Page 50

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Sunlight pierced Rose’s eyes as a desert breeze stirred the gauzy muslin draped across the open balcony doors.

For a moment, disorientation gripped her. She was no longer in the eternal darkness of the Io with its perpetual hum of life support systems and recycled air. Instead, she was back in the dry heat of the Kalahari, where the morning air held the promise of scorching temperatures to come.

Finn had lowered fine mesh mosquito netting around their bed as she slept, creating a diaphanous cocoon. Its gentle sway cast shifting shadows across the bed.

His solid warmth pressed against her back, his arm locked around her like an anchor. She nestled deeper into his embrace, soaking up the sense of safety he gave her. He’d become more than just protection. So much more than she’d ever allowed herself to want.

All her careful walls constructed after Thea’s betrayal, had fallen away under his touch. Last night had stripped away her last defenses.

The electric slide of his hands on her skin, the connection that blazed between them .

It was too late to rebuild those walls. But she no longer wanted to try.

“Hey, sleepy head.” His palm curved over her breast, thumb and forefinger teasing her nipple into a tight peak. She pressed back into his touch, a soft sigh on her lips. Her skin tingled where his callused fingers traced patterns, each stroke firing sparks within her.

She threaded her hands through the soft mess of his hair. “Hey, you.”

He lifted the sheet from her shoulder, his lips finding the curve where neck met shoulder. Each kiss branded her skin as his hand splayed across her belly, the possessive stroke of his fingers making her breath skip.

“Finn.”

“Hmm?” His teeth grazed her neck, lifting her hair. A slow, deliberate nip sent tremors skating down her spine.

God.

His hand slid lower, from the plane of her stomach to the throbbing ache between her thighs that only he could satisfy.

She raised one leg, and the rigid length of his cock nudged her slick flesh. A promise of what was to come.

His fingers dipped between her folds, finding her drenched. He groaned against her ear. “So fucking wet. All for me.”

Yes.

He thrust into her from behind, a raw, shuddering exhale puffing over her skin.

A hiss of pleasure sang from her lips as her body accommodated the stretch of his thickness. He withdrew slowly, almost all the way, before pressing forward again. She clenched around him, panting, needing more.

His grip tightened on her hip, fingers branding her as he set the pace. Their bodies locked in rhythm, flesh against flesh. Nothing else existed—just the two of them, moving as one, lost in heat and lust.

His hand slid lower, fingers seeking and finding her slick bud, circling it with skilled strokes. A slow, knowing caress sent fire licking through her veins, pleasure blooming where he filled her so completely.

He shifted, his teeth grazing her shoulder before his cock plunged deeper.

Liquid heat flooded through her, a tidal wave of sensation building, coiling tight in her belly, racing through her nerves.

Too much.

Her orgasm hit, white fire in her vision, his name on her lips. “ Finn .”

His grip on her hip hardened. His cock was impossibly heavy lodged inside her, dragging against every nerve, milking every pulse of pleasure from her trembling body.

A final thrust.

His groan was throaty, uninhibited, as his own release overtook him. The deep throb of his pleasure spilling seed inside her.

Slowly, his fingers loosened, his breath warm against her shoulder, his body slack against hers in the aftermath. The room slowly sharpened back into focus, reality a distant echo beyond the haze of him.

He kissed the top of her head as she reached around, locking her fingers with his.

Silence stretched between them.

His fingers tightened around hers before he shifted, propping himself up on one elbow to look at her as she rolled onto her back. The movement disturbed the gauzy mosquito netting, sending ripples through the translucent barrier that wrapped around them like silk.

Outside, beyond their sheltered world, a bird’s harsh cry grew muffled and distant.

Rose reached up, traced her fingers along his cheek. “I’ve spent years hiding in research, using it as an excuse.” The words came easier in the soft morning light, with his skin still warm against hers. “After what happened with Thea, I convinced myself I was better off focusing on my work. That way, no one could hurt me like she did.”

He caught her hand, pressed his lips to her palm. “And now?”

“Now I feel like I’m finally surfacing.” She held his gaze, letting him see the truth of it. “You make me feel alive, Finn.”

His expression softened, but a dent formed between his eyes. “My past?—”

“Doesn’t define you.”

A harsh sigh blew out his cheeks. “I could stay like this forever. Just you and me.” His thumb pressed against her palm. “I want...” He trailed off, his gaze traveling over her face. He brushed a strand of hair from her eyes. “There’s this spot I know, up in the hills, near where I grew up in Wales. In spring, wildflowers carpet everything. When the sun hits them just right, they look like they’re on fire.”

The image grew in her mind. Herself there with him, surrounded by color and light, so far from gray labs and endless data that had been her refuge.

“I keep thinking about taking you there.” His voice dropped. “I have a glider.” Now a smile lit his face. “The first thermal hits and suddenly you’re soaring. Everything below gets small enough to fit into your palm. Houses like toy blocks, roads like ribbons. The wind wraps around you and it’s...” He closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, they were the color of the sky. “It’s like being untouchable. Free. Nothing exists except cloud and wind and the earth turning beneath you.”

His words painted art and something wild and wanting stirred inside her.

“Up there,” he continued, “all the darkness, all the weight—it falls away. You can’t help but feel light.” His fingers skated over her cheek. “I want to see you like that. Weightless. Glowing. It’s nothing more than you deserve.”

The honesty in his voice lifted goosebumps on her arms, made her heart stumble out a frantic beat.

This man.

“I’d like that very much.” She pushed herself up, the sheet falling to her waist, caught in the gravity of his gaze. Her palm found his cheek, thumb catching against his unshaven beard.

His pupils dilated, darkening his eyes to midnight blue. Muscle tensed along his jaw as he leaned in, hesitating a breath away. The moment stretched. Rose closed the final distance, meeting his lips with gentle pressure.

Time slowed, measured only by the flutter of her pulse and the warmth of his palm as it slid up her arm to cradle the back of her neck.

He kissed her like she was infinitely precious. His lips, his touch, an act of adoration.

The sharp beep of his phone shattered the connection.

With a low groan, he pulled away, dragging a hand through his tousled hair as he reached for it. “Sorry. I have to take this.” Swiping the screen open, he brought it to his ear. “Ethan?”

“Finn. Rose with you?”

She glanced away, pretending she couldn’t hear .

Finn coughed. “Um...”

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

His gaze landed on her when she looked back and she blinked, warmth creeping up her neck. She wanted him to know what he meant to her. How ready she was to move forward, to find a way to be with him.

“Thea’s turned up.” Static crackled through the speaker. “Middle of the desert. Some student archeologists found her. Sending you the coordinates now. We’re en route.”

The name hit like a physical blow. Her fingertips instantly cold where they gripped the sheet. The morning’s warmth blown away as if Ethan had opened a window to winter.

Thea was alive.