Her breath stutters. The panic in her eyes flickers for a moment before she slides her hands back in my hair. Her fingers tightening this time instead of pushing me away.
She shakes her head. “Don’t,” she whispers, her breath catching in her throat. “Don’t stop. Please.”
That’s all it takes.
When my tongue finally darts between her folds, it’s because she’s holding me there. Hips lifting to meet me. Her moan spills free, as I lap at her clit. This isn’t about taking something else from her, it’s about giving it back.
I slide a finger inside her as I work her clit with my tongue, following every hitch of her breath, every tremor in her thighs. She breaks apart with a cry, soaking my chin as she screams my name. Her body goes slack beneath me. Exhausted and shaken. But she’s alive. She’s here.
“Mine,” I growl, the word slipping out before I can stop them. But I don’t take them back, licking her again as her legs shake. “Always, mine.”
She meets my gaze through hooded eyes, but she doesn’t speak. I nip her inner thigh, drawing a sharp gasp from her lips.
“Say it so I know you’re still here.”
She tilts her head to the side in question, but I don’t give up that easily.
I suck her sensitive clit back into my mouth, forcing her to squirm underneath me. “Say it, baby. Tell me what I want to hear.”
She moans out, “I don’t want to remember him.” She whispers, “I want to remember you.”
I climb off of her, settling into her bed and for the first time tonight, I let myself breathe. “Good. Now be a good girl and come lie with your master.” I give her a wicked smirk.
Thomas can wait until morning.It’s not like he is going anywhere.
She chuckles as she climbs up her bed to lay on my chest. “You’re not my fucking master, Ryven. I just let you think you are when it suits me.” She lifts her head. “Who the hell said you could sleep in my bed?”
I poke her on the tip of her nose. “I did. Now cover us so we can sleep. We have an early morning.”
She sighs and tosses the blanket over us like I asked her to, making herself comfortable in the crook of my arm.
Heaven.This must be it. I am at peace. This is where I want to be every night, with her head on my chest, and her smells taking over my senses.
This is it.My purpose. Her, in my arms—always.
Chapter 20
Rory
Ryven sighs heavily next to me in his sleep, and I can’t help but look at him. Not just look… study him. The way his chiseled jawline moves as he swallows. The webbing around his eyes from years of hard decisions. His stubble shadows his skin so perfectly; it makes me want to run my fingers along it. Like I’m trying to remember who he used to be before the world tried to remove the parts of him I fell in love with.
“Are you checking me out?” he questions with his eyes closed.
“No,” I say quickly, resting my head on his pectoral.
His chest rises and falls as he laughs. “It felt like you were checking me out, Ro.”
“Your eyes were closed. How would you even know anything?” I huff and roll out of bed.
Ryven grabs me by the waist and tugs me to him, nuzzling my hair. “Where do you think you’re going?”
I push him off of me and exit from the bed. “I need to get ready. I have to—” I stop mid-sentence when I step into the bathroom and see Thomas’ body on the ground. “Well, shit. I forgot about him.” My stomach turns like my body is just now catching up to what happened to me.What am I going to do with his body?
Ryven comes up behind me and grabs me around the waist. “Don’t worry. I already have a plan.” He kisses my head and strolls toward the toilet. “No one will ever know he touched you.” His tone leaves no room for argument.
While he’s peeing, I avert my eyes and gaze at the mess I’ll have to clean once Thomas is out of here. Blood is everywhere—even on my favorite carpet he’s lying on.
I hear the zip of Ryven’s pants and glance at him as he begins rolling Thomas in my favorite rug. He lifts him over his shoulder. I stand there until he says, “Go hold the back door open for me, Ro.”
