hair. They draw me close so that our lips meet again.
Then Kyon sits up, causing my legs to slip apart and straddle his hips. “Where did you go?”
I sniffle. “To the future. It keeps following me.” I try to smile and fail miserably.
He frowns. “No. I mean where did you go?” He points to my heart. “You haven’t come back yet. I need you to come back.”
I cover my eyes with my hand. My mouth contorts in grief as I sob.
He tugs my hand away so I’m forced to look at him with tear-blinded eyes. His lips nuzzle mine with silver-lining caresses. I wrap my arms around his neck. With my wrists against the back of his head, I urge him closer as I realize how well he knows me, and how much he genuinely cares about me. He changes from my problem to my lover as he adjusts himself and pushes up into me. Our bodies connect and become one; my mouth opens and I breathe his name. A sharp thrill of pleasure causes my cells to riot.
Even swimming in sorrow, he won’t let me drown. Kyon moves against me. I move with him. “You’re perfect,” he groans—a lovely sound.
I become a villain for his touch. A delirium of delicious sensations builds, intoxicating me. I can’t bury the euphoria he’s making me feel. Small moans and gasps hiss from between my lips as he increases his strokes and sharpens my bliss.
“Tell me you’re my consort.”
“No,” I rasp, struggling to deny the shattering heights of passion he elicits.
He growls. I dance on the point of a blinding star with him. Our breath mingles. Wrapping my arms around his shoulders, I trace my lips over his cheek, moving them until they brush up against the shell of his ear. As I come undone, I whisper his name with the darkest part of my heart.
He’s unrelenting. He sends me over the edge again and again. I disintegrate into crushing, wretched ecstasy with him. He follows me, saying my name like I’ve destroyed him. He lies by my side, hauling me to him once more, stroking my back as I rest my cheek against his chest. “You can run from your love for me, but know this: I will hunt you anywhere,” he promises.
In the morning, I awake to the sound of the shower running in the other room. Sitting up in bed, I notice breakfast hovering on a tray next to me. Uncovering it, I smile. It’s not pancakes. It’s their version of quiche. My appetite has come back, so I eat everything on my plate. Just as I finish up, Kyon walks into the room with a towel draped around his narrow waist. I chew slower, my eyes following the perfect contours of his skin. He’s beautiful in ways that are hard to fathom. He’s symmetry. Even as he’s just sinew, flesh and bone, he carries it differently than most people. Gracefully. His skin is like honey. I remember tasting it last night, sampling it. Savoring it. I swallow the last bite of quiche and blush.
“You’re awake,” Kyon says as he prowls around the bed, coming to my side. He leans down and gives me a thorough kiss, which makes me blush more. “How do you feel this morning?”
“I’m okay,” I murmur, trying to hide my reddening cheeks from him by looking up at him through my lashes.
He touches my flushed cheek, running his thumb over it gently. “I’m glad to hear it. We have a busy rotation ahead.”
“We do?” I wonder at the smile on his face. He’s happy. Kyon Ensin is actually happy. I don’t think I’ve met happy Kyon before. He’s a little fascinating. “What are we doing today?”
“I want to show you the rest of the estate. Fulton will join us. He runs things for me here. I want you to become comfortable going to him for anything you need. You’ll also be introduced to the rest of your security detail. You’ll be able to ask Keenan about anything with regard to it.”
“Like leaving the estate?” I ask with as much nonchalance as I can muster.
“Exactly.”
“Will I be allowed to leave?” I ask, my heartbeat accelerating in fear for reasons I can’t explain.
“Of course. There is an event planned for this evening.”
“Is it a date?” I give him a sidelong look.
He flashes me an unguarded smile. It’s radiant. “If you’d like.”