Page 137 of Blue Arrow Island
He looks away. “I knew you were mad at me, and I ... wasn’t feeling very reasonable.”
We start walking, side by side. The jungle air is already thick with humidity, the caws and calls of the animals a familiar backdrop that no longer scares me like it did when I first got here.
“I’m staying out until the flowers are found,” he says. “So I don’t get sick from turning the aromium off every day.”
I let that sink in for a few seconds. “I’ll stay out with you. But what if yours bonds and it won’t go off?”
He shrugs. “Then I have to hope McClain can make a stabilizer.”
“Marcus.” I put a hand on his arm and he stops, tension tightening his expression.
I pull my hand away. “It’s likely we’ll never find this flower.”
“I know. But I’ll regret it if I don’t give this everything I’ve got.”
Unease churns in my gut. He takes my hand and leads me to a rock formation that’s about ten feet tall. There’s a space just large enough for us to both stand in, and he backs me into it, cupping my face in his hands. His shoulders shudder and his hands shake, his gaze so dark and hungry it takes my breath away.
“I don’t know if touching you will help or hurt, but I’m dying here.”
He lowers his mouth to mine, the warmth of his mouth making me forget the sharp rocks poking against my back. I moan and wrap my arms around him, my worry disappearing as he kisses me harder.
I press my hands against his back, urging him closer. He nibbles my lower lip and I bite the tip of his tongue. We’re groping at each other’s clothes now, the aromium in my veins surging with something that feels ... right, somehow.
“I need you,” I say, whimpering as he cups my ass and lifts me, allowing him to reach my neck with his lips.
His stubble brushes over the sensitive skin on my collarbone as he kisses my neck. I breathe in his leather-and-saltwater smell, desperate for more of him.
His hand goes to his waistband, where he fumbles with his button and zipper, pulling down his pants. He deftly handles mine next, and then his hands are on my bare ass. He lowers me onto his erection, both of us groaning with pleasure as he sinks into me.
“Fuck.” The warmth of his breath sends a shiver over my skin. “I can’t breathe without you.”
My cry is strangled, because I know we have to be quiet. He’s so deep inside me, his hands digging into my skin and my nails sinking into his back.
“Yes,” I whisper in his ear. “Don’t stop. I need you so much, Marcus.”
My words spur him to move faster, the pain of his punishing thrusts sending me spiraling so high I quickly combust, tears leaking from the corners of my eyes as my orgasm blasts through my body like a bomb detonating. For a few seconds, I’m broken into a million pieces of floating bliss, and when they knit back together, I’m a more complete version of myself.
He cries out, holding my hips and grinding into me. I feel him coming, his whole body tensing and then going slack.
After setting me on my feet, he steps back. His lips are parted in an incredulous look.
“What the fuck?” he whispers.
I put a palm on his chest. “I feel it, too.”
The pull of the aromium is quieter now. I don’t even have the words to describe the state of satisfaction I’m in. It’s like the aromium has been calling me toward something every second it’s been active in my body, and I finally gave it what it wanted.
“I’m more ... myself.” He runs a hand over his jaw, disbelief in his tone as he refastens his pants. “More than I have been since I first turned the aromium back on.”
“Me too.” I quickly fasten my own pants, not liking that his back is exposed to anyone who might come by. “We have to get moving.”
He stops me with a hand around my wrist. “Hey ... you good?”
“More than good.”
His lips tug up into a grin. “Wish we would’ve done that sooner.”
I stretch up on my toes to kiss him. “We can always make up for missed opportunities.”
