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My heart swelled so swiftly and strongly that I wouldn’t have been surprised if I floated right off the grass.

“I had to count them.” His hand came to my jaw. “Just to make sure they were all where they’re supposed to be.”

Dreaming of him counting my freckles made sense. His tendency to do that was something that made my heart melt. But the rest? What a strange thing for me to have dreamt him saying.

Ash’s lips captured mine once more, giving me no time to dwell on that. And when he kissed like this, as if I were the only thing in the world that could sustain him, I could do nothing but happily drown in those kisses.

And I did.

I kissed him back, saying everything I felt without uttering a single word, conveying a depth of emotion that words could never do justice to. I kissed him like it might be the last chance I’d get.

And it really could be.

A knot of sadness threatened to form and ruin the moment, but I refused to let it. I clasped his shoulders, feeling the slightly raised skin under the ink that had been driven into his flesh.

Ash shook, breathing raggedly as he pressed his forehead to mine. His hand splayed across my cheek, and that trembled, too. “I miss you,” he whispered hoarsely. “I don’t…I don’t know how much time has passed. A day? Two? A week? Only a few hours? I don’t know, liessa, but I miss you, even as I sleep so deeply.”

Something about what he said caused my skin to prickle. A feeling, or maybe a memory, prodded me, but I couldn’t figure it out.

And I didn’t think it mattered right now. “I’m here, Ash.”

He shuddered.

“So don’t miss me.” I touched his jaw, feeling the slight stubble there. “Love me instead.”

“I do,” Ash swore. “Fates, Sera, I do.”

I lifted my head, bringing our mouths together, even though his words reminded me that I was dreaming, that all of this was me creating what I wanted to feel and hear. And, gods, I wanted nothing more than to hear Ash say that he loved me. That he was capable of it. And if I could only get that in a dream, I’d take it without shame. My tongue parted his lips, and his answering groan was the sound of pure bliss.

Ash’s palm returned to my breast. A breathy moan left me as he dragged the rough pad of his thumb over the hardened nipple. I sank a hand into the soft strands of his hair, curling my fingers around them as his hand skated down my stomach and then between my thighs. The feeling of him there, his fingers slipping through the dampness and into me, was another shock to the senses. I cried out, the sound caught by his kiss. My hips rose at the wicked, torturous pressure of his finger sinking into me. I ground against his hand, tension spinning, and…gods, I’d never felt something like this in a dream before. Never anything this intense.

I felt the sharp tip of one fang against my tongue and shivered. His bite never caused pain, only sensual, decadent pleasure. Not like—

My hand tightened in his hair. There was no space for that. Not in my dreams. Not when I was living in a state I didn’t want to wake from.

But I knew I would.

That knowledge filled me with a keening, desperate yearning. I pulled on him, wanting to feel his weight on me. Needing to. “I need you.” I gripped his arm with my other hand, feeling his muscles jump. “I need you, Ash. Please.”

“You have me, liessa.” Ash, thank the gods, obliged without hesitation. He shifted, his large body coming down over mine, caging me. The coarser hairs of his legs teased mine as he settled between my thighs. “You’ve always had me.” The tip of a sharp fang dragged along my lower lip, creating tiny knots of pleasure as the hot, hard length of him pressed against my core. “I’ve always had you.”

The feel of him sparked a pulsing twist of pleasure that ignited frenzied need because he felt…gods, he felt better than a memory.

A deep sound rumbled from Ash. His hand returned to my hip, and he pressed into me as his kisses turned fiercer, deeper, and rougher. With each drugging, tugging brush and pull of his mouth, tiny fires erupted through me. Then, with one thrust, he seated himself fully.

My cry was lost in his hoarse shout as a jolt of surprise swept through me, causing me to lock up. I could feel the little bite of pain from his size and the pulsing pleasure of him filling and stretching me.

I could really feel him.

Pulse racing, my eyes flew open, and my gaze collided with Ash’s. His body had stilled, too, but the bright-as-the-moon eather in his eyes whirled wildly. Neither of us moved or spoke for several moments as the embers in my chest started to hum.

“You feel…” Ash shook his head, his voice thick. His eyes were wide, the hollows under his cheeks starker as I felt him jerk inside me. “You feel as if you’re here.”

As did he.

I inhaled deeply, catching the faint scent of lilacs—stale lilacs. My heart turned over heavily, and fear coursed through me. Was I waking up? My already-pounding heart sped up. No, I wasn’t ready for that. I would never be.

“Love me,” I ordered—begged, really. “Love me.”