“My sword is yours.” He cracked a smile. “To fight potatoes and thornbushes alike. Snakes too. Especially ones with red hair and bad attitudes.”
I snorted. “Be nice to Ro.”
“He started it.” Callum dropped to his knees in front of me and nuzzled my belly before dipping his fingers beneath the waistband of my underwear. A frown tugged at his lips. “No creatures this time?”
“I can’t wear them every day,” I said with a laugh. He loved my hot dog boxers. They were the ones I’d been wearing the day I arrived in Bremloc, along with skinny jeans, a blue hoodie, and my favorite pair of Vans—which he’d stolen. “Silly man.”
Said silly man then gave me a lopsided smile that turned my heart to mush. Callum was so damn wholesome. A total golden retriever type of personality: loyal, lovable, playful, and protective.
He made quick work of sliding off my underwear and helping me into the tub. The hot water felt amazing. I sank down chest-deep, the tension in my muscles easing. For a finishing touch, he added lavender-scented soap to the bath, causing a plethora of fragrant bubbles.
“How’s the water?” Callum squatted beside the tub. “Too hot?”
“It’s perfect.” I walked two fingers up his forearm. “Well, almost perfect. It’s kind of lonely in this big tub all by myself. If only I had some company.”
His responding smile told me it wouldn’t take further convincing for me to get my way. He shed his clothes and stepped into the bath, sitting behind me. Rock-hard muscle and warm skin pressed against my back. But his abs weren’t the only thing hard.
“Did you sneak your sword into the tub, or are you just happy to see me?”
He wound his arms around my waist. “Apologies.”
“Don’t be sorry.” I rested my hand on his thigh. Fine hairs tickled my palm. “You’re just thinking about blueberry muffins, aren’t you?”
Callum barked out a rough laugh and turned his face against my nape. “I still can’t believe this is real. That you’re here in my arms.”
“Do I need to pinch you again? To prove it’s not a dream?”
I felt him smile. “No pinching necessary. Your warmth. The smell of your skin. No dream could ever compare.”
He was right. I was so happy it scared me. Every morning, I woke up to five men I loved more than life itself. Our days were filled with easy smiles, laughter, and a love so deep I often found myself getting lost in it.
“This is nice,” I said, enjoying the feel of him behind me. It brought a certain security. It brought butterflies too. Lots of them.
“Aye.” Callum grazed his teeth along my shoulder and dipped his hands beneath the water, sliding them to my front. As he took hold of my cock, I tilted my head back and softly sighed. “Is this nice as well?”
“Mhm.” I moved my hand farther up his thigh. “You’re an insatiable cinnamon roll.”
He lightly chuckled. “Ever since the night I first took you to my bed, my body needs yours like my lungs need air.”
“Sex addict.”
“Only with you.” Callum placed a soft kiss on my neck. “Today, tomorrow, and every day after.”
“Cal, I…” Emotion clogged my throat. Crazy how I’d been through this several times now with each of my men, but it still felt like the first time. The prickling pressure in my sternum, the flutter in my belly, and the need to feel his mouth on mine. To taste him and feel him as close as possible.
“Tell me what you need,” he murmured, running his lips over the shell of my ear.
What I needed couldn’t be conveyed through words.
I rotated my body and straddled his lap, causing water to slosh in the tub. Callum’s lips parted, and he buried his hand in the back of my hair, bringing my face to his. The moment we kissed, electric tingles shot through my veins, heating my blood and igniting tiny explosions in my chest, like fireworks lighting up a night sky.
A sign of our fated connection, that we were meant to be together.
Each glide of his hand and graze of his lips stirred something in my core, awakening a part of me that belonged only to him. When kissing and light touches weren’t enough, I reached between us and grabbed his erect cock, guiding him into place.
“Ev.” A soft sound left him, and he broke from my lips, tipping his head back.
I accepted the invitation and kissed the base of his throat, loving the breathy groan he rewarded me with. My lips then found the scar on his jugular. A wound that’d nearly taken him from me.
