Siah sinks down next to Torrez and pulls me in to his own lap. We stare at each other for a while, and I take this moment to replace the last memory I had of his pained face on the other side of the barrier with this image of his love-filled features.
Ryker extends his hand out to me, and I take it and step out of Siah’s hold. Ryker cradles my face and kisses me again softly. None of us say anything. We don’t need to. I can feel and see what this did to all of them. The relief is palpable. It was a close call, and none of us will ever be the same because of it. We take time and breathe each other in. We offer what physical reassurances we can in this moment. It’s going to take time to feel secure again and not haunted by the way death was breathing down my back. But we’ll get there, and when we do, we’ll be even stronger for it.
31
Istare at myself in the steamy mirror, studying my face. I look rested and as far from the deathbed as I can get. The guys told me I had been out for three days. Three agonizing days when they weren’t sure I would wake up at all. It felt like a blink to me. I tilt my chin back and study the new rune on the underside of my chin. The line of the simple circle is thick and black, and when I tilt my head back down you can’t even tell it’s there. The guys said it showed up as they were trying to heal me. None of us are sure exactly what it does, but I have an idea. One I’m not ready to think too hard about yet.
I run my fingers through my wet hair, and a soft knock sounds on the door. It cracks open, and Ryker’s gorgeous blue eyes meet mine in the mirror.
“I brought you clothes,” he announces as he steps into the bathroom.
I look down at the pile, expecting black and leather, but instead Ryker is holding soft looking magenta fabric. I make an icked out face, and Ryker chortles.
“Marn told me you had to wear a dress for this,” he tells me sheepishly. “You know there’s no arguing with her when it comes to this shit,” he adds, and I chuckle.
He sets it on the bathroom counter and turns to leave.
“Where do you think you’re going?” I tease. “Who’s going to help me get this thing on? The dresses here are always complicated.”
Sure enough, I hold it up and immediately think there’s not enough fabric here. The dresses themselves are relatively simple and Grecian-esque; what’s complicated is making sure all my bits are fucking covered.
Ryker grins and steps back toward me. I slip the thin material over my head. It’s softer than silk as it caresses down my body and pools at the ground. The straps on each of my shoulders have magenta leather wrapped around them at the top of my shoulder. The gathered fabric dips down my chest into aVand leads into a flowy skirt that has the ever popular slit up to my hip bone on one side. TheVof the top plunges so low that all of my Chosen marks are visible between my breasts.
Ryker holds up a smooth leather piece with braided ties on each end. It’s too small to be a corset but way too big to be a belt. I shrug, not sure how it’s supposed to be worn. Ryker steps up behind me, his chest skimming my bare back as the dress dips deeply on that side too. He wraps his arms around me until the leather piece rests against my stomach. The top of it sits a couple inches below my boobs, and the bottom ends exactly at my waist.
Ryker wraps the braided ties behind me until it’s tight but not too binding. The ties crisscross at the back, and he brings them forward and ties them together at the front. He makes a bow and the long ends of the two braided ties hang down the front of the dress. Ryker flattens his hands against my torso, and our eyes find each other’s in the mirror again. We stare at each other, heat slowly building in our gazes and every part of my body that’s touching his. He leans down slowly, his eyes never leaving mine, and kisses where my neck meets my shoulder.
Goosebumps rise up on my arms, and my nipples grow harder with each breath against my skin. I reach up and cup his head as he nips at my shoulder. With my other hand, I reach up and guide one of his hands from my torso slowly down my body. The air around us becomes heavy as his hand finds the slit in my dress. His fingertips move languidly across my lower abdomen.
My muscles twitch from the ticklish attention, and I rest my head back against his shoulder as we continue to stare at one another in the mirror. Ryker slips a finger between the lips of my pussy and strokes me reverently. I hum my approval and sink my fingers in the strands of his soft blond hair. As he trails kisses up my neck, he pulls the wet evidence of my desire up over my clit and begins to circle it slowly.
Someone knocks at the door and opens it before either Ryker or I can say anything. Sabin pokes his head in to say something, but he pauses when he takes in Ryker’s hand and my hooded gaze. Ryker’s small circles around my clit never even pause, and I try to bite back a moan as I wait for the Captain to tell us it’s time to go or something else that puts a stop to the orgasm that Ryker’s touch is working to coax out of me. Instead, Sabin steps into the bathroom and closes the door behind him.
In three steps, he’s cradling my face and kissing me so thoroughly that it’s making my head swim. His tongue plays with mine as Ryker’s fingers tease my clit and dip back down between my wet lips. Sabin swallows my moan as Ryker pushes his finger into me. He skims my hips with his other hand and pulls the fabric of the dress all the way to the side. Sabin pulls away from my mouth as Ryker pushes two fingers inside of me and begins to circle my clit with his other hand. I turn to Ryker over my shoulder, and his lips are on mine before I even have to ask.
Sabin runs the tip of his nose around my hard, fabric-covered nipple and holds onto my hips as Ryker’s mouth leaves me panting. He pulls away, and I turn to watch him play with my pussy in the mirror. Sabin pushes the deepVof my dress to the side and sucks my nipple into his mouth. Every part of me feels needy and heavy, and I squirm and revel in the feel of them. Their attentions are slow, reverent, and I feel precious and fragile in their hands.
An orgasm cascades through me, and Ryker whispers, “I love you,” in my ear. I turn to kiss him again, and Sabin pulls my other breast free of my dress and moves his full lips to it. Ryker pulls the skirt of my dress up inch by unhurried inch. His touch falls away from me as he unties his pants. Sabin pulls away from my breast and looks up at me, his forest green gaze blazing with tender affection.
He grabs my face and pulls it down as he drops to his knees. I bend over in pursuit of his lips, and Ryker bunches my dress up above my hips. I spread my legs in invitation and steady myself on Sabin’s shoulders. Ryker strokes my hips and lines himself up. He pushes inside of me, and I break away from my kiss with Sabin to moan.
“Fuck, you feel good,” Ryker tells me as he pulls out and grinds back in.
I moan, and Sabin sucks on my bottom lip and then peppers kisses across my jaw. He pinches my nipples as Ryker increases his speed, and I cry out, loving every touch and stroke and thrust.
“That’s it, Vinna,” Sabin encourages as I mewl and groan and gasp. Ryker grips my hips tightly as he fucks me faster and harder with each thrust. I hold onto Sabin’s shoulders as he moves his mouth to my ear.
“Do you know how beautiful you are right now?” he whispers into my ear and then nips at my lobe. I moan, and Ryker groans behind me. The sound of Ryker’s hips slapping against my ass gets louder and louder as he fucks me harder and harder.
“Come, Vinna,” Sabin tells me quietly, his mouth inches from my ear. “Come all over your mate’s dick. Call his name as he worships your pussy.”
Sabin’s words push me over the edge, and I call out for Ryker and come all over his dick just as instructed. Ryker moans out my name in return as he thrusts in deeply and comes. I push off of Sabin’s shoulders, arching my back to keep Ryker deep inside of me and reach for his face. I kiss him and whisper my “I love you” against his mouth as we pull apart to catch our breath.
Ryker pulls out of me, and the next thing I know, Sabin’s lifting me up on the counter of the bathroom. My bare ass hits the cold stone of the counter, and I squeak out a protest. Sabin thrusts into me, turning that protest into a breathy moan. Ryker gives an amused snort as he watches us, and I flip him off playfully. Sabin bends down and sucks a nipple into his mouth at the same time he buries himself deep inside of me and grinds against my clit. I pant and throw my head back, relishing the feel of him.
“Eyes on mine, Vinna,” he tells me. “You know how much I love to watch you come.”
“Then make me come, Sabin,” I order.
