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CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Ryker

I set the clothes down a few feet from the river and placed the soap on them. For now, Ellery could wear one of my shirts. It was more than adequate to cover most of her.

Tomorrow, I’d talk to the women to see if they had any extra clothes they could offer her, as well as some of the other refugees. They would have to make new clothes, but that would take time, and Ellery’s were ruined.

She wouldn’t complain or ask for anything herself, but I wouldn’t have her going without. I had no problem asking for her.

With deft fingers, she unbuttoned her shirt and let it fall to the ground. Underneath, she wore a black bra that emphasized the enticing swell of her breasts. While not much of the human realm had made it into Tempest, their bras had replaced the bindings the women used to wear. I appreciated it.

When my cock stirred, I tamped it down. Ellery had been through so much today and was still recovering.

I was too, but my wounds had mostly healed, and I could fuck this woman on my deathbed. To keep my growing lust under control, I focused on the bandage around her torso.

When she pulled her pants down her hips with a little wiggle, I ground my teeth together as she revealed her black underwear, the curve of her thighs, and her shapely calves. She undid the knot keeping her bandage in place, unwound it, and dropped it on the ground.

My gaze shifted to the puckered red slice on her ribs. Stepping closer, my hands fell against her side as I examined the injury.

Aside from the redness surrounding the gash, and the slightly swollen skin, it was completely healed. She didn’t require the bandage anymore.

When I stroked her skin, her attention shifted to me. She glanced at the mark before freeing her mocha hair with its subtle hues of chocolate and chestnut. Tousled and tangled, it tumbled around her shoulders and down her back.

“It’s mostly healed,” she said.

“It shouldn’t have happened,” I growled. “I’m going to kill him.”

“He’s a problem for later.”

With that, she undid her bra and let it fall to the ground. She smiled and pulled off her underwear before tossing them aside and claiming the soap.

With an enticing sway of her hips, she sauntered into the river. The woman would be the death of me, but what a glorious death it would be.

She’d had enough shit going on recently without me trying to fuck her while she was still hurt, but every part of me begged for her. I’d nearly lost her on that field and then again in the portal with Gaius, but now she was here and very much alive as she sank into the water.

She used the soap to scrub her skin and hair as the moon bathed her in its fading light. I’d seen her naked many times before, but somehow, she was wilder tonight… or maybe that was me.

I was still basking in the feeling of freedom that encompassed me while we danced, drank, and celebrated around the fire. I still had a duty to Tempest, but for the first time in my life, I wasn’t shackled by the expectations placed on me at birth.

I wasn’t trapped in the endless game of cat and mouse the nobles, especially my father, loved to play. I was free in a way I’d never been before.

And I was also free to love her, openly and for everyone to know. While the realm may not know the details of our relationship, they’d rightfully guess I’d killed the king for her… and they would assume it was for love.

Because of that, they’d know she was mine . While that meant nothing to men like Gaius and my father, it did mean something to many amsirah who would respect our bond and stay away.

The bars of the prison my father created for me at birth had vanished, and I didn’t have to serve a king I despised. I was free of my duties as the duke’s son and to be with the woman I loved.

And what a woman she was as rivulets of water ran down her skin. My cock swelled to the point of pain as I followed the trails between the valley of her breasts and down to the enticing triangle of the hair between her thighs.

My mouth watered at the memory of the sweet honey ambrosia of her taste. Beneath the dwindling moonlight, shadows played across her golden skin and briefly illuminated the smattering of freckles on the bridge of her pert nose.

The tempting curves of her hourglass figure could cause a monk to forget their vows. While she had hips and full breasts, working on the manor, riding, and her adventures as the Hooded Robber had etched lean muscle into her countenance.

I knew every dip and hollow of her luscious body; I’d spent many pleasurable hours exploring it while learning what pleased her most. I’d memorized the nuances of her moans and delighted cries; they haunted me as her gaze fell to my erection.