He grins at me, so bright my heart skips a beat. “I do now.”
He kisses me again, his hands skimming back up my body to cup my breasts. In this moment, the layers of fabric between us feel like nothing but an annoyance.
I kiss him harder and then blink in and out of the shadows to dispel my jacket, dress, and underclothes all at once.
Mirage chuckles raggedly and performs the same trick beneath me, so fast I barely feel the loss of him. The glow of his mark beams from his chest to mingle with the light from my own.
Then his cock is pressing between my legs, the hard shaft sliding against my clit with just enough friction to make me sigh.
“No matter what those humans do, no matter what happens with the city, I’ll always be here to brighten you up if you get down,” he promises, teasing his fingers into my still-glowing hair. “You’re my treasure, Peri. Better than any gem, any heap of gold.”
I rock my hips against him, drawing a groan from both our chests. “And I’ll be here to do the same for you.”
He flips us over in one smooth movement and plunges right into me. The shock of the motion turns the jolt of pleasure even giddier.
I raise my knees to welcome him in and urge him on, every inch of my body tingling. As he thrusts deeper, he teases his fangs along my neck, sparking even more thrills.
The rhythm of our collision is all elation. I sway to meet him, trailing my hands over his compact muscles, kissing him until we’re both panting for breath.
Mirage slides a hand beneath my ass and tilts me at an angle that brings him even deeper into me. I gasp with a quiver of pleasure so intense it’s electric.
It only takes a few more thrusts before I’m crying out and clutching him as ecstasy washes through me. My body shudders with the force of my orgasm.
Mirage growls and fills me again, and again. Then he follows me with a rasped inhalation and a rush of heat inside.
He rolls us onto our sides and wraps me in his arms and the joyful warmth of his adoration.
“Did you get what you were looking for, Rainbow?” he asks in a mischievous tone.
I bump my nose against his. “I’m always happier after I’ve been with you. Did you?”
“I didn’t even know what I was craving until you came to give me exactly what I needed. That’s just how perfect you are.”
Unfortunately, the abandoned factory isn’t all that atmospheric a setting for romantic interludes. When we’ve caught our breaths, Mirage pulls me into one last lingering kiss, and we dip into the shadows to make our way outside.
We’re just emerging from the big brick building when a tremor ripples through the air. My heart lurches.
I spin around in time to see a thicker gush of shadow spilling from the rift overhead.
16
Jonah
Avolley of shouts brings me running to the trailer door. The group of shadowkind I was discussing strategy with hustle over behind me.
Outside, people are running through the paths between the trailers and tents—away from the city. My heart is already lurching as I scramble down the steps and whirl to get a better view.
A thick black torrent of shadow is spewing from the vast rift high above the buildings. It mingles with the gray haze below like a stream branching into trickles as it gushes down a mountainside.
It’s happening again? This mess is getting even worse?
As my legs lock in my first jolt of shock, someone swears behind me. Shadowkind flit into the darkness. Hollered voices with a military-precise edge reach my ears from farther afield.
Riva and Zian jog up beside me, skirting the panicked refugees who are hurrying farther away. Riva’s expression is tight, Zian’s eyes wide.
“What the fuck is happening?” the big guy demands.
I shake my head, needing a moment to locate my words. “I—I don’t know. I guess the same thing as before?”
