Page 36 of Inheritance
Perhaps the Fates had given her all of us because, without the amount of love she had for all of us and the kingdoms, she needed all of us to fill her cup back up.
As we walked through the camp, she glanced around, soaking it all in. Leading her to the edge of the camp where no one could see us or hear us, I pulled her down to the ground and lay down, positioning her so she was sprawled against my chest. I was very aware of the fact that she had no pants on, but I tried to rid my mind of the dirty things I wanted to do to her right now, knowing this moment wasn’t about me.
A sigh of contentment came from her as her fingers traced random paths along my chest, making me want to rip my shirt off to feel her skin to skin.
"I was worried you brought me out here, away from the others, to end things between us," she admitted softly, making me tighten my arm holding her to me.
"No! Never, Ama. I am in this with you for the long haul. I can't wait to fall in love with you more with every passing day we have together as we learn every detail there is to know about each other. I will love you as you grow and change—as we all do. I will fall in love with you through every phase of your life for as long as we live. As my friend, lover, wife, and the mother of my children, if those are all things you want," I answered in a rush, hating that she still doubted my commitment. I couldn't really blame her, though, after my rude actions and dumbass mouth.
I heard her sharp intake of breath, as if she was shocked by my proclamations.
I hated that I’d broken the trust that should have been between us, but I'd rebuild it and fortify it every day for the rest of our lives so she never doubted the depths of my feelings for her again.
"Don't scare me like that again," she grumbled, but I could hear the smile in her voice, "In my mind, you were either going to break up with me or murder me."
She giggled at the end, but I knew it was because she was emotionally overwhelmed after all of us had poured our hearts out to her. It had to be a lot to soak in, especially on top of what I could sense was weighing her down. I’d noticed humor and sarcasm were her coping mechanisms because they were also mine. Normally, I would give in and not push her, but we needed to have this talk.
"I just wanted to pull you away and give you some space to breathe and process everything. Honestly, I saw that there was something you weren't telling us when it came to the devil," I hedged, not wanting to pry too deeply, but leaving her an opening if she wanted to talk about it.
There was a haunted look in her eyes—something like a mixture of remorse and acceptance. I didn't want her to have to dwell on whatever it was alone.
"Oh," she breathed out in surprise. "I thought I had hid that well. Guess not."
My chest shook lightly as I chuckled, "I used to be a selfish, arrogant prick. But I'm trying to think of others now, and part of that is noticing the subtle changes in facial expressions or tone that maybe others might not stop to notice. I'm trying to be better."
"It's complicated," she said, as if that would scare me off.
Glancing down, I used my free hand to tip her chin up so she couldn't hide from me as I countered, "Bring it on."
Her eyes widened as she sucked her bottom lip into her mouth and nibbled on it nervously. Moving my thumb from her chin to her bottom lip, I gently pulled it out and chided her, "You can't bite that and expect me to not punish you for hurting those beautiful lips."
I saw her normally pink eyes pulsate with a brighter tone for a moment, showing her powers rising to the surface, wanting to come out and play.
"What if I want you to punish me?" she asked breathily as I ran my thumb along her lip before she captured it into her mouth, flicking her tongue around it and sucking.
It was like a jolt directly to my cock, making it ache with how hard it became. Little vixen was trying to distract me.
A lazy smirk pulled at the corner of my mouth as I goaded her, "You really think that's all it takes to hide your emotions from me? Come now, that's insulting, baby."
Her eyes narrowed, loving the challenge I threw at her. Quickly, she rose to straddle me and reached for the waistband of my pants, but I stopped her, gripping her hands. Knowing they were the only thing separating us had me damned near panting with need. It took all the restraint in me not to give in.
"Ama, what are you hiding? Not just from me, but from yourself. It's clear this is weighing heavily on you. Sex doesn't fix it. It only temporarily makes you forget, but reality will come crashing back down like an avalanche, and it will feel so much more devastating coming down from the natural high then."
A growl that was quite adorable rumbled out of her as she pulled her hands from mine and smacked me lightly. "Why did you have to go and be mature right now?"
I flashed a big smile at her. "Because I have a great habit of annoying you."
Her brows rose as she chuckled, "That's one way to put it."
She leaned forward and laid down with her cheek against my chest as she sighed. Wrapping my arms around her, I breathed her in and gave her a moment to figure out where to start.
"It's complicated with Luce...the devil."
"Go on. I promise I will just hold you and listen. No judgement, baby," I assured her.
She groaned in frustration, "He's so infuriating!"
I couldn't help but chuckle, happy that it wasn't me who was making her feel this way anymore.
