Page 142 of Taken By the Fae

“I know.” He lifts his free hand to my cheek, brushing his fingers along my jaw. “Open your eyes,” he repeats, and this time I do.

His eyes are gentle, and his expression is soft, understanding,loving.He loves me.

“Tristan—”

“It’s okay, Rory. You don’t have to say anything.”

I nod, biting my bottom lip to keep it from trembling as I let my arm fall back to my side. “I showed you mine. Now show me yours.” I smack his shoulder when his lips twitch. “Funny,” I mutter.

“I’m sorry,” he murmurs, pushing the hair away from my face. He closes his eyes and relaxes his posture. Moments later, color flows from him, surrounding us in a bubble of his emotions. They are like the warmth of the sun on my face and bring me comfort, clarity, reassurance. There are sparks of nervousness and uncertainty, but knowing he feels it too makes me feel better.

Tristan opens his eyes and meets my gaze. “Okay?” he checks.

“No.” The word spills from my lips, the weight of what I’ve needed to say since Nikolai and I were in his office pushing against my rib cage. “I shut you out after I killed Jules and became fae for more than one reason. Of course, I feared what the future held. How I was going to survive the transition and learn everything to stay alive in this world. The thought of having to take from another person to live haunted me. I’m still trying to get to a place of complete acceptance, though I’m not sure I ever will.”

Tristan’s gaze bores into mine. “I would’ve been there for you, Rory, every step of the way. I wanted to be.”

I swallow hard. “I know. But I… I didn’t want you to see me struggling. I was so scared that if I let you in then, all I’d see when you looked at me was pity or guilt over what happened that day.”

His gaze drops, the sound of his pulse beating louder, but he doesn’t blanket his emotions when they darken with tendrils of sadness and guilt like seaweed at the bottom of a lake. “I never should have let you go after him.” His words come out low. “If I’d thought there was even a possibility you’d be put in the position of having to kill him, I wouldn’t have…” He trails off, glancing upward, and his throat bobs as he swallows.

“It was my choice,” I say firmly, tears pricking my eyes. “I went after Jules. The consequences of that choice are mine too, Tristan. Not yours. I know you wanted to protect me, and you would’ve done anything to stop what happened if you could have. But there isn’t a world where I blame you for what happened, so I need you to let go of the guilt you’re clinging to. Please.”

His eyes are glassy as he nods. “Will you stop hiding from me?” When I blink, a tear slips free and rolls down my cheek. Tristan steps in and thumbs it away, sliding his fingers along my jaw and into my hair to tilt my head back. “Because I can’t stay away from you anymore.”

I lick the dryness from my lips, blinking back more tears. “I don’t think I can stay away from you anymore, either.”

He pulls me into his arms and, finally, after the weeks of being utterly lost, I feel like I’m home.

ChapterThirty-Nine

We’re barely in the elevator at the Westbrook Hotel five seconds before our lips are locked, fighting for control as we grasp at each other desperately. I’ve never felt a need so strong. The only way to describe this feeling, this exchange between two people who have lived without each other, is a lust-filled frenzy. My head is swimming in a haze of warmth and Tristan’s clean, crisp scent. Neither of us are blocking our emotions from the other’s view, which only amplifies the passion and desperation flooding through our veins.

I’m sandwiched between Tristan and the mirror-paneled wall, my core clenching with desire as his erection presses against my lower stomach. The heat and powerful emotional energy crackling between us steals my breath and has me vibrating in anticipation of what this is leading to.

He nips my bottom lip, earning a soft moan from me. “It’s taking every ounce of self-control I have not to pull the emergency stop and take you right here.” His words shoot liquid heat to the growing need between my thighs.

I wrinkle the front of his shirt in my grip, kissing the corner of his mouth. “If you’re looking for me to dissuade you from doing that, I’m not going to.”

His chuckle is a whisper of air against my lips. “I want to do this right, Rory. Rushed in an elevator isn’t that. I want to ravish every inch of your body until you’re trembling and the only word you can think straight enough to form is my name.”

My stomach dips, and I suck in a short breath before his mouth is on mine again, stealing the strangled sound of pleasure I make. His fingers dig into my hips, and he slides his hand into my hair, cradling the side of my head as he deepens the kiss until my head spins.

We break apart at the chime of the elevator reaching the penthouse, and we stay that way for the time it takes to get inside his suite. He kicks the door shut and pins me against it, kissing me hard. I taste the sweetness of his relief, but there’s a tang of worry lingering.

We reach for each other’s clothes, unable to get them off fast enough. He growls, and I growl right back, until we’re both laughing and fumbling with zippers and buttons. I get his shirt off before he distracts me with his lips, taking the lead.

Tristan spins me around and unzips my dress as his lips drop to my neck. I gasp, my eyes rolling back as I lean into him and feel his hardened cock against me again, kicking up the temperature of my body until the tops of my ears burn. This time isn’t going to be slow and sweet, and I don’t want it to be. I turn to face him, kissing him hard before pulling back enough to see his face.

My dress slips off my hips, pooling on the floor, and his gaze darkens when it lands on my bare chest. “You bring me to my knees.”

A grin tugs at my swollen lips. “Can you take your pants off first?”

He chuckles, shaking his head. “What am I going to do with that smart mouth of yours?”

I lick my lips. “I have a few ideas.”

His eyes widen, and he closes the last bit of distance between us, sealing his lips over mine as he grips my hips, holding me against him.

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