“Aye,” he breathed. “That’s it. Faster.”
And then his hand returned to cup her between her legs as she rode him hard and fast.
And this time when she came, he joined her.
Sated and exhausted, Valynda stretched out on his chest and simply enjoyed feeling his arms around her as his breath stirred her hair.
Nibo leaned his head back, shaken by what had occurred between them. Aye, she was indeed his precious firebrand, and he would never grow tired of her passion.
Never would he be sated.
If anything, he wanted her more than he ever had before. His Vala truly had no equal.
And that had always been their problem.
Valynda lifted her head to look down at him. “Is something wrong?” She drew her brows together into a deep V.
“Nay.” He ran his hands over her back, savoring the softness of that beautiful skin he’d missed so much while she’d been cursed. It wasn’t really a lie.
In truth, things had never been more right.
And likewise, they’d never been more wrong.
Because now that she was intact again, they could both be punished in ways that had made all the others seem like mild bruises.
How could he save her? Why did relationships have to be so damn complicated?
Vala scowled as she gingerly touched his crook. For the first time ever, he didn’t flinch or react. He actually allowed her to take it into her hand and toy with it while it lay in the shape of a small necklace in the hollow of his throat. His only reaction was to watch her with a hooded, peaceful smile as he tangled his fingers in her hair. “Why is this so important?”
“How do you mean?”
“The Malachai wanted me to steal it from you.”
He went cold at those words and she saw the heat in his eyes as they widened. Still, he didn’t pull away, but he was tense now, and on alert. His suspicion permeated the air around them both. “Pardon?”
“You heard me. I want to know why it’s so important to him.”
“And I want to know if you’re still planning to steal it.”
She leaned down to press her nose against his. “I should.”
He arched a brow at that.
Valynda pressed her hand flat to his neck, cradled it, and smiled, then kissed him. “Relax, my precious. Had I planned to take it, I would have done so and not said anything about it.”
Nibo relaxed and snorted. Saddest part? She was the one person in the universe who could have done so and gotten away with it. “Why didn’t you?”
Valynda sighed as she nipped his lips with her teeth. “Honestly? I had planned to. The thought was right there when I saw it.” She traced the outline of the staff. “But as much as I’d like to think otherwise, I’m not that big a wanker. I could never cause you pain, Xuri. No matter what the Malachai or anyone else promised me. You mean more to me than that.” Tears filled her eyes. “You mean more to me than my own body, and I hate you for that most of all.”
Cupping her hand in his, he led it to his lips so that he could kiss her fingers, then nibble her knuckles. “The reason why everyone is after me crook, love, it can bring back the dead.”
She was glad she was sitting down. “It does what?”
“Brings back the dead.”
That went over her like an icy wave as she glared at him. “You could have brought me back?”
He followed her as she pulled away from. “Nay, Vala, it’s not what you’re thinking. Don’t be mad at me.” Nibo gently grabbed her arms to keep her by his side. “Your body was gone,mon ange. Its powers wouldn’t have worked in your case. Believe me. I wouldn’t have hesitated to use it for you if I could have. It’s why they made sure you had no body left.”
