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He felt my desire and looked my way. “Again?” he asked.

“Please,” I managed.

He gathered me in his arms and set me upon the blanket. He reached for the pack, grabbing a towel to dry me off. Hungrily, I watched his cock.

Impatient, I reached for his skin.

“I don’t want gentle, not anymore.”

He stared at me like a ravenous animal. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

Grinning wickedly, he pinched my skin and spread my thighs. Impatient, we surrendered to the wild fae within.

Time grew short. Time became expansive.

We fucked until the sky became a predawn maroon, the stars few and far between.

“How do you feel?” Zayne asked as we finished another round, the stream of them blurring into a hedonistic haze.

“Amazing.” In truth, I was increasingly sore, but it was hard to care. “You?”

“Absolutely ravished.”

He didn’t look ravished. He radiated fresh confidence. It was sexy as hell.

I glanced at the rising light with irritation. “It’s nearly dawn. We have…”

Responsibilities. Friends. Families.

He nodded. “I know.”

We dressed in silence, only our gazes touching, as if making skin contact would unleash whatever self-control remained. If only we could take theUmbral Starand sail into the horizon without a care in the world, everyone else be damned.

But that wasn’t who we were.

As Zayne offered me his hand, a signal he was preparing to shadow-step, the tether ignited across our minds. What I had once denied now held both of us tight.

We’d come so far. We had so much further to go.

Ninti was still absent, and Zayne’s trick didn’t exactly solve my desire for control. There were still shards to take and an army of shades to resolve.

All the same, I accepted Zayne’s outstretched hand. Whatever we faced, we wouldn’t confront it alone.

Chapter twenty-six

The New Stowaway

Zayne

I smirked from the shadows as Ayla told half-lies about the most delightful cove she had discovered with her friend.

TheUmbral Starbounced in the waves outside the closed gates while Ayla met with the guards on the small island with the gatehouse.

The guard’s gaze raked over her, approving of her more than I would have wished. “Glad you could enjoy Mer. With the trade assembly, it’s been too quiet here. Lucky you.”

“Lucky indeed,” she answered kindly.