Chapter 25 #3
Magnus groaned. "I need ye."
Her hands moved to the laces of his shirt. "I need ye too. Need tae feel that ye're real. That what's between us is real. Please."
And God help him, Magnus was only a man. A man who'd been denying himself what he wanted for far too long.
He pulled her behind the tall hedges, into a space barely large enough for two people. Pressed her back against the stone wall and captured her mouth again.
That time he didn't hold back. Didn't try to gentle the need coursing through him. His hands roamed her body, memorizing curves through fabric, finding the laces of her gown.
"Tell me to stop right now if ye want," he said against her lips.
"Dinnae stop." Ada's fingers tangled in his hair. "Dinnae ye dare stop."
Magnus lifted her, pressing her between his body and the wall. Ada wrapped her legs around his waist instinctively, gasping at the feel of him hard against her.
"Feel that?" Magnus's voice was rough, almost desperate. "Feel how much I want ye? There's nay question, Ada. Nay doubt. I want ye so badly I cannae think straight when ye're near me. But I'm done bein' afraid. Done denyin' what I feel. Done pretendin' I dinnae need ye like I need air tae breathe."
He kissed her again, swallowing her gasp as his hand slid beneath her skirts. Found the heat of her through thin fabric. Ada trembled in his arms, her head falling back against the stone.
"Magnus," she breathed.
"I've got ye." His fingers stroked gently, learning what made her gasp, what made her arch into his touch. "I'll always have ye, Ada. Always keep ye safe. Always protect ye. Because ye're mine. Dae ye understand? Ye're mine and I'm yers and nothing else matters."
"Aye." Ada's nails dug into his shoulders. "I understand. I'm yers, Magnus. Only yers."
And finally, finally, Magnus let himself believe it.
He freed himself from his trousers, positioned himself at her entrance. Paused despite every instinct screaming at him to claim her.
"Last chance," he said, his voice strained. "Tell me nay and I'll stop."
Ada's eyes met his, clear and certain and full of everything he'd been too afraid to hope for.
"Make me yers completely. Show me what it means to belong to ye," she whispered.
Magnus pushed forward. Slowly at first, giving her body time to adjust, trying to be gentle despite the raw need consuming him. Ada gasped, her fingers digging into his shoulders, and he stilled immediately.
"Am I hurtin’ ye?" His voice was rough with concern.
"Nay. Just... a wee bit. Dinnae stop. Please dinnae stop."
He moved again, inch by careful inch, watching her face fer any sign of pain. But all he saw was wonder. Trust. The absolute certainty that she was safe with him even in that vulnerable moment.
Something cracked open in Magnus's chest. Some wall he'd been maintaining between them finally, completely crumbling.
"Ada," he breathed against her lips. "God, Ada."
"I ken." Her hands came up to frame his face, her eyes never leaving his. "I feel it too."
Magnus had bedded many women before. Had shared physical pleasure without emotion, had known release without connection.
But this was different. This was Ada trembling in his arms, looking at him like he was something precious.
Like he mattered beyond his title or his strength or what he could provide.
Like she saw the broken parts of him and chose him anyway.
He began to move, and Ada moved with him. Her body learning his rhythm, her soft sounds of pleasure driving him toward the edge faster than he wanted. He tried to slow down, tried to make it last, but Ada urged him on with her legs tightening around his waist, her hands pulling him closer.
"I'm nae made of glass," she whispered. "I willnae break."
So Magnus let go. Let himself feel the full force of what was building between them. Let himself be vulnerable in a way he hadn't been since Freydis had destroyed his ability to trust.
And Ada met him there. Matched his intensity with her own. Her nails scored his back through his shirt, her teeth caught his lower lip, her body arched into his like she was trying to get closer despite there being no space left between them.
"Magnus," she gasped. "I cannae... I'm going tae..."
"Aye. Let go. I've got ye."
Release hit her first, her body tightening around him, her cry muffled against his shoulder. The feel of it, the sight of her coming undone in his arms, shattered what little control Magnus had left.
He followed her over the edge, his own release tearing through him with devastating force. And as pleasure overwhelmed him, as his body shuddered with the intensity of it, Magnus buried his face in Ada's neck and held her like she was the only solid thing in a world gone liquid.
For a long moment after, they stayed locked together. Both breathing hard, both trembling, neither willing to let go.
Magnus felt something wet against his neck and realized Ada was crying. He pulled back immediately, concerned.
"Did I hurt ye? Ada, if I was too rough—"
"Nay." She smiled through her tears, her hands coming up to cup his face. "I'm nae hurt. I'm just... I dinnae ken how tae explain it. What I'm feelin' right now."
Magnus understood. Because he felt it too. This overwhelming sense of connection. Of barriers finally broken. Of two people who'd been forced together by politics discovering something real in the wreckage.
"Aye," he said quietly, his thumb brushing away her tears. "I ken."
He lowered her carefully, helped her straighten her gown while his own hands shook.
The vulnerability of the moment was almost overwhelming.
He'd given her something he'd sworn never to give anyone again.
And now that it was done, now that there was no taking it back, Magnus felt exposed in a way that had nothing to do with the physical.
Ada seemed to sense his turmoil. She reached for his hand, threaded her fingers through his.
"Nay regrets?" she asked softly.
Magnus looked at her. At that woman who'd fought her attackers with desperate courage. Who'd trusted him enough to be vulnerable despite knowing how damaged he was. Who'd just given herself to him completely despite every reason she had to guard her heart.
"Nay regrets," he said, and meant it. "But Ada, I need ye tae understand somethin'."
"What?"
"This changes things between us. I cannae go back tae keepin' ye at a distance.
Cannae pretend I dinnae... that I'm nae.
.." He struggled for words. "What I'm tryin' tae say is, ye're nae just me wife anymore.
Ye're somethin' more. Somethin' I dinnae have words fer yet.
But it means I'll nae be able tae be reasonable about yer safety. About keepin' ye out of danger."
Ada's smile was tremulous. "Good. Because I dinnae want reasonable. I want ye. All of ye. Even the possessive, overprotective parts."
Magnus pulled her close, pressed a kiss to her forehead. And as they stood there in the hidden garden, still trembling from what they'd shared, he made a silent vow.
He would keep her safe. Would protect her from her father and whatever threats came. He would give her everything he had to give.
Even if it terrified him.
Especially because it terrified him.
Because that fear meant she mattered. And for the first time since Freydis died, Magnus was willing to risk his heart on someone mattering.