Page 85 of Saints & Sinners

We were crossing a path we knew we couldn’t come back from. A kiss was a kiss, but this was more to us. Everything was.

“You’re so damn beautiful,” he murmured, his thumb brushing against my cheek.

The words sent a jolt to my heart, and I pulled him closer, needing to feel and drown in him. His hands guided me as he unbuckled his belt and pressed himself against me. His cock jutted out from his boxers, and I inhaled a deep breath at the size... at the veins running along it.

But then, a thought struck me like a bucket of ice water. “Hunter,” I whispered, pulling back slightly.

He stilled, his grey eyes narrowing in concern. “What is it?” His voice was rough and husky, filled with the same longing thatcoursed through me.

“Do you have...?” My voice faltered as I tried to find the right words. “I mean, we don’t have—”

He closed his eyes briefly, and I saw his jaw tighten. “No,” he admitted in frustration.

Of course, he didn’t. He was an Ascendant. I should have expected him not to have any form of protection.

My cheeks burned, but another thought slipped out before I could say anything else. “But have you ever...” I didn’t even want to finish the words.

Hunter’s jaw ticked, his teeth clenching for a moment before he said gruffly, “Yes.”

My mind reeled. “But—”

His expression darkened before he kissed me again, harder this time, as though he was trying to erase the weight of the past and the questions that still lingered between us. His lips moved with a desperate intensity that I could no longer think straight.

Whatever secrets he held, whatever his past entailed, I knew one thing for certain—I still wanted this. I still wanted him. Hunter Cain, in all his complexity and contradictions.

“We should really stop before—”

I shook my head, tightening my hold on him. “I don’t care.”

That unleashed something within him as a low groan fell from his lips and he lost all resistance.

“Do you trust me?” he whispered against my lips.

I was a virgin, through and through. And I believed he knew that already. He could tell, but the reassurance I was giving him with just one look told him everything I wanted from him. “Yes.”

“I’ll be gentle,” he assured me, and I nodded like a lost puppy, waiting for what was to come. “As long as you don’t kick me in the balls again.”

A breathless chuckle burst from my lips, and he smiled, causingmy stomach to dip. “I won’t.”

He nuzzled his nose against mine, whispering, “Good.”

I bit my lip, shaking with nerves and anticipation as I lay back against the table and felt how hard he already was without having to look. My shaking legs parted, letting him have full access to me. He positioned himself by my entrance, and my heart raced as he leaned above me, his hands finding mine above my head.

The world outside faded away, and it was just us in that moment.

“Just keep looking at me. Don’t look anywhere else,” he breathed, and I nodded, too lost for words to speak yet.

Seconds later, I breathed in, and what was once a barrier gave way as he pushed the tip of his cock into me, and a gasp escaped my lips. He stilled, his gaze never leaving mine as he slowly moved all the way into me. I clenched my eyes shut, biting the inside of my cheek as the tight sting overwhelmed me. It felt full and warm, like a hot knife gliding through butter, until I was whimpering as that sting became a throbbing delight.

His hand came up to cradle my face, his thumb brushing away a stray tear I hadn’t realized had fallen. “Are you okay?”

I nodded, opening my eyes as I released a shaky breath. “Yes,” I whispered. “Don’t stop.”

He didn’t.

His thrusts moved in rhythm with my body, his thumb running circles against the inner part of my wrist. I arched my back, and he pushed his hips forward, stretching me even more.

“Hey,” he said gently, trying to capture my attention as my eyes became heavy. “Keep looking at me, Bambi. It’s just us, no one else.”

---