“Yes! Rhydian please. Give me your seed. Get me pregnant. I want it,” I whine.
He chuckles as he kisses my sweaty temple.
“You know what to say if you want my come.”
I do. The words always set both of us off.
“I love you.”
Rhydian roars as he powers into me. Flattening me to the mattress, my husband ruthlessly fucks me. A scream tears from my lips as fire licks up my skin. Pleasure spreads from the center of my stomach until my limbs tingle.
My climax is prolonged as Rhydian thrusts once, twice, and then erupts inside of me. His hot release bathes my inner walls and sets off another round of pleasure. He fucks every drop of it into me, ensuring all of it goes exactly where we both want.
Staying locked inside me, Rhydian cradles me to his chest before laying us down atop the sheets. I shudder with aftershocks from the force of our coupling. Soft voices float in from the street. My face heats as I turn towards Rhydian.
“They definitely heard me.”
A deep laugh vibrates his chest. Kissing me soundly, he smooths the hair back from my face. With him inside me, everything feels perfect. I’m overflowing with happiness.
Gratitude for finding him makes tears threaten to spill.
“I love you, Bloom. You are a gift to me. A treasure. One I’ll never stop protecting—fighting for. I’ll spend every day of my life proving myself worthy of your love.” He kisses away the tears sliding down my cheeks. “I’ll never waste a moment of time together.”
“Nor will I,” I vow. “You are my heart. My soul. I need you more than air in my lungs. You are my missing piece, Rhy. Now that I have you, I’ll never let you go.”
“Never,” he agrees.
Nuzzling under his chin, exhaustion tugs at my muscles. Once I’ve dozed, I’ll be ready for another round with my minotaur. Sunlight paints our naked skin in stripes of gold. The warmth of our bodies and the love we share chase away the coldness of the past.
Never again will we be alone. Against the odds we found each other. My home is not in a town or a cottage. It is with Rhydian.
Wherever he goes, I’ll always be by his side.
Forever.
EPILOGUE
RHYDIAN - ONE YEAR LATER
Frost licks up the glass.
The silver ice crackles like a pale spiderweb over the pane. I shiver, not from the cold as the bakery ovens are making me sweat through my apron, but of the creatures lurking out in the snow.
I’ve never been fond of winter. Everything is blanketed in white nothingness. The cold bites at the flesh. More than the discomfort, my father used to tell me tales of the creatures who would wander intothe Woodsduring the snowy months. Searching for fresh kills and making meals out of anyone who happened upon their path.
Towering figures that drank blood and crunched bones between their sharp teeth.
A twig snaps from outside, and I jump. Shaking my head, I turn from the window and back to my task. I’m grateful those creatures are far from here. As protector of Dew Hollow, it’d be up to me to run them off, and I’m not particularly thrilled at the idea of becoming a meal.
Depositing the fresh loaves onto the counter to cool, I inhale the yeasty scent of the bread. The familiar aroma conjures upmemories of the first time I entered James’s bakery with Bloom by my side.
Bloom.
My heart pounds in my chest. I wish she were here beside me, but I know why she can’t be. The hour is late, and my need to be beside her is becoming hard to ignore. I’ll see if her father has any more tasks for me before making the short distance home. During the cold, I’m grateful we’ve chosen to live so close.
As if my thoughts summoned him, James claps me with a wrinkled palm on the shoulder. His warm smile is an exact mirror of his daughter’s. I’ll never forget the kindness he showed me when we first met. He understood my love for Bloom.
Giving me her hand has been the greatest blessing of my life.
