Page 72 of The Reaper's Vice

Seeming to read my mind, Orion takes a hard right, flying us closer to the school. When we’re right on top of them, Orion grabs my hand, pushing it beneath the waves. My fingertips brush something smooth and weirdly slick, and I nearly yank my hand away. But Orion holds me there, shifting my hand so it passes over the gentle curve of the dolphin's dorsal fin.

Sensing my touch, the dolphin swivels, turning itself belly up as its tail fin works overtime to keep it moving. My eyes widen in shock as Orion lets out a full-bellied laugh, and he doesn’t need to guide me this time. Placing my palm flat on its belly, I give it a couple of scritches like I would the tigers, and the dolphin lets out an elated cackle.

Flapping its pectoral fins, it disappears into the depths of the water, leaving me to wonder if that interaction really just happened. Orion lets out a whooping noise, tilting the nose of the glider up and taking us back into the air.

We soar through the open air, a cool breeze whipping through my hair, sticking it to my face. But I’m so overjoyed, I can’t seem to feel it. The only two things I know for sure are the man steady at my back and the tattooed arm holding me, keeping me in the clouds.

When Orion begins the descent, it seems far too soon. He crests downward at an angle, expertly steering us through a massive cavern in the cliffside I hadn’t noticed when we were standing at the top. In fact, the only way you would be able to see the cavern is if you were flying like we are—even from a boat, you wouldn’t be able to get close enough to the rocks to see the small opening.

Orion twists the glider at an angle, the wingspan just wide enough to fit between the rocky cliffs on either side. I squeal when the right wing scrapes the side, but Orion just laughs, tipping the front downward as we make our descent. As far as I can tell, there’s nothing but a thick swath of canopy beneath us, and I have no earthly idea how we’re going to make this landing unscathed.

To my surprise, instead of taking us to the ground, Orion steers the glider to a small outcropping jutting from the side of the cliff. He lands on the flat rock, holding me impossibly tight as he steadies his stance, fighting against the wind trying to take us back into the air.

With a grunt, he manages to collapse the wings, shoving the contraption deep into the slot of his backpack before throwing it back over his shoulders. He takes my hand with a grin, leading me toward the edge of the outcropping.

I shake my head, digging in my heels as he drags me over. “Nuh-uh. I am not being thrown from a cliff twice in one day.”

Orion laughs, pulling me in front of him and wrapping his arms firmly around my stomach. His breath tickles the shell of my ear as he speaks, stoking the anxiety flaring beneath my skin. “How about we jump together?”

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea eithe?—-”

The rest of the word is lost to my scream as Orion launches us from the ledge, and we plummet to the canopy below. I close my eyes, bracing for impact as we swoop past the thick layer of foliage, free-falling to certain death.

Instead of the hard earth, we crash into a deep body of water hidden beneath the treetops. The chill lake steals my breath as I plummet beneath the surface, kicking and clawing wildly even as my body is dragged down, down, down.

Black spots line my vision as I kick into the dark nothingness, panic squeezing the air from me and dispersing it in an explosion of bubbles. Just when I think I’m a goner, Orion’s calloused hand grips my arm, tugging me easily to the surface. When my head breaks the surface, I draw in a heaving gulp of air, my eyes like daggers as I take in Orion’s nonchalant expression.

“You… could have… killed me… you… fucking… moldy onion…”

Orion just laughs, shaking his head like the thought is ridiculous. “If you think that, then you clearly don’t realize how much I care for you.”

My eyes widen as I take in the raw emotion brimming in his eyes. I try to speak, find my words locked in my throat, and swallow them down. Orion tugs me closer, wrapping my legs around his waist as his hand slides up to cup the back of my neck. His gaze is smoldering, and lights a fire beneath my skin, warming me despite the chill of the lake.

“Do you trust me, Seraphina?” He applies pressure to my neck. “Even now? After everything I’ve done to you, despite all the things I will? Will you give that to me, sweet dove? Or will you keep your heart locked in that pretty gilded cage?”

Just like I did on the cliff, I try to remember all the reasons I shouldn’t. All the things that should make me run from this man, screaming. Only, when I go to list them, I can’t find a single one. And maybe it’s delusional, or crazy, or both, but right now, I need some of that in my life. I’ve been needing it for a while.

“I trusted you then, and I trust you now.” I press my forehead against his, allowing my eyes to close. “I don’t know why I feel this way, but I can’t stop it. Believe me, I’ve tried. I’ve triedso hard.” At this, I look at him, finding his sky-blue eyes fixed on my face as if he’s committing every feature to memory.

“I’ve been waiting for you to break for me, Seraphina.” His gaze heats, and the pressure on my neck increases tenfold. “But right here, right now, I don’t think I can wait any longer.”

His eyes meet mine, and the emotion there scares me. Terrifies and ignites me. Without waiting for his permission, I press on my toes.

And I kiss him.

34

ORION

“CALM BEFORE THE STORM”

Seraphina is kissing me.Seraphina’s lips are on mine. Seraphina is?—

Mine. Mine, all mine.

My thoughts shudder to a halt as Seraphina’s legs tighten around my waist, pressing her sex onto my throbbing cock. I hiss through my teeth, moving us toward a shallow spot so I can do what I’ve been dreaming about for weeks.

As soon as my feet touch the ground, I let go of her neck and rip my pants off, letting them fall to the bottom of the lake as I tear Seraphina’s shorts away from her body. I allow the tattered remains to join my pants as I slip my fingers under the hem of her T-shirt, pulling it over her head with one swift movement.

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