"You're beautiful," she whispers.
"Beautiful?" The word sounds wrong applied to me—to green skin and tusks and scars.
"Yes." She traces a particularly long scar that runs from my collarbone to my ribs. "What's this from?"
"A boar. Five winters ago."
"And this?" Her finger finds another.
"My brother Kroy. Training accident."
She leans forward, presses her lips to the scar. The tenderness of it steals my breath. She kisses her way across my chest, mapping scars with her mouth, and I sit perfectly still, letting her explore. Letting her accept me.
When she pulls back, her eyes are shining. "Your turn."
My hands shake as I reach for the hem of her shirt. "Tell me if you want me to stop."
"I won't."
I lift the fabric slowly, giving her time to change her mind. She raises her arms and I pull it over her head, dropping it forgottento the floor. Firelight catches on her skin, turns it to gold and honey. She's softer than anything on this mountain, curves where I'm angles, smooth where I'm scarred.
"Beautiful," I say, because now I understand the word. This is beautiful—trust and vulnerability and the way her breath hitches when I trail my fingers down her side.
I kiss her shoulder, her collarbone, the hollow of her throat where her pulse flutters. She arches into me, fingers threading through my hair. When my mouth finds her breast, she makes a sound that's half-gasp, half-plea.
"Thane—"
"I have you." I lay her back onto the furs, following her down. The firelight plays across her skin as I map her with my hands and mouth, learning what makes her sigh, what makes her fingers tighten in my hair, what makes her hips lift in silent plea.
She's responsive, unguarded. Every touch draws a reaction, and I'm drunk on the power of it. ThatIcan make her feel this way. That she trusts me enough to let go.
I finish undressing her, marveling at how gorgeous she is. And when I slide my hand between her thighs, she's molten. Ready. The scent of her arousal thickens the air and the bond hums with her need. I stroke her carefully, watching her face, learning her body's language.
"Please," she breathes. "Thane, please—"
"Not yet." I gentle my touch, keeping her on the edge. "I want to know all of you first."
She makes a frustrated sound that becomes a moan when I lower my mouth to taste her. She's sweeter than wild mountain berries, and the sounds she makes drive me to the edge of control. Her thighs tremble on either side of my head. Her fingers twist in my hair, not pulling away but holding me to her.
When she comes apart, she cries out my name like a prayer.
I take off my pants and kiss my way back up her body, settling my cock between her thighs. She's flushed and trembling, eyes dark and sated, but when she feels me against her, her hips tilt in invitation.
"Are you sure?" My voice comes out strained. "Lila, I need you to be sure."
She cups my face, brings me down for a kiss. "I already chose," she whispers against my lips. "The moment you carried me out of that fire."
I enter her slowly, carefully, feeling her body adjust to accommodate me. She's tight and hot and fuckingperfect, and the bond sings between us—a golden thread pulling taut.
"You feel it?" I manage, holding still though every instinct screams to move. "The bond?"
"Yes." Her voice is awed. "It's like… likelight. Like warmth spreading through my whole body."
"That's us," I tell her, pulling back only to thrust slowly home again. "That's what we are together."
We find our rhythm—slow at first, savoring each slide and grip. But the bond pulls tighter, the need building between us like the storm building outside. She wraps her legs around my waist, pulling me deeper, and I'm lost.
I press my forehead to hers, breathing her air, feeling her heartbeat sync with mine. "Mine," I growl.
