"You're beautiful," I tell her. "The most beautiful thing I've ever tracked."
She laughs, breathless. "That's so fucking weird and so fucking hot."
"I know." I grip her hips, guide her rhythm. "Faster. Take what you need."
She rides me harder. I slide a thumb over her clit. She's swollen and sensitive now, and the touch makes her whimper. She's getting close again, I can feel it in the way she clenches.
"One more," I tell her. "Give me one more."
"I can't!"
"You can. You're almost there." I rub her clit in tight circles while she grinds on my cock. "Let go, Kate. Come for me."
She comes with a sob. I feel her pussy milking me and I stop holding back. I thrust up into her and empty myself in deep pulses that seem to last forever.
She collapses on my chest. We're both sweating, breathing hard, and I feel something close to peace.
"Three," she murmurs. "That's a new record."
"I want to beat it."
She laughs weakly. "Give me an hour."
I hold her while her breathing evens out. This small room, this borrowed bed, feels less temporary than anything has in years.
"I'm scared," I admit. The words come easier in the dark. "Of wanting this. Of what happens if it ends."
"Me too." Her hand finds mine. "But that's not a reason to stop."
"I know." I press my lips to her hair. "I'm learning."
eight
Kate
Thesettlementwantsmeto stay. I’m not surprised, considering all that’s happened.
It’s just the facts and what they need. My research. My methods. My ability to train other people to continue what Ben and Liam started.
But I know that’s not where my heart lies anymore.
I find Finn near the trading post. He's counting bolts in a salvage bin, lips barely moving, hands working through the pieces with mechanical calm. It's what he does when the noise gets too loud. Finds something he can number. Something that holds still.
He sees me coming before I'm close.
"They want me to stay," I say.
He sets down the bolt he's holding. "I assumed they would."
"I'm not going to."
That gets a reaction, hidden but there. He waits. He's learned I always have a second half to a sentence.
"I want to come home." The word feels strange and true at the same time. "To your cabin. I want that to be where I live."
"The research?"
"I can coordinate from anywhere with a radio. I can travel when I need to and come back when I'm done." I close the last few feet between us. "I'm not asking you to be a settlement, Finn. I'm asking you to be my base camp. There's a difference."
