Page 176 of The Echo of Forever

I caught her mouth with mine, and she matched my intensity without hesitation, fingers gripping the back of my neck to keep control.

“I’m gonna kill her,” I murmured against her lips, needing her to understand that nothing would change that outcome.

“I know…” She started tugging at my shirt. “But right now, I need you here with me.”

I pulled it off the rest of the way as she raked her nails down my chest and stomach. Each touch felt a little possessive.

“You’re mine,” she said, echoing my thoughts. “Before you’re the family’s protector or your aunt’s executioner, you’re mine.”

I stood, lifting her with me, only to lay her down on the bed. Standing over her, I watched as she shed her own shirt, her dark skin glowing in the low light. The sight drove everything else from my mind for the first time since hearing Amal’s revelation.

“Get undressed,” I ordered, already working at my belt.

She smiled, a predatory flash of teeth as she slipped off her pants and underwear.

“There you are.” I shed the rest of my clothes quickly, eyes never leaving her. “Come here,” she beckoned, stretching her arms toward me.

I crawled over her, covering her body with mine. She wrapped her legs around my waist and pulled me closer. When I looked into her eyes, I found understanding there. Not just of what I needed, but of what she was offering.

A temporary sanctuary from the storm.

“I need you,” I admitted, pressing my forehead to hers.

I always needed her.

She cupped my face, gentle despite the intensity between us. “You have me. Always.”

I kissed her again, slower this time, but no less demanding. Her body arched into mine, her hips seeking friction against my hardness. The world beyond our bedroom faded away, and for now, there was only Forever.My forever.

“Take what you need,” she whispered against my lips.

“I love you,” I murmured back, poking at her entrance.

Her dark eyes held mine. “Show me.”

I entered her hard, the gasp that left her lips feeding something primal inside me. Her nails dug into my shoulders as I established a punishing rhythm, each thrust driving both pleasure and rage through my system. This was a reminder that despite everything that happened, we still had this raw, undeniable connection that nothing and no one could take from us.

“Harder,” Forever demanded, flexing her hips into my thrusts.

I obliged, gripping her thighs and pushing them wider apart. The new angle had her crying out, her back arching off the bed. I watched her face; the sight of her pleasure was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.

“Mine,” I growled, leaning down to bite at her neck, marking her the way she’d marked me earlier.

She moaned, the sound vibrating against my lips. “Yours.”

I moved one hand to her hip, fingers digging into her flesh hard enough to leave marks. The other found her breast, squeezing roughly before pinching her nipple. Each touch was possessive, demanding, and she responded to every one with increasingly desperate sounds.

“Tell me again who you belong to,” I commanded, slowing my pace deliberately, drawing out each thrust until she whimpered.

“You,” she gasped, trying to move her hips faster against mine. “I’m yours, Echo. Only yours.”

The sound of my nickname on her lips, the one only she was allowed to use, made my dick harder. I released her hip to grab her jaw instead, holding her face still so she had to look at me while I fucked her.

“And I’m yours,” I told her, the truth of it burning in my chest. “No matter what, always yours.”

She took every deep stroke like a champ.

When I felt her begin to tighten around me, I increased my pace again, and she dug the heels of her feet into my lower back as she chased her release.