“THEO!” Willow shrieks. I look up to see a huge, black-clad soldier coming out the gloom of the tunnel
And he’s holding the girl.
"Let her go!" I scream, my Lumina sparking violently at my fingertips. Can I burn him with it?
And not hurt the kid?
The soldier doesn't reach for a weapon. He doesn't move to strike.
Instead, he slowly reaches up to his helmet, then pulls the black visor up.
Long, snow-white hair spills over the tactical suit's dark collar. Then beautiful mismatched eyes meet mine—tired, pained, but unmistakablyhis.
"Ludo," I breathe, the tension draining out of me so fast my knees nearly buckle. Willow lets out a sob. “Thank Gods.”
The little girl is tucked against Ludo’s chest, her small hands clutching the webbing of his vest. —Nymph. She is safe.—
Willow and I run forward, Willow bundling the girl into her arms, while I throw my arms around Ludo. He smells like smoke and blood and sucks in a breath as I cling to him.
“Are you hurt?”
—It’s nothing—He drops the helmet, and it clatters on the rocky tunnel floor. In the next breath, Ludo lifts me up, bringing my face level with his.—Nymph—
He buries his face in my hair for a moment then pulls back. Our lips are a millimeter apart as our breath mingles.
And then they meet.
At first, Ludo just gently brushes his mouth against mine, tentative, almost questioning. My breath hitches as he traces the seam of my lips with his tongue.
A beat later that changes.
This kiss is hard and needy; it’s the best feeling in the world, a desperate affirmation of life and connection. It’s a physical shockwave.
A burst of golden-lilac light erupts from my center, catching us both in its maelstrom. My veins feel like they’re being filled with liquid stars and the connection between Ludo and I snaps into a solid, unbreakable bridge of pure energy that feeds on our relief and our love.
Winding my arms tighter around his neck, I feel his hard length between us.
—Want—
—Need—
—Love—
I open my eyes, and his lids raise at the same moment.
Ludo’s pupils are blown with desire as we gaze at each other.
Ludo. My Ludo.
We press impossibly closer, smashing our bodies together until I can’t tell where I end and he starts.
And that’s just how I want it to be.
Time slows. The purest, most exquisite feeling enters my heart and I know this moment will stay with me forever. My soul hums with the rightness of it all.
I don’t know how long we kiss, but eventually he pulls back, a look of utter wonder on his face.
—I love you, my Nymph, now and every second until the universe collapses. But even then, I love you. My atoms will seek yours in the deepest, darkest, nothingness, and together we will be whole—This I vow—
