Page 87 of Virelai's Hoard
Sable stood in the doorway, took one look at her, and stepped aside in silent invitation.
27. The Night Before the End
Sable
Riley stepped in through the open door and closed it behind her, nearly collapsing against it as soon as it clicked shut. The shaky breath she took in resounded in the space between them. The woman looked on the verge of a fucking panic attack, and Sable’s stomach twisted as she looked at her, unsure about how to approach this.
Her mind whirred with possible steps to take. Did Riley need comfort, space, silence, something else? Why was she here? Riley had made it clear enough before that this was nothing beyond the physical. And yet… here she was. Shaking all over. In Sable’scabin,of all places.
With a dry swallow, Sable asked, “What do you need?”
Riley blinked up at her, as if only now realizing where she was. “I–” Her voice broke around the sound, and she swallowed, her breathing shallow, looking small against the frame of the door. She shook her head, the lump in her throat still clear as she said, “Everything is too loud.” Riley squeezed her eyes shut. “Can you make it stop? Please.”
The words twisted something in Sable’s chest. She watched, wordless, as Riley opened her eyes again and, meeting her gaze, took her gloves off in slow, deliberate motions. They fell on thefloor with a soft slap. Riley reached out a hand, palm up, and repeated herself, softer, “Please.”
At this point, Sable couldn’t stop herself if she tried. Not with the broken way Riley was looking at her. She stepped forward and, slowly, took the open palm into her own. Riley’s relieved breath hit her like a punch to the ribs. Carefully, as if she might spook her, Sable reached her free hand and cupped her cheek, tilting her head up to meet her eyes.
She wouldn’t ask her what this was about, or if she was sure, or anything that might send her reeling again. But she did need to know one thing. “You’ll tell me if, at any point, you want to stop.” It wasn’t a question as much as an instruction. “Alright?”
Riley nodded. Her cheek pressed into Sable’s palm, her eyes closed–surrendering to the touch. She adjusted into a more relaxed posture against the door.
“I’m going to need you to say it.”
Riley’s lips quirked in a small smile, and that glint Sable grew to like was back in her eyes when she looked up at Sable. “Yes, Sable, I’ll tell you if I need to stop. I can keep my dagger with me, if you’d like?”
Sable snorted. “I don’t think that’ll be necessary.” She paused, tilting her head. “Unless you want to?”
Riley chewed on her lip, presumably to stop a smirk from spreading, then shook her head. “I don’t get off from being in pain. But maybe you do?”
Sable just laughed. “Shut up.” Riley’s lips parted, probably a smart-ass reply ready on her tongue, but Sable’s lips caught her mouth before it could get out. Riley hummed at the intrusion, fingers curling in Sable’s shirt and pulling her closer.
Grabbing the hand she was holding, Sable raised and pinned it to the door above Riley’s head. Her other hand moved to cup the side of Riley’s throat as she deepened the kiss, sighing at the full-body shudder her tongue drew out.
Riley was wound tight, which was to be expected after the battle they’d had at the break of dawn, but there was something else about it, too. Unlike before, Riley wasn’t taking charge–she wasn’t leading this. When Sable pinned her against the door, Riley relaxed. When her thigh slipped between her legs, pressing up against her, Riley let out a soft moan and pulled her closer. When Sable broke the kiss to trail her lips along her neck, Riley tilted her head up, giving her access.
She was turning her brain off, Sable realized through the fog of desire. And she was trusting Sable with it, with a sort of vulnerability she hadn’t shown before. The knowledge made her stomach heat with a steady, burning fire.
By the time Sable pulled back, Riley was breathing heavily, nearly clawing at her shirt as she ground down on her thigh. But Sable felt greedy tonight. She wanted more. After all the blood she spilled, her own body craved this, the sheer carnality of it. She raised her arms to take her shirt off, wincing as the movement pulled at her stitches, but she pushed past it. Even without Haddock’s numbing cream, she wouldn’t let a little gunshot wound get in the way of this. She flung her shirt to the floor and caught Riley’s attentive gaze, the way her throat bobbed as she swallowed at the sight of her, the way her pupils dilated, making her eyes dark with hunger. Besides her bandaged shoulder, Sable was bare, and Riley reached out, pressing her hands against Sable’s toned stomach. The touch was so light it tingled.
Sable grinned. “Like what you see?” she asked, pulling on the slack of Riley’s shirt to draw her from the door.
“Someone’s cocky tonight,” Riley teased, trailing her fingertips up to Sable’s breast. Her nipple stiffened at the light touch. A shiver went through her.
The small touches were exploratory, careful, so different from before. Last time, Riley had just taken her. Hard, fast, andunceremonious, over almost as soon as it began. Something had changed since then.
Sable raised her eyebrows at Riley. “Of course I am, with you looking at me like that. Take your clothes off.”
Riley’s eyes widened at the sudden command. She licked her lips. After a moment’s hesitation, her clothes joined Sable’s shirt on the floor.
Sable held her breath for a moment, taking in the sight, stroking her fingers along the curve of Riley’s hip. “On the bed,” she said. Her voice pitched low, thick with lust. “On your knees, back facing me.”
A longer moment of hesitation now. Was this too far already? Knowing Riley could stop this at any point she wanted, Sable just waited, giving her a moment. Riley’s tension dropped with a forced breath, and she nodded. Sable watched as she got into position, skin prickling with anticipation.
As Riley knelt on the mattress, she glanced at her over her shoulder, something resolute in her expression that did not match the mood Sable was trying to set here.
It took a couple of steps closer to realize why, her next one faltering at the sight. When Riley caught her expression, her head snapped forward, but she didn’t move. She waited.
Old scars ran the length of her back, criss-crossing, more than Sable could count at one glance. Whipping scars.Thatwas why Riley had hesitated. Sable’s fingers clenched into fists, released, clenched again. She forced herself to relax before she approached, silent, and stopped at Riley’s back. Her hands pressed gently against the scarred skin, and Riley jumped at the unexpected touch, but did not move away.
