That made her lift her gaze.
He still wasn't fully facing her, but there was tension in the line of his shoulders now, something restrained but deliberate, the bond pulsing with the quiet weight of what he was offering.
"It would be better," he continued, choosing his words with precision, each one careful not to overstep the boundary she had drawn in blood and memory, "if we don't risk complications right now. If you ended up pregnant...."
He didn't finish.
He didn't need to.
The implication settled between them clearly enough, heavy as the pre-dawn air, the golden link flaring with a sudden, sharp awareness of what had passed between them the night before, the heat, the claiming, the raw vulnerability of two bodies and two souls tangled under the moon's indifferent gaze.
Liora shook her head.
"No."
The answer was immediate. Not defensive. Not embarrassed. Just certain, calm as still water.
