Page 81 of Crown of Thorns
His hips jerk.
"Only I get to put my mouth here. And here."
I kiss down his spine, his shoulder, his jaw.
"You’re perfect," I say. "You’re everything."
He shudders. Moans. Comes all over my hand.
I follow, teeth clenched, gasping against his throat. We collapse in a tangled heap. Sweaty. Shaking. Satisfied.
We stay like that. Clinging. Wordless.
Sleep eventually claims us both, pulling us under like the tide.
The soft click of the door makes me freeze, toothbrush halfway to my mouth. It's early evening, the sky outside still bruised with twilight, a few days after the forest.
I glance into the mirror, towel around my hips, hair still damp, and see him. Louis. Smirking. Relaxed. Holding a file like it’s a gift and a threat all at once.
Turning, I find him there, smirking, relaxed, a file casually resting in his hands.
I glance at it but say nothing, the weight of its silence pressing in. Louis lets it hang between us like a loaded question.
"Thought you’d want to know," he says, tossing a key into the air.
"While you were teaching, Amadou and the team finished cutting those vines. They found something. A discovery. A shed."
My heart jolts.
"A shed? And a key?"
He shrugs, a slow grin tugging at his lips.
"Oh, and by the way… I had a little research done on your ex-lovers."
I freeze.
I spot the folder of my past relationships. Compiled. Categorized. Fuck.
"That blonde from the bar isn’t in the file," Louis adds casually, watching me.
"What is this?" I manage.
"Your ex-lovers."
"Why would you…"
He lifts a brow. "Why never a man?"
My mouth goes dry. "What?"
"You’re obviously attracted to men. Why have you never dated one?"
"That’s none of your business."
"Oh, but it is now. Since you’re with me."
"Give me the key."
