Page 94 of Nyx
“He deserved to die. So many times, he… was rough. Always rough. Left bruises. Broke bones.”
“He broke your bones?!” Reyes grits out, and I nod, settling my head into the curve of his shoulder.
“My wrist. He walked very fast, and one time I stumbled. Fell. He… did not stop, just dragged me.”
“I should’ve starved him,” Reyes seethes, glancing unseeing back towards the camp. “Should’ve spent the rest of my life making his existence miserable.”
“No. You don't need to darken your heart, katsurrel. Not when it is so beautiful. Don’t let your revenge changewho you are. He can’t hurt anyone else. That is what matters.”
“I didn’t scare you, though?”
“You could never scare me,” I say as I look back up at him, and his eyes are so soft, so vulnerable, as he tilts my chin with two fingers and presses his lips to mine. Even with the previous day’s troubles and the chaos of everything that happened, my soul is at peace. My mind is serene, and the swirling thoughts merely dance around the edges, failing to breach the calm.
Reyes doesn’t move me as he pulls out his book, leaving me tucked into his side as he reads out loud. The sky eventually becomes too dark to see the words, but Ronan keeps driving. He refuses to stop, and despite not having slept for forty-eight hours, he drives through the night to get home.
Travelling in the dark is more dangerous. Headlights are beacons for raiders, and we wouldn’t see someone coming until they got close. Xeni and Reyes agree to help Ronan keep watch on the road, but soon after the sun sets, my eyes are heavy. Reyes murmurs into my ear to rest, and I drift off to sleep tucked into the safety of my mate.
Rising sunlight warms my face, and my eyes flutter open as coarse hair tickles my nose. For a moment, I’m confused. I’m in my bed, curled up under my familiar blankets. Reyessleeps soundly beside me, and groans softly as he draws me closer. The last thing I remember from last night was falling asleep as we drove. He must’ve moved me to bed without waking me.
My stomach clenches in that heavy, heady swoop at the easy way he takes care of me, then again at the closeness. It doesn’t seem to matter how often we’re together like this. Something tells me that regardless of how many times I wake up in his arms, it’ll always be special. It’ll still hit me with the same potent punch of affection, and like right now, I’ll lie here in awe that I’ve been granted the gift of his love. Moreover, that he makes me believe I’m deserving of it.
His natural scent is strong, so I nuzzle closer to take a deep whiff. My arms circle his waist to hug him close. I’m wide awake, surrounded by him, and when I glance up, brown eyes find mine. “Well, good morning, beautiful.” His voice is thick and rough with sleep as his chest rises in an inhale.
“You have so much hair,” I mutter, and Reyes chokes out a laugh as I pull back and grin at him.
“Is that a problem?”
“No. Keeps me warm. What is the hairiest animal?”
Reyes grins so wide his eyes crinkle. “Maybe a grizzly bear?”
“You are this grizz-lee bear.” He laughs, and I love the happy sound. I tuck my face into his chest and laugh along with him. “Is this bear nice?”
“Um, no, definitely not. They’ll eat you. Well,” he adds with a soft chuckle, “maybe not you. They’d probably love you.”
“Sounds like you,” I tease. “Cranky, but loves me.”
“Sassy!” He nips at my earlobe, and my laughter rolls into a shuddering sigh as he traces his tongue up to the tip and flicks. His beard scrapes against my cheek as he kisses up and down my ear, then along my jaw. “Do you like that?” he murmurs, and I nod, my teasing forgotten as I melt into the heat of his body against mine.
“Missed you,” I whisper.
“I’ve been with you this whole time.”
“Not like this. You have made me greedy. Sometimes I don’t want to share you.”
“You don’t have to share me,” he says as he kisses down my neck, and as he pulls me closer, the unmistakable hardness of his cock presses into my hip. “But we need a bath after that trip. We could go down to the stream?” My legs press together, and I relish the heat that builds deep inside me. It pulses softly and radiates out, and as I squeeze my thighs, tiny jolts shoot through my core.
Reyes hums as he tucks his head into my neck and draws some of the skin between his lips. One of his hands slides lower on my body, tiptoeing down my stomach. “Or can you not wait that long?”
“Missed you,” I repeat, and he chuckles that deep, honey-smooth sound as his hand dips lower. It moves lazily, tracing a winding path along my flaming skin, and doesn’t stop until it’s between my legs. Another sinful groan leaves his throat as he cups my cock and gives it a series of slow strokes.
“I’ll come back to this in a minute,” he murmurs as he slips lower and traces through my slit. “Something tells me this is where you want me.” His fingers slide inside me,and my mouth falls open as he pushes them deeper. My body is tense as I rock into his touch, my movements jerky as those jolts of pleasure lightning through me.
“Gods, you’re so wet. You really need this, don’t you?” Teeth graze my neck, and a series of whining moans leaves my throat as I roll my hips. They echo in the quiet room, and the only other sound is the slick slide of his fingers as he builds me higher. “You’re going to come so fast for me.”
“Is that… bad?” I ask, my stomach clenching and body trembling. It certainly doesn’tfeelbad. It feels like there are sparks everywhere as he touches me in all the right places. Fingers deep inside me, caressing that sensitive spot that makes me cry out, and lips working their way down my chest. When his tongue flicks over my nipple, my back arches at the rush of sensation.
“No, sirrha, it’s perfect. I love how responsive you are to me. How your body tells me you want me.”
