I glared at him until I was sure he was going keep his mouth shut. Then I turned back to Ryan, who was watching me fondly. “Sorry about that,” I said. “You may continue.”
“Can I?” he asked, smirking just a bit. “Wouldn’t want any more interruptions.”
“There won’t be any,” I said. “Proceed.”
“Well apparently I’m supposed to say you’re the greatest thing in the world and I worship the ground you walk on.”
“That’s a good start,” I said.
He closed the distance between us, his chest bumping against mine. “And your sex puns are the funniest thing ever. You also have great hair.”
“That’s good,” I managed to say. “That’s real good.”
“And I think you’re pretty wonderful.”
“Yeah? This is working for me. A lot.”
He grinned. “I think there was one other thing you wanted me to say.”
I nodded, not trusting my voice.
Ryan reached up, cupping my face in his hands. He searched my face for something, and he must have found what he was looking for, because he said, “You’re my lightning-struck heart, Sam of Wilds. I love you more than I could ever say.”
And then he kissed me.
It wasn’t like the first kiss atop the dragon’s keep. That one had been born of desperation and longing. No. This kiss spoke of sweet relief, of a future that I hadn’t thought would ever be possible. As his lips moved over mine, my magic sang and thrummed along my skin, and I wondered if this is what it felt like to be cherished, to be held in such wonder that it was breathtaking.
His tongue dragged along the seam of my lips and I opened for him. I felt the scrape of his teeth and his fingers tightened on my face. My hands were on his hips and I held him close.
He pulled away only to kiss my cheeks. My nose. My chin. And then he rested his forehead against mine and we breathed each other in.
“So,” he said.
“So.”
“Sorry it took me so long.”
“S’okay. You can make it up to me.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“I love you,” he said, kissing me sweetly.
I couldn’t stop the smile that grew on my face even if I’d wanted to. “Because I’m awesome.”
He rolled his eyes. “Yes, Sam. Because you’re awesome.”
“Good,” I said. “I love you too, even if y
ou are an asshole.”
“Heart boner,” Gary moaned. “Throbbing heart boner.”
“We should probably deal with the Darks so we can get out of here,” he said, running his thumbs over my cheeks.
“Yeah? Where we going?”