Page 68 of Stars Above the Never Sea (The Last Faeyte #1)

Her lips press to my chest. Teeth graze over my nipple, and I find myself gripping the edges of the table so tightly that I hear a crack beneath my hands. In the distance, something smashes.

I fight for breath. “And I would be… gods . Grateful. ”

I’d crawl for a single fucking smile.

Her fingers pull away. Selene doesn’t look away from my face as she undoes my trousers, sliding her hand down and pushing them free until I can kick them off.

A single finger traces the underside of my cock, confident and certain in its movement, rubbing over the head of my cock until I bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from erupting.

She stiffens when I catch her fingers in mine. I lift them, kissing the ends before I fold them over carefully. “If you play with me, I will not last long.”

And for this—for our first time—I don’t want to play. I want to be with her. Only her.

Her throat bobs. “I don’t know how else to do it, Callan.”

My chest cracks open. Splits straight down the middle at her small voice. And I remember her words from the night I found her again. When I didn’t even know who she was, only that I felt unsteady, even in those first hours.

Most seem to prefer it from behind.

Selene’s whisper gets through the fury that fills my chest. “Callan, your maegis.”

I glance over my shoulder. Briefly enough to notice that everything within this house, every item not nailed to the floor, is suspended in mid-air.

“Ignore it.”

My voice rasps, iron at the back of my throat, and I turn Selene back to face me, taking in the uncertainty on her face.

I fold her into me, and I breathe a little easier as her face fits into the crook of my neck.

My hands gently trace over her wings, aware of those who came before and despising every single one of them for daring to lay their hands on her.

My hands run through her hair, careful of the tangles. “There is no rush.”

“But I want to,” she says quietly. “They have taken enough from me.”

My lips press to her hair. “Then do exactly what you want to do with me, love. I promise you, there is no touch of yours that I will not adore.”

I wait. Will wait forever if need be, for her to be ready, and if she never is then I will adore every part of her regardless. When she shifts back, I keep my body still. But I keep touching her.

Trying to offer her any comfort as her memories take her to places I can’t follow.

Her lips touch my skin again. Softer, this time, uncertain and without the firmness of that first touch, her hand brushes over me. Clasps me, and my cock jumps in her hand, hot and hard and leaking as I close my eyes.

“The bed,” she murmurs. She shifts out from beneath me, taking my hand. “I’d like to be in the bed.”

I follow her. Watch her closely, as she nudges me down first and follows without hesitation. Her knees settle on either side of my hips, and both of us suck in a breath as her wet heat brushes over my cock.

She does it again, as if experimenting. I look for her eyes, reassured at the stars that fill them. Reaching up, I push her hair back so I can see her more clearly.

Selene’s body softens, tense lines turning to fluid movement as she rubs herself over me, again and again. Until her lips part, those beautiful noises slipping free. My hands reach up, stroking her, cupping her breasts, encouraging her.

I could watch her forever. Could die happy if the sight of Selene finding her pleasure on me was the last thing I ever saw.

She slows. And we both watch, as she curls her fingers around my cock once more and guides me to her entrance.

Wet heat envelops me; one, perfect inch at a time, and both of us moan.

My head tips back against the bedding, my vision blurring and my hands on her waist as she swallows me, until her weight is fully upon me.

“You’re a goddess.” I curl my hands over her skin. “Perfect.”

Her eyes open slowly. Still uncertain. “Is this what you would want?”

A lump appears in my throat. “There are many things I want.”

My fingers trace circles in her skin. “I want to watch you sleeping in our bed.”

At the flush that steals over her skin, the softening of the tension in her face, I keep going. “To feed you at the table I’ll build for us with my own damn hands.”

Because Caelum knows, the table I just laid her out on won’t hold up under what I have planned for us. “And I want to love you under the moon. Just like this, Selene.”

I reach for her. Brush my fingers over her cheeks, her lips. Until she’s looking at me, her skin shining beneath the moonlight.

“Hala may be your goddess,” I say roughly. “But she’s not the one who brings me to my knees. They’re not just words when I say that you are perfect to me. This is perfect. As long as I am touching you—in any way, anywhere—I am content. As long as I get to love you, I am content. Do you understand?”

Her face almost crumples. Her hands settle against my chest. “I understand.”

“Good.” She leans forward, and my mouth seeks hers. Clumsy, and sweet. Selene shifts, rocking back and forth until she finds a rhythm she’s comfortable with.

Holy fucking gods.

We watch each other. Both of us, fully present, aware of the other, our fingers linked. The bed creaks beneath us, our breathing the only sound as she finds her pleasure and I find mine in her.

My release creeps up on me slowly. A tingle that begins in my lower body, muscles tightening and spasming as I lean forward, tracing my fingers over her. Softly, and then harder, rubbing in gentle circles until Selene gasps, her speed increasing as she bounces. “I don’t—can’t—”

“You can.” I lift my hips, helping her, twisting them as she cries out. “I want to hear you come, Selene. With me.”

Her throat flexes, arching upright as she pushes herself down on me and my fingers pluck at her clit, flicking and gently twisting until I feel the welcome heat of her around me.

Muscles clench, clamping down tightly, and I jerk with my own release, my roar filling the room and probably the entire damned town as I push my hips up into that haven, carefully thrusting to nudge her through those final waves of release.

She slumps down across me. Sweat soaks the sheets beneath us, plastering us together as we fight for breath. “Was that… are you alright?”

Gods, don’t let me have hurt her.

Lips find my chest. “I’m good. Better than good.”

I kiss every single part of her that I can reach. She’s almost asleep when I shift us, her grumbled complaint cutting off as I lift her. “What are you doing?”

“A quick wash.” I head for the small bathing chamber, tugging several clean squares of linen from the shelf and rinsing it in a fresh bowl of water. “You don’t need to move.”

She watches me drowsily from under lowered lids as I balance her on the sideboard with one arm around her lower back.

Squeezing out the cloth, I begin gently wiping over her skin, taking extra care as I glide the linen over her wrists.

“No bath here, I’m afraid. But I can take you back, if you’d prefer that. ”

An oversight I intend to rectify as soon as possible.

“No.” Selene leans forward with a sigh, mumbling her words into my throat. “Stay here.”

Carrying her back in with several cloths in my hands, I settle her back on the bed. She blinks at me tiredly. “You took me with you.”

I pause, my hands on her legs. “Into the bathing room?”

She nods. Nudging her legs open, I carefully clean her up. Selene’s cheeks redden as she lets me.

I almost smile, tossing the cloth aside and climbing onto the bed beside her, pulling her against me and reaching for a soft blanket to tug over us. “I didn’t want to be away from you.”

The flush deepens as she shifts, facing me. Selene’s eyes trace my face. “I did not expect you.”

My throat tightens. “But I was waiting for you.”