Page 43 of A Rift in the House of Bruin

“Michaela,” Lu groaned. “Are you okay?”

I nodded, unable to form words.

“You feel amazing.” He slowly rocked into my body, and that delicious tension began to build once again.

Together, we created a symphony of moans, both of us lost in the rhythmic pleasure building between us.

Lu’s thrusts intensified, each one driving deeper, while our cries grew louder and more animalistic. I didn’t want it to end, but the tension grew tighter with every move. I lifted my hips to meet his, finding a new sensation—so intense that I fell over the edge again, this time taking Lu with me into the depths of ecstasy. He collapsed on top of me, sweaty and out of breath.

“Lu, that—I have no words,” I giggled in the post-coitus high. “Um, wow.”

“I knew we would be amazing.”

Wait, what? I clearly heard Lu’s words, yet he remained silent. How?

“Am I hearing things, or did you just say something?”I responded silently, simply thinking the words.

Lu turned his head, his eyes wide with shock. “How did you do that?”

“Me? You did it first.”

“I have no idea what just happened. I mean, I expected our connection to grow, but I certainly didn’t expect this.”

“Is this a fated thing?”

“I don’t know. But I meant what I said. We are amazing together.”

“I’d say,” I chuckled, not knowing what to think about our newfound ability. “When can we do it again?”

Lu laughed. “We have the rest of our lives to do it. And if I have my way, we will—again, and again, and again.”

I smiled at the thought of spending what time we had left making love to Lu. The two of us making up for lost time. “Can you hear all of my thoughts?”

“Doesn’t seem like it. Why, what are you thinking?”

“I was thinking I want to stay here in bed. I’m not ready to go back out there. I want to just lay here in your arms.”

“How are you feeling? Is the sprite ash still working?”

“I feel wonderful,” I smiled at the realization that, for the first time, the cancer had been completely gone from my thoughts. I couldn’t remember a time when my illness hadn’t plagued my every move. “The buzz wore off back in the woods, but I’m feeling stable.”

“That makes me happy.” Lu kissed my forehead. “I should probably get us something to eat. Check to see if the others have returned.”

“Oh God,” I gasped, hiding my face in Lu’s embrace. “Do you think they’ll know?”

Lu chuckled. “Would it upset you if they did?”

“No, I just… I don’t know. I don’t want to upset anyone.”

“Dove,” Lu tilted my chin to face him, “I assure you, aside from being jealous of me, no one will be upset with you.Remember what I told you in the woods? We are all fated, inexplicably connected. This doesn’t change that.”

I was still a little unsure of the logistics of the situation. Nico and Luca had expressed interest. Hell, Luca had shared a very intimate moment with me only a few nights ago. But what about Finn and Hunter? Jase had never really been happy that I came back to Hiraeth. I wasn’t sure that simply being fated automatically meant they were all going to want me—at least not in that way. What if it meant we were all fated to work together, to fix Hiraeth?

“I’ll be back with something delicious. Keep the bed warm for me. We’ll indulge here as long as we can.” Lu kissed me quickly before throwing on his pants. “I promise I’ll be quick.” He slipped out the door, leaving me with my thoughts.“I miss you already.”

The dappled light of day lured me from the best sleep I could ever remember having. With a contented groan, I stretched, feeling a soreness in places I’d never felt before, and everything from the prior night came rushing back to me. I reached for Lucius in the oversized bed, but his spot beside me was cold. I sat up, pulling the sheets with me to cover myself, only to find I was alone in the room.

Resting on his pillow was a folded piece of parchment and a single red dahlia. I snatched it up with greedy fingers, eager to devour every word he’d written. I paused with it in my hands, a cloud of doubt dashing my excitement. What if this was a nicely worded farewell rather than a love letter?

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