Page 65

“Give me the chance to pursue you, and I’ll do so to the ends of the earth.

You want this, you won’t get away from me, Jules.

I’ll hunt you down with everything I have.

” His arm tightened around my shoulders as I turned the ring around in my fingers.

It was incredibly beautiful, with tiny Tirians running along the band.

“You’re right, I’ve worked all my life to try and keep order.

I’ve always done what the matriarchs wanted; kept the order with the men, brought the single men’s concerns to them, acted as a broker between the factions.

But I’d give it all away. Fuck Kelly, fuck all of it, if that’s what it takes to make you mine.

I don’t resent Slade for what he did, I envy him. ”

I looked up at him, his eyes almost glowing with his intensity. My Tirian rose within me, looking out of my eyes at this contender. She met his stare head on, then nodded in acknowledgement. I plucked the ring from my palm and slid it on my finger.

“Fuck, Jules...” he growled, and dragged me onto his lap.

His mouth was on mine in the next second, open and hungry.

“My beautiful girl...” he panted between kisses, and then stopped for a moment, his eyes staring into mine as our foreheads pressed together.

Then he kissed me again, slower, softer this time.

My breath hitched in my chest as our lips made slow work of each other.

God, I was drowning in him, his spicy sandalwood scent, the feel of his big hands clamping down on my hips and shoving me down hard as his rolled up in just the right spot. I was hot, so hot, but it wasn’t the same blinding sexual burn as before.

Did I love Finn? I wasn’t sure. I felt like I stood on the precipice of something huge and was teetering on the edge...

I threw my arms around his neck, putting my head on his chest and just lying there for precious seconds. Taking my cue, his arms went around me, holding me. I listened to the rapid thump of his heart, the rustle of his breath in and out, and thankfully, everything else dropped away.

What was this feeling? It wasn’t one of those high key ones like lust or anger.

It wasn’t even quite like peacefulness. Instead, I felt something…

release. Right now, there was nowhere else I wanted to be.

I searched through clichés to try and describe what this was like, to process it.

He didn’t complete me, he didn’t belong to me, but it felt something like that.

Connection , my Tirian said. You two are connected. The silver is nothing, merely a symbol of what you know.

She knew. I hadn’t thought about it that way before, but that’s exactly what it felt like.

It was the power thrumming through me when I pulled back, placed my hand on his cheek, and stared into his eyes.

When we kissed, it was like creating an electrical connection.

I heard it in his gasp, that he could feel it as well.

It had a language, this connection, written over my flesh as his hands roamed, as my nails scratched at his chest. It passed between us, mouth to mouth.

We spoke—much more eloquently than when we used words—of our desire, our need, our affection for one another.

A myriad of memories cascaded through my brain, of those big broad hands serving me coffee in the morning and trailing across my shoulders as he moved past. Of him listening to my stories and complaints patiently, and watching me drunkenly proposition him.

Of him making sure I was safe, tucking me into bed with a kiss on my forehead and wrapping me in his arms to kiss me all over.

When I pulled away his eyes had transformed.

While they might appear bright depending on his mood, now they glowed Tirian green, too intense to look on for long, but I was unable to look away.

He is pack , she said, in that patient, long-suffering way.

But not now , I said.

Not yet.

“You know what I want to do, don’t you?” I said. It became patently obvious that wasn’t totally clear to Finn, until I’d said the words. His face transformed, some of the ravenous hunger softening as the surprise registered.

“You know I want nothing more than to wear your mark,” he said. The words came out raspy, like he was struggling to force them out.

“I know.”

“But if I walk out there bleeding...”

“I know.”

He laid a gentle kiss on my lips. “Mark me in another way.” His hand went to the hem of my dress, sliding underneath.

“What? You want to...?”

His hand skimmed upwards, strong fingers scoring the soft skin of my inner thigh. I stared at him, not sure what he intended, until his fingertips grazed the crease of my thigh.

“Let me wear your scent on me. Let me walk out into that group of people, all congratulating Slade on becoming the first of your mates, with your sweet scent on my fingers. I might not wear your bite on my neck, but I’ll have something.

..” His fingers plucked at the edge of my knickers, edging underneath. “Jules?”

“Yeah?” My reply came out all breathy.

“You want that?”

“I shouldn’t.” I twisted around, saw the kitchen and the food, heard the sound of the crowd out back for the first time in ages.

“I won’t, not if you don’t want me to.” As if to bely his words, his fingers grazed the sensitive flesh just inside the leg seam and slid down.

“What about you?”

“I don’t care about me. I want you, riding my fingers, shuddering as you come, crying my name. Then I want to lick every damn drop off of them.”

“Goddamnit, Finn. I’m supposed to be out there being the hostess or some shit, not getting a handjob in the lounge room.”

“Say no.”

“You know I don’t want to do that.”

“Say no, love, and I’ll stop.”

He wore that singular male smirk that said, at the very least, he was enjoying my struggle, if not outright doubting my ability to say that one word. Then his finger swiped up along my seam.

“Oh fuck,” I whispered, fighting to keep my groan inside. I throbbed with need.

“You’re so fucking wet,” he said, and his fingers slid over drenched flesh.

I whimpered, not able to keep the sounds back now.

“Your little clit is all perked up and ready to be touched.” I nodded, unable to get out the words to agree as his thumb grazed over it.

“I want to take my time, stretch this out, have you crying and pleading for more, but I can’t. So many can’ts.”

I was about to argue, plead, whatever it took to turn this slow, light stroke into something firmer, when his fingers shifted rapidly, two pushing inside and forcing a moan from me, as his thumb worked my clit faster.

“Are you feeling that stretch inside you? Like the feeling when we push into you, but different, I imagine.” I nodded, hips starting to shift with his thrusts.

“I’m going to curl my fingers, rub the pads of them against that hard little swell.

” I gasped when he did. He knew me now, exactly when and where to get a reaction.

“Is that it? Yes, it is, isn’t it? Feels like I’m massaging your clit from the inside.

So, what’s it feel like when I do this as well?

” His thumb rubbed back and forth over my clit, the motion growing more and more rapid.

“You look so fucking beautiful, love, like a goddess taking her pleasure from us mere mortals.” Both of our heads whipped around as we heard another knock on the door.

“Gotta make this quick. I don’t want to, but we’ll have so much time later, I promise. Come for me, love.”

I always found scenes where the romantic leads told the FMC to come weird and dumb.

Like our clits were good little puppies, ready to roll over at an order.

But here I was, my back arching as I felt a godawful pressure build within me.

I yelped when he pushed another finger in, as it was too much and not enough.

I knew if he pulled them out of me, it would hit those places in me so good, especially when he altered the angle just right.

Another knock at the door.

“C’mon, love, or we’re about to get an audience.” My eyes flicked open to see that his smile had become devilish. He watched my reaction as he slammed his fingers in hard, twisting on the downstroke. “That’s it, love, just let it go.”

I fell upon him, my tongue tangling with his as I worked myself against his hand, the two of us racing, racing...

“Fuck!” I hissed against his lips, my hips jerking as wave after wave of pleasure washed through me, leaching all of the day’s tension out. My hand shot down to hold his in place, unable to tolerate him moving anymore but not letting him pull away.

“You OK, Jules?”

I’d have liked to have come up with something heartfelt or sweet to say, but instead, I was just wiped out. I collapsed against him, catching my breath in the crook of his arm.

“Mmm,” Finn said, and neat as a cat, licked his fingers clean.

Fuck, after being with guys who either didn’t like or simply tolerated going down on a girl, watching him do that like a little boy with an ice cream was fucking hot.

Another, more terse, knock came from the door.

“I’d love for you to stay here all night, but I think it’s time to become the gracious hostess. ”

“God, but I don’t want to.” I flipped my skirts and arranged myself in what I hoped was a semblance of neatness.

“We won’t get much of a chance to hang out tonight with all the pomp and circumstance that’s about to take place, but I’ll come for you soon. We’ll do something, just the two of us.”

“Maybe we should just walk in,” a muffled voice came from outside.

“Into an unknown woman’s house?”

“I’d like that,” I said, then squared my shoulders and plastered a socially appropriate smile to my face before opening the door.