Page 44 of Asher

We both moan as I breach the ring of muscle. We’ve been having so much sex, but every time feels like the first time… only better, because Iknowhim. Know what he likes, how he’ll react. As I sink into his body, I know that he’s going to wrap a leg around my hips. Know that if I shift my weight just like so… A tremor overtakes him.

I could spend the rest of my life doing this with him and never get bored.

But he asked to be fucked through the mattress, so the least I can do is deliver. Patting his thigh, I brace myself on my knees, then take hold of his hips and go to town. The sound my first thrust wrings from him vibrates through my whole body.Hold on, hold on,I warn myself. I want him to come first, simply for the pure pleasure of his ass clamping down around me.

“Asher,” he slurs, opening his eyes. They’re hazed with lust. “Ash.”

I adjust my position, taking things up a notch, and as my cock grazes his sweet spot, he cries out and shudders. A few more thrusts like that bring us both so close to the edge, but I’m not ready for this to be over.

I stop, deep inside him, and lean up his body to kiss him. The movement feels amazing to us both, but with no additional friction, we have time for a breather.

“You’re incredible,” he whispers against my mouth, and my heartbeat picks up. There’s something about being with him like this, locked together in the most intimate way but not striving for orgasm, that makes me feel… whole.

“I live to serve you,” I whisper back, and even though it’s supposed to be a joke, in this moment, it’s not. I kiss him deeply as a distraction.

When we break apart, breathing deeply, he shifts his hips, reawakening all the sensations that just calmed down. I chuckle.

“I can take a hint. So… think I can make you come hands-free?” We’ve done that once before, but it took a lot of time and effort.

He shrugs. “Consider it part of your service.” His hand comes up to cup my cheek. “I believe in you.”

I pull back, hope stirring deep inside. Maybe Garrett’s starting to come around to the idea of staying married to me. If sex is what it takes to convince him, that’s definitely a sacrifice I can make.

Without saying another word, I get back to work, setting up a fast, hard rhythm, making sure to hit all his sensitive spots. I lay one hand on his stomach, palm down, and feel the muscles react to my touch. Garrett loves to be petted, stroked, and I do that now even as I fuck him so hard that he raises his arms to brace himself against the headboard.

“I wish you could feel you like I do,” I pant. “There’s nothing in this world that feels as good as you—surrounding me, under me, your skin against mine.”

His gaze meets mine, and it seems like he’s going to say something, but then his eyes roll back and his whole body seizes up in orgasm. That’s all it takes to send me over the edge, and as I fall through eternity wrapped up in him, I send out a silent wish for this to never end.

CHAPTERNINETEEN

Garrett

I fucking hate snow.This is something I’ve just learned about myself. If you’d asked me a month ago, I would have said snow is lovely. I’ve always thought it charming when it snowed, and I definitely love skiing and have visited various ski resorts across Europe dozens of times over the centuries. There’s nothing like a bracing afternoon of snow sports, followed by an evening of more adult sports in front of a roaring fire while the snow falls outside. Ten out of ten, the perfect way to spend a winter weekend.

Thissnow, however… well, right now I can’t think of anything I hate more than this snow. This stupid, constantly there even when it’s not snowing, mocking me snow. And the worst part is that I was told about this. I was fully informed. They said the road would be closed because of the snow. They said it sometimes snowed for nine months of the year. Even after I got here and the snow began ridiculously early in autumn, I still didn’t realize what that would mean for me. I suppose in my head, I was picturing some kind of movie scenario, where the storm would rage through, cutting off the road and keeping us inside for a day, but when it ended, the village would miraculously still be snow-free. Or just have neat little snowbanks in out-of-the-way places, plus a light ground covering, enough for the kids to make snow angels but not enough to require snowshoes or anything like that. Snowshoes! Blech.

The reality is vastly different. The first real storm, which everyone told me was “a baby storm,” deposited feet of snow—right up to the window ledges. And the lack of snow-removal infrastructure in the village meant that even after the sky cleared and the sun came out, the only way I could leave the house was if Asher or one of the others took me.

The second storm of the season deposited enough snow to cover the windows, but thankfully, my emergency pleas to the village council had already resulted in a snowplowand, through some miracle Asher pulled off, a sorcerer who was excited about the challenge of a snowed-in village. Her name is Zoe, and she’s the first (hopefully) permanent non-demon resident. Her arrival was completely unplanned, but in the week she’s been here, she’s proven enthusiastic, helpful, and keen to make the village a multispecies-friendly place. She’s gotten a warm welcome, and not just from me. Her idea to not just clear the snow from certain areas, but use it to create more community activity spaces, has been a big hit. For example, the stream that runs near the village, while completely frozen over, isn’t really great for skating. Zoe has used the excess snow to create a three-inch-thick sheet of ice for a skating rink on the village green. She’s also building a “snow village” outside the village proper, one little house at a time, and the children adore it.

But even with Zoe and the plow working together to keep roads clear, there’s no escaping the snow. It’s everywhere.

Muttering to myself as I trudge through it to the school, I resolve to have Asher take me to Hawaii or the Caribbean for a weekend soon. I need to defrost, and the benefit of being married to a demon is that we never have to worry about airfare.

There are other benefits too, and remembering how he woke me this morning is enough to make me smile behind the scarf wrapped around the lower half of my face. I have a sneaking suspicion that I’m getting too attached to Asher, but I’ve been ignoring all the warning signs. It’s only been a few months since we met. Maybe by the time my end date here rolls around, we’ll be sick of each other. Until then, I’m just going to enjoy being petted and spoiled and screwed until I scream every night.

I unlock the school, turn up the thermostat, and start turning on lights. I’m the first one here today because I wanted to get a head start on some planning before the kids get here and Sid and Annie might need me. Tomorrow we start teaching the kids about Christmas—and wow, getting permission for that was a huge achievement.

The hours pass as I put together a collection of different Christmas traditions to talk about, then research craft activities. There’s a mid-size fir tree at the edge of the playground that we can decorate, but I’d love for the kids to make their own decorations. They won’t last very long out in the elements, but it’s not like we actually plan tocelebrateChristmas.

Annie stops in to bring me tea. “You’re my favorite,” I tell her, wrapping my hands around the mug and breathing in the fragrant aroma.

“You say that to everyone who brings you tea,” she retorts, smiling. “The kids have started arriving, so it’s going to get noisier.”

“No problem.” One thing about studying people: you get used to working with noise. I’ve perfected the art of tuning things out.

Proof of that is that I have no idea how much time has passed when Sid knocks on the door and sticks his head in. “Do you have a few minutes?”

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