I sob and turn my face into Soren’s hand, trying to hide it, but he turns my face so I have to look at him again.
“Then why do I miss him?” I ask, my words barely coherent.
Soren cries in return and strokes my face with his hand. His eyes are blazing with a heat I’ve never seen before. So possessive and protective that it makes me feel…safe. Truly safe for one of the first times in my life.
Except, I didn’t realize I needed to feel safe until now.
“For the same reason I don’t want my uncle to die. Despite how fucked up they are, were, they raised us, made us love them. Made us think they love us,” he huffs.
All I can do is cry. I can’t even speak anymore. I step into Soren, and he leans down, pressing his forehead against mine. I wrap my arms around him and feel him as he envelopes me. Warmth and safety.
“I hate him,” I mumble.
“I know,” Soren whispers in return. “He can’t hurt you anymore.”
He brushes some of my wet hair behind my ear before squeezing me tighter to his chest. “I’ve got you, Carm.”
“Oh, Ren,” I whisper.
All I want is to feel better. Feel the heat of our bodies. The way that Soren makes me feel so wanted, needed. Everything is so complicated, and I still don’t know what we’re going to do about it, but I know what I want right now. I want to feel his mouth against mine. I want to lose myself in him. Forget the pain. Forget the touch of someone I never wanted. Do everything I can to replace it with his touch.
I know it doesn’t work that way, but it doesn’t matter.
I stand up taller on my toes and capture Soren’s mouth with mine. The taste of the rain and our tears overwhelms me. I pull even closer to him, so close that I think we’re one. Nothing else matters.
Soren kisses me back eagerly, his tongue brushing into my mouth, but he doesn’t enter until I part my lips more and swirl my tongue around his.
We kiss deeply, as the rain around us starts to let up, and the sound of cars passing below is finally heard.
Every part of me wants the man holding me. I don’t understand it, and I don’t really need to.
The kiss is messy and emotional. We’re both still crying. Tears roll down both of our faces, and soft sobs escape my throat into the kiss every now and then.
“Such a beautiful man,” Soren whispers into the kiss. “So brave. So…mine.”
I moan softly into the kiss. “Yours.” I don’t know what I’m saying, or maybe I do.
“I’ll never let anyone touch you again,” Soren promises me, between panting breaths. “No one. I’ll fucking kill them.”
I want to climb him like a fucking tree. All the blood that was previously in my face is now in my groin.
“I’ll kill anyone who touches you,” I tell him in response. “Gut their entire fucking family.”
Soren groans and pulls his mouth from mine to start kissing alone my jawline.
I tilt my head to the side, feeling the fire that raises up my neck to my ear with each kiss on my cold wet skin.
Just as I’m about to reach down toward his pants, a phone starts vibrating in his pants.
“Son of a bitch,” he growls. He reaches for it, looks at the screen, and then declines the call, but whoever called, immediately calls again. “Fuck.”
“Who is it?” I ask.
“My aunt,” he grumbles.
My heart beat spikes. “She called twice…you should get it.”
He shakes his head. “Not yet.” Soren looks up to me. “Let’s get back to the room. You’re freezing.”
