Page 43 of The Alien in the Archive (Galactic Librarians #1)

43

THORNE

P age’s comfort with our situation doesn’t last all night.

And now that the minutes are ticking by…the hours past dusk, into the night…neither does mine.

We hash out the ways we’ve prepared over and over again—we go through the notes in my chronicle, we discuss the evidence found in the reading room. Page reminds herself I haven’t actually done anything wrong beyond being Borean; I remember that I have never been blameless.

And because we can read each other’s minds, every anxiety is multiplied.

Hours later, she’s sitting in a pile of cushions, Ashlan perched on her lap and purring like mad as she strokes behind his ears. I come to sit beside her, saying nothing at first. Her emotions are too raw; I know she needs time to sort through them.

But she doesn’t take the time. She never does.

Instead, she straightens her shoulders and bites her lip.

“We could still leave,” she says quietly, thinking out loud. “ We can go through the Labyrinth, find a ship offworld, and disappear.”

It’s not the first time she’s suggested this, but there’s a desperation in her tone that cuts me to the core. I take her hand, folding it firmly between mine. “Page,” I murmur. “We talked about this.”

“We talked about waiting,” she replies. “We talked about trusting people. But look where that got us? Lyn could already be talking to someone. How long until?—”

I cut her off. “How long until what? Someone finds me? Because if we go offworld…well, it’s almost a certainty.”

She swallows hard. “We could find a way,” she whispers.

“I think we both know that’s not true.”

Ashlan hops off of her lap, probably irritated by our anxiety, and even more annoyed that Page has blocked the exit to the Obscuary. I reach up to brush a strand of hair behind Page’s ear.

“This isn’t the end,” I tell her. “I don’t know what happens next, but I know this isn’t the end for us. Whatever comes, we’ll get through it.”

She lets out a shaky breath, leaning into my touch. “What if we don’t?”

“I’m not considering that possibility.”

She snorts. “And you call me stubborn.”

“It’s not like that,” I say. “It’s because…”

I pause, unsure how to broach this subject. I’m sure she knows the mythology around mates—the various creation stories, how it works. It’s an area that’s rarely been studied, and is one of the most profound mysteries of the galaxy.

Regardless of all that, mates are real.

And that’s why I’m certain we won’t be parted.

“Page,” I murmur, turning to face her fully. She does the same, sitting cross-legged in the cushions. “I’m confident that we will get through these next days…because I cannot be lieve that I waited five thousand years to meet you, only for you to be torn away from me. The intersection of our lives was so strange, so unlikely, that it could only be fate.”

Page’s breath catches, and through the bond I feel a wave of emotions—hope, fear, and deep, abiding love. She stares at me, grey eyes wide, like she’s been waiting for me to say this all along.

“I know,” she whispers.

I reach out and take her hands. “You felt it too?”

She nods. “I figured it out before the fight and I just…other things were going on. I can’t say I know much about it. I’m not an expert, but this has to be it, right? That weird like…soul bond thing.”

“It’s what drew me to you,” I tell her. “I didn’t want to tell you because I feared it would influence your thinking. I wanted you to feel that you had a choice.”

She laughs softly, shaking her head. I frown. “What?”

“It’s just funny,” she says. “Because I fell in love with you without any silly fate shit. I just…loved you. For your humor and your intelligence and the fact that you love romance novels and dote on your cute pet.”

My heart twists at her words. I’ve lived long enough to know how fleeting joy can be, how tenuous hope is…but with Page, it feels real.

Permanent.

I squeeze her hands, my thumbs tracing slow circles against her knuckles. “So…this is about Ashlan,” I say, arching an eyebrow.

She rolls her eyes. “Of course. You’re just the bonus.”

“And I thought I was the hero in this tragic story.”

Her smile falters, but she doesn’t pull away. “Don’t call it tragic,” she murmurs. “It’s a romance…and I’m told they always have happy endings.”

I pull her closer, cradling the back of her head as I kiss her. There’s no hesitation, no space between us anymore. I drop all the barriers in my mind, and she, hers.

And I’m there, in that dream space with her…and here in this reading nook, where the rest of the world doesn’t exist.

Her fingers thread through my hair, tugging me closer as the kiss deepens. Every whispered fear, every ounce of doubt, melts away. When I lower her gently into the cushions, her breath hitches.

She makes me feel alive in such indescribable ways.

“I love you,” she breathes, reaching up to touch my face. I can’t resist leaning in to kiss the curve of her jaw, her temple, the corner of her mouth. “I don’t care what happens next. You’ll always be mine.”

“All yours,” I murmur against her skin. “Fate or not, I’d choose you a thousand times over.”

She takes my face in her hands and kisses me hard, slanting her mouth against mine. My fingers travel down her side, over her hip.

Then she pauses.

“Thorne?”

“Hm?”

She pushes herself up on her elbows, just enough to meet my eyes. “I need you to drink from me again.”

I frown. “Page…”

“I mean it,” she says. “Your life…I need you to survive long enough for us to get to an Elixir Ceremony. If my blood buys you even a little time—just enough to survive this—then I want to do it.”

I shake my head, a dull ache building in my chest. “Not again, Page. I won’t take that from you.”

“It’s not taking,” she insists. “It’s giving. I’m your mate, Thorne. That has to mean something.”

Her conviction makes me falter…because I know she’s right. If the goal is to be together at the end of all this—if for so me reason I get caught up in some kind of extended battle for my freedom—I need to survive it.

“You’re sure?” I whisper.

She smiles faintly, brushing her fingers along my jaw. “Yes. Of course.”

“Okay,” I say, voice already lower, throaty. “But…I need you naked.”

She huffs out a surprised laugh. “Your horniness never fails to surprise me.” She sits up straight and tugs her shirt over her head. I’m doing the same, shrugging out of my sweater, then my threadbare shirt.

“It’s not about that, not exactly,” I say. I glance down at her as she unhooks her bra and frees her breasts; no matter how many times I see her naked, I’ll always thrill at the sight of her. “When I drink from you…the connection is so intense that I will have to have you.”

“Maybe you have been reading too much smut,” she chuckles. “Thorne?—”

“That’s not what I mean either, Page,” I growl, tilting her chin up to look at me. “I just don’t want to ruin your clothes trying to tear them off you.”

Her lips part, her breath hitches. “Oh.”

I glance down at her pants. “May I?” I ask.

She nods wordlessly and I get closer to her, unbuttoning her jeans, then unzipping them. She lifts her hips to shimmy out of them and I take her underwear with them, though it occurs to me that she probably looks pretty in them.

I file that away for sometime after this is all over.

I kiss my way down her abdomen, over her hip. Page lies in the light of the glow lamps, surrounded by books, and as I look up from between her thighs, I try to memorize her like this for–

“Stop it,” she blurts out.

I frown at the interruption. “What? ”

“You don’t need to memorize me tonight,” she says. “You’ll have plenty of time when we’re together after this.”

And I suppose I need to kiss having private thoughts goodbye.

Page laughs. “Damn right.”

There’s a smile on my lips as I kiss her again, her hip, her thigh…and then I graze my canine over her hip. This is safe, and I can play with her while I do it. I find her clit and stroke it gently, then I slip one finger inside…

…and I bite the flesh of her hip.

Page arches up toward me as I start to fuck her with my fingers, remembering all I’ve learned about her body, delving into the cavern of her mind to learn even more. She gasps and whimpers, writhing.

“Thorne…” she moans, her voice thick with desire. “Yes, like that…”

I can feel her heart pounding through her veins as the taste of her floods my mouth, rich and metallic and drenched in the sweetness of Elixir. It occurs to me that drinking from her is unlike any of the concoctions I had to stay alive—she’s elemental , a natural wellspring of her very own. The bond between us flares like a supernova, bright and beautiful.

Her legs shake as I continue to touch her, to slowly drink…and I know she’s close. I want to watch her as she comes, so I finally unlatch from her hip, watching her.

“Are you…” she pauses, gasping as I add another finger. “Did you…”

I keep my hand in motion as I lean closer, wanting her to see the glimmering red on my lips.

“I had enough,” I growl. “And you were delicious.”

Page’s eyes widen, her breath hitches, her walls tighten around my fingers. A flush stains her cheeks, and I press hard on her clit with my thumb.

She moans, helplessly bucking against my hand as an orgasm rushes through her. As she comes, I slow my pace, savoring the feeling of her body contracting around me. I think she might be done with that, and I want to give her time to rest…but then she’s wrapping her arms around my neck and dragging me in. She makes an annoyed sound when she realizes I’m still dressed from the waist down.

“Not fair that you’re not naked yet,” she mutters. “Take your pants off. I want to ride you.”

Fuck, she’s sexy when she takes charge. I consider arguing with her, getting her to that place where we tease back and forth.

But I just can’t bring myself to wait.

Whereas I told her I didn’t want to ruin her clothes, I don’t care about mine. I yank my pants off, then I’m bringing her down with me, Page straddling me. She positions herself over my hard cock, letting just the tip sink in…

“Oh, fuck , Thorne…” she moans.

Page lowers herself down onto me, slowly taking me inside her. Her walls tighten at every ridge, sending shivers down my spine. And when she reaches my knot…

It was difficult, at first, for her to accommodate it.

Now, it’s as easy as breathing.

She takes me completely, and I can’t help but look down to watch the sight of my cock disappearing inside her. Page’s cunt swallows me, then tightens.

I let out a low gasp. “Fuck…”

“That feel good?” she asks breathlessly.

I nod, gripping her hips. “Keep going.”

Page smiles and starts to move, thrusting herself down on me. I can feel her walls gripping me in a way that makes my breath hitch and my heart pound. Our eyes lock and the bond between us flares brighter, driving us both on.

"Yes," I manage to choke out as she continues to ride me. "Harder, Page. "

She obeys, her movements becoming faster and harder as she rides me. Her tits bounce with each thrust, making me even more desperate for her. My cock slams into her, feeling her cunt tighten around me. We're overheated and panting as our bodies meet again and again.

"You feel so good," she breathes, leaning down to kiss me. I wrap my arms around her, pulling her closer as she continues to ride me. The bond between us is like a fire, consuming us both and driving us on. And I’m…I’m warm too, almost too warm.

Alive .

I feel my own body starting to heat up, my skin tingling with the intensity of the bond. I know what’s coming, and I can’t help but want it. Need it .

“Faster,” I growl, gripping her hips harder as she rides me. “Come for me, Page.”

She moans, her eyes meeting mine as she picks up speed. The bond is a force of nature, a whirlwind of hunger and desire. I can feel it building, building, the sensation of her cunt tightening around my cock as she nears climax.

“I’m going to come,” she gasps. “Thorne, I’m gonna…”

I watch her face as she comes, her lips parting wide…then I’m with her, feeling the tide wash over us both. We cry out together, our minds connecting. The bond blazes, burns. I feel her spasming around my knot, and I spill myself into her.

I will stay with her. The thought crystallizes.

We’re going to be fine.

When she finally slows her movements, she lays across me, waiting for my knot to subside. My cock pulses inside her, still hard and twitching as it recovers from our climax.

Page slumps against me, her cheek resting over my heart. Her breath is ragged, warm against my skin, and I can feel the faintest hum of the bond still reverberating through us, even as the sharpness of it fades. I hold her, one hand brushing over her bare back, the other tangled in her hair. For a long time, there’s only silence—a deep, blissful stillness that neither of us is willing to break.

Eventually, she shifts just enough to look up at me. Her hair falls around us like a curtain, shadowing her face and softening the glow of the lamps. Her cheeks are flushed, her lips swollen from our kisses, and yet her grey eyes are sharp, still searching.

“You’re warm,” she murmurs, brushing her fingers along my jaw. Her voice is quiet, but there’s a lingering wonder in it—like she can’t quite believe what’s happened.

I catch her hand and kiss her fingertips. “You’re the one who did that.”

She gives me a faint smile, though her expression remains uncertain. “Do you…feel okay? You’re not…too warm, are you?

I can’t help but laugh softly. “If this is what life feels like again, I’ll endure it gladly.”

Her brows furrow slightly, and I feel her doubt ripple through the bond—so faint I wouldn’t notice if I weren’t so attuned to her. I cup her face in my hands, gently guiding her to meet my gaze. “Page, stop. You didn’t hurt me. You gave me more than I deserve.”

Her lips press into a thin line. “That’s not true.”

“It is,” I say firmly. “For five thousand years, I drifted between the shadows of life. Existing, but not living. And then you came in—stubborn, determined you —and turned everything upside down. You gave me hope. A reason to fight. A reason to stay.”

She leans into my touch, her eyes searching mine, though her voice comes out as a whisper. “We’re not done fighting.”

“No,” I agree softly. “But we’re not running, either.”

She sighs, shifting so she’s lying back on my chest. I wrap my arms around her, holding her close. For all her strength, all her fire, I can feel how exhausted she is, how much of herself she’s poured into this. The weight of it all presses on her, just as much as it does on me. And yet she’s here. Still here.

“I don’t regret any of this, you know,” she murmurs, her words muffled against my skin. “Not a single thing.”

A lump forms in my throat, and I press a kiss to the top of her head. “Neither do I.”

Her breathing slows, soft and steady, and for the first time in days, the frantic edge of our emotions begins to settle. The bond between us remains, a quiet warmth now—strong, steady, and undeniable. She drifts closer to sleep, the tension finally leaving her body, and I allow myself to close my eyes.

Tomorrow will come, and with it, the unknown. But for now, in the silence of the reading nook, with Page’s body pressed against mine and the bond between us humming gently, I let myself hope.