Page 106 of Chaos Carnival

“I'm here. I'll always be here.” My voice splintered like a wooden beam on the words.

But I could do nothing but hold her through the night, loving every fractured piece of her, her delicate frame shaking with silent sobs. My fierce, brilliant mate, who'd tried to weave us a kinder ending, only for us to rewrite the story again in blood and hunger.

“I love you,” I breathed into her hair. “Every version of you. Every piece. Always.”

She shifted in my lap, her lips brushing my ear. “And when the madness gets too loud...” Her touch turned deliberate, heated. “Remember the lovely secrets. How you can quiet the chaos. How your touch can bring me back, even if just for moments.” She pulled back just enough to meet my gaze, her eyes flickering between lucidity and that haunting awareness. “When I'm lost in the woods, drowning in possibilities... you can still reach me through pleasure. Through pain. Through anything that makes the blood sing.”

I held her tighter, our shared hunger adding a darker edge to her words. The truth of what we'd done to her—what I'd done to her—crushed my heart.

I lowered my forehead to hers, searching her eyes. They shone with that maddening mix of awareness and unfocused intensity, but in that moment, there was crystal clarity between us.

“Love?” I asked, needing to know her answer, her truth in this moment. “Do you want this right now?”

She giggled, a soft, disjointed sound, and nodded.

I threaded my fingers into her hair, tilting her head back, and kissed her gently. Soft, warm, tasting of the sweetness in the eye of the storm. Her lips moved against mine, a whispered echo of tenderness.

Her fingers danced along my skin, tugging at my shirt, and I helped her pull it over my head, breaking our kiss momentarily. Then we were pressed together again, mouths clinging, hungry. My hands found her waist, slipping under her shirt to touch bare skin, and she arched into my touch, a soft moan escaping her.

We undressed each other, hands tangling and grasping, until nothing separated our flesh. I sat back on my heels and she straddled my legs, taking me inside her with a mutual groan. Her eyes fluttered closed as she settled into my lap, our bodies connecting with an electric mix of pleasure and pain.

Wrapping her legs around my waist, she began to move, a gentle rocking that built into a feverish rhythm. Her lips found mine again, breathless kisses that mirrored the motion of our bodies. Her nails dug into my shoulders, marking me, as her mouth moved to my neck, my collarbone, leaving a trail of fire.

My hands gripped her hips, guiding our movements as we sank into the sensations, striving to quiet the looming madness. Her breath came in gasps, soft cries against my skin, as her body tightened around me, edging us closer to oblivion.

“I love you,” I whispered, my voice raw and broken. “Stay with me, always.”

“Forever,” she panted, her eyes fluttering open to meet mine. “Yours. Forever.”

The world fell away as we raced toward the peak together, our hearts pounding in unison. Tess's fingers threaded through my hair, tugging gently, as her body convulsed around me, her release triggering my own. I captured her cries with my mouth, savoring the taste of her pleasure, our pleasure, as we splintered into a million pieces and soared.

We rode out the storm, our bodies still moving in gentle undulations, unwilling to break the connection. A million fragmented moments of joy and agony stitched us back together, strand by strand, even as darkness waited.

I felt the shift in Tess's body, her playful madness melting away as reality crashed back. Her soft tears transformed into deep, wracking sobs that shook her entire frame. She buried her face in my chest, her cries becoming more desperate with each breath.

I gathered her closer as those sobs became deep, guttural cries that seemed to come from her very soul. She clutched at my arms, her knuckles white, as if afraid I'd disappear if she let go. Each wail tore through my chest, echoing through our shared bond.

“I tried to stop this,” she whispered, her voice almost a whisper against my chest.

“Shhhh,” I murmured into her hair, rocking her. “I've got you.” I brushed my lips to her temple, tasting the salt of her tears. The familiar fragrance of her skin beneath the metallic tang of blood and magic was like coming home.

“I saw so many endings,” she choked out between sobs, her fingers twisting tighter in my shirt. “But not this one. Never this one.”

“We chose you, Tess,” I said, trying to keep my own voice steady despite the ache in my chest.

“Maverick,” she said, my name breaking in her throat. “What you all did for me...”

“Shhhh. We'd do it again. Every time.” I stroked her back in slow, soothing circles, her energy thrumming beneath my touch, raw and wild.

“You shouldn't have...” The words fell from her lips like a prayer, a desperate litany that tore at my heart. “I tried to–“

“Stop.” I pulled back just enough to look into her tear-streaked face. “We made our choice. Maybe you didn't see this coming, maybe it was all beyond your sight, but we're together now. Our family is safe.”

Her breath hitched, a shudder running through her as she shook her head. “But what you had to give up,” she whispered, her voice cracking. “What you all sacrificed...”

She tried to pull away, a desperate, almost frantic movement, but I held her, my grip gentle but firm. The tremor in her hands betrayed her anguish, a silent plea hidden beneath her words. “I never wanted to trap you like this. To be this mangled doll... The price you paid... what I've become...” Her voice broke like thin ice. “Now I'm just another chain binding you, and I can't even hold myself together. You deserve better than being bound to my madness forever.”

I caught her face between my hands, my touch infinitely gentle despite the fierce possessiveness burning through my being. “Look at me,” I demanded, waiting until those impossible eyes met mine. “You think being bound to you is a burden?” My voice fractured with the weight of everything I felt for her. “Tess, my love, my mate, my magnificent monster – you are the chains I chose. The darkness I embraced. The madness I willingly drown in.”

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