Page 99 of Bonds of Starfall

All good… Just got to a hotel.

He replied almost instantly.Have you eaten? Taken your medicine?

Her cheeks warmed as she nestled down further into the bed, her damp hair hanging around her shoulders and leaving water stains on the pillow.

The glow of her phone blinded her as she typed,Yes, sir.

He didn’t respond for so long, she wondered if maybe he had fallen asleep. It was nearly 5 AM, after all.

Finally, his response came through.It’s late. Go to sleep.

Rin plugged her phone in to charge, then tucked her Echogun under her pillow, rolling to her side, her back to the bathroom door as she stared at the moonlight seeping in through the blinds.

She must have dozed off, because she awoke to the bed dipping as a berry-scented Cyrus settled at her back, mumbling a low, "Don’t move. You’re fine, Ves," when she tried to inch away.

But she couldn’t go back to sleep. Not with Cyrus so close she could hear his every breath—feel his every shift as he worked to get comfortable. Darkness filled the room; the lamp was off.

Time stretched on as she counted in her head, but every breath against her nape distracted her from trying to sleep.

Eventually, she couldn’t stand it any longer.

"Cyrus," Rin whispered. He didn’t answer immediately.

A fingertip brushed the dip of her waist, and she flinched, hyperaware of their proximity.

"Ves?" he finally said, fingers dancing along the shape of her side.

Her eyes focused in the darkness. "In our past life, how did we do it?" He hummed, encouraging her to continue. "How could you love me, knowing I was going to die?"

He shifted closer to her, careful, as if anticipating her to shove him away, but she was so tired, so desperate for him. Theywere in a bed alone in a foreign city. This was so much like her time on Sibeth, except now, they were both interlopers.

"How could I not allow myself to love every piece of you? What’s that human saying… It’s better to have loved and lost…?"

"Than never to have loved at all," Rin finished.

"Even immortals have an end," Cyrus whispered against her nape, fingers brushing over her drying hair. "Nothing is forever."

Her breath hitched when he traced over the knobs of her spine atop her shirt, while his other hand skimmed along the curve of her waist, dipping underneath until he touched her bare skin.

"It’s that easy?" she breathed.

Cyrus’s lips pressed to her nape. "What would you have me do? See you and turn you away? Pretend you don’t exist? That would’ve been even more painful, I think." His fingers brushed over her ribs; any further and he would feel that she didn’t have a bra on. "I love you, Ves. Every version of you. Our Souls are bonded."

Rin melted, a hand coming down to grip his, moving it higher. She had only two experiences with intimacy now. With Cyrus—and with Lucien. She was still unskilled and fumbling, but god, did she want this.

She moved his hand higher, until his fingers brushed the underside of her breast.

He stilled. "Ves?"

"Touch me. I want you to make mefeel," she murmured, staring into the darkness, feeling powerful, knowing he couldn’t see her face.

"I won’t feed from you." Cyrus cupped her breast, making her arch up into his touch. "I promise." He nipped her ear.

Cyrus kneaded her breast, his other hand snaking under her side, until he skimmed over the waistband of her leggings. "Can I please touch you here?" His voice was a low purr in her ear.

"Y-yes," she hiccuped when his thumb twisted her nipple.

His hand moved under her waistband and panties, immediately cupping the spot between her thighs that grew damp with every brush of his fingers, every kiss against her nape. She sighed as his fingers delved inside her folds, and he groaned against her neck.