The words undid her more than the touch. She clung to him, fingers digging into his shoulders as he guided her back, easing her onto the bed with reverent care. He followed her down, bracing himself above her, his weight a welcome, grounding presence.
The kiss broke only so he could trail his mouth along her jaw, her throat, the sensitive hollow at the base of her neck. Each brush of his lips left her more open, more aware of the slow, building heat coiling low in her body. She breathed his name again, the sound half plea, half promise.
When they finally came together, it was slow and deep and overwhelming. Not a collision, but a claiming that made her gasp and cling, her body recognizing what her heart had been fighting for days. He stayed close, forearm braced beside her head, eyes never leaving her face as if he needed to see every reaction,every surrender.
They moved together, finding an inevitable rhythm, his control steady even as the intensity climbed. She met him stroke for stroke, the connection between them tightening until sensation blurred into something richer and deeper than release alone.
When it finally crested, it took her with it, leaving her trembling and breathless beneath him, wrapped tight around the truth she’d been afraid to hopefor.
He didn’t pull away right after. He stayed there, forehead resting against hers, breath uneven, as if he needed the quiet moment as much as she did. Then he gathered her close, rolling just enough to pull her against his chest, one hand sliding back to her palm, covering the Brand there with hisown.
She listened to his heartbeat, steady and sure, and something inside her finally settled.
“I’m not going anywhere,” she said softly, the words surprising her with their certainty.
He kissed her hair, his arm tightening around her. “Good. Neither am I.”
The ghosts in the room quieted, not erased but softened, folded gently into the warmth of his arms and the steady beat of his heart. Wrapped there against him, held without question or condition, Sera finallylet herself believe she wasn’t just safe or chosen—she washome.
