Page 98 of Ronan

“There’s nothing left inside me,” I groan, pushing my face into the mattress as he chuckles, nipping at my earlobe. “You’ve drained me of all fluids, and I can feel myself withering away like a dried flower. If you aren’t careful, I will become a husk of a man.”

Ronan hadn’t been lying when he said he’d go until he wasdone.

For hours, he stayed locked inside me, milking me until I was drained and crying, and oh, so satisfied. Uncomfortably full of him, but somehow still aching for more.

Scratches and bites cover my body, hickeys and marks trailing up and down my shoulders and spine. Each one was given with a low claim of, “Mine,” growled along with it. I’ve never in my life simultaneously been so content and exhausted, wrung out like asponge.

Kisses press against the nape of my neck, his arms wrapping around my front and hugging me tight. This touch is gentle and full of love, but not urgent. It’s sweet, and comfortable, and just as intimate as the desperate ones from last night. “I know you want to sleep, but we need to leave.”

Body aching, I spin to face him. My ass is deliciously sore, limbs exhausted, and the mattress is still damp beneath us. When I was limp in his arms and Ronan’s monster was finally satisfied, he’d slid out of me as we fell asleep.

The ensuing waterfall was impressive, but we were too drained to care.

My eyes flit open, and the contented face that stares back at me is the one I know by heart. His fangs have returned to the tiny little teefers I love so much, and his irises are a rich brown once again.

“Hey, you,” I whisper, and his smile is everything as he hugs me against him. “What time is it?” I ask through a yawn.

“Right before sunrise. There are things we need to take care of before we leave, and a quick scan of the supplies wouldn’t hurt. I’m sure there’s plenty of useful stuff here.”

“There you go with that organization kink.” He smiles again before it slips from his face, his expression turning serious.

“Thank you for last night,” he whispers, and I know he doesn’t mean anything sexual. His eyes that held such turbulent fear yesterday are now calm with a sweet, desperate gratitude.

I stared into the face of his monstrous side and didn’t look away.

“Has that ever happened before? The shifting?”

“Not to me,” he says, fingers mindlessly raking through my hair. “Bloodlust is something all Anunians are capable of, but even with the number of battles I have seen in my life, it’s never happened to me.” His grip tightens as he draws my head against his chest. “Nothing in my life was ever worth fighting for until now. Just the thought of their hands on you, though…” He trails off, a hint of his fury returning

Smiling, I smash my face into his skin. “It was pretty badass. If you could figure out how to harness those claws, we wouldn’t need to bother carrying a knife. It’s something to consider if you want to be an overachiever.”

He scoffs and reaches around my body to tap my naked butt. “Get up.”

“Already told you, there’s no ‘up’ left in the tank.” We both grin as I sit up and stretch, finding Boomerang curled up next to the cot. Ronan let her out of the van on our way to the tent last night, thoughtful even in his frenzy.

“Hey, girl,” I say as I reach to pet her. “Sorry you missed out on the excitement, but you were safer hiding.”

Naked except for our shoes, we walk through the camp and collect clothes from the van. The ground is saturated from the rain that poured until late in the night, washing away the blood that had covered these grounds.

“Do we need to do anything about… them?” Bodies—and body parts—are strewn across the dirt, and I try not to look at them as Ronan grimaces.

“I’ll burn the bodies so there are no questions surrounding their deaths.”

Unseeing eyes stare back at me from a head beside the cage I was locked inside, and I shiver as I consider his solution. “Will the military come looking for them?”

“Probably.”

“Don’t you think they’d become suspicious of another strange fire after Commander Bravis?”

Ronan pulls his lip between his teeth thoughtfully, and a slow, reluctant nod dips his head. “I hadn’t considered that. If they connected it to us, they could track us here.”

“You’re a bit of a pyro.” He ignores me, much to my disappointment, so I continue with my thoughts. “Fire could also lead them to believe there are still a bunch of dangerous rebels and make them scout the area harder.”

“Yeah, yeah, okay,” he grumbles, “I will admit that it was perhaps not the best plan.” He pauses, letting his eyes drift over the carnage until he locks on to a headless body, staring at the patch on its chest. “At dinner, Kek let it slip that they were from Ljómur.”

My brows shoot up as he looks at me again. “The mystery base?”

He nods. “If they were not permanently stationed there, they had at least been there and been assigned missions on its behalf. I wasn’t able to get anything else out of them without drawing suspicion, though.”

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