Chapter 22 Nyx
Nyx
Hands tightly bound, we crash beneath the water, and it’s the best sort of shock to my system.
I’m content to stay underneath its depths where the world is muffled and safe, but Reyes kicks his feet and I follow him to the surface.
Strands of hair hang in his face and plaster to the back of his neck, while droplets trickle along his forehead and cheeks.
He looks over at me and grins, and even if I weren’t in the water, I’d be floating.
“Your smile,” I say, blowing a stray drip from the tip of my nose, and he cocks his head.
“What about it?”
“You do not smile at the others like that.”
“No, I don’t,” he quietly agrees.
“Why not?”
“They’re not you.” My pulse thumps faster at his words, then doubles its pace again as he reaches for me.
The flower that had been behind my ear hangs from my hair, its stem caught between the wet strands, and he pulls it free.
Those quieted embers inside me reignite as he moves closer, his face intent and eyes locked on me. Searching, always searching.
I often wonder if he’ll ever find what he’s looking for in me.
My gaze drops to his mouth as his tongue wets his lips, and then we’re drifting backwards.
Further and further, until my feet reach the silt-covered bottom and my shoulders rest against the rocks.
Water laps at my skin, and he moves so slowly, until he’s close enough to finally touch.
He crowds me, watching me closely as his chest presses into mine.
The rough friction from his hair sets my entire body on fire.
“Is this okay?” he murmurs, and I whine quietly as I shift my hips, fighting that delicious tension that tells them to move.
“Yes, I… I want…” I whisper, staring at his mouth as it tilts into a tiny smile.
“What do you want?” Gods, such an impossible question.
A lifetime of suppressing the urges of my body means they’re thick and confusing now—demanding I take what I’ve never been given.
My hands shake as I pull them from the water and loop them around his neck, and even that slight contact sends sparks crackling over my skin.
His throat bobs in a swallow as he inches closer.
“Nyx,” he murmurs, so close his breath blows across my lips.
“Please?” I whisper back as my fingers trace the dripping hair on his nape. “Please let me.”
“Anything you want.” One of his hands wraps around my back, and I shut my eyes at the rush of heat it brings.
I force them open again as his thumb drags over my chin and over my bottom lip, and my entire body quivers with the desperate need to get closer.
His hand falls into the water, and I miss the contact.
His lips are parted, and they’re perfect, and I stop fighting as I push up on my toes.
He draws in a gasp and freezes as my mouth lands on his, and a shock of something electric passes between us.
My lips are timid, and I’m not sure of anything at all other than I want to know what this feels like with him.
How he tastes and how he might taste me back, and the warmth of his breath as it blows across my skin.
The rasp of his beard and the cling of his hands, and the sound of my name leaving his lips.
I want it all.
My grip tightens around his neck, but still, he doesn’t move. I pull back, opening my eyes as the nerves in my belly flare into a mad storm. What if I’m doing this wrong or he doesn’t want this? Have I misunderstood? It certainly wouldn’t be the first time.
What if I’ve made a fool of myself?
“Katsurrel?” I whisper, and Reyes groans as he snaps out of whatever was holding him back. His hand rakes into my hair, cupping my head as it falls against the rocks.
“Has anyone ever kissed you, Nyx?”
Shame tries to overtake the heady bliss, but there’s no judgement, only curiosity and deep understanding. “No. I have never done this.” The heated expression on his face softens at my admission, and he smiles.
“Close your eyes,” he whispers, and I do as he asks. Without my sight, I focus on my other senses. Water ripples in rolling waves that lap against my skin. A faint breeze flutters among the trees, and sunlight ebbs and flows over my eyelids in a dance of light and dark.
His fingernails scratch against my scalp, and his chest hair prickles on my skin. He brushes the tip of his nose along mine, then presses a kiss to my cheek as my lips fall apart in a quiet gasp. A low chuckle rumbles from his throat into my ear, and his lips press there, too.
His beard is coarse against my chin as he moves to my mouth, and I tighten my grip on his neck as his lips feather over mine.
I chase his mouth with a breathy whine that’s drowned by his deep laugh, and then finally, finally, he gives me what I want.
Soft lips find my own, not still anymore but moving, searching, hot and unwavering against my fumbling ones.
And it’s bliss, a connection like I’ve never felt with another as the mark on my hand flares to life.
My fingers dig into his nape to pull him even closer as I’m surrounded by his warmth.
His kiss is certain and steady, but mine is clumsy and awkward, running on nothing but instinct because I’m unwilling to separate myself from him.
Any worries I’ll mess this up disappear as his quiet whines pass between us.
He never hurries, always so gentle when he handles me.
His hand is still woven through the strands of my hair, cushioning me from the bite of the rock behind me.
Fingers flex against my scalp, and a helpless sound passes from my lips to his.
He pulls away and rests our foreheads together as we both pant.
“Was that too much?” he asks, but I shake my head and yank him to me.
He smiles against my mouth, and his lips become more insistent on mine as his free hand tentatively maps my skin.
Fingertips trace my spine, and his palm presses on my lower back, touching every part of me like he’s trying to memorize the planes of my body.
I copy his movements, releasing my hold on his neck and allowing myself to explore.
I take my time, cataloguing each detail—the hair on his shoulders that scratches my palms, and the way he gasps when my hands slide lower on his back.
The groan that vibrates against my lips when I brush the top of his shorts, and how the sensation is just another thing to add to my growing list of favorites.
Fingers clutch at skin, and there’s not an inch of space between us. Our bodies rest together, chest to chest, and our legs weave beneath the water’s surface.
“Still good?” he asks when we both catch our breath. The deep growl of his voice does funny things to my insides, and I squirm with the sensation. It hurts in the most incredible way, like my skin is too tight and I’m seconds away from bursting right out of it to find some relief.
“Yes,” I insist as I fist his curls and try to pull his mouth back to mine. “More.”
“Slow down, precious.”
“Why?” I whine, and he uses his grip in my hair to tilt my eyes to his as a finger lifts to trace along the outline of my mouth.
“Because this is important… you are important, Nyx. I want to do this right, and that means taking my time with you.” The low, soft way he speaks makes me shiver, and the shudder of my spine only gets worse as he kisses a path to my ear.
“I want to savor every single moment I get with you,” he murmurs, “even if it drives me crazy.”
Tears burn in my eyes as he presses a kiss to the lobe, then returns to my mouth. His gaze locks on mine, noting the moisture that pools there, and he questions me with his eyes. “Thank you,” I whisper, a few tears slipping free when I blink.
“For what?” He dots faint kisses along the line of my lips, and I squirm from the tickle. He grins, and even through the tears I grin back, and everything is perfect.
“Showing me this world can be beautiful.” A pained sound leaves his throat as he claims my mouth again.
We kiss until my lips are swollen and my chin is raw from his beard, but neither of us are ready to stop.
A warm, wet drag glides over my bottom lip as his mouth nudges mine open.
When my lips part, he makes a pleased rumbling noise as his hands tighten around me.
His tongue meets mine gently, always so gently.
Knowing a piece of him is in my mouth, inside me, makes me hungry for more.
Greedy for anything he’s willing to give me.
My fingers flex, fingernails digging into his lower back, and he chuckles again.
The sound vibrates against my mouth as he slides his tongue deeper, letting it glide against mine.
Everything is intoxicating. Tasting him, smelling him…
feeling him in this way. His weight against me, the strength of his arms and the softness of his belly and the absolute, explicit safety of being wrapped up in his arms. My hands are on his face again, one cupping his jaw as the other rakes through his hair, and we kiss until we have to come up for air.
My sigh melts into a content hum as he pulls back, dotting sweet kisses along my lips and cheeks and nuzzling my nose with his.
“Come here,” he murmurs, pulling me forward and tucking me into his neck.
I breathe in his calming scent, drunk off him as he smooths a palm over my hair.
I’m so relaxed I’m drowsy, my eyelids heavy as I curl into him.
He scoops me into his arms, and I don’t fight it as he carries me to the shallows.
“Do you want me to wash you?” He presses another kiss to my temple, and I nod sleepily.
He balances me in his arms as long as he can, but when he grabs the soap, he has to set me down.
I open one eye and pout, and he chuckles as he cleans himself and then turns his attention to me.
Patient hands scrub up my back and over my shoulders, down my arms and across my stomach.
I still want more, still want everything he offers me, but my body is blissfully sleepy and my mind is quiet.
Reyes takes my hand and helps me stand, and we walk to where a few towels hang on the line.
They’re sun-warmed and make me even drowsier as he wraps one around my shoulders.
He picks me up again, and I curl into the comfort of his chest and let myself fade.
I know he’ll take care of me.