Wings of the Walker - CoraLee June Page 0,269

to stop. After having Maverick torn from me for five months, I didn’t want to lose having him as close as physically possible. He was in my soul just then, settling deep in my heart and branding himself to me in a way that no one else ever had.

"Was this okay?" Maverick asked while settling beside me. I rolled over to cling to him, not worrying about the mess we made of my clothes and my shattered innocence. There was blood between my thighs, but I liked the evidence of it. I loved knowing that I finally dived into the physical relationships with my men.

"It was more than okay," I whispered while squeezing my eyes shut and absorbing every last piece of this moment. His smell. The rhythm of his heart. The love on his lips and the passion in his thrusts. "Now I've really got to get you out of here. I want a lifetime of that," I said with a small smile.

Maverick chuckled while stroking my hair. He didn't say anything for a while, and we lay there, basking in the post-sex bliss. "You remember our first kiss?" Maverick finally asked. I smiled at the memory.

“Of course,” I replied. “We were in Lackley’s lab. It was the first time you told me you wanted forever together.” I snuggled into Maverick’s chest and listened to his steady heart as he spoke.

"We've got to stop doing these things right before I know you have to leave."

I glanced at the clock in the room. As a rule, Companions had to leave by two in the morning. "Do you remember what you said to me?" I asked. "Your kiss tastes like the rest of my life.” I smiled before continuing, “I wouldn't mind spending the rest of my life with you, Maverick." There was no fear that I was speaking too soon or assuming things. I didn't worry that I would scare him away with talk of my feelings. He wasn't Josiah, there was no status lingering between us. We were pure love. I felt safe diving off this cliff because I knew he would catch me.

"I'm trying to build a world we can spend forever in, Ash," Maverick said, and our moment started to dissolve into our reality. It was like I could feel each brick of responsibility being piled onto his chest. The cure. Cavil. Escaping. Dormas. The empire. His family.

Me.

"I know, Maverick. I know."

Chapter Fifteen

Bells were ringing, reminding us that our time was up. Madam B warned me that once I heard the sirens, I’d only have thirty minutes to make it to the transport. My heart sank at the harsh reminder that our time was coming to an end. “I don’t want to go,” I whispered into his chest while breathing in Maverick’s scent and committing it to memory. “We still have so much to discuss. What all has happened these last five months?”

Maverick slowly eased us both to a seated position and smoothed out my hair. Grabbing a cloth from nearby, he began cleaning me with gentle movements. I wasn’t embarrassed by his care, but I winced when he washed the sensitive parts of me. I prayed that my ache stayed with me long after I’d left this tower. I wanted to walk around the next few days remembering tonight. “Without the cure, Cavil has to cling to the rejection, his fetters, and his weapons to maintain control. He’s keeping me here to find the last puzzle piece to the cure.”

I’d figured as much. Cavil wouldn’t be happy until he had it all. “He’s keeping the system in place with fear,” I replied mostly to myself. “Louis is working on a way to disable Heat. He and Kemper think that an electromagnetic pulse could disrupt their frequencies.”

Maverick went still for a moment, and I watched his eyes flash as he disappeared into that place of his mind where he calculated different odds and outcomes. “It could work,” he finally said. “I’ll research some and send my findings back with Blythe.

At the mention of her, bile rose in my throat, and I forced myself not to become anxious about their arrangement. I knew that Maverick loved me. I was confident in our connection. Nevertheless, Maverick must have seen something in my gaze because he then said, “It’s only you for me, Ash. Always you. Besides, she's a bit annoying.” I smiled a little. “Is Jules okay?” Maverick asked. “And the others?”

“They’re okay,” I replied, unsure if I should