Page 55 of Into Orbit
Oh, God.
I swallowed again.
‘Maeve,’ the Captain said a moment later, her lips pursed as she tried not to laugh. ‘Stop delaying. Get out of my office.’
I steeled myself. ‘Yep, going. Now, as it turns out.’
‘Now,’ the Captain agreed, and gently took my arm, steering me to the door. ‘Don’t make me rethink my decision. Remember the composting.’
‘Going. Right now. And I won’t forget the composting.’
When I got back to the Forest, it was as if I’d never left. The heartree’s leaves were dull brown, its boughs heavy, and the trees around it were wilting. Ashton stood beneath its branches, his back straight, his chin lifted, but his eyes were heavy with fatigue, and he was wan from sleepless nights and constant worry.
He tensed when he heard me approaching, his hand flying to his holster.
‘Just me, Ash,’ I said softly.
He relaxed. ‘Maeve.’
I looked up at the heartree. ‘Any change?’
He shook his head. ‘She’s holding off further damage to the Forest,’ he said, his tone proud. ‘But she hasn’t come back, either.’
I reached out and stroked the heartree’s trunk. My fingers were trembling, so I spread them over the comforting bark. ‘I need to ask you something, Ash, and I need an honest answer.’
Ashton frowned. ‘Always.’
My throat narrowed; I swallowed. ‘I need to know what you want. Well,whoyou want, really.’ My fingers played restlessly over the heartree’s trunk. ‘And I hope you’re listening, Elswyth, because we all need to be on the same page.’
‘On the same page?’ he repeated, his frown deepening. ‘Maeve –’
‘We need to be honest.Ineed to be honest. Because I want you,’ I said in a rush, looking down at the heartree’s exposed roots, suddenly unable to meet his gaze. ‘I want you, Ash. And I want Willow. And if you only want Elswyth, that’s fine, but I need to know before anything else happens, so that –’
He strode forward and seized my mouth with his.
The kiss was so utterly unexpected that for a moment, I simply froze. Then I came to my senses and kissed him back, my hands cupping his cheeks, my fingers caressing his thorns. He pulled me closer, his arms so tight around me that it felt as if he’d never let go. His kiss was confident, his lips sure, and when his tongue flicked against mine heat sparked the entire way down my spine.
‘Elswyth, beautiful,’ I gasped, leaning on the heartree’s trunk for support when he broke the kiss, ‘this is where I need you to speak now, or forever hold your peace. Or whatever.’
The heartree shivered behind me, its bark a delicious rasp against my back. Its boughs lowered, shielding Ashton and I from the Forest’s cameras.
‘I guess she approves,’ I said, unable to stop my lips curling up. ‘Luckily, the Captain and the Tirian Grove do, too.’
Ashton went utterly still, his eyes closing. When he opened them again, his irises were golden with hope – and something else. He shuddered, then fell to his knees.
A delicious mix of power and lust flooded my body, making me almost light-headed as warmth bloomed between my legs at the sight of him kneeling before me. I took a handful of his lovely mahogany hair and forced him to look up. My fingers were still trembling, but it was for a different reason now. ‘I was looking at this all wrong. I thought it was all about Tessa,’ I said softly. ‘But I just realised it can be both, can’t it? I can find Tessaanda family. I can find my friendandforever.’
‘Forever?’ Ashton growled.
‘If you want me for that long.’
He leaned forward, ignoring the pull of my fingers in his hair, and rested his forehead on my stomach. ‘I’ve wanted you since the moment you punched me in the face.’ His hands came up to grip my hips. ‘I prefer action to words, Maeve, but I will tell you this. It’s not just want. Ineedyou.’
I closed my eyes at his admission; those simple words were better than any song. I stroked the vines of my jumpsuit with my free hand, deciding that actions suited me just fine. ‘Then have me, Ash.’
He gave a rumbling growl as my jumpsuit fell open, baring my breasts and stomach. He reached out and traced a feather-light touch around my belly button, blinking in surprise, but he wasn’t distracted for long. His hand moved up, cupping a breast, his thumb brushing over my nipple until it ached.
‘Pink,’ he said wonderingly.
