“Solarin, I want you to be…everything.” He pulls me into his lap, the carved firefighter carefully set aside. “Girlfriend. Partner. The person I wake up next to. The person I come home to.” He pauses, then adds with deliberate weight, “Eventually, if you want, maybe even more than that.”
I kiss him—soft at first, then deeper. When we break apart, I’m smiling through fresh tears.
“I want all of that too,” I whisper. “It terrifies me, but I want it.”
“Brave girl.” He wipes away my tears with his thumbs. “My brave, beautiful girl.”
We sit in the firelight, the music box still playing its sweet melody, gifts exchanged and hearts laid bare. The phone call this morning changed everything—gave me back my father, my history, my sense of being worth fighting for. And now, wrappedin Ryder’s arms with the promise of a future we’re both brave enough to want, I feel like I’m finally whole.
“It’s not much, but I wanted you to have something that showed how I see you,” I continue softly, gesturing to the carved figure he’s set beside the music box. “Not as an Other or different or scary. Just… heroic. Beautiful.”
When he looks at me, something fierce and unguarded burns in his amber eyes. My pulse stumbles in response. “No one’s ever called me beautiful before.”
“Then they weren’t looking hard enough.” For a moment, his gaze seems to pierce all the way to my soul. “Today, since the call with your father. You’re…” He searches for words as his index finger trails a butterfly-soft pattern along my jawline. “You’re not hiding anymore.”
He’s right. The walls I’ve carried for twenty years have crumbled, leaving me exposed but not afraid. For the first time in my adult life, I feel worthy of being seen. Worthy of being wanted.
“I don’t want to hide from you,” I admit. “I don’t want to hide from this.”
“This?”
Instead of answering with words, I reach for him. My hands frame his face, fingers tracing the powerful line of his jaw, the elegant point of his ears. His skin is warm, utterly masculine, and covered in a golden sheen from the firelight.
“You,” I whisper against his lips. “Us. Whatever this is.”
His kiss is different this time—deeper, hungrier, with none of the careful restraint he’s shown before. I’m done being careful, too.
Chapter Nineteen
Laney
His tusks press lightly against my skin as his mouth moves over mine, a reminder of his otherness that sends heat spiraling through my core.
“Solarin,” he growls against my mouth, and the endearment has never sounded more like a claiming. “Tell me what you want.”
“You,” I breathe without hesitation. “All of you.”
Something primitive flashes in his eyes—possession, hunger, satisfaction that I’m finally admitting what we both know has been building since we first met. His hands span my waist easily, lifting me like I weigh nothing until I’m straddling his lap, suddenly aware of every inch of his size and strength.
“You sure about this?” His voice is strained, like holding back is costing him everything. “Because once I touch you properly, I won’t want to stop.”
The dominant edge in his tone should intimidate me. Instead, it sends liquid heat pooling between my thighs. This is what I’ve been afraid of—not his size or his difference, but the way he makes me want to surrender completely.
“Don’t stop,” I whisper, and his control finally snaps.
He flips us in one smooth motion, pressing me back against the soft pile of blankets we’ve made our nest. His weight settles over me, deliciously heavy, and I can feel the evidence of his arousal against my hip.
“Goddess, you’re incredible,” he murmurs, hands roaming over my body with reverent hunger. “So small, so soft. I want to taste every inch of you.”
His mouth trails down my throat, finding that sensitive spot where my pulse hammers frantically. When his tusks graze my skin—light, careful, but undeniably present—I arch beneath him with a gasp that’s pure need.
“Like that, mmm?” His voice is dark silk and smoke. “You trust me now.”
“Yes,” I breathe, threading my fingers through his dark braids. “I want you to know all of me.
He pulls back to look at me, amber eyes blazing. “Then let me pleasure you the way I’ve been dreaming about, Sunshine. Let me show you what you do to me.”
His hands find the hem of my thermal shirt, pausing. Even in the grip of passion, he’s giving me the choice. The consideration, the care, the way he’s holding himself in check for my comfort—it’s the most erotic thing I’ve ever experienced.
