I tried to pull at his shirt, to reach for his hardness to return the favor.
“Oh, lovely. I’m plenty ready,” he assured me. “Besides, you’re still healing. Best you let me do all the work.”
I practically begged for him by the time he finally undressed and placed his hips over mine.
I was ready for the press, to be filled by him. But he paused and looked deep into my eyes as if he wanted to memorize the constellations of colors within them.
“I love you, Dommik,” I whispered. “I choose you and I love you.”
Dommik’s lips crashed into mine with the declaration and, at long last, he curled his hips into mine. His length slid effortlessly and I gasped at the depth of him.
“Reyva.” He pulled away and thrust again. “I don’t just love you.”
I couldn’t help moving with his rhythm, like it was a song our bodies had always known. He burrowed deep into me again as he said, “You consume me.”
Our lips crashed together. His words fell against my parted, panting lips. “You’ve ruined me. I am wholly yours. Today, tomorrow, infinitely.”
What he said next made me still beneath him. “I, Dommik Thorne, offer my shadow to you.”
My eyes went wide at the familiar script.
“As an extension of myself and my immortal existence among this mortal plane,” he continued, never ceasing in his pursuit of my pleasure.
I gasped as his length caressed the sensitive parts of me and he carried on, “This is both a precious gift and an unbreakable promise.”
More than the sensations building in my core was a pull, a powerful connection. “That I’ll honor and protect your life until your mortality ends. And be here to support and guide you when your immortal life begins.”
I couldn’t remember what the priestess Orla had said there in the ballroom before Vaspar slayed her. She’d only recited one line. But what wasswirling between us didn’t require a script or an audience. It didn’t need decadent decor or luxurious excess. It wasn’t a ring. It wasn’t traditional. It was deeply personal and undeniably powerful.
Tears filled my eyes as I whispered to him in the intimate privacy of that basement, “I accept.”
Blurred darkness swirled between us as we reached our threshold together, shattering entirely amongst the hanging words of our promises to each other and the bond we’d forged together.
I dreaded the next evening. I was well enough to travel and we couldn’t stay holed up at the Day Guard barracks forever. Dommik was right, Eryx would return and it wasn’t safe to linger.
Cova held me steady as we ascended the stairs and exited the barracks. A row of waiting mounts were being saddled and readied.
Shaw was whispering something into Alba’s loose golden hair. Gorvin was already mounted; his horse shuffled in place, sharing his impatience.
And finally, I saw Dommik’s broad, leathered back to me and an avalanche of feelings overcame me.
My feet might as well have been anvils as I approached him. Fear roiled in my gut at the prospect of this goodbye.
Could this really be it? The end of us?
He turned, Asher’s reins in hand, and smiled at me. I strained to smile back. The weight of my words made my lips heavy. And he could see it. His brow furrowed and he pulled me into a silent hug.
“Hello, lovely,” he said softly.
“Deviant.” I stifled a sob into his leathers. “I hate this.”
“Trust me, I do too,” Dommik mumbled into my hair before kissing the top of my head.
We’d talked while the others had rested. About our future plans and what it would take to get there. Of the three abandoned Hives, the Western Hive was the most plausible for settlement. It was also the second closest to Illica. Dommik would lead the Southern Hive survivors there to settle and fortify the Hive.
I would return to Illica with Cova and Lydia for the time being, allowing me to reconnect with my sister and bond with my daughter. Ourshared magic might be needed in the future and we’d proven we were capable of protecting ourselves if needed, but we were stronger together.
Our time apart will be a short chapter of our life together,Dommik had assured me.
