“Can a male be beautiful, too?” she asked when her eyes settled on my face again. “Because that’s what you are.”
I leaned over her, bracing my arms on either side of her head.
“I’ll be whatever you want,” I murmured as she pulled me down for another searing kiss.
Mine, Solmi, mine, my Mori chanted impatiently as my mouth left hers, and I began a slow, thorough exploration of her body. I took my time, learning every curve and hollow, and reveling in each breathy moan I drew from her. I could have spent hours just adoring her and bringing her pleasure.
“Chris,” she said thickly.
I looked up to see tears shimmering in her eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m so happy.”
I gave her a wicked little smile. “And I plan to make you happy every night for the rest of our lives.”
She laughed and wiped her eyes. “As long as I can make you happy, too.”
“I don’t think that will be a problem.” I shifted my body, and desire flared in her eyes again.
“Chris,” she whispered.
“Yes, Dove?”
“My Mori is going crazy. Is that normal?”
“Mine, too. They’ll calm down soon.”
I settled my body over hers and lowered my head to trail kisses over her face. When my mouth covered hers again, she responded with a hunger that rivaled my own. Her eyes locked with mine as I made love to her, and I knew that no matter how long I lived, I’d never see anything as beautiful as she was in the moment our Mori joined forever.
It was sometime in the wee hours of the morning when we finally curled up together under the covers, sated and content. Beth lay with her back to my chest and her head on my arm. Her fingers toyed with my hand that lay against her stomach.
“Can’t sleep?” I asked her.
“I can’t stop thinking. I keep expecting to wake up and find out this was all a dream.”
I nipped her bare shoulder with my teeth, and she sucked in a sharp breath. “Does that feel like a dream?” I asked, pressing my lips to her soft skin.
She rolled over to face me, her hair falling over her shoulder in wild disarray and her face still glowing from hours of lovemaking. My body stirred again, and I knew I’d never get enough of her.
She gave me a sexy little smile as her hand traveled down my chest and stomach, eliciting a growl from me.
“No, this feels very real,” she murmured.
“You’re insatiable.”
Her lips grazed my jaw. “And you’re mine.”
I lowered my head enough for our lips to meet. “Say it again.”
“You. Are. Mine.” She punctuated each word with a kiss. Then she pushed me onto my back and rose up on one elbow.
I think I’m a little possessive about you, too.
I grinned and pulled her mouth down to mine.
I’m all yours.
Epilogue
Beth
One year later
“How much you want to bet she runs him down before this is over?”
I laughed and elbowed Chris in the side. “That’s not nice. And she’s doing much better than yesterday.”
“Ow! I’m just calling it as I see it.”
“You’re terrible. And you’re going to lose because he’s too fast to get run over.”
I turned my gaze back to Sara, who was slowly navigating the long driveway on her new Ducati Monster. Nikolas had bought her the smaller, lightweight model months ago, but he hadn’t wanted to risk teaching her to ride in the city. He’d had it shipped home to Westhorne for when they finished up in New York. Sara was eager to learn to ride, but I didn’t think Nikolas was enjoying it as much. He was beside her the second the bike wobbled even a tiny bit. I had to admit, it was fun to watch the two of them.
Chris moved behind me and tugged me back against him. Trapping me in the circle of his arms, he nuzzled my neck beneath my ear, making it hard to pay attention to anything but him.
“What do I get when I win?” he asked against my ear.
“Um…”
For a moment, I completely forgot what I wanted to say. It amazed me that he could still render me speechless after a year together.
“No fair. You know I can’t think when you do that.”
His husky laugh made my knees weak.
“Okay. If I win, you have to polish all my weapons tonight.”
I shrugged. Polishing blades was easy enough.
“And if I win, you can wash the Harley.”
“Deal.” He nipped at my ear lobe. Did I mention, there are no clothes allowed?
I rolled my eyes. You have a one-track mind.
A shout and a string of Russian pulled us from our little bubble. I looked for our friends and found Nikolas rubbing his shin and wearing a pained expression. Sara was beside him on her bike, and her words carried to us.
“Sorry! Did that hurt?”
Laughter rumbled from Chris’s chest, and I couldn’t help but join in. Our mirth earned us a dark look from Nikolas, which only made us laugh harder.
When I’d first met Nikolas, that scowl would have made me want to run and hide. After a year working and living with him and Sara, he was more like a big brother than the legendary warrior who used to intimidate the crap out of me.
Chris and I had gone back to California after two amazing weeks in Newfoundland, but only to pack our things. Los Angeles didn’t hold the same appeal for me anymore, so we’d talked about it and decided to join Sara and Nikolas in New York. Nikolas had been glad for our help with the new command center, and the four of us had quickly become a tight-knit group.
I still saw Mason, although not as much as I would like. After Raoul took over the Los Angeles command center, Mason had decided to stay there. He loved the beach, and he got lots of fighting action once things went back to normal after the Lilin died. His and Brock’s bromance was still going strong, and the two of them were planning a trip to Hawaii to catch some “real waves.”
“Whenever you’re ready to polish my weapons, let me know,” Chris said suggestively.
“Is that what we’re calling it now?”
I grinned at Jordan as she strolled toward us. I missed having her around all the time. She had spent Christmas with us in New York, but she’d told me she was a California girl at heart. She thrived on the nightlife and the fighting, and every week we heard a new story about her latest escapade. She was quickly building a reputation as a bit of a hellion, to our amusement and to the dismay of the Council. People were calling her a female Nikolas, and it was a title she wore with pride.
“Beth just lost a little wager we had,” Chris informed her smugly.
“Technically, I didn’t lose. You said Sara would run him down. He’s still standing.”
Jordan snorted. “Does Nikolas know you guys are taking bets on his life now?”
Chris let me go and held up his hands.
“Hey, he knew what he was getting into when he said he wanted to teach Sara to drive a motorcycle.”
“I heard that,” Sara called as she and Nikolas headed in our direction.
They didn’t get very far before two huge black, furry beasts came bounding across the grounds toward them. Sara handed her helmet to Nikolas and went to hug her hounds. Her hellhounds. She talked about Hugo and Woolf all the time, but even after being at Westhorne for three days, I was still getting used to seeing them in the flesh.
Sara used her sleeve to wipe slobber from her face.
“All right. Go find Niall, and see if he needs help on patrol.”
The hellhounds panted excitedly and took off into the woods. I could only imagine the look on Niall’s face when those two brutes came after him.
Sara saw us watching her, and she shrugged. “He shouldn’t have made fun of my driving yesterday if he didn’t want retribution.”
Chris chuckled. “I remember when you were such a sweet girl.”
“When was that?” Nikolas deadpanned.
Sara punched him in the arm, and everyone laughed.
“Now that the driving lesson is over for today, let’s talk about going to Boise tonight,” Jordan said.
Sara groaned. “You don’t get enough clubbing in Los Angeles?”