“They will search for her as well,” Von concluded. The bounty was now working against their favor instead of for them.
Tarn stood, fixing them with his icy gaze. “Make way for the port immediately.”
They bowed their heads and backed out of the tent. Outside, the spies turned to Von for his command.
“You heard the master. There is no time to rest. Prepare to move.”
They nodded and split in different directions to pass on the order. Soon the camp was in an uproar as the men disassembled their tents.
The Raiders saluted to Von with a fist over their hearts as he made his way through the camp, barking orders. It used to be Lieutenant Abenon’s task to handle these things before his untimely death. How many more men would he lose before this was over? None of that mattered to him right now.
Von kept going, with only one destination in mind. When he saw his tent, his steps quickened, desperate to reach it. He practically ran into the tent, and Yavi yelped at his sudden entrance. The smile crossing her face stole his breath.
Home.
It didn’t matter where they went, what hovel they stayed in, or what curse broke the sky. She was his home.
He marched toward her.
Yavi stood from where she had been folding clothes into their trunk. “Von—”
He caught the lovely sound in a crash of lips. She gasped against his mouth, opening further, meeting the slide of his tongue. Her soft moan ignited him with liquid heat. She melted into his arms as he trailed kisses from the curve of her soft neck to the corner of her lips. He would never be tired of the sweetness of her skin. He pressed into her so she would feel exactly how much effect she had over him. Their mouths crashed in an urgent kiss, fierce and desperate to get lost in one another. The feeling of her soft lips consumed him whole.
“I missed you,” he said against her mouth, his voice husky. “I need you.”
Her nails dug into his arms as her breath quickened. A sly smile spread across those lips. “I know.”
Von grabbed Yavi’s hips and hoisted her up. She clamped her thighs around him, snaking her arms around his neck, fingers fisting in his hair. Their mouths locked as he carried her to their small dining table. Yavi ripped at his bandolier, nearly tearing the buckle before he got to it. She yanked off his coat, and he tugged at the bodice strands as they grasped and kissed, teeth nipping at lips and skin.
They came together in a crashing wave. Her head flew back with a delicious whimper, giving him access to her throat. Von groaned against her rapid pulse, holding her tight. So perfect. The feel of her tangled around him, with him, against him. All of it, absolutely perfect. She was all he would ever need, a need that never was sated.
Desperation took over, fast and hungry, not at all tender as she deserved. Yavi’s nails dug into him with the same frantic need. She clung to him as if he was the only thing solid in the world. Yet he was as insubstantial as air, lost in never-ending chaos, and she was the anchor.
“I love you,” he said, taking the back of her head to draw her into a kiss.
The phrase was too simple to describe what she meant to him. Yavi was branded on his skin, embedded in his heart. Without her, he couldn’t breathe.
She smiled against his mouth and repeated the same line she always said to his confession, “How much?”
“This much.”
Von carried her to the brink as they quickly rose together, and he silenced Yavi’s cry with a kiss as they careered over the edge. He plummeted with her into a waiting cloud that carried him away. They held each other through the shudders as her pulse raced beneath his palms. She dropped her head against his chest, panting to catch her breath.
It was over too soon. Much too soon. Perhaps he was greedy, but he wanted more of her.For her.Not these short, stolen moments that came too far in between. It wasn’t ever enough.
He gently pressed his lips against her temple. “Next time, it won’t be like this.”
Yavi at him lazily through lidded eyes. She took it as wistful words said from the fog of satisfaction and not the promise he intended it to be. Other obligations would always intervene, but he truly meant it.
He would care for her better in every way.
Von ran his nose along her shoulder, planting a kiss on her soft skin. “Next time, I’ll take my time worshiping every inch of you.”
A breathless laugh escaped her lips. “Keep speaking like that, and we won’t get on with our duties.”
He cursed under his breath and groaned, making her laugh again. With much regret, he slipped free and went to the basin of water by the trunk. He took the cloth soaking inside and carefully cleaned her, then himself.
“You’re drinking the tea?” he thought to ask as he buttoned his trousers.
