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Still breathing.

Still standing.

Still burning.

His hands trace over me like a prayer.

Slow. Reverent. Like he can’t believe I am still his.

Like he is memorizing every inch of me, because now?—

he never has to let me go again.

I don’t want a gap between us.

I don’t want distance.

I want to be closer.

I want to feel everything.

I want him everywhere.

His fingertips glide over my skin, like molten lava rolling inside me. They dip into the hollows of my collarbone, trace the curve of my breast, and linger at the peak of my nipple, teasing it into a hard, aching point.

His touch is deliberate, worshipful, as if he’s relearning me, as if he’s afraid I might vanish if he doesn’t commit every detail to memory.

When his hand slides lower, skimming the plane of my stomach, I arch into him, my breath hitching.

His palm cups the heat between my thighs, and I gasp, my pussy already wet, already aching for him.

He groans softly, the sound vibrating against my neck as he presses his lips there, sucking gently, marking me as his.

“I’ve missed this,” he murmurs, his voice rough with need. “Missed you. I want you. I crave you. You give me life.”

His fingers slip beneath the waistband of my panties, and I moan as they find my slick folds.

He teases me, circling my clit with agonizing slowness, drawing out every sensation until I’m trembling beneath him.

“Please,” I whisper, my hands clutching at his shoulders. “I need you, Zephiran, my mate.”

He doesn’t make me wait.

In one swift motion, he strips away the last barrier between us, his cock springing free, hard and thick and ready.

I reach for him, wrapping my fingers around his length, stroking him slowly, reveling in the way his breath hitches, the way his hips jerk into my touch.

“Gods, you’re beautiful,” I whisper, gazing into him and memorizing every reaction, even the twitch of his muscles.

“Fuck,” he growls, his eyes dark with desire. “I’m going to die in your arms.”

I guide him to my pussy, my legs spreading wider, inviting him in. He pauses for a moment, his gaze locking with mine, and in that look, I see everything—love, longing, and a promise that this is forever.

“Zephiran!”

Then he pushes inside, and I cry out, my body stretching to accommodate him, my pussy clenching around his cock as he fills me completely. He groans, his forehead dropping to mine, his breath hot against my lips.

“You feel so good,” he rasps, his hips rolling against mine, setting a slow, deep rhythm that has me gasping with every thrust.