Page 156 of Monsters Wear Crowns
“You’re a nightmare,” I whispered back, but my words were lost when his teeth tugged at my bottom lip, his tongue sweeping into my mouth in a kiss that stole my breath.
“Yeah, baby,” he chuckled. “I’m your fucking nightmare.” His hands roamed over me, familiar and rough and perfect, and every brush of his skin set me on fire. My mind and heart were at war, but my body had already surrendered despite the war still waging between my mind and my heart.
“Adela,” he rasped, my name catching in his throat like it hurt to say. His voice was low, curling around my spine like smoke. He pulled back just enough to look at me, strands of dark hair falling into those beautiful, godforsaken eyes.
“What could I do that’s different from the other men?” he asked, breathless.
The words hit me like a lightning strike. Our first night. The wine. The fire in my chest. The memory bloomed with a terrible kind of sweetness, tangled up in fear and longing and something far too close to forever. I swallowed hard, blinking fast.
My heart pounded. “Make me feel alive,” I whispered.
And he smiled. That same crooked, rare smile that felt like a reward. “As you wish.”
Then, his palm was on my chest, and before I could catch a single thought, he pushed me back.Three stories up.High enough that it made my stomach twist. The wind swept through my hair, wild and warm, kissing my skin. I laughed breathlessly, the sound weaving in with Rafe's own rare, joyous chuckle.
God, I loved that sound.I’d missed it more than I could admit. “Careful,” I warned, a tremor of excitement running through my voice. “You might drop me.”
“Never.” His eyes locked on mine. “I’d never let you fall.” And then I heard the telltale sound of his belt slipping free and the quiet rasp of a zipper.
And my breath stilled. “Rafe–”
“Shhh,” he whispered, his perfect, soft lips molding to mine. “Trust me.” He slipped my panties to the side.
But trust had always been the hardest part. “I don’t know how to trust–”
He silenced me with a single, devastating thrust. My words broke into a choked cry as my body clenched around him, scrambling to adjust to the sudden fullness. The stretch. The burn. The bliss. I leaned back, bracing myself against the ledge as he ravaged me under the stars, the edge of danger making every movement sharper, more electric. His fingers dug into my thighs with each brutal thrust, and I gasped for air I couldn’t find.
“I love you so fucking much, Adela.”
Everything stopped.The world, my breath, the ache in my chest... it all stilled in the wake of those four words. He said it like he’d been dying to. Like it cost him everything. And still… he gave it freely. The tears I’d held back threatened to fall again.
“I love you, too, Rafe. I always will.”
***
RAFE
She said it.I love you, too, Rafe. I always will.The words echoed in my skull like gunfire, shattering every last wall I’d built to keep from falling apart. And I did fall–right into her, into the heat and the tremble and the impossible goddamn purity of that moment. I wanted to mark her, bury myself so deep inside she’d never be able to separate her heartbeat from mine.
The sound that tore from me wasnothuman. It was desperate. Wrecked.Wild.
I yanked her up and crashed my mouth to hers, swallowing that precious breath she’d just given me. Her lips were soft, and I kissed her like I was dying and this was the only thing keeping me tethered to the earth.
“Open wider for me,” I panted, my hand fisting in her hair, the other gripping her hip.
And she gave herself to me entirely. Every inch. Every gasp. Every trembling moan. My sweet little doe. Her thighs spread for me, and my cock hit that spot again.Fuck, the way she gasped and arched, I saw stars. I couldn’t focus on the city, or the danger, or even the fucking rooftop beneath us. There was onlyher. My wild, stubborn, devastating Adela.
“There you go, sweetheart,” I murmured into her neck, tasting sweat and skin and something sweeter than anything I deserved.God, she was perfect.
“Rafe,” she breathed–my name from those lips would ruin me forever.
“Yes?” I grunted, burying myself harder, faster. Her nails scraped down my back, and I lost my goddamn mind. Then she leaned in and bit me. That soft, perfect mouth nipped at my lower lip like she wanted to claimme. “Show me I’m yours.”
My heart fucking stopped.
That was it. That was the trigger. Her submission, her plea, hertrust–it was everything I’d wanted. Everything I didn’t believe I’d ever get from her again. And now that I had it?
I’d never fucking let it go.
