Page 377 of Shadowblood Souls
We set aside our guns and earmuffs before meandering back to the waterfall. Griffin turns to me, setting one hand on my waist with his thumb stroking up over the bare skin beneath my tee.
“I— Can I just hold you for a bit?” he murmurs. “I never feel as much like myself as when we’re touching.”
Affection swells inside me so abruptly I lose my breath. “Yeah, of course.”
He lowers his head next to mine again until we’re cheek to cheek, sliding his arm around me so his whole forearm rests against my lower back where my tee has ridden up. His other hand traces along my arm to align them side by side, his fingers loosely cupping my elbow.
His warmth wraps around me, and every inch of my skin tingles with his closeness.
A breath shudders out of him as if he’s found some peace in me that he’s been missing for ages. He hugs me a little tighter.
“I missed you so much. All that time before… I didn’t even know how much I did because I couldn’tfeelit—but it was all there underneath, and now all that pent-up loss is hitting me.”
Tears well behind my eyes. “I missed you too. Every single day.”
“I want to be everything I should have been before. I want to give you what you really needed. I don’t know—I don’t know if I’ll ever be totally back to normal, but I’m going to try.”
I choke up at the rawness of his voice. “I know you are. You’ve already done a lot. We’ve all made mistakes.”
We’ve all had to do things we’d rather not have done in the fight for our freedom. I can’t blame Griffin for the life he meant to take without condemning the rest of us dozens of times over.
Griffin’s fingertips trace a gentle circle on my back. “My moonbeam, lighting the way for me.”
Suddenly the tears that welled up before are flooding my eyes. I blink hard and turn my head to seek out Griffin’s mouth.
Our lips collide with a rush of heated breath. He kisses me tenderly at first and then harder, as if he’s pouring himself into the embrace.
As if he’s offering himself up to me in every way he can, showing me I’ve got all of him.
Desire flares low in my belly. I wrap my arms around him, and he nudges us backward with a stifled groan.
My shoulders press against the rock wall of the hall. The need blazing through me sears away the brief chill of the damp surface.
I force myself to pull back a few inches, to gaze up into Griffin’s face. He stares down at me with a wildness in his expression that I’ve never seen before, here or in the past.
The storm of adoration and hunger in his brilliant eyes unravels me. I’m bringing him back to his old self with every touch, every embrace.
Every brush of skin against skin.
I want more. I want to see every bit of the boy I lost surfacing through the frightening emptiness of the guardians’ torture.
My hand rises to his cheek. My voice comes out in a whisper. “How much would you like to feel right now?”
Griffin wets his lips, the intensity in his gaze only deepening. “Everything I can.”
I reach for the hem of his shirt and tug. Griffin lifts his arms to help me peel it off him, peering at me avidly.
When I reach for my own tee, his chest hitches. “Riva…”
“We won’t give him what he’s looking for,” I say, tipping my head toward one of the bands that circle his upper arms. “There’s so much else we can do.”
For a second, Griffin’s expression shifts with a trace of what might be fear. I hesitate, knowing the awakening of his emotions has come with a heap of pain.
Then he sets his hands over mine, and we strip off my shirt together.
Griffin lets out a low sound from deep in his throat and bows his head to kiss my shoulder. I slip one arm around his leanly muscled back and tangle my fingers in his rumpled hair.
Everywhere our chests touch, bliss sparks. The dark essence twined through my body roars louder than the waterfall.
