I can’t keep the very male, very satisfied grin from my face, and I don’t want to. She’s boneless but still moans when I wipe the wax off her skin. I give her a kiss to prove how hard she cameon my tongue, knowing she doesn’t need a reminder, then scoop her into my arms and switch the lights off before tucking us both into bed. She sighs in contentment, and I stare at the woman next to me in awe. I can’t believe how sexy she looks right now.
Naked.
Sated.
Mine.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Hunter
Open your heart to me.
Islept like a baby for the first time in years. After taking care of my own needs in the shower, I fell asleep to Eleanor’s little snores in my ears. Apparently, I wore her out. I grin down at her, still sleeping even though it’s seven a.m. She’s normally already awake and working by now, putting the rest of us to shame, so it’s good to see her rest. I’m sure she’s racked up enough sleep debt for an entire year. While I keep a strict schedule of waking up before six regardless of the day, I condone this rest she clearly needs. Even Charlie, who snuck up at some point in the night to curl between us, is giving me the stink eye that clearly states he’ll never forgive me if I wake the sleeping princess. He typically butts my hand in disgust by six forty-five if he hasn’t been fed.
Eleanor rolls onto her side, facing me, and makes my mouth go dry as I trace the peaks and valleys of her body with my eyes. The tangled sheets spill down to below her hips, allowing my hungry eyes to take in even more of her. Damn, she’s stunning. Smart. Sexy. Adorable. I take in every detail I missed lastnight. I am going to enjoy learning her every curve. Touching her. Tasting her. Again and again.The lotus flower tattoo that begins on her hip is on full show. It’s a stunning watercolor of something strong and beautiful emerging from the dark. I get it, but she’s wrong about rebirth. She means it literally, like much of the thoughts crowding her mind, but rebirth isn’t about dying, it’s about transformation. This woman has survived horrific things, yet she is kind, courageous, and fights hard for people she’s never even met.Oh, Eleanor, you are a contradiction.
My eyes narrow on a raised part in the center of a pink lotus bloom. It’s a crazy effect I’ve never seen before, and I squint as my fingers brush over it. My heart thumps harder, and I swallow. It’s too deliberate to be an accident, but not neat enough for a surgical wound. I’m trying my best to piece together what could have caused it, but I’m drawing a blank. There’s a swirl that kicks out, then a straight part and two triangles. The tattooist has managed to weave the design in such a way the natural shadowing follows the scar. If I wasn’t so desperate to learn every inch of her body, I would’ve missed it.
My gaze travels up her body, and I freeze, finding her staring at me with an expressionless face. She doesn’t flinch, explain, or cover herself. This is why she wanted the lights off last night.
“Ask me,” she says. Her voice is huskier than normal, sleep still clinging to her.
I lay back down, facing her as I lie on my side. “What is it?”
“A brand.”
I have to force myself not to curse or get up and rage around the room. “Who?”
“Jonathan.”
“How old were you?”
“Sixteen.”
That man will die a slow, painful, brutal death before he takes his rightful place in the devil’s asshole. If I didn’t have themotivation before to do the world a favor and take out the trash, I do now. He hurt my woman in ways I’ll probably never fully understand, which means he’s lost the privilege of being able to continue breathing.
Her fingers reach out, and she grazes them over my cheek, centering me back into this moment with her. I grasp her hand in mine and kiss her fingers, unable to shake the rage flowing through me.
“Anything else you want to know?”
So, so much. “Does it mean something?”
Her breath hitches, and Charlie belly crawls between us, laying some kisses on her fingers. My body relaxes, thankful my girl is getting twice the love. He really is me.
“At first, I thought it was the symbol of our society and had some higher meaning.” Her lips thin, her eyes getting a faraway look. “That’s what we were told, anyway.”
“But?”
She moves her hand from my face to Charlie’s fur, and I marvel how far she’s come with him in such a short space of time. “It’s his initials made into a symbol.”
I’m going to make sure she has the opportunity to deliver her vengeance. He is the worst of the worst. If she doesn’t know exactly where to place a blade for maximum pain and a drawn out death, I’ll teach her.
“Do you think I’m ugly now?” Her words crack my heart in two.
“Charlie, down.”
He huffs but decides my tone isn’t to be argued with. I don’t give her a chance to shy away. Placing my hand over the brand, I drag her body on top of mine. I still have my boxers on, but the second she’s close to me, my cock wakes up.
