I had to resist the urge to jump him, suddenly realizing it had been over a month since I had sex. No jumping the Kitsune shifter, Crim. That's not very human-like of you.
I shuffled over and grabbed the blanket at my feet, pulling it over my legs and waited for Aki to get situated before I covered him too. He grinned and pulled me into his arms.
"I have one more question," I announced.
"What is it?"
"Are Kitsune ears sensitive? Like when people touch them. I heard somewhere that Kitsune ears and tails were super sensitive," I revealed.
Aki didn't say anything but I noticed the slight tinge of red in his cheeks. I grinned.
"So it's true?" I pressed.
"Depends," he mumbled.
"Next time, can I touch them?" I purred softly.
He blushed at my sultry tone and glanced away. "I'll think about it," he muttered which made me giggle.
"Fine," I replied, laying my head on his chest.
"Crim?"
"Hmmm?"
"Can I have one more kiss? Like...a goodnight kiss?" he asked shyly.
I smiled against his bare chest, lifting my head. "You have permission to kiss me whenever you like," I reassured him.
A wide grin formed on his lips and he slowly lowered them onto mine. The kiss began slow, but within seconds it deepened and I let out a low moan.
We kissed for what felt like minutes before we pulled apart, both of us panting heavily.
"I think we should call it a night or we’ll end up doing more than just kissing," Aki admitted in a husky voice.
I licked my lower lip and stared into his hooded eyes. "As long as you promise we'll do more when the opportunity arises."
"I promise. When I can have you all to myself." He grinned at the thought.
"Can't wait." I smiled, giving him a peck on his lips and resting my head back on his chest. I enjoyed listening to his rapidly beating heart that slowly began to calm.
I admired these men and knew I was slowly falling in love with them. Some feelings were stronger with some than with others. But I knew it was only a matter of time till I learned more about all of them and reached the level of love Storm had held for them.
I knew one thing was for sure. When that time came, I'd love them unconditionally and knew I'd be loved by them in return.
I never loved you.
She's better than you. Stronger, lovable, she's the whole package.
No hard feelings, right?
James voice continued to echo in my mind as I looked up at the sky. I was dying. I knew I was. It was cold. Oh so cold. But no one would find me. No one would discover my body until it was too late.
I'd die alone...just as I'd always been alone in this cruel world. Instead of accepting it, the thought of dying made me angry. I deserved to live; I finally had people who loved me...who cared.
Why?
It wasn’t fair.
Life wasn’t fair...
"Crimson, wake up."
I squeezed my eyes even tighter, mumbling something about being cold. Now that I thought about it, I was freezing. I shivered, wishing I could find the blanket without opening my eyes. Familiar arms encircled me, pulling me into a warm embrace.
I snuggled into the comfortable heat that was already beginning to help fight off the chill that clung to me. I’d had another dream with me being in the snow. And why was James’ voice in it? He's not in my life anymore. He's not important to me. Why does it matter?
"Crimson?" Aki's worried voice whispered in my ear.
I didn't like the concern I heard in his hushed tone. It was the only reason why I opened my eyes. I meet his gaze and stared in confusion. "What?" I mumbled.
"You okay?" Aki asked, looking just as confused as I felt.
"I'm cold." I shivered as I spoke.
Aki frowned, glancing at the blanket covering both of us. It must have been broken or something ‘cause it wasn't doing its job of keeping me warm.
Aki nodded and reached up to remove the ribbon from his hair. His long orange and yellow locks fell graciously from their hold and began to emit a light glow. His tails appeared and wrapped around me and his ears materialized.
I sighed as his warmth enveloped me, giving him a relieved smiled.
"Better?" he inquired.
"Much better. Thank you."
We both relaxed, listening to the muffled sounds of cars passing by outside. It must have been daytime by now, but my dark navy blue curtains did wonders at blocking out the sunlight.
"Did you have another dream? Or was it a memory?" Aki’s tone was gentle and inviting which helped soothed my anxiety.
"I keep dreaming about being in a snowy area. Maybe a blizzard of some sort. It's super cold and I don't know how to get out. That and...hmm? I keep forgetting. It's something important," I grumbled the last part, feeling frustrated that since getting attacked, I couldn’t remember for the life of me what it was.
"Don't force it. It'll come," Aki reassured me.
"What if by the time I remember, it's too late?" That was what I was afraid of. My gut told me it was important, but I couldn't recall what it was. A dream? A memory?
"You'll remember when you need to. Your instincts will kick in and whatever you forgot will come back. Stressing about it will only push it further away in your mind," Aki explained.
"Hmm. Guess that makes sense. Okay."
Aki did have a point. If I just relaxed and stopped worrying about it, it would probably come back when I needed it to.
"You warm now?" Aki asked.
"Yes. Thank you." I smiled up at him. He grinned and within a blink of an eye, his lips were on mine.
I heard the door creak open, but continued to kiss Aki, thinking Uru was probably sneaking out of the room like she usually did during the day. I paused when I heard a low chuckle.
"And I thought you two were sleeping in," Yoshi spoke up.
I broke the kiss to look over at him; he wore a smirk as he eyed us.
"Uh..." I glanced at Aki who didn't look bothered by the interruption.
He yawned and his ears twitched. "Morning kisses are nice," he sang dramatically while his tails unwrapped themselves from around me and began to wave back and forth. I knew without a doubt Aki was damn happy right now.
Yoshi walked over to us and I turned my head to stare up at him just in time for his lips to softly touch mine. I blinked and my face burned from the bold, but very welcome action. He tasted like maple syrup which piqued my interest.
He pulled away and grinned at Aki. "You're right. Morning kisses are nice," he stated proudly before turning his attention back to me. "Morning, Crim. How are you feeling?"
"Good?" I squeaked, completely stunned by what just happened.
"Good morning to you too," Aki grumbled.
"You got to kiss her first. I'll acknowledge your presence later," Yoshi teased, crossing his arms.
Aki mumbled something under his breath, but didn't argue.
Yoshi smirked, "Morning, Akihiro."
"Morning," Aki responded reluctantly.
It amused me to see Aki getting all upset over not getting morning greetings, not because of Yoshi kissing me. I was still wrapping my mind around the new development.
I saw a hint of annoyance on Aki’s face which made him not in the least bit scary, but somehow even cuter with his ears that twitched again. I reached out to touch them, but he leaned back.
"No," he mumbled.
I giggled. "Just a poke?"
"No, Yoshi's here," Aki urged.
"I can leave. But it would be rather interesting if I stayed," Yoshi considered with a wide grin.
"You're a bad influence. Why are you here? And you kissed Crim without asking," Aki grumbled.
Yoshi frowned, turning to me. "Crim. My bad, I should have asked," he admitted sheepishly.
I shook my head quickly. "No, it's okay. I liked it... I MEAN… uh... ugh!" I gave up, moving off Aki and pulling the blanket over my head. Embarrassing!
I heard both guys chuckle.
"C'mon, Crim. Don't be embarrassed," Aki encouraged.
"She's really cute when she's embarrassed though," Yoshi admitted.
"True," Aki agreed, and I grinned at their little exchange.