Page 63 of Broken Lands

“It’s not that I don’t want to take his place. I worry about what I will be left with when that day comes. And whether I’ll be able to right his wrongs.”

This fear was one I hadn’t shared with anyone, not even Stefan, who I considered my brother despite our lack of blood ties. She brought it out in me, though. This honesty. One of many reasons I suspected she was my mate.

“What do you mean?” She pulled her face away from where she had nuzzled into my neck, her hazel eyes searching mine for an answer.

“I mean, fuck. I haven’t told anyone this before, Riley.” Blowing out a frustrated breath, I continued. “His actions don’t align with helping your world to heal, with the promise we made to the humans. I fear what is to come. About how much longer the land and people will survive, whether we’ll ever return home. The few that oppose him or raise any of these issues are quickly shut down, dealt with. He’s even begun shutting the Elders out. I will have to challenge him, but I’m not ready. I’ve only just come into my power.” The words sounded like excuses on my tongue.

Nodding gravely, she tore her eyes away from mine, staring out across the darkened sea.

“Before I came here, I hated your kind. Did you know that?” Her voice was low, almost a whisper, and I had to strain to hear her above the sounds of the ocean.

“No, I didn’t.”

“I was angry. I resented the lot of you. How could you live here, within your walls, and not care about what was happening outside of them?” We reached the alcove I’d been aiming for, and I moved inside the ring of trees and boulders. This alcove had been somewhat of a getaway for Stefan and I for sometime now, and we kept a stash of necessities in a small box hidden among the rocks. I placed Riley down softly on the sand, and grabbed a couple of blankets, laying one down on the sand and sitting down, gesturing for her to join me.

She scrambled closer, pulling her legs to her chest, the slit in her gown falling open and exposing the bare skin of her thigh, creamy in the rays of moonlight reaching us here. She wrapped her arms around her legs, still staring out at the ocean.

“I’m still not convinced enough is being done, but I can see that it’s not all for a lack of trying.” She turned to face me then, a grim look on her face. “I met your father the other day. I don’t think he likes me, or what I represent. And I didn’t much like him. If he’s the reason my people are suffering, then I will stand against him.”

Placing a hand on my chest, Riley twisted toward me, rising on her knees, her face level with my own.

“You and I might have only met recently, but my soul knows yours, Lincoln. Something deep down tells me you will do what’s right, even if that means challenging your own kin. I’m sorry that the weight of that falls on you.”

My soul knows yours.

My chest tightened and my pulse thumped erratically against my ribcage as those words sunk in. I couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe around the weight of them. She couldn’t know what those four words meant. They were confirmation that I wasn’t imagining this pull between us, that maybe—just maybe—she really was meant for me.

There were no words to describe how I felt in that moment. So, I did the only other thing I could do. I showed her. Lifting my hand, I cupped her face, my thumb tracing her jaw, then the soft flesh of her bottom lip, before I pressed my lips against hers.

She kissed me back, gently at first, the press of her lips against mine becoming more demanding as she wrapped her arms around my neck and leant back on her calves. We twisted, falling next to each other on the sand, hands roaming, exploring the other.

My fingers trailed lightly down her arm, her hip, as I broke our kiss and trailed feather light kisses across her jaw, her neck. She moaned as I pressed a kiss beneath her ear, my cock hardening instantly at the sound.

Pulling me closer to her, she cocked a leg over my waist, and I grasped the smooth skin of her thigh, tracing circles over the exposed skin as she rolled the both of us, until I was lying on my back, her straddling my waist. The heat of her core pressed against my erection, eliciting another soft moan from her lips.

Gyrating her hips, she ground her clit against my hard length, and I bit back the urge to rip that gorgeous gown from her body and take her immediately.

Trailing my fingers higher, I found her molten core, shoving her soaking panties aside and running a finger between her slick folds.

“Fuck, Riley, you’re so wet. Is this for me, Tyas?” Dragging my fingers back up, I circled her clit once, twice, before finding her entry and pushing inside her.

“Yes,” she whimpered, the need in her voice clear. “Fuck me, Lincoln.”

Who was I to deny her when she asked so nicely?

“Tell me what you need, babe.” There wasn’t a chance in the world I’d deny her. My cock throbbed almost painfully in my pants as Riley gathered the hem of her dress and pulled it above her head. She was bare beneath, nothing but her small lace panties between us.

Reaching up, I cupped one of her small breasts in my palm before rolling her perfect pink nipple between my thumb and forefinger. She cried out, arching her back in pleasure and rocking herself against my hand. The need to be inside her, to feel her walls clamp around my dick as she came, took hold and I pulled my hand away, rolling us so that I was above her, bracing myself on one hand. Unbuckling my belt with the other, I dipped my head and sucked her peeked breast into my mouth, nibbling gently before letting it go and moving to the other.

Riley writhed beneath me and I tugged my suit pants down, unable to slow or wait any longer.

My erection burst free and, shoving her panties aside, I pressed against her entry, the wet heat of her against my tip almost sending me into a frenzy.

“Is this what you want, Riley? You want me inside you?”

“Please,” she begged, and I was a goner.

Growling, I entered her slowly. Her pussy was so tight, her walls clamping down around me as I pushed myself inside of her. Her body trembled, so close already.

---