Rasha giggled, and Hiro snorted. “Like we’d want to.”
That might’ve been the nicest thing he’d ever said to me.
We stayed in our tight hug for a long time, but once Hiro had his emotions under control, we stood up. He put Rasha on her feet, then marched straight over to Rebe and surprised the hell out of me when he pulled them into a huge hug. From the look on Rebe’s face, they weren’t expecting it either.
Hiro said, “Thank you, thank you,” over and over and over again until Rasha walked over to him and tapped him on the back. As soon as he released Rebe, he picked Rasha up and threw her in the air, caught her, then hugged her to his chest as he started crying again.
I gave them a few minutes before walking over and rubbing Hiro’s back. He managed to get an arm around me and pull me into their hug, so I relaxed into him and let him ride out his emotions.
He didn’t seem to be capable of speaking anything other than, “Thank you,” so after a while, Rebe silently led us back through the tunnels so they could swim us to the surface. Hiro was practically vibrating for the entire swim, so I kept placing kisses to his back and rubbing his chest. I was so happy and relieved that I didn’t bother to open my eyes under water, I kept them closed and simply concentrated on Hiro as I held him tight.
Chapter Twenty-One
Basil
By the time we made it to shore, Rasha was having trouble keeping her eyes open. As soon as Rebe shifted and covered themself, Rasha gave them a huge hug and thanked them, and the two rested foreheads together. Then Hiro gave Rebe yet another hug and a million more thanks before resting his forehead to Rebe’s—and yeah, I totally got why he’d reacted that way earlier because I did not like seeing that—then Hiro scooped his daughter into his arms and walked a few steps away.
When I stood in front of Rebe, I said, “Thank you, Rebe. You have no idea how much this means to me. I could never repay you for this, but—”
“Seeing how happy Rasha and Hiro are is payment enough,” Rebe said, cutting me off.
“No, I—”
“No, Bas. You don’t owe me a thing. I’m glad I could help. Maybe the next time you’re in Faela we could have dinner. The three of you and my partner and me.”
“I’d like that.”
They smiled, then leaned down to rest their forehead to mine and whispered, “It’s nice seeing you happy, Bas. Stay safe, my friend.”
“Stay safe, Rebe. May the stars watch over you,” I whispered.
“And the moon over you.” They smiled before stepping back into the water.
I lifted my hand in a wave a moment before they jumped into the air and shimmered into their horse-like form before landing in the water and disappearing below. When I turned back, Hiro was watching me with a sleeping Rasha in his arms, so I asked, “Is she okay?”
He nodded. “Yeah. She’s tired from healing, I think.”
I nodded, picked up our discarded clothes, and stepped up to him, and we began the walk back to the house. We were quiet along the way, but Hiro knocked my arm with his elbow a few times, making me smile every time. Once we made it inside the house, we headed straight up to Rasha’s room where Hiro lay her in bed and covered her up after I used magic to get her jammies on so she wasn’t sleeping in her wet bathing suit.
As soon as she was set, Hiro grabbed my wrist and dragged me into our room, shutting the door behind us. Before I could ask if he was hungry or anything, his mouth was on mine and his arms were wrapping around me. I groaned into his kiss and draped my arms around his neck, going up on my toes to better reach him. Hiro’s hands ran down my back to my ass, and I felt his intention before he lifted me into his arms. Wrapping my legs around his waist, I moaned because I loved how easily he took control and manhandled me.
“Basil,” he breathed into my mouth before reclaiming it and groaning deeply.
When he pressed my back against the wall, I expected him to be aggressive and demanding, but instead, he slowed down and kissed me softly while one hand lightly trailed over my skin. His mouth was gentle but heartfelt, and it warmed my chest more and more the longer he kissed me like that. He kissed me so long and so soft and passionately that I was trembling with need and overwhelmed with emotions.
He started kissing his way down my jaw and neck and sucked a bruise onto my skin just under my collarbone. I loved that he liked marking me that way. Even though he was conscious of not putting the marks where others could easily see them, I still loved knowing they were there, that he’d marked me as his.
He leaned back to meet my eyes. “You are mine, Basil; and I’m yours.” He kissed me before I could respond, and I moaned into his mouth. He truly was claiming me in the way I’d wanted since I realized he was my viramore.
Wrapping me tighter in his arms, he pulled us away from the wall and carried me to the bed, laying me down before kissing his way down my chest. As his fingers hooked under my waistband, his mouth covered my nipple and his tongue flicked out, causing me to moan as he pulled down my bathing suit. My fingers found his hair and dug in, his mouth kissing and licking over my torso.
I wanted so badly to reach down and pull his bathing suit off, but I couldn’t reach him and his mouth was doing too many exquisite things to make him stop. Luckily, he pushed his suit down himself, then tucked one arm under me, leaned up, and lifted me higher on the bed. His muscles rippled over me, making my mouth water and my tongue ache to trace all his tattoos.
He kissed my mouth hard and groaned into me before lowering his body over me as he tucked his face against the side of my neck and took a deep breath, saying, “You smell so fuckin’ good. I can’t get enough of ya.” He took another deep breath. “I can smell myself on your skin. So fuckin’ hot.” He licked a stripe on my neck and growled. His new senses were definitely affecting him, but I loved this possessiveness coming out.
Rocking his hips and rubbing our lengths together, he nipped at the skin on my neck, making his way to my mouth before claiming it again in another bruising kiss. The friction between us was making pleasure build in my core, and I couldn’t help but meet his soft rocks, trying to push for more.
Hiro smirked against my lips before kissing along my neck as he dragged one hand down my side to my hip. He was heavy over the top of me, but I loved the solid weight of him. He pulled my leg up, so I wrapped it around his hip, giving him access to my ass. Rolling us just a little, he grabbed my ass, then grazed his fingers over my hole, and I moaned loudly.
I grabbed his hand and did the spell to create some lube, and he smiled against my skin before pressing his finger inside me. I’d been nervous to do this again, but I wasn’t anymore. He’d made it abundantly clear that he was in this for good, that he was in this with me for the rest of our lives.
“I am, love,” he muttered as he pushed another finger inside me. “I’m not goin’ anywhere.”
“Me either,” I breathed, then moaned as his fingers found my prostate. I tried to push his hand away. “Please, Hiro.”
“Another minute, baby. I don’t wanna hurt you, and it’s been a while.”
A groan of frustration fell from my lips, and he chuckled as he caught my nipple between his teeth and sucked. I noticed my magic swirling around the room at a casual pace, but I ignored it, unable to control it while he was making me so crazy. I only let him continue for another few seconds before I pushed his hand again, and this time he listened, covering himself in lube. Hovering over me, he lined himself up, staring into my eyes as he pushed past the tight ring of muscle. It stung, but also felt so fucking good I thought I might burst already. I tried to speed him up by pulling on his ass with the heels of my feet, but he held strong and smirked at me, knowing he was torturing me as he took his good old time. When he was finally fully seated, he gripped my hip so I couldn’t move and leaned down to kiss my lips, so I buried my hands in his hair and tried to relax.