the top of her head pressing up against his chin. “It’s not that simple,” she explains in return. “I love you, I thought I was over you but I’m not. My heart still beats rapidly in my chest at the sight of you,” she sighs. “But I can’t just forgive you for jumping at the chance for an easy out. I can’t just let you back in because you suddenly reappeared claiming that you love me and only me.”
He gives her that half smile of his, the one where he’s faking the smile but he can’t even go through with finishing it. It’s the one he gives her whenever he knows he’s wrong and when he’s ******** up. “I don’t expect you to,” he replies.
He knew this wasn’t going to be easy but he couldn’t help but hope that she’d just forgive him. “Can we just start over?” he pleads looking into those golden eyes of hers that just hypnotizes him.
“We can try,” she replies leaning into him. It’s nice, knowing that he’s there. Knowing that he picked her over that stupid feline. She can’t deny the feelings she had for him, she can’t deny the feelings she has. She loves him, she’s always loved him.
“But I have to let you know, I didn’t spend all this time alone,” she warns him thinking of the spotted male whose company she had come to enjoy. She knows she was just using him, he was a replacement but she feels bad just dropping him and leaving him alone. It’s not fair to him, it’s not fair to her either.
“I know,” Jachai responds stiffly. He could smell him on her. He nips at her neck, inhaling her scent and some of that other males. He’s determined to replace that scent with his own. She’s his and he’s going to let the world know. “I’m going to make it known that you are mine,” he states pushing her down, gently, as he nuzzles her.
“Are you now?” she questions playfully missing this sort of play between them.
“Yes,” he growls as they descend into a fit of heightened emotions.
