34
CORIN
The house was finally quiet.
Wendy had left for the inn hours ago, promising to return in the morning. Freya had stopped by with food and remedies, then slipped away with a knowing smile. Even Elias, who'd been hovering like a protective shadow since they brought Chloe back, had finally gone home.
Now it was just them. Chloe curled against his side in the bed they'd shared before everything fell apart, her pale blonde hair spilling across his chest, her breath warm against his skin.
She was alive. She was here. She was his.
"Stop thinking so loud," she murmured, her fingers tracing lazy patterns on his stomach. "I can practically hear your brain spinning."
"Sorry." He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "Still getting used to this."
"Used to what?"
"Having you back. Knowing you're staying." His arm tightened around her. "Three days of not knowing if you'd wake up. I kept thinking about all the things I should have said, should have done."
She lifted her head, her green eyes finding his in the dim lamplight. "I'm here now. And I'm not going anywhere."
"I know." His hand came up to cup her face, his thumb brushing across her cheekbone. "But I want to make it official. Permanent. If you're ready."
"The mark?"
"The mark. The bond. Everything." He searched her eyes for any hint of hesitation. "I won't rush you. If you need more time to recover..."
"I've had three days of recovery." Her lips curved into a smile that made his heart stutter. "And I've wanted this since the moment I came back to your house instead of leaving. Maybe before that."
"You're still weak."
"I'm strong enough for this." She shifted, pushing herself up until she was hovering over him, her hair falling like a curtain around them. "Mark me, Corin. Make me yours."
His bear roared in triumph, but he held it back. This wasn't about claiming or conquering. This was about choosing each other, deliberately, completely.
He pulled her down into a kiss and she melted against him, her body soft and warm, her mouth opening beneath his. He tasted her slowly, thoroughly, relearning every curve of her lips, every sound she made when he did something she liked. His hands slid up her back, finding the hem of the oversized shirt she'd borrowed from his closet and tugging it over her head leaving her completely naked.
"Chloe." Her name came out rough, reverent. She was beautiful in the lamplight, all soft curves and pale skin, her breasts full and perfect, her nipples already peaked.
A flush spread across her cheeks. "Lying in that bed, too tired to move, all I could think about was you. Your hands. Your mouth. The way you felt inside me."
He groaned, his cock hardening against his thigh. "You're going to kill me."
"Not tonight." She leaned down, pressing a kiss to his jaw, his throat, the hollow of his collarbone. "Tonight I just want to feel you. All of you."
He rolled them, settling her beneath him, careful not to put too much weight on her recovering body. She gazed up at him with trust and desire burning equally bright in her eyes.
"I love you," he said. "I need you to know that. This isn't just about the bond or the mark. I love you, Chloe. I loved you before I knew you were my mate, and I'll love you long after we're both dust."
Her eyes glistened. "I love you too. Now stop talking and show me."
He kissed her again, deep and hungry, then began working his way down her body. Her throat, where her pulse fluttered wildly. Her collarbone, tracing the delicate line with his tongue. The swell of her breasts, first one, then the other, his mouth closing around each nipple in turn, sucking and teasing until she was arching beneath him.
"Corin." His name came out breathless. "Please."
"Not yet." He kissed her sternum, her ribs, the soft plane of her stomach. "I've been waiting three days to touch you properly. I'm not rushing this."
He kissed the jut of her hipbone, the crease where her thigh met her body, the inside of her knee. She squirmed beneath him, her hands fisting in the sheets, her breath coming faster with each new point of contact.
