Page 152 of Watch Me Burn
“That’s not your decision to make.” I tilt my face up to look at him. “I choose you. Both of you. All of you.”
His eyes shine in the firelight. He kisses me, slow and thorough, saying everything words can’t capture. When he pulls back, he rests his forehead against mine.
“No more secrets.” His voice is rough. “I promise. No more masks.”
I seal the promise with another kiss, softer this time.
We lie there as the fire burns low, tangled together, neither willing to break contact.
His lips caress my temple. “Stay with me.”
“Forever.”
Chapter forty
Luna
Morning light filters through unfamiliar curtains, and for a heartbeat, I don’t recognize where I am. The sheets smell different, expensive, with that crisp hotel-like scent that screams money. But beneath the fresh linen is his cologne. Vanilla and amber mixed with musk, woodsy, and masculine. The scent winds through the fabric, through my hair, and across my skin.
Damien.
My pulse speeds up even as I hover between dreams and wakefulness, responding to the dangerous edge woven into his smell.
My nipples tighten against the expensive cotton. Blood pounds in my ears, between my legs, everywhere his scent reaches, which is everywhere.
The memories crash over me like a tidal wave. Of the way Damien made love to me for hours, his hands and lips on my body, gentle at first, then demanding as my wolf rose to the surface. The way he let me make love to him, using every part of my body to vow ultimate devotion.
But now, as I shift and the lingering aches in my body protest the movement, I wonder how long I’ll be able to survive him.
I prop myself up on my elbow and look down at him, letting my eyes trace over his body.
In sleep, the hardness leaves his face, making him look younger and almost vulnerable. His dark lashes cast shadows on his cheeks. His full lips are parted, and one powerful arm flings over his head while the other still grips me close, even inunconsciousness.
Sunlight creeps across the floor through the gap in his curtains, the beam stretching longer as the sun climbs. Minutes blur together, and time loses meaning in the quiet as I watch him sleep. Then, as if my gaze alone triggers something in him, Damien stirs. His eyes open and lock on my face in the same breath, going from asleep to fully alert in an instant, another reminder of his predatory nature.
“Morning, beautiful.” His voice is rough with sleep, and his hand finds mine where it rests on his chest. “How long have you been watching me?”
“Not long,” I admit, unable to suppress a smile. “You look almost harmless when you’re asleep.”
A slow grin spreads across his face, and he cups the back of my neck, pulling me down for a kiss. He brushes his lips against mine. Now that he’s let himself kiss me, it’s like he can’t get enough.
“You’re still here.”
“Did you think I’d run?” I trace patterns on his chest just to have an excuse to keep touching him.
“The thought occurred to me.” His free hand trails lazy circles on my bare shoulder, then down my back to the curve of my ass, raising goosebumps and making my breath hitch. “People tend to see things differently in the light of day.”
I catch his wandering hand and bring it to my lips, pressing a soft kiss to his palm. His fingers smell like me, like sex, like claim and ownership.
“I meant what I said last night.”
His eyes darken. Heat floods those blue-gray irises, turning them stormy. “Which part? The ‘fuck me harder’ part or the ‘I’m yours forever’ part?”
A warm laugh escapes me. “Both.”
His hips shift beneath me, his body stirring to life.
“Keep talking like that, and you won’t be getting breakfast anytime soon.”
