48
Aire
Unconscious, Aspen burrowed into the mountain of blankets we’d constructed in front of the fire. As morning crept through the windows, I soaked in the view while running my palm over her hip. She was a quiet sleeper, with all that hair curtaining her lovely profile.
We spent most of the night wearing one another out, exhausting a number of positions until neither of us had the strength to move. After that, I managed a few hours of rest while bundling her to my chest. Yet I could not resist the pull of watching her now.
A besotted grin nudged the corners of my lips.
I thought of us stripped and tangled around one another.
The slow grind of Aspen’s hips, the clutch of her intimate lips around my cock, the unadulterated euphoria strewn across her features.
I sank into the memory of exploring her body all night, listening to every cry and moan, my lips charting her markings, my relentless hips snapping while she arched into another climax.
And I remembered the hours passing too quickly. And I wanted more.
Later. She needed to recover first. As did I.
Based on the gilded beams, midmorning had arrived. Through the woods, the sun hovered like a medallion, branches filtering golden light into the cabin.
Carrying Aspen to bed would risk awakening her. I had tried twice already. Instead, I swathed her deeper into the blankets and gained my feet.
After donning my vest and forgoing the shirt, I penned a note.
You are profoundly beautiful when you sleep.
Leaving it beside her pillow, I knelt and pressed my lips to her temple, then retrieved my swords and exited the dwelling. A squirrel leaped through the offshoots, its tail flicking. Peace settled over the enclave, a medley of colorful branches peeking through shawls of mist.
Nevertheless, the moment I left the sanctity of the cabin, disquiet threaded through my consciousness. I had forgiven her. I cherished her with every fiber of my being. We had shed ourselves of the deception and swore to move forward.
Whether the clan would forgive Aspen’s duplicity with such expediency remained to be seen. The notion turned my stomach. At this juncture, a proper drill would quell my restless energy.
An hour hence, my muscles burned. I spun both swords, leaves skittering around my feet as I battled an invisible foe.
Then a delicate series of thuds carried across the platform. The sound jumpstarted my pulse and sent a buzz through my head. I whipped the blades to a halt, my ears all but perking.
I twisted. My gaze caught Aspen’s and took in the rest of her.
Seasons help me. She wore my shirt.
Idling within grabbing distance, the woman filled out the material, which hung untucked over a long skirt. This resurrected a memory of last night. In front of the fire, I’d enjoyed making love to Aspen while the garment enveloped her.
Over a shawl, her brown tresses cascaded in an unruly mess, and a vibrant hue brightened her visage. She looked relaxed, heartened, and newly fucked to within an inch of her life.
“Morning, soldier,” she bantered.
I stared, uttering nothing.
She tried again, exhibiting my note between her fingers. “You look handsome when you sleep too.”
My swords were on the ground before I registered dropping them. In seconds, I ate up the distance and seized her face, my lips snatching her own.
Sighing, Aspen flung herself against me. At the flex of her tongue over mine, I groaned from the back of my throat, the languid cadence of our mouths reminiscent of what I’d done to her hours ago.
The contrast of Aspen’s breath and the early chill roused me like kindling. Dragging my mouth away, I grinned as she whined in protest. Unable to deny her, my fingers splayed over Aspen’s lower back, then sank beneath the shawl, rucked up the skirt, and gripped her unclad ass.
Fuck almighty. I hissed, “You’re naked under this skirt.”
As her buttocks heated my palms, she quipped, “Well, I never leave home without a plan.”
“You mean to slay me, then.” I shook my head. “I shan’t win such a battle. Already, I’m contemplating hauling you back indoors. This time, to my bed.”
“Who knew you’d be this voracious?”
“The reason is evident. One glimpse of you drives me to the brink. How pitiful that I’ve neglected to bid you good morning in return.”
“You’re doing a thorough job of it now,” she reassured, sliding her arms around my shoulders.
I beamed like a smitten fucking juvenile. “It thrills me to see you in my wardrobe.”
“That spares me the trouble of stealing this shirt.”
Now my smile became wolfish. “Did I please you last night?”
Red climbed up Aspen’s features. “I think you heard and felt the answer.”
I had. Multiple times.
After three climaxes in succession, followed by an encore that lasted hours, I was merely indulging. Aspen was just so pretty when she blushed. For a spitfire warrior, she was quite the affectionate minx.
Yet after a carefree moment, the flirtation ceased. Her eyebrows crinkled, guilty trepidation pulling down her features.
I knew why. I’d been brooding about the same thing.
One palm raised to frame her cheek. “All will be well.”
“I lied to them,” she whispered. “All of them.”
“Every member of the clan makes mistakes. Jeryn alone is still atoning for his brutal history. You’re not an isolated case. It won’t be easy, but they love you as much as you love them. In time, they will show you grace.”
Aspen fisted my lapels. “I refuse to go unpunished. It’s their right.”
“Spoken like an honorable fighter.” I rested my forehead against hers. “Whatever comes next, I stand by you. However they reply, I pledge to remain at your side. And to make you happy.”
“I promise to do the same,” she invoked. “No lies. Only truth.”
“We’ll make it work. We’ll get through this.”
She nodded. “Together.”
Hauling her forward, I clamped my mouth over Aspen’s. With nothing left to hide, I rocked us into a full-bodied, full-hearted kiss.
Whistles blew across the forest. An ovation of claps resounded overhead.
We broke apart. Glancing to the level above, we found Lyrik and Nicu standing on separate platforms, applauding us.