I rolled my hips again, grinding against the hard length of him, and we both groaned at the friction, my head falling back, his hands tightening on my waist.
"Sawyer." His name came out like a prayer, like a plea, my fingernails digging into his shoulders as I moved against him, my voice high and desperate. "God, Sawyer, that feels?—"
"I know." His voice was strained, his hips rolling up to meet mine, his hands tight enough to bruise on my hips, his breath coming in harsh pants against my throat. "I know, baby, I've got you."
Baby. The endearment hit me like a punch to the chest, sweet and unexpected from a man made of edges and scars. I kissed him again, softer this time, trying to pour everything I felt into the press of my lips against his, my hands cradling his face.
His hands slid up my back, found the clasp of my bra, hesitated.
"Can I?" His voice was rough, questioning, his amber eyes searching mine for permission even as his whole body vibrated with need, his fingers hovering over the clasp.
"Yes." I breathed the word against his lips, arching into his touch, my voice barely above a whisper. "Please, yes." The clasp released, and then his hands were on me, rough palms against soft skin, and I was gasping, pressing into his touch, needing more.
"So perfect." He murmured against my throat, his hands mapping every inch of newly revealed skin, his purr rumbling to life in his chest, his voice rough with awe. "You're so perfect, Aster. My perfect girl."
His perfect girl.Something cracked open in my chest at the words, something I'd been holding locked away for so long I'd forgotten it existed, tears pricking at my eyes. The grinding grew more desperate, his hips snapping up to meet mine, my movements going erratic as the pleasure built and built. I could feel the slick gathering between my thighs, could smell my own arousal mingling with his, filling the loft with the scent of want and need.
"Aster." His voice was strained, warning, his hands tightening on my hips, his amber eyes blazing into mine, his whole body trembling with the effort of control. "We need to stop. If we don't stop now, I'm going to?—"
"I don't want to stop." I ground down harder, chasing the pleasure, chasing the release I could feel building just out of reach, my voice desperate and needy. "I want?—"
"I know what you want." He gripped my hips and stilled me, holding me in place with a strength that made me whimper, his amber eyes blazing into mine, his voice rough but tender. "And I want it too. God, I want it so bad I can barely think. But not here. Not like this." His voice softened, his hand coming up to cup my face, his thumb tracing my swollen lips, his expression going gentle despite the fire in his eyes. "When I have you for real, I want to do it right. I want you in a bed, with all the time inthe world, where I can take you apart piece by piece and put you back together again."
My breath caught at the image, at the promise in his words, my whole body throbbing with unfulfilled want, my eyes going wide.
"You mean that?" My voice came out small, vulnerable, my hands pressed flat against his chest, feeling his heart pounding beneath my palms, hope and fear tangled together in my chest.
"I mean everything when it comes to you." His voice was fierce, certain, his amber eyes burning with an intensity that stole my breath, his hand tightening on my face. "I don't say things I don't mean. I don't make promises I can't keep."
I stared at him, this man made of scars and silence and barely contained violence, and felt something click into place in my chest. Something that had been missing for so long I'd forgotten what it felt like to have it.
"I love you." The words came out before I could stop them, quiet and certain and terrifying in their honesty, my heart pounding against my ribs, my eyes never leaving his. He went still beneath me, his whole body freezing, his eyes going wide with shock. For one horrible moment, I thought I'd made a mistake, thought I'd broken whatever fragile thing was growing between us.
Then his face crumpled — not with rejection, but with overwhelming emotion, tears finally spilling over, tracking down his scarred cheeks, his whole expression shattering open.
"Say it again." His voice was broken, desperate, his hands trembling where they cupped my face, his amber eyes wild with hope and fear. "Please. Say it again."
"I love you, Sawyer." I leaned forward and kissed the tears from his cheeks, my lips soft against his rough skin, my voice steady and sure. "I love you."
"I love you too." The words came out like they were torn from somewhere deep inside him, rough and raw and completely real, his whole body shaking with the force of them, his hands gripping my face like I was the only thing keeping him anchored. "God, Aster, I love you so much it scares me."
I kissed him then, soft and sweet, nothing like the desperate hunger of before. Just two people who had found something unexpected in each other. Two feral creatures who had somehow, against all odds, found their way home. When we finally pulled apart, I was crying too, tears streaming down my face that I didn't even try to hide. He wiped them away with his thumbs, his touch impossibly gentle, his amber eyes soft in a way I'd never seen before, his scarred face transformed by tenderness.
"We should go back." His voice was quiet, reluctant, his hands still cradling my face like I was something precious, his thumb stroking along my cheekbone. "Before someone comes looking."
"Probably." But I didn't move, just stayed there in his lap, bare chest pressed against his, our hearts beating in sync, my voice soft and content. "Just... give me a minute. I'm not ready to share you yet."
His laugh was soft, surprised, like he still couldn't quite believe this was real, his arms wrapping around me and pulling me close.
"Take all the time you need." He tucked my head under his chin, his purr rumbling through both of us, his voice low and certain. "I'm not going anywhere."
We stayed like that as the light shifted from gold to orange to pink, wrapped up in each other, breathing together, two broken things that somehow fit perfectly together.
Two feral creatures who had finally found their way home.
To each other.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
