Her voice broke.
“It broke me, Mik’hail. It completely broke me.”
The sound of his name on her lips undid him.
“I’m sorry.” He kissed her forehead. “I’m so sorry, Briar.” He kissed her cheek, tasting salt. “I was a fool.” He kissed the corner of her mouth. “A coward.” And then, finally, he kissed her lips, soft and reverent. “Can you forgive me?”
She answered by throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him back.
The kiss started gentle, but it didn’t stay that way.
All the weeks of longing, all the nights of wanting, all the desperate aching need they’d both been fighting—it all came pouring out the moment their lips met.
Aurora’s fingers dug into his hair, pulling him closer. Mik’hail groaned against her mouth and lifted her, her legs wrapping around his waist as he carried her to the narrow bed.
He laid her down and braced himself above her, drinking in the sight of her. Her hair spread across the pillow like spun gold. Her robe had fallen open, revealing the thin nightgown beneath, and he could hear the rapid catch of her breath, could feel how much she wanted him in the way her body arched toward his.
“Mik’hail.” Her voice was breathless and helpless. “Please.”
“Tell me to stop.” He was already lowering his mouth to her throat, already learning the wild flutter of her pulse. “Tell me to stop, and I will.”
“I...I...” Her back arched as his lips trailed lower. “I c-can’t...”
He groaned against her skin. “Aurora—”
“I j-ju...” Her hands were tugging at his robes now, desperate to feel his skin against hers. “P-Please,akh...”
The words broke the last thread of his control.
He kissed her deeply, thoroughly, losing himself in the warmth of her as she sighed into his mouth. She was so soft beneath him, so responsive to every touch.
When he finally parted her robe and slipped the nightgown from her shoulders, she didn’t shy away. She looked up at him with those stormy blue-gray eyes, vulnerable and trusting, and in her eyes were words that, once seen, could never be unseen.
I love you.
I love you.
I love you.
The words destroyed and rebuilt him in ways he could never describe. He could only kiss her again.
Stroke her with fingers that revered the softness of her skin. And when her sighs turned into whimpers, he lifted her up so he could claim her with his lips and bring her body to release.
As the shudders gradually faded, he slowly moved up, and as their gazes met, he knew she could see her words reflected in his.
I love you.
I love you.
I love you.
She touched his cheek with trembling fingers. “I c-can’t believe this is real.”
Mik’hail pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “It’s real.”
“You’re not going to change your mind in the morning? Tell me this was a mistake and send me away again?”
The vulnerability in her voice made him hold her tighter.
