Page 98 of Dustwalker

Slipping his fingers into her hair, he drew her down into a full kiss, claiming her mouth. His lip-plates were solid, parting when his tongue sought entry to her mouth. She opened to him. His tongue was dry, with a slight, bumpy texture, and she recalled the feel of it on her pussy as she slid hers against it.

That spark of memory heightened her pleasure and made her core clench around his shaft. But she was no longer in control of this moment. Ronin had taken over and was thrusting furiously inside her, stroking that place beyond her reach.

Lara moaned against his mouth, overcome by the sensations sweeping through her. She spread her thighs wider, wanting more of him, needing him deeper, deeper, deeper. Her skin tingled. She felt like she was floating, and only Ronin’s touch grounded her, only his solidness kept her from drifting away.

Moving her hands to the bedding, she gripped the sheets.

“Ronin,” she rasped, craving the bliss only he could deliver. Panting, she leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. Her hard nipples grazed his chest, the friction adding to the pressure building in her core.

He clutched her ass, his thrusts growing more powerful as he lifted and pulled her down on him, tilting her hips just right. Every stroke of his cock from this angle brushed her clit and sent shockwaves of ecstasy through her, each stronger than the last, until they thoroughly consumed her.

Lara’s body locked up, and she cried out as rapture cleaved through her. She was suspended in that moment of pleasure, floating in darkness. The world ceased to exist. There was only bliss.

When she came back into herself, she was lost on the torrent of ecstasy, her throaty, frantic cries unrelenting as her pussy contracted around Ronin’s cock.

“Lara…” he rasped.

Yanking her down until she was fully seated, Ronin embedded his shaft deep. His fingertips were white hot as they dug into her skin. He stiffened beneath her, his cock vibrating against her inner walls. The sensations were wholly visceral and careered her into another orgasm.

“Ronin!” she keened, grinding her clit against him, body quivering. For a moment, everything within her fragmented.

Once the maelstrom of pleasure waned, Lara lay limp upon Ronin’s chest, panting against his neck. His arms were around her, with one hand at the small of her back, fingers brushing back and forth along the base of her spine, and the other soothingly stroking her upper back. His shaft, still hard and hot, remained deep within her.

They remained like that for a time, simply holding one another, until her breathing and her heart calmed.

When she finally opened her eyes, her gaze caught upon the holes in his damaged chest. Her heart squeezed. She hated that he’d suffered, and she knew, had he been human, he likely wouldn’t have survived what had happened.

Tears stung her eyes as she lightly ran her finger over one of the punctures, from the smooth metal to the jagged and back again.

He combed his fingers through her hair. “I don’t know what I am anymore, and I don’t think I care, as long as I have you.”

“I love you.” The words spilled out, unbidden, but they sounded right. They felt right, deep in her heart.

Lara tilted her head back and peered up at him. “I never thought I’d say that to anyone but Tabitha, but it’s true.” She curled her palm along his jawline and guided his face toward hers. “I don’t know when it happened. I think, maybe, it’s when I said you weren’t human.”

“You fell in love with me when you insulted me?” he asked, voice wavering.

Lara smirked. “Yeah. Kinda funny when you think about it, huh?”

His lips shifted, the plates beneath his cheeks moving up and back. A smile. “You do have an infuriating-but-charming air about you.”

Chuckling, she lifted her head to look down at him, sweeping her hair out of her face. “I was attracted to you long before that, but I fought it like hell.”

“I was attracted to you from the first moment I saw you, Lara Brooks.”

Her smile faded. “You wanted me for more than dancing, didn’t you?”

“I don’t know.” He caressed her cheek. “Yes? It wasn’t a logical decision, just…pure desire. I didn’t understand what I felt then, and I still don’t understand it now.”

“Why me? Why not a different human? Someone easier to get along with, maybe?”

“Everyone else moves the same way, whether metal or flesh and bone. Lifelessly. Dull-eyed.” His hand trailed up her spine. “You’re the first person I’ve seen who moves like you’realive, with a fire inside you.”

“I didn’t feel it at the time.”

They’d met during one of the lowest points of her life. If he hadn’t come after she’d lost the ring, would her despair have won out?

“But you did. You always do. The pain and sadness…it’s part of living, isn’t it? Being numb to those emotions is what makes us feel lifeless.”