Chapter Forty-Four

MONTHS OF STUDYING.

Months of combat drills and training.

Months of endless preparations.

It was all for this moment.

I stood just shy of the crest of the hill that overlooked the Valley of Wisps where tomorrow, the final battle would begin. The battle that would end the war. The battle that would change everything.

Tomorrow our lives will be different .

I only hoped it would be for the better.

I scanned the distant green-and-gold tents set up on the opposite edge of the field with the vast lake separating us. The lives within those canopies would forever change tomorrow, too. I just wished that I could've convinced more Fae to lay aside their hate and grudges in favor of healing, rebuilding, and kindness.

I turned and made my way back down the hill and into the cover of the forest where our own tents were set up. Everyone sat around in small groups, either laughing heartily over potentially one last evening of tales or double-checking their weapons and plans with fellow warriors.

Even my own friends sat around a fire near the tent I shared with Rune, passing around bowls of soup that Jesiah had prepared. Not all of us would be fighting tomorrow. Some Fae, like Marlow and Khalani, had stayed behind in Morardia with all the kids and those who were unable to fight.

Those of us here congregated in a circle, eating and talking, but it wasn't long before couples began to break away for the night. I figured as much as we all wanted to soak up this time together as a group, we were also eager to have this night—potentially the last night—with our partners.

So, with a big day tomorrow, we all turned in early.

Rune and I climbed into our circular tent, which was far taller and thicker than tents I was used to from the human realm. He tied the flaps, shutting us in our own world. Chaos would be waiting for us when we next stepped outside this dimly lit space, but for now, the tent was our little haven for just the two of us.

Our eyes met, and in that moment, it was like our entire story played out before me. The first time I ran into him at the Italian restaurant and found myself staring into the most vivid eyes I'd ever seen. The day I'd unknowingly helped him out of a trap while he traipsed around as a fox. The night we'd danced at the club with chemistry so strong it was nearly tangible. The moment we struck our deal—my dream for his freedom. The times he took me painting. Our first kiss. Our first time. Our lives here in Ambrolia. It was all like a movie, one I wanted to go on forever.

I closed the space between us while holding the tender gaze of my husband. When we were within arms' reach, we grabbed each other. It didn't matter what we touched. We just needed to feel the other. I placed my hands on his broad, firm chest, and he placed his hands on my hips.

Staring up at him, I cracked a smile. "You're my Cinnamon Roll."

Chuckling, he asked, "I'm what?"

I fiddled with the neckline of his tight shirt. "You once asked why I reacted the way I did at the Italian restaurant when Dallas asked if I wanted to get a cinnamon roll." Shortly after our friendship started, he'd let me stay over and served me breakfast. He'd asked why I'd gotten all blushy and embarrassed during that first meeting, and I'd brushed off his question. Now, I explained to him my and Dallas's boy ranking system and finished, "So that's why. It's because you're my Cinnamon Roll. I … I wanted to make sure I got to tell you."

The amused glimmer in his eyes dimmed, and melancholy replaced it.

There was so much we both probably wanted to say, things we wanted to do and experience together, but how could we cram it all into these last hours we had? How could we convey how much we loved one another in the time we might have left?

Rune leaned down, and his lips swept over mine. I leaned in, opening my lips for his tongue to collide with my own. The kiss quickly grew rough and hungry, and before I knew it, I was wet and hot deep at my core with Rune's hard shaft pressing into my abdomen. I kissed him harder, gasping against his mouth as his hands swept up my hips, underneath the fabric of my shirt, and up onto my breasts where he palmed the swells and pinched my beaded nipples.

He quickly yanked the fabric up and over my head so that I stood before him topless, and he let out a low growl as he watched the heavy rising and falling of my chest. He placed his fingertips on my shoulders and shoved me back. I fell and landed on my butt in the center of the tent's blow-up mattress. He stood overtop of me, and his fiery eyes locked on me where I leaned back on my elbows.

"I'll never get tired of seeing your naked body laid out in front of me," Rune said, yanking his shirt off.

"Good thing I like it, too."

He untied his pants and let them fall. His erect dick dripped with desire, and my mouth watered with the need to taste it. Rune smirked, no doubt thinking the same thing, because he grabbed the shaft and ordered, "Suck it."

Not needing to be told twice, I crawled to the edge of the mattress and sat back on my heels. I leaned forward and let the tip of my tongue drag over the pearlescent bead gathered on the head. Rune's cock twitched in his grasp, and a hiss brushed past his lips. The sound sent electricity zipping down my spine and straight to the bundle of nerves in between my legs. It also spurred me to open my mouth wide and suck him deep.

His head fell back, and he wrapped his hands into the blue hair on either side of my head. I bobbed my head back and forth, sucking and rubbing my tongue over the head. I took over holding his cock, and as I swallowed him, I pumped my hand over and over again. Rune groaned and moved his hips on impulse to match each pump of my hand and drag of my mouth, and with just the right pressure and motion, he spilled himself into my mouth.

His dick made a pop sound as it fell free from the suction of my mouth. I barely had time to swallow and lick my lips before Rune got to his knees, pushed me back, and tugged my pants off. I stared down the length of my now naked body at Rune, who held my gaze with a sensual haze. He placed his hands on my knees and slowly opened my legs, trailing his palms up and along my inner thighs until they rested on either side of my pulsing, wet middle.

"I love the way you drip for me," Rune purred. He traced a finger up my seam, starting at the bottom and working his way up through the moisture gathered there, stopping at my sensitive clit.

I let out a breathy gasp as his digit twirled right around the bundle of nerves. "Only for you."

My territorial Fox smirked. "Damn right."

He leaned down, and I watched with hooded eyes as his tongue got to work. Sickly sweet and delicious heat curled around my middle before spreading through my body as his tongue flicked against my clit. He squeezed my inner thighs to hold me in place, and he didn't let up in his worshiping of my pussy.

"Rune," I moaned before biting my lip to keep quiet.

Tents surrounded ours, and while I was pretty sure their occupants were also— ahem —occupied, I didn't want to announce to our army that the two of us were in the middle of foreplay.

He glanced up from between my parted legs, and even with his mouth hidden from my view, the smirk he now wore was unmistakable. "Trying to keep quiet?"

A zip of hot pleasure coursed through me, bringing another soft groan from my lips. "Trying," I finally answered.

He sucked my clit into his mouth as his tongue rubbed against it, and the pure wave of pleasure knocked me onto my back. I pressed into the mattress, arching into his face as his wicked mouth picked up tempo, making the fire build inside of me.

"That's right" Rune encouraged. "Be a good girl and cum for me."

Groaning, I fisted the sheet beneath me and curled my toes as the fire exploded inside me, and my release poured onto Rune's tongue. I dropped the sheet and tried to catch my breath. Rune had other plans. He rolled me over onto my stomach and grabbed my hips to force my backside into the air. With little warning, Rune shoved his cock deep into my pussy, making me bite on the sheet beneath my face to keep from screaming his name.

"Fuck, you feel so good," Rune growled as he pulled out until only the tip remained before slamming into me again.

A jolt of ecstasy traveled along my spine with each rough thrust of Rune behind me. My teeth ached from how hard I clenched them around the sheet, and my muffled moans filled the tent. Each slap of flesh against flesh was followed by a shot of pleasure rippling inside of me. It made me move my hips, pushing back to meet his thrusts. His large length filled me, and the position we were in had him reaching places that made me dizzy.

Another strangled moan got caught in the wad of sheets, and I felt that familiar building heat deep within me as Rune's cock continued to drive. His movements somehow became even faster and harder, which was all I needed to explode in bliss. Seconds later, Rune hissed as he finished, and he took care to pull out gently.

I collapsed where I knelt in a breathless, sweaty, hot mess, and Rune flopped down on his side next to me. He draped an arm over my naked back and placed a kiss on my bare shoulder.

"I love sex," I said in between pants.

He threw his head back in a deep laugh, and when he composed himself, his smile still stretched from ear to ear. "Is that so?"

I nodded, my cheek still pressed into the mattress.

His hand coasted up and down my bare back in feathery light touches. "I have something else for you that I hope you love."

"If it's round two, I need another minute. Limbs are still jelly."

He chuckled as he reached beside the mattress where his clothes were. He dug around for a minute, and when he reappeared next to me, something on his hand caught the light. I zeroed in on it and realized I was staring at a silver band on his finger, and he held a smaller, matching one up for me to see.

I lifted my head off the blankets and raised up onto an elbow. My eyes darted between the bands and Rune's eyes. "Is—Is that …"

"I know we've been doing everything by Fae standards and customs since coming back to Ambrolia, so rings aren't really necessary. But I thought you might like them, especially since you lived as a human for so long."

Feeling a flutter break free in my chest, I sat all the way up, bringing the sheet with me to cover myself. Biting my lip to fight the smile that wanted to consume my face, I asked, "When did you get those?"

"I made different trips to a Silver Fae, and he made them for me." He held the band out for me and said, "Read the inscription inside."

I took the ring from him and peered at the intricately written words on the inside of the band.

Until the waves cease their tide and the flames burn out—forever with you

My throat clogged with affection.

"Mine says the same thing," he stated, holding up his left hand to show off the ring. He took the band back from me, grabbed my hand, and slipped it onto my finger.

It was a perfect fit. I stared down at the simple, beautiful ring, and profound love for the man in front of me filled me to the brim. The two of us had faced so much together, worked through countless obstacles, and overcome numerous odds. We were two people who never should've worked, but we did because what we shared was irreplaceable.

Rune encouraged me to be my best self, even when doubt weighed me down.

I pushed Rune to be honest and reach for his happiness, even if fear tried to hold him back.

We provided comfort, support, and love in life's saddest moments, reminding the other that we didn't have to face the darkness alone. He'd be the flame to light my way when I was lost, and I'd be the wave that carried him back to shore during even the hardest of storms. No matter the trials we faced, no matter the odds stacked against us, he and I would always fight for the love we'd grown.

I leaned forward and let go of the sheet I clutched to my chest. I wrapped my hands into his hair and guided him down to place a soft kiss to his lips. Pulling back to rest my forehead against his, I whispered, "I love you so much, Rune."

"I feel like love doesn't do justice to what I feel for you." He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and let his hand rest on my jaw, his thumb brushing across my skin. "I burn for you. I fight for you. I breathe for you. All that I am, I am for you. You changed me that day you stumbled upon me by the creek. Neither of us knew it then, but my life became yours that day. You saved me, in more ways than one, and I will never, ever stop loving you."

My eyes closed with the threat of tears. It was a confession I'd replay up until my last moments, and it was also the confession that reminded me how close that moment could be.

This could be my last night with Rune.

My last night to stare into the amber eyes that promised laughter, pleasure, adventure, and devotion.

My last night in the arms that provided safety, comfort, warmth, and a sense of belonging.

My last night of kissing, talking, and loving this man who'd become my best friend and husband.

My Fox.

So, I refused to spend the remainder of the night in tears. Instead, I pushed him onto his back, plastered my lips to his, and sank onto his still ready shaft. We explored every inch of each other, recounted gleeful stories, easy times, held each other close, and spent every moment in each other's embrace until sleep finally claimed us.

And then came dawn.