He seemed to be losing his fight not to take over, his hands gently grasping my hips to encourage me onward.
I allowed it, needing his touch to ground me, to remind me it was Adrik inside me and no one else.
This was my choice.
My desire leading us both.
I sat on top. I took him into my body. I set the limits. Me.
A volcano erupted in my core, shooting me to the stars on a scream that shook my very spirit. It was so intense. So unexpected. So amazing. I truly flew, just as Adrik had desired, and I took him over the edge with me into a whirlpool of sensation. He groaned against my neck, his body shuddering beneath mine as his seed warmed my insides.
Time seemed to still.
My inhales and exhales an echo around us.
He remained taut beneath me, his palms soft as he stroked up and down my sides. A warming touch meant to soothe, to memorize, to cherish.
I kissed his cheek, his jaw, and then his lips, and sighed as he returned the embrace. His tongue was my new addic
tion. This feeling my new favorite sensation. I hugged him close, my breasts to his chest, startled to realize the shirt still clung to my curves.
The experience seemed almost more intimate now, knowing that he’d allowed me to remain covered while our bodies met in an erotic dance below.
Everything had been for me.
To heal my spirit.
To teach me to trust.
To open my eyes to a way of existence I never could have anticipated.
And I only wanted more.
My hips began to move, guided by my newfound resolve. Adrik shuddered in response, his hand stilling against my ribs. He’d not even gone under the fabric to feel me, yet his touch burned my skin, branding my flesh as his. I pulled back to meet his gaze before removing the barrier between us. Black pools of admiration fell to my breasts, his palms returning to my sides, lightly grazing upward.
“You’re healing beautifully, Valora,” he said, his tone a deep, masculine purr that caused my thighs to clench.
“Because of you.” The sultry quality of my voice shocked me. So improper and not like the woman I was raised to be, which made it all the more welcome.
I pressed my lips to his, indulging myself and taking advantage of his willingness to kiss me back. His touch grew bolder, sliding over my back, his fingers teasing the hairs at my nape and trailing a light caress down my spine.
This wasn’t the way I expected to recover, but I wouldn’t have chosen any other way. Not as his hips met mine in a slow thrust. Not as his tongue slid deep into my mouth. Not as his hands explored my breasts. Not as my body began to overheat all over again.
I didn’t regret a second.
Memorized each one as if this were a dream that might shatter in the next moment.
Screamed his name as I came once again.
And cried softly against his shoulder as the emotions of the last few days came bearing down upon me.
He held me through it all. Acting as my foundation. And for the night, I allowed it. In the morning, everything would be different.
But for now, I succumbed to the desire to feel comforted. To be cared for, adored, and protected.
As I fell into my dreams, I imagined an alternate life where this was my reality. My every day. My being. Knowing full well that when I finally awoke, the nightmare would truly begin. For Adrik had chipped at the barrier securing my heart, and a sliver of him had been allowed inside. Just enough to cause superficial damage.
If I wasn’t careful, the results of whatever this was that brewed between us could lead to catastrophe. And the worst part was, I’d welcome it. Because at least then I would know what it meant to truly feel something other than exquisite pain.