Her shaking stopped at his touch, the warmth of their connection and his magic soothing her. Her head nodded forward, and her breathing grew steady again. Her shoulders were still hunched, as if she waited for him to hack off her head.
"First, a couple of rules," he started. "One, no alcohol. Two, no more suicide attempts."
She said nothing.
"There are more, but we'll start there. Understood?" He kept his voice firm and cold, unwilling to give on either point.
"Yes," she whispered.
"Second, a compromise." His tone grew yielding. "We are …bound by magic older than time. It creates an obligation for me that I must honor. However, the same is not true for you. The laws and magic governing the mate of an Immortal are much more forgiving. You have no such duty to me."
He paused, grappling with the truth. He'd never thought he'd hear himself admit it to any woman who became his mate, especially not to her. The urge to claim her was strong, but so was the need to let her have the choice he never had.
"It's your decision whether or not you want to stay with me. We are bound either way, but if you choose to walk away from me, I …will respect your decision. No matter what, I'll continue to honor my obligations and protect you."
She was listening. Gabe clenched his jaw. He was putting himself at her mercy again, except that, this time, he had the power and chose not to use it. This part of his life was in the hands of Fate, who would probably be pleased.
Gabe was not. Her womanly scent teased him, the heat of her nearness reminding him of how he'd gotten himself into this situation in the first place. He dropped his hand from her body before he turned into a liar about letting her choose.
She said nothing.
Gabe waited a few more minutes then forced himself to leave. Uncertain what he expected, his anger was boiling at the silent rejection. He'd extended an olive branch and come back empty-handed. Like old times. Doing the right thing never felt as dissatisfactory as it did this night.
He left the Sanctuary to help his dealers consolidate the souls. He had to determine if the one he owed Darkyn was present or not and then warn Rhyn that the half-demon's Immortal father would soon no longer be dead-dead.
*****
The Dark One, Darkyn, remained long after Gabriel left. He searched Deidre's apartment from top to bottom several times, seeking the item he needed to fulfill his part of a deal. True, they'd had more of an understanding than an official agreement, but he never failed to deliver, even if he had a reputation for interpreting the terms differently than those who made him the deal. Likewise, no one fucked him over when he made a deal. Not even the bitch that was past-Death.