Page 163 of Visions of Darkness

I inhaled a shaky sound and crushed her against me, her cheek pressed to the ravaging of my heart.

Her fingertips dusted up and down my chest, over the designs that howled and the scars that wept. She peeked up at me. “Is it always like that?”

My lips pressed to the top of her head as I released a weighted sigh. “No, Aria. Not even close. There’s nothing that could compare to you. It was ...”

How the hell did I put that into words?

“Otherworldly.” I figured it was the best I could do.

Her nails scratched a little deeper as she looked up at me. The softest smile teased the edges of those red lips, which were swollen from my kiss. “Magic?”

I tossed her a weak grin. “Something like that, considering the way my princess has me enchanted.”

Pink lit on her wet cheeks, and she clamped down on her bottom lip. For one second, the two of us gave ourselves over to the type of easiness that could never be ours.

Just simply flirting with someone who made our hearts go boom.

Then she sobered, and she brushed her lips over the organ that would always beat for her, no matter how many days it was given. “I think it was just us, Pax.”

I swayed her in my arms, the water pounding over us, my murmur barely breathing, “Yeah, it was just us.”

Lightly, she dragged her fingertips down my side and to my hip. I nearly lost myself all over again as she kept touching me.

“Do you regret it?” she asked.

The way my spirit reacted to the question was visceral. A rush of incredulity gushed from my nose. I’d been so sure all this time that Ishould. Shame striking me at the idea of having her this way. Worry that I was only going to make things worse. Put her in more danger.

It didn’t take much to discern the only regret I could ever find would be in hurting her in some way.

“Do you?” I asked instead of answering.

“No, I could never regret you.”

“Then no. Not even a little bit. You are the only good thing that’s ever happened to me. I fucking love you. I didn’t even know what that meant until I saw you in that room. I had no idea that every second of my life was adding up to bring me to that very spot. And I promise that every second I have left? Each of them belong to you.”

“I dreamed of it ... of you loving me that way. Back in my room when I felt so alone.”

I hugged her to me. “You’re not alone anymore, Aria. And as long as I’m still breathing, you’re never going to be.”

We washed each other then, letting our hands drift and explore.

It felt like with each caress, the stigma of what we’d believed was washed away, giving way to a new understanding.

Our understanding.

We were in this thing together, in every fucking way we could possibly be.

When the water began to cool, I shut off the faucet and scooped her up again, and I grabbed the two thin white towels from the rack and wrapped them around us as best as I could. Then I carried her back out to the dull glow in the dingy room.

“I’m capable of walking, you know.” She whispered the affected, soggy words as she peered up at me.

I pressed my lips to her temple. “I know, but I don’t want to let you go.”

So, rather than doing that, I climbed down onto the floor with her, laid her out on the white sheet, and grabbed the blanket that had slipped off the bed when she’d been trapped. It was only damp on one edge, so I tossed it out, unfurling it so it coasted down to cover us.

Then I took her in my arms again.

Our naked bodies plastered together.

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