“That’s it, baby.”
Arms wrap around me, and the violet light fades from my vision. The crackling energies retreat into their wells. It feels as though the world goes still as the final thread retracts, until a sharp, invisible snap ripples through me.
I jolt upright with a gasp.
My head connects with something hard.
“Fuck,” Sin growls, clutching his chin.
He’s kneeling on the ground before me.
My heart stutters.
I can’t breathe.
“Sin?” I whisper, not daring to believe he’s real.
I probably did blow up the universe. This is probably some cruel hallucination that’s about to disappear as part of my own personal hell.
He’s looking up at me with proud wonder, and his tattoos glow faintly like embers.
His lips curve into a smirk. “You finally fought back.”
I don’t answer.
I launch myself at him.
Sin catches me with ease, and I melt into his arms. We hold each other like we’ve both forgotten what it’s like to breathe without the other, and his fingers tangle into my hair. He tilts my head back, but I’m already rising to meet him. Our mouths crash together in a wild and desperate kiss.
“Never–” he growls against my lips, punctuating the word with a kiss.
“Fucking–” Kiss.
“Ask–” Kiss.
“Me–” Kiss.
“To–” Kiss.
“Leave–” Kiss.
“You–” Kiss.
“Ever–” Kiss.
“Again,” he finishes.
His gray eyes burn into mine, and he pulls me closer, like it will never be close enough.
I only have a chance to gasp out, “Never,” before he crushes his mouth back over mine.
The kiss deepens, becoming more desperate. Every repressed moment of not letting myself think about the pain of losing him floats to the surface.
I cling to him, knowing that deep within me, something has irrevocably broken. Because I will shatter this world before I’m ever separated from him again.
A throat clears, and the sound pulls me back to the reality of where we are.
Right – the battle.
