“We don’t need to fix the entire world tomorrow,” Grae whispered, brushing his lips against mine. “You don’t need to control every flame. Tomorrow is the spark that will set it all ablaze.”
My lips crashed into his, needing the comfort of his promise. His tongue met mine as he rumbled a pleasurable hum. The rush of panic morphed into the rush of desire. I would set it all ablaze.
His hands found my ass and hoisted me up. I hooked my legs around his hips as he pinned me back against the wall. My chest heaved against his, wanton desire burning through me.
My lips found his ear as my hand slid down his torso. “I need you inside me. Now.”
He growled against my mouth, spinning me and dropping me onto the worktable. I chuckled at the fervor with which he untied my tunic. I gripped the edge of the table as he yanked my trousers so he didn’t pull me off with them. His eyes filled with predatory heat as he scrambled to free himself and stepped back toward me. I dropped to the floor, spinning around to grab the far edge of the table, ready for him. A feral snarl escaped him as he watched me spread my legs. He prowled forward, gripping my hip and lining himself up.
He thrust inside me, filling me to the hilt, and I gasped as the sensation sent bolts of desire shooting throughout my body. He moaned, pulling out and thrusting in again. I held the table tighter, the rickety wood thudding with each wild pump. He reached around, his fingers finding my throbbing clit and circling it as he drove deep into me. Everything else faded to the recesses of my mind as my body homed in on that feeling building between my legs, unable to tell where he ended and I began. I pressed my cheek against the table, groaning at the crazed rhythm of him moving inside me.
The sound snapped his leash and Grae pulled out of me, spinning me around and lifting my ass onto the worktable. His hands hooked behind my knees and he yanked me toward him. I wrapped my hand around his cock and guided him back to my entrance. His fingers gripped my chin, making me look him in the eyes as he slowly pushed back into me. My mouth dropped open further with every inch as I watched his pupils dilate until only the tiniest rim of dark brown ringed the inky black.
“Whatever happens tomorrow,” he breathed, his voice rough with desire as he filled me, “whether we have a hundred years or one more day—we will face this world together.”
“Yes.”
He slowly inched out of me and rolled his hips in taunting thrusts. My eyelids grew heavy as my head dropped back. I tipped my hips, finding the perfect angle. His fingertips dug into my ass as he picked up the pace. Each thrust pushed me higher, his throaty groans making my skin ripple with gooseflesh and flooding my core.
I dug my heels into his hard backside, making him pump harder, needing him to fuck away every anxious thought. He pushed me down, so I lay across the table, one hand gripping the far edge as the other held my ass in place. His hard, rapid thrusts made the whole table rattle as my moans grew more desperate. My fingers clawed down his arms as he pushed me higher still, his hands digging into my flesh as he struggled to hang on. He pounded into me, again and again, hitting that spot that made my eyes roll back. With a final scream, my body spasmed, clenching around his cock as pleasure flowed through me in crashing waves. Grae growled my name, battling my tight channel as he tipped over the edge, his jerky thrusts ringing out my final rolling waves of ecstasy. My muscles flickered and my skin tingled as if I was being pricked with a thousand tiny raindrops.
The stars slowly faded from my vision as Grae collapsed on top of me.
“That may be my favorite way to calm the mind.” I chuckled, a satisfied smile pulling on my lips.
He laughed, kissing my sweaty temple. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” I traced his jawline and he turned his lips into my palm. “And whether we have a hundred years or one more day, that will never change.”
My mischievous laugh lifted above the clamor. I squeezed Grae’s hand as he led me back through the bustling markets. “I can’t believe we just did that.”
We surveyed the markets, searching for the traveling musicians, but Galen den’ Mora had still not arrived. The space was crowded now. Afternoon travelers filled the rows, many heading downhill toward the boats to be ferried across the lake. My stomach tightened again, the moment of reprieve from my panic wiped away by the sight of the revelers.
They were celebrating Sawyn’s victory.
I told myself it was only because they felt compelled to attend, or they needed the food and coin that surely would be abundant at the festivities. But what if they were dancing and cheering over the demise of my sister just because they wanted to?
“As soon as this is over.” Grae wiped a stray lock of hair off his sweat-stained brow, still carefree in the aftermath of our stolen moment. “We are finding a room with a gloriously big bed.” His chest puffed up with wolflike pride.
“A bed?” I flashed him a cheeky smirk. “That would be new.”
Grae stopped so suddenly I almost crashed into his back. I craned my neck around him to see the merchant from earlier speaking to a Rook. My heart dropped into my boots as I spotted the merchant holding a rectangle of yellowing paper—Grae’s Wanted poster. His head lifted and his eyes bugged wide as he saw us and pointed.
“Shit,” we cursed in unison.
As Rooks swarmed the streets, we whirled and ran. We bolted down the rows of tables, fleeing under hanging walls of fabric and tipping baskets of produce. Shouts rang out behind us. We stumbled out onto the road and the Rooks converged from every side, corralling us toward the high red stone walls of the market.
I grabbed a reed out of a toppled merchant’s basket and swung it into the first Rook. He lashed out with his scythe, hooking the reed and snapping it in half. His arm swung wide, though, opening up his body. It was careless and lazy, his fighting skills clearly not sharpened over many years. Had Sawyn just given them weapons and uniforms, and left them to their own devices? Perhaps these were new recruits. Perhaps she thought the fear of seeing a pack of Rooks alone would keep people in line.
My attacker tried to repeat the same move, and I let him, knowing his back swing would move his scythe far out of range. I waited until he was wide open again and then took a step into him, stabbing the snapped reed straight through his throat.
He let out a wet, sickening gasp. I didn’t even flinch, my mind already thinking of the next Rook to my right. I knew it would churn in my mind later. Later. First, I had to survive.