14. Chapter Fourteen Rhowyn
Chapter Fourteen: Rhowyn
Light streamed through the window, slowly waking me as the beams streaked across my face. Even though my eyes were closed, one such beam fell right into my eyes, blinding me through my closed lids. Rolling to my back to get away from the piercing light, I stretched slowly. My sore muscles screamed at me in protest as the events of yesterday came back to me. Was it only yesterday?
I remembered healing Baer just before passing out, but I had no clue how much time had passed since then. I assumed it was yesterday since we’d spent the majority of the day in the maze and should have been close to evening by that point. For all I knew, time could have moved differently in the maze, so I had no frame of reference for what time it was now.
Not ready to get out of bed, content to bask in the comfort of this heavenly mattress and pillows, I rolled away from the light completely in the hopes that I could enjoy the peace and quiet for a little while longer. Even though I had slept for hours, I was still exhausted, my body telling me that I’d need a week to fully feel rested. I wondered if my fatigue had anything to do with my use of magic, a faint memory of one of the guys saying sleep helped with recovery came to mind.
Turning away from the blinding light that was intent on destroying my attempts at relaxation, my eyes landed on the sleeping form next to me. His brown hair, which looked almost blond from the rays of sunshine, was mussed from sleep. I wanted to run my fingers through the soft strands, to smooth it down and back into place. As he dozed, I let my eyes drift downward, committing his sleeping form to memory. His chest was bare, and the sheets had come to rest at his waist, tangled as if he'd been tossing and turning. He was peaceful now, but at some point, he hadn’t been.
Normally, I was a light sleeper, so I was surprised I hadn't woken when he’d gotten into the bed with me. Not wanting to wake him, I watched him, my heart feeling so full at his closeness. My body hummed in satisfaction. Was this the bond? Somehow, it felt different. Whatever it was, it liked that he was here with me now.
As my eyes took in the lean, ropy muscles of his chest and arms, he stirred, those same muscles bunching and relaxing as he did so. Looking up to his face, I caught him smiling at me, his eyes barely opening to take me in.
He was such a beautiful man, glowing with an inner light that I wanted to soak in, luxuriating in the warmth that he gave me. Spending time in his light was slowly chasing away the darkness that had consumed me for years, but a part of me feared that my shadows would taint his pure light.
Changing the subject of my thoughts, not wanting to dwell in them at this moment, I spoke, my voice husky from sleep, “Good morning, sunshine.”
He chuckled, turning toward me, a hand going to my hair, which hung loose around my shoulders. He ran a large hand through my dark green strands. “Good afternoon, Killer. ”
His smile faded as he watched his hand play with my hair, his eyes unfocused as he fixated on the slide of his fingers, seeing them but not. Butterflies started fluttering in my gut at the intimate moment, my heart clenching at the reverence that slowly entered his eyes as they studied the way it slipped through his fingers. He had no idea what he was doing to me.
My lips parted as desire started to coil inside me, but I wasn't ready to ruin this moment by leaning in to claim his lips. Finally, his eyes met mine. I could see desire and something more. Something I'd never had before. I wanted what he was offering, but I was also terrified of what it would mean. I wasn't sure I was ready for that, but I also couldn't deny this attraction to him any longer.
He'd been so loyal to me, giving me everything I'd ever asked for and more. He brought me joy instead of letting the circumstances crush me under their weight. He never failed to make me smile when all I wanted to do was rant and rave at the shit that relentlessly tried to ruin me. His steady presence at my side, always, proved to me that he wouldn't run away. At least, not if he had the choice.
I didn’t want to stay hidden away from the world anymore because of fear. Destiny was hunting me down, whether I was ready for it or not. What we had faced in the maze had proven that much. Now, I just had to make the choice of facing it down on my own or confronting the changes with his support beside me all the way.
Slowly. Oh, so very slowly, he leaned toward me, giving me the chance to stop him, the chance to keep myself at a distance. His eyes watched mine, bouncing as they tried to take in every expression and thought on my face.
He was offering me the world, his heart. It was waiting for me, if only I had the courage to reach out and take it.
As if sensing my decision before I’d even known I had made one, his lips pressed into mine, lingering for a moment, savoring it. I leaned into him, pressing my lips more firmly against his, encouraging him. His tongue pressed against my lips, slipping inside when I opened at the unspoken request for entrance.
I moaned softly at his slow exploration of my mouth, his tongue dancing with mine as the kiss deepened. His hand ran lightly along my bare arm, causing goose bumps to appear and making me shiver. The touch was so light, it was barely there. It was nothing and everything all at once.
I leaned further into him, needing more of what he was offering me, finally ready to fall over that edge with him to face the uncertain future. Together. His hand stopped at the nape of my neck, his thumb running along my jaw as he deepened the kiss further.
He guided me to lay on my back as he rested on his elbows above me, pausing to study me. “You're so beautiful, Rhowyn,” he whispered in awe, studying my face as if it held the secret to life.
I'd been told I was beautiful before, but this was the first time I'd ever believed someone. I swallowed at the emotions that threatened to choke me, not wanting to ruin the moment with tears. Still, one leaked out, and he caught it with the pad of his thumb, rubbing it into my skin. “You deserve the world, Rhowyn, and I hope you'll find me worthy enough to let me get it for you.” He continued to whisper, more tears falling over the edge and tracking down my face.
I nodded, unable to speak as joy and unspoken fears swelled inside me. “Why the tears?” he asked me gently.
“I...” Trying to explain to him the emotions that even I didn't fully understand was like trying to fly without knowing how.
“It's okay. I'm not going anywhere,” he assured me, kissing the tracks of my tears. Never before had anyone consoled me .
“I'm not used to someone looking at me the way you do.” I started, trying to explain why he was touching me on a level that was so much more than just the physical. He was reaching deep inside me, holding my soul and heart in his hands. “No one has spoken to me like you do and made me truly believe them.” My voice broke at the end, and I inhaled, trying to restrain the sob that wanted to escape me.
He frowned at my admission, his sorrow at that truth evident in his face, which showed his every thought, every emotion. I searched it, waiting for his response, glad that I couldn't see any pity there. Closing his eyes, he inhaled deeply before opening them and looking at me. His brow furrowed, and his grip on my neck tightened. His thumb still caressed my cheek and jaw, still soft and supportive.
“Never again will you ever feel that way. You deserve to be worshiped like the queen I know you are.” His words were firm, brooking no argument.
I started to argue with him, my mouth opening to protest that I was not worthy of being a queen, but he shushed me, his thumb now resting on my bottom lip. On this, he wouldn’t be swayed. “No. You are my Chosen. My Queen. It's my duty to ensure that you discover this for yourself, but until you can believe, I will believe for you.”
He held my gaze, his vow breaking something inside me. I didn't deserve someone like him, but I was too greedy to let him go now.
Seeing my acceptance of his words, his thumb pulled down on my bottom lip slowly. Sensually. His eyes watched my lips, intent on what he was doing. Heat shot straight to my core as my pussy clenched.
“Now, let me worship you, my Queen.” He kissed me then, different than the other times he'd done so. He kissed me like it would be the last thing he ever did. His actions backing up his words.
He moved from my mouth, his weight now on both hands, hovering above me as he kissed the tracks of my tears. Starting with my closed eyelids, moving down my cheek until he'd reached my ear, he whispered, “You are beautiful,” before moving to my neck.
He sucked on the skin, not quite hard enough to leave a mark, but it was enough to have me squirming under him. I went to wrap my arms around him, needing to feel him under my hands, but he was having none of it.
“No. Let me show you how beautiful you are. How lucky I am to be with you,” he said firmly, gathering both of my wrists in one hand and dragging them above my head and holding them in place. My breasts rose with the motion, thrust upward and drawing his attention.
“Mmm...” Humming with satisfaction, his free hand cupped my breast through my tank top. The touch was gentle and firm in contrast to the rough fabric that scraped along my skin, my nipple peaking with the sensation.
He watched his hand as he moved a finger to circle it around my nipple, teasing me. “So beautiful.”
I tried to arch into his touch, needing more from him. As I did, he pulled his hand away and arched a brow. “Patience, Rhowyn. This will take time. Nothing less than what you deserve.”
Wanting to squeeze my thighs together to relieve the magnificent tension he was building in me, I was again denied by his hips planted firmly between my legs. He held himself above me; the only thing touching me was the hand holding both of mine. Smiling at my obvious frustration, he knew exactly what he was doing to me.
“Baer,” I growled out, needing more from him .
“Yes, my Queen?” he sing-songed, knowing what I wanted but forcing me to say it.
I arched a brow at him, “If you don't give me more, then I will leave and take care of myself,” I challenged him.
He sat there and studied me for a moment, almost daring me to do as I’d threatened, before capitulating to my demands. “Your wish is my command.”
His mouth descended to my breast, the one he had teased so mercilessly, and sucked on my nipple through the fabric. Hard. I cried out, finally getting what I needed from him, arching into his mouth. He flicked my nipple with his tongue before moving to the other one, which begged for his touch as well. His free hand skimmed up my side, dragging my tank top with it, slowly revealing my skin to him. When the fabric was up to my breasts, he pulled his mouth away, causing me to whimper at the loss.
A devious smile stretched across his handsome face as he slowly lifted the tank top above my breasts. As he took them in, he groaned. “So perfect.” His finger circled one nipple, then the other. “Just the perfect shade of rose, inviting me in to taste you, to feast on your body.”
Instead of doing just that, he watched me as I squirmed under him, continuing his slow, languorous ministrations. “Baer,” I warned, though it came out as more of a whine.
He chuckled softly, pleased with the reactions he was wringing from me. “Yes, my Queen?”
“If you don't stop... Ah! Yes!” I cried out, interrupted from trying to insist that I wasn’t his queen by him sucking on my nipple again, biting down on the tip, and successfully distracting me. My thoughts scattered as arousal increased the sensations of his mouth.
“Fuck!” I cried out, the pain just enough to shoot straight to my core as I arched into him, needing to feel more of him .
“Not just yet,” he teased me, pulling his mouth from my breast and kissing a line down my stomach. His tongue dipped into my navel, and my hips writhed under him.
His hand gripped my waist, stilling my movements as he kissed one hip bone, then the other, doing just as he'd promised. He was worshiping me. It was the best thing I'd ever experienced and yet the worst at the same time. I hated waiting, but I knew that it would all be worth it in the end.
“Baer!” I cried out as he bit down on one hipbone, pleading with him and praising him at the same time. My breaths rushed in and out of me as he built the tension, oh so slowly.
A finger dipped into the waistband of my underwear, caressing the bare skin along my pubic bone, teasing me further into a frenzy. Finally, that finger hooked the fabric and dragged it down far enough for my legs to open wider for him.
His nostrils flared, taking in my scent with a groan. Again, he sat there and took me in. A finger running along my slit, dipping into the evidence of my arousal that had gathered there. “I wonder if you'll taste just as good as I imagined.”
He popped that same finger into his mouth, sucking my juices from it, his eyes closing as he savored the taste. “Fuck, Rhowyn. You taste so fucking good,” he groaned, his eyes opening with hunger, ready to devour me.
I whimpered at the thought as he lowered himself back down, lying across my legs, his shoulders keeping me from closing them. Instead of diving straight into it, he blew a breath across my pussy, the cool air shocking and pleasurable at the same time.
I squirmed, ready for his mouth on me, needing this more than I'd ever needed anything else in my life. Slowly, he lowered his mouth to lick along the seam, his eyes holding mine the whole time .
I moaned and tried to squirm, but he held me in place with a forearm across my hips. At some point, he'd released my hands without me realizing, because his other went below me, lifting me to his mouth. I didn’t waste the opportunity to run my hands through his hair, trying to direct him to my core.
He ran his tongue along my slit again, closing his eyes and moaning as if I was the best thing he'd ever tasted. My core clenched around nothing at the sight, my pussy needing to squeeze something, anything.
Sensing my need, he moved his forearm from my hips and drug a finger down me again before sliding it slowly inside of me. “Yes!” I cried out, his eyes heating with the sounds of my pleasure.
His mouth lowered, licking me again, his finger sliding in and out of me slowly, teasing me and bringing me closer to the peak. His lips closed around my clit, sucking, and I screamed. He moaned as my hips bucked in pleasure, the vibration on my clit pushing me closer.
“I'm so close, Baer. Please,” I begged him, needing to go over that edge. In response, his tongue flicked my clit repeatedly, speeding up and changing directions, circling before moving up and down or side to side, his groans vibrating me every so often. His finger thrust in and out of me, harder and faster, hooking to rub my G-spot with every motion.
“Please. Please.” In answer to my pleas, his other hand moved, no longer needing to hold me up, my hips rising and falling on their own. He slid a finger between my cheeks.
“Fuck!” I cried out as he began to tease the pucker there, that finger slowly pushing inside while his other hand still worked my pussy. As he penetrated that spot, I came with a scream, my head pushing backward into the bed, my back arching and bringing my shoulders off the mattress. My hands that were buried into his hair held him in place as I rode out my earth-shaking orgasm .
“Holy shit!” I cried once I'd come back down, my chest heaving as my bones turned to jelly.
Baer laughed softly, hunger still in his eyes, my cum coating his chin as he watched me. He climbed my body slowly, leaning in to kiss me deeply, his tongue tangling with mine.
He thrust his hips into mine, his shorts still in place, keeping him from entering me fully. Grinding down on me, he circled his hips, effectively getting me ready for another round, before pulling back from our kiss.
Raising up on his knees, my eyes followed every movement. He was so gorgeous, his lean muscles flexing as he restrained his actions, eyes dancing in pleasure at my devouring gaze him.
Continuing the show, his fingers slipped into his shorts, slowly pulling one side down and then the other. He paused and waited as I squeezed my legs together to relieve the need for friction, ready for more of what he was offering, while he enjoyed my discomfort.
Frustrated with having to wait, my impatience got the best of me. I sat up, going to my knees on the bed, and pulled my tank top off in one quick motion. His pupils dilated further as he took me in as my dark, green hair cascaded across my shoulders to tease at my nipples.
I leaned in and kissed him, distracting him from his perusal. His hands reached to cup my ass, attempting to pull me in closer. As he did so, I grabbed his boxers and yanked them down, ridding us both of the last barrier between us.
It was my turn to enjoy the view, and I did. His long, thick cock jutted out at me, dripping with precum already. He was without a doubt larger than anyone I'd ever been with, but I was more than ready for him.
I licked my lips at the sight as I wrapped a hand around him and stroked him firmly. His eyes closed as he moaned, “Fuck, Rhowyn. That feels too good. ”
Smiling in triumph, knowing I could give him such pleasure with just a touch, I started to lean down to take him in my mouth. His hands on my shoulders stopped me before I could. “If you do that, I won't last long enough, and I'm nowhere near ready to be done with you,” he told me firmly . Fuck me. That was hot .
He grabbed my hands again, leaning in to kiss me roughly, guiding me backward onto the bed again. I went willingly, eager to feel him inside me, filling me so fully. He settled between my thighs, his cock teasing at my pussy as he kissed me. One hand pinched my nipples again. I moaned and moved my hips, trying to get him inside me. “Baer,” I whimpered. “Please fuck me. Now.”
He studied me closely, holding completely still, searching my face for something. “I need you,” I said in a whisper, settling whatever internal debate he was having.
Groaning, he pushed his hips forward, the tip of his cock sliding inside easily, stretching me. He moved slowly, his arms shaking with the effort of holding himself back as he stretched me, giving me a chance to adjust to his size.
I wrapped my legs around him, trying to push him deeper, faster with my heels, but he resisted. “Rhowyn,” he said, stilling and meeting my gaze. “You feel so good, but if we don't do this slowly, I'm going to come now. Neither of us want that, so please.”
I nodded, not ready for this to end, needing to extend our time together. After putting this off for so long, I needed the release that his body promised. I needed him to complete me.
He began to slide slowly into me again, pausing every so often to allow me to adjust to him. He was so thick, filling me completely. “Fuck. You're so tight,” he groaned, sweat beading his forehead.
As if something had snapped inside of him, he slammed all the way into me with one final, hard thrust, causing me to cry out in pleasure. “Fuck!” he cursed.
Without pulling out, he circled his hips, rubbing my clit and causing me to moan loudly. He pulled back slowly, just a little, and slammed home again. “Baer!” I called out. Already, I was so close. He was hitting every single spot in just the perfect way, racing me toward the edge of another orgasm.
I was panting as he pulled out further this time, slamming into me. Out and in. In and out. His hips rocked into me over and over again, sending me higher up on the precipice than ever before. I wasn't sure I could take much more, but he kept thrusting.
His dick caressed my G-spot with every thrust in and out, his pelvis rubbing my clit until I was squirming, clinging to his biceps, my thighs squeezing tight, so ready to fall over the edge. “Baer. I'm so close,” I told him, begging him to push me over, to come with me.
“Fuck,” he cursed again, his mouth lowering to suck on my nipple, biting it painfully and sending me hurdling over the cliff.
“Baer!” I cried out, almost blacking out at the intensity of the orgasm, soaring higher as he continued to thrust inside of me, chasing his own release. My pussy clenched and squeezed his dick, finally sending him over with me.
He groaned, thrusting more slowly through his orgasm. He buried his head into my collarbone, before he finally stilled, both of us completely spent. Our breaths still rushing in and out.
I wrapped my arms around him, holding him to me. I kissed the top of his head as my mind swirled with pleasure. “Holy shit. Baer, that was amazing.”
He chuckled into my skin, lifting up to flop beside me, turning his head to gaze adoringly at me. “That's how a Queen should be worshiped.”
I rolled over to meet his gaze, blushing slightly. His hand slid into my hair and played with the strands. Somehow, we were back where we had started, and yet, I knew that we were now so different. Nothing would ever be the same again.