Chapter 28 #2
He ducked, enclosing her pert nipple with a heated mouth, tongue swirling slow circles before he drew on her harder. Ada’s spine curved involuntarily; she felt the answering tug in her folds, the flutter of muscles clamping emptily.
He transferred attention to her other breast, working until both mounds were pushed up pink and swollen.
Magnus released her nipple with a soft pop, kissed a line between her breasts, over her trembling stomach, until his shoulders wedged beneath her thighs.
Sunlight painted gold across the fine down that clung to her mound; her folds glistened slick, open, inviting.
His hands settled over her knees, pushing them apart wider. Then his mouth was on her, tongue tracing her delicate inner lips, tasting her arousal.
He started tender, but need soon overrode restraint: long, dragging licks followed by quick flutters against her swollen folds, his lips sealing around the bud to suck.
Ada’s breathing fractured. She clutched the blanket, its wool rasping her backside while his shadow fell over her belly. He slid one thick finger inside, curling to find the soft spot behind her pubic bone, then two, twisting scissors-like, stretching her entrance as he pumped slowly.
“Och—Magnus.” She gasped, hips grinding. “Dinnae stop.”
His hum vibrated through her core, wet heat pooled onto his tongue. When her thighs quivered threatening to close, he shoved them higher, opening her more fully, eating her with greedy licks and gentle nips that blended pain into the swell of pleasure.
Pressure spiraled, bright and fierce, in her lower belly, but he drew back before the crest could shatter her. Arousal drenched his chin; his chest rose and fell in rapid strokes.
He knelt up, shoving his trunks down muscular legs until his manhood sprang free.
Ada’s mouth went dry looking at him, veins snaking along an impressive length, crown broad and flushed. She leaned forward, hand closing around him, thumb slipping over his slit slick with pre-cum.
He throbbed under her palm, pulse hammering through satin-steel heat.
He lowered between her thighs. Their eyes held in a moment suspended—wild need, astonishment that this long-guarded line was about to be erased.
He nudged forward, splitting folds, pressing into the snug sleeve of her folds. They both exhaled—he a wordless growl, she a sigh of delicious stretch. He seated himself fully, hips snug to hers, before releasing a shaky breath.
“Ye’re so perfect,” he muttered against her collarbone.
Ada flexed knees around his hips, heels pressing into the hard globes of his arse. “Move, Magnus.”
He did—dragging out until only the glans remained, then thrusting back in, a slow glide that left her arching.
The blankets bunched beneath them, sand scrunching under the uppermost layer. Second thrust was faster, the third deeper, and by the fourth they’d established a rough cadence—the musk of sex mingling with peat in the air, the small slap of skin on skin echoing into open sky.
Ada raked fingers down his back, nails leaving red tracks; the sting seemed to spark him.
He snapped hips harder, driving in until his sac slapped her ass.
Each plunge rubbed against her front wall, sending bright pulses straight to her folds, winding her tighter.
Her moan escalated, carried over the quiet water.
“Harder,” she demanded, words cracking.
Magnus slipped hands under her, cradling her shoulder blades, and increased the force—pounding, relentless, bodies sliding together, sweat blooming despite the breeze.
The new pressure shoved her breath out in desperate pant.
He dragged a hand between them, thumb latching onto her folds, circling. Instant sparks jolted up her spine; she cried out, head tossing. Climax loomed, a huge dark shape beneath calm surface about to break.
“Climax with me, Ada,” he husked, voice raw. His thrusts shortened, losing rhythm. “Do it for me.”
She flew apart—inner walls spasming, clenching in ripples around his length, pleasure blooming so hard tears pricked her eyes. She barely sensed him bury himself to the hilt and hold, the first pulse of his release throbbed hot and thick within her, her body then milking every jet.
His groan was broken, face tucked to her neck, open-mouthed breaths washing her skin, fingers digging into her shoulder.
For several heartbeats there was nothing but sun-washed sky, the shudder of her breath, the pulse of his manhood inside her gradually easing.
He rolled aside, gathering her atop his chest so he could cradle her close. His heartbeat thundered under her ear, slowing in time with her own.
“I love ye, Ada,” he murmured, voice thick, lips pressing to forehead.
She smiled against him, throat tight, and traced along his stubbled jaw. “I love ye, Magnus.”
Around them the gentle sound of water continued its ancient lullaby; overhead, a hawk circled high and distant.
Beneath Magnus’s palm at her nape, Ada felt small grains of sand adhering to sweat, to fresh water, to remnants of seed that bound them invisibly.
Here, on the shore with heartbeats calming and limbs tangled, nothing else existed. The breeze cooled their damp skins. But within the circle of his arms, Ada burned warmly, certain and finally content.
Magnus lay on his back, Ada curled against his side, her head pillowed on his chest. His hand moved slowly through her damp hair, the repetitive motion soothing in a way he hadn't expected.
Above them, stars were beginning to pierce the darkening sky. The stream bubbled quietly nearby, and for the first time in what felt like years, Magnus felt something close to peace.
"I could stay here forever," Ada murmured, her fingers tracing lazy patterns across his ribs.
"We'd freeze before mornin'." But Magnus made no move to rise. He just held her closer, breathing in the scent of her—herbs and clean water and something uniquely Ada.
"Worth it." She tilted her head to look up at him. "Are ye... are ye all right? After what ye told me?"
Magnus considered the question. Was he all right? He'd just shared the truth about Freydis. Had admitted to being betrayed, to being made a fool.
And instead of judgment or pity in Ada's eyes, he'd seen only understanding. Acceptance.
"Aye," he said quietly. "I think I am. Or I will be, anyway."
"Good." Ada pressed a kiss to his chest, right over his heart. "Because I meant what I said. I love ye, Magnus Haraldson. All of ye. Even the broken parts."
Something in his chest tightened. "The broken parts are most of me."
"Then I love most of ye." She smiled against his skin. "The rest is just a bonus."
Despite himself, Magnus laughed. "Ye're ridiculous."
"Ye love me anyway."
"Aye." He tucked a strand of wet hair behind her ear. "I dae."
They lay in silence for a few more moments before Magnus finally, reluctantly, acknowledged reality. "We need to go. It's almost full dark, and ye're shiverin'."
"I'm fine."
"Ye're nae fine. Ye're turnin' blue." Magnus sat up, taking Ada with him. "Come on. Before ye catch yer death and Mairi has me head fer bein' irresponsible."
Ada sighed but didn't argue. They dressed quickly, their clothes still damp and uncomfortable. Magnus wrapped one of the blankets around Ada's shoulders.
They mounted their horses, Ada settling into her saddle with visible reluctance. Magnus understood—he felt it too, that pull to stay in this place where nothing could touch them. But duty called. Responsibility. The prisoner waiting in his dungeons who might hold answers they desperately needed.
They rode in comfortable silence, picking their way carefully through the darkening forest. The path was treacherous at night, roots and rocks hidden in shadow, but Magnus's stallion knew the way by heart.
They'd been riding for perhaps twenty minutes when Magnus caught it—the faint scent of woodsmoke on the wind.
He reined in immediately, his hand going up to signal Ada to stop.
"What is it?" she whispered.
"Smoke." Magnus scanned the trees, his eyes adjusting to the gloom. There, beyond the next ridge, he saw a faint orange glow against the darkening sky. "There's a fire. But we're too far from the keep for it to be from there."
"Could be travelers," Ada suggested. "Merchants campin' fer the night?"
"Maybe. But merchants dinnae usually camp on me land without permission." Magnus dismounted, and moved to tie his horse to a nearby tree. "Wait here. I'm goin' tae check."
"Nay." Ada was already sliding from her saddle. "I'm comin' with ye."
"Ada."
"Dinnae 'Ada' me. If there's danger, I'm nae stayin' here alone in the dark." She tied her mare beside his stallion, her expression stubborn. "We go taegether or nae at all."
Magnus wanted to argue. Every instinct screamed at him to keep her safe, to leave her somewhere protected while he investigated. But he also knew that look in her eyes—the one that said arguing would waste time they didn't have.
"Stay behind me," he said finally. "And if I tell ye to run, ye run. Understood?"
"Understood."