“You okay?” he asked, hands gentle on her hips.
“I’m amazing.”
“You are,” he agreed.
“This is my first time,” she said. “And you’re my first lover.”
He groaned over hearing that and raised his hips, pushing deeper with what seemed like helpless need. Then Slay muttered something, but she didn’t catch the words, and before long, her whole body blazed with too much sensation for her to wonder about it anymore. Soft words of encouragement burst from her too, incoherent pleas for faster and more, and soon, she was riding him like this was natural to her, easy as breathing. But so much hotter.
“Fuck yes,” she gasped.
“That’s the plan. Don’t stop. You feel so fucking good, Ro.”
“So do you.”
Part of her wanted to squeeze her eyes shut because the sensations were too much, too raw, too powerful, breaking over her like a wave that might drown her, but instead of shutting him out, Ro locked her gaze on his, seeing the awe and pleasure ratchet up for him each time she shifted. He pulsed inside her, his thighs tensing.
Slay let out a grunt, his body arching. “I’m so damn close, but I don’t want to get off without you.”
“Nearly there.” Normally she’d feel too shy to do this in front of him, but she was riding his cock, and she loved the way he licked his lips when she pressed two fingers delicately to her clit and worked in tight circles as she moved on him.
“That’s it, love. Take what you need.” His passionate praise offered the spark she needed, tinder to dry wood, and she clenched on him with a loud cry.
The orgasm made her whole body weak, and she thought he came too, but she fell into a tunnel of sparks, only returning to herself later, collapsed on top of him in a woozy pile. Slay was stroking her hair softly, wearing a blissful expression. If she could, she’d keep him like that twenty hours a day. Probably one of them would die of dehydration, though.
“Was that okay?” she asked.
He cuddled her close with profound tenderness. “I’ll pretend I need to answer that. It was beautiful and so are you.”
With a happy sigh, she rolled off him, startled by the gush of wetness. Her own arousal must make a huge difference because—
No, don’t think about that. It’s over. He can’t hurt you anymore. The body’s probably been burned by now.
“Will you think I’m a terrible asshole if I go to sleep?” Slay asked.
She laughed. “We just fought a revolution and had the best sex of our lives. I feel like we’re owed a little rest.”
“Best you say?” It was adorable how he preened.
“Definitely.”
Not that she had any basis for comparison; he was the first partner she’d chosen. Still, he ate up the compliment. Though he didn’t have a ton of feline mannerisms, she loved that he was a little vain, totally susceptible to being praised. If she stroked him right, she had no doubt he’d purr. Well, not in jaguar form, but that wasn’t the point.
“It’s hard for me to believe even now. I’m afraid I’ll wake up in Ash Valley and discover I dreamed you.”
“I’m touched that you would want to.” She rewarded that sweetness with a soft kiss.
“If you didn’t exist, I’d have to invent you,” Slay said in a serious tone. “Because you’re everything. I mean it, Ro.”
She tapped his sharp nose in mock reproof. “And you claim you’re not good with words. If you were any smoother, I’d slide off you and out of bed.”
Gently he tightened his arms around her and she felt safe, not constrained. His strength was incredible, awe-inspiring, even, but with her, he was always so gentle, so careful, enough to mist her eyes with tears. She blinked them back carefully, determined not to ruin this moment.
No darkness, no sadness. Not now.
The real world would intrude soon enough with problems to solve and questions to answer. A lot of work lay ahead, but for now, she would enjoy cuddling in her lover’s arms.
“Everything you say makes me feel good,” he admitted quietly. “I’ve always felt like…”
“What?”
“I can’t satisfy anyone who cares about me. I wasn’t ambitious enough to please my mother. She tried to get me to take Ash Valley from Dom, he was—used to be—my fucking best friend. And Ma was always whispering at me. ‘Step up, he’s not fit to rule anymore, he doesn’t want to lead the pride, so why hesitate?’ But…”
“You didn’t wish to lead and you didn’t want to betray your friend either.”
He sighed heavily, the breath stirring her still-damp hair. “But I even fucked up doing the right thing. I stayed at Ash Valley to keep an eye on my mother, she’d been plotting on my behalf. That’s why I sent Pru. And she thought… hell, I don’t even know why I’m still worrying about this. It doesn’t matter, right?”
Ro raised up on an elbow to cup his cheek as she gazed into his eyes. “It matters if it’s hurting you. I’ll listen to anything you have to say without judgment. But if you’d rather sleep than keep talking about something that bothers you, that’s okay too. Just know that I’m on your side, no matter what.”
“Even if I did fuck things up?”
“Especially then. Nobody’s perfect. Everyone makes mistakes and looks back with regret. The important thing is to learn where you went wrong and do better going forward.”
Slay closed his eyes, then pushed out a long breath, like he’d let go of something painful. “How do you always know what to say? It’s like you can reach inside me and put the fire out. I don’t even feel like a fuckup when I’m with you.”
That’s because I adore you. Unequivocally with every beat of my heart.
In the end, Slay talked a bit more about his past and mistakes he’d made, but at long last, the wound was clean.
All the bitterness and sorrow had seeped out of him and maybe his soul would heal over as his body had. Like Ro, he had scars. Like Ro, he was still here. He’d fight through hell itself to stay beside her, and it didn’t matter to him what anyone said or thought. He’d wrecked one relationship fretting over other people’s opinions.
Never again.
Slay drifted off with Rowena snuggled in his arms, and it must have been twelve hours before they stirred. He roused needing to piss in the worst way, and he had morning wood from having her sweet ass pressed up against him. With a muffled groan, he disentangled and found the shared lavatory farther down the hall. It was hellish uncomfortable to pee and took him ages to settle down. By the time he returned, Rowena was gone.
Frankly, he wished he could go back to bed to roll around with her a bit more, but they both had other shit to do. Complaining in a low growl, he put on his clothes and emerged into the alley that led to the main thoroughfare carved in the center of Golgerra. How anyone got used to living inside a mountain, he’d never fucking know.
The sooner I get out of here, the better. Problem was, he didn’t know if Ro would go with him. Maybe she’d want to stay and fix this shithole personally?
Fuck, I don’t want to live here. Don’t want to live without her either.