Page 71 of Brood
Will feels the same way. I know it. I can sense it in the urgency of his embrace.
It gives me the courage to say, “Will?”
He draws back. Meets my eyes again. “Yes, love?”
I gulp at the endearment. He’s only occasionally called me that, and it’s always wrapped my heart in an embrace. “I thought… I mean, I wanted to say something. I hope it’s okay.”
“You can tell me anything. You know you can.” He’s reached over to cup my face in one of his hands. He’s been nearly as exhausted as I’ve been for the almost six months of Bun’s life, but he’s wide awake now.
All the way awake. And excited.
“When we…when they told me we were going to marry, I wasn’t happy. And I know you weren’t either. But now…getting to be your spouse, it’s the best thing to ever happen to me.”
Will makes a guttural sound. His fingers spasm briefly against my face.
“It is. I know we’re supposed to deal with our marriages in the same impersonal way we’re supposed to do everything else, but that doesn’t feel natural to me. Not any more natural than not being a mother to Bun. I never would have made it through this past year without you. Despite everything that’s been so hard, I’ve also never been so…so happy. And I wanted to tell you. Just so you know.”
He grabs me. Pulls me into a tight hug. His entire body is shuddering with an energy I don’t understand.
“Cadence, love, I feel the same way,” he rasps out against my hair.
We hug for another long time before we pull away, both of us kind of sheepish.
Will says, “I did care about Vanessa. I hated that she died—and it was even worse once I found out that they killed her—but my marriage with her was what it was supposed to be. Companionable. About responsibility and cooperation. I’m not trying to dismiss anything about her; she was important to me, and she never should have died. But I’ve never felt like this before. I’ve never felt…alive.”
“Me neither. Me neither.”
“And I understand now why they’ve tried so hard to discourage anyone from feeling anything like this. Because I swear, I could rip a hole in the ceiling of this bunker and mow down hundreds of guards for you. You and Bun. To keep both of you safe and happy.”
I’m laughing and crying at the same time. “You mean it?”
“I do. And that’s why I know for sure that we’re going to get out of here. All of us. And we’re going to be safe. Because I already experienced a miracle the day you came into my life. And now every other miracle in the world is possible too.”
ChapterTen
Will’s face is between my legs. His tongue works my clit, and his beard scratches my sensitive skin deliciously. My legs are hooked over his shoulders, so my heels dig into his back.
I’m trying my best to keep quiet, but I can’t.
I really can’t.
I woke up early and got up to go to the bathroom, since my bladder is as nervous as the rest of me about today. My attempts to get up quietly failed because Will was awake when I returned to bed. As soon as I got under the covers, he climbed on top of me and started kissing me hungrily.
It’s still dark in the room. It can’t be much after four. But I love when he’s in this soft, passionate mood, so despite my nerves, I responded enthusiastically.
That has led us here. Will’s head between my thighs while I clutch at his hair and sob loudly through my third orgasm of the morning.
He’s pleased when he finally lifts his head. My eyes have adjusted, so his wolfish grin is faintly visible.
“I’m pretty good at that, aren’t I?” I ask, reaching down to pull him farther up my body.
He laughs softly as he settles on top of me. “Yes. You, my love, are an excellent orgasmer.”
I caress his face and his messy beard, ignoring the fact that it’s damp around his mouth. “And you aren’t too bad at that either.”
“Orgasming?”
“Well, yes. But also giving them. You’ve developed a few skills over the years.”
