I stared down at the clean clothes, his clothes, suddenly overwhelmed by a rush of gratitude. “Thank you—I still can’t believe this is happening. I mean, even a few hours ago, anything remotely close to this would have been nothing but a fantasy…” My cheeks heated up. “Or a dream.”
I liked it when her cheeks heated up because of me. It made her look adorable.
"I understand," I agreed, looking at her softly, taking a seat next to her on the bed. "Honestly, I thought you hated me. I felt like the reason you wanted to get close to me was because if I favored you, I would have protected you. Which wasn't wrong."
I shook my head firmly, clutching the shirt and trousers to my chest. “I never hated you, not once. When you found out about…. well, me, I used false anger as a sort of shield. I was downright terrified—you remember when a soldier came for me the next day? I honestly thought Scylla and I were going to be killed.”
I pulled her into a hug protectively, letting her head rest against my chest as my hand rested on the back of her head.
"Never did I ever think of turning you in," I said to her, my fingers rubbing her scalp gently. "And I never will. No matter what happens to me, I'll protect you. I'm always going to protect you."
I relaxed completely the moment his arms were around me, a cozy sort of warmth seeping through my chest. “I think I’m about to cry a little…” I confessed. Embarrassed and abashed, I buried my face in the crook of his neck, breathing in his familiar scent,
I swayed lightly, running my fingers through her hair.
"You don't have to be embarrassed about it," I hummed gently. She relaxed against me, and though it might be cheesy coming from me, I felt like she was made to be in my arms. "Cry. As much as you want. You must have kept it inside of you for so long, right?"
“I’m just scared,” I admitted quietly, my voice slightly muffled by his shirt. “I’m terrified of being found out. I mean—I know that I was prepared walking into this. But it’s not only my life at stake any more, it’s Scylla’s, too.”
Sweet, perfect Scylla, who was napping at my feet. My other half. I loved her more than I ever thought was possible…
“And—Before you kissed me—I was terrified of having to look you in the eye as I burned. The idea that you could be the one to light the fire? God, Colton….” My voice broke.
I pushed her against the bed, leaning over her, looking into her eyes–the eyes I'd grown to love. She had fear swimming in those pearls, and I hated seeing it in them.
I gently kissed her on the forehead, her eyes, her cheeks, nose and then her lips, hovering above them for a second longer before I pulled away.
"I would never even dream about doing that," I said to her with deep intensity. "And I will protect you. No one will know who you are until it's the right time, and even when they do, I'll protect you. Nobody will hurt you–not when I'm around. I'll kill anyone who dares to even put a scratch on you. I'll protect both you and Scylla. When I'm king, I'll take down these bloody laws. Women will be allowed to bond. Everything will be normal, so just trust me. You took the first step alone, so let me walk with you along the way."
A tear slipped down my cheek. Then another.
“Colton…” I whispered, staring straight into his beautiful eyes. “I——Shit, I’m crying now.” My hands went up of their own accord to rub my cheeks dry, but in doing so, began to tremble in Colton’s line of sight. “You—You have no idea how much that means to me.”
I pulled her hands away from her face and bent down, kissing her cheeks, the salty taste of her tears exploding in my mouth. Her hands trembled in my hold and I tightened my grip on them to show her that I was here for her.
"I want to pull you in my arms right now, but I'm assuming you need to change," I murmured, letting go of one of her hands to wipe her tears away. "So hurry up and come back to me."
I nodded and blinked away yet more tears. Before long, I was slipping away from his warmth and into the bathroom, where I pressed my back against the door and brought the fresh change of clothes to my face. The idea that I would carry his scent in the morning, wake up with his shirt on my skin drove me wild. It was yet another reminder that we belonged to each other. That we weren’t alone.
Soon enough, I was loosening my binder, cool, soft fabric slipping over my skin. I returned to him with my blonde curls ruffled and the oversized shirt nearly slipping off one shoulder—why was I so nervous all of a sudden?
I leaned against my bed’s headboard, the witch’s voice returning the second Elle took her leave.
I never thought you could disappoint me so much than you’ve done now.
I said nothing.
Can’t you see, boy? She’s using you. You must be stupider than I thought.
“Oh, shut up…” I muttered, too taken in my Elle to take her words seriously. And then the woman plaguing my thoughts came back, the shirt slipping off of her shoulder.
My mouth instantly went dry—her exposed skin causing my insides to lurch, need coursing through me. This wasn’t good. I wanted to push her against the bed and take her right there and then, but I calmed myself. Or tried to.
She looked extremely small in my clothing, and to say she looked amazing would be an understatement. She looked absolutely breathless. She looked mine just as much as she was.
I finally patted on the spot beside me, urging her to join me in bed so I could pull her into my arms.
“Hey,” I greeted shyly, settling cautiously beside him on the bed. A blush now stained my cheeks, though not as strong as it had been when he’d pushed me against the wall. “Do I—Do I look okay?”
I snatched her arm and pulled her towards me, wrapping my arms around her.
“Okay?” I repeated, tilting my head down to look at her in the eyes, to show her how much seeing her like this bothered me—in a good way. “You look beyond okay, Elle. You look breathtaking. I can’t believe you’re actually mine.”
How could he be this good at making me melt?
“Breathtaking?” I echoed, fumbling for words once I saw the hungry look in his eyes. “Colton—I’m in an oversized shirt and baggy sweatpants. I hardly think that—“
I cut her off by crushing our lips together, shifting so she was underneath me. I rested my arms on either side of her for support, kissing her passionately, letting the impatient side of me out. I pulled into a comfortable position, tilting my head to have a better access to her lips.
“One look at you drives me crazy,” I hissed against her lips. “And you think you hardly look the part?”
I bit back a choked gasp, my eyes going wide.
“I—I guess I’m doing something right—“ I managed to stammer. My face burned, but even so, I found my hands slipping around his waist, pulling him down.
I broke away from her lips to trail kisses down her jaw, careful not to divulge too deep and give her a mark.
Instead, I placed gentle kisses on her exposed skin, feeling it against my lips, the taste driving me insane.
“God knows how much I’ve longed to do this,” I growled against her skin, reaching up to meet her mouth again. “Hold you in my arms, kissing you senseless…”
A broken gasp flew from my lips as his lips blazed trails down my neck. And when he growled against my skin, tightened his hold on me, I swear, I saw stars.
”Cole—“ I managed to whimper, my heart pounding with wild abandon. But despite the fact that he had me breathless and dizzy from pleasure already, I continued to tempt him. “I—I’m not senseless yet…”
I took her lip between my teeth, biting down before I pulled on it.
“Do you know what sort of trouble you’re pulling yourself into, tempting me like this?” I whispered harshly. “I’m trying hard enough to not take you right now. Trust me, love, you don’t want me to snap.”
“Or do I?” The words flew from my mouth before I had the chance to stop them. Colton… He was a drug, and I was the worst possible addict. Even the thought of being parted from him sent me into a panic, no matter the length of time. Who in their right mind would want to distance themselves from this perfect creation?
I responded by trailing kisses down her throat, desperate and filled with want. Control snapped and the more her scent filled my nose, the more I desired her.
My hands slipped under her shirt, brushing against her stomach. I kept them there, my lips on her collarbone, pausing so she could stop me if she wanted to.
And all of a sudden, my desire was replaced with fear. Ecstasy vanished into thin air, hazy euphoria evaporated like a puddle left beneath a sweltering sun. I couldn’t do this—not even with him. Not so soon.
I wasn’t innocent, I had gone much farther than this before. Some would call me experienced. Right now, I called myself afraid.
My whole body went slack against the mattress, panic flooding my mind. How was I supposed to stop him? To refuse? I couldn’t do that to him, couldn’t bear to watch disappointment fill his gaze. So I remained perfectly still, letting him have his way with me even as nausea threatened to overtake my body.
When I felt her slack against the mattress, I paused. Gently removing my hands from underneath her shirt, I reached up to peck her cheek softly before I laid back on the side, pulling her towards me.
I should have kept myself in control. I shouldn’t have gone that far—we’d just confessed a few hours ago. This wasn’t right. No wonder she panicked. What if she thought that was all I wanted from her?
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, tangling our legs together. “I shouldn’t have been too forward. I should have respected you. I’m sorry. Elle, can you forgive me?”
I pulled my legs from beneath his and curled up into a tight ball on my side, breathing heavily. My eyes were squeezed shut, my hands balled into fists—I was a mess.
“No,” I objected shakily, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be—I shouldn’t be freaking out over this. I don’t want to disappoint you.. Forgive me.”