26. Nixon

Chapter twenty-six

Nixon

D espite Ada’s preface of what to expect, I’m still shocked when we all walk out into the cool, glowing water and the murkiness dissipates within seconds. The water is still strangely luminous, but now, instead of seeing the overhanging trees and foliage reflected back at us, I see the reflection of the moon and our three bodies. And connected to us is an unmistakable tether, thicker than a string but not quite like a rope either.

I stare, transfixed, tempted to wave my hand in the space where Arit’s tether connects him to Ada. For some reason, seeing that cable connecting Arit to his purpose brings tears to my eyes. My beautiful man has been a slave to that tether for longer than I can fathom. I yearn to free him. To give him a new purpose that doesn’t require him to serve anyone except himself.

Arit squeezes my hand, and when I meet his gaze, his expression is both sorrowful and filled with hope. Longing replaces compliance. Desire replaces loneliness. And overpowering everything is love. His fierce love for me shines as bright as the moon and stars above and the ethereal water below. I can feel his energy surging just under his skin. He’s anxious and excited and can’t wait to feel me too.

“Are you ready?” Ada asks, looking between us for confirmation.

“I was ready when Nixon’s soul was created,” Arit replies, making me want to swoon and roll my eyes at the same time.

“You could have just said yes,” I add. “How am I supposed to top that?”

Arit grins at me. “Sorry not sorry. I’ve been waiting for you for four thousand, two hundred, and forty-two lifetimes. I think I’m allowed to win this one.”

I huff out a laugh and have to hold myself back from throwing my arms around him. That doesn’t stop me from sending him a hug in my mind though. Arit’s smile softens, and I turn to face Ada again. “Yes, I’d say we’re both ready,” I confirm.

Ada’s own smile is one of genuine pleasure, like she’s truly happy for us and can’t wait to see what our future holds. She reaches into the water and grabs Arit’s tether. “Then I’m thrilled to have the honor of joining your souls, once and for all, until you part this realm and enter the next. Together forever in peace.” She closes her eyes, mutters something under her breath, and Arit gasps.

When I look over, Arit’s eyes are huge, and he’s clutching his chest, breathing shallowly as he follows Ada’s every move. Under the water, she hands me Arit’s tether, only the cable-like rope I noticed before is gone, and in its place is a softly coiling thread, reaching and yearning, wrapping itself around my hand and wrist, straining to get closer as its silky filaments undulate over my skin.

I’m speechless. It’s like I’ve never in my life felt anything as soft, as welcoming, or as tender as Arit’s life bond. No longer is he bound by duty. He’s choosing to join with me, his thread strong as it reaches out to wind itself around my leg. Only, it doesn’t stop there. Coiling upward, Arit’s new thread makes its way under my shirt, wrapping around my torso before stopping over my heart.

We both gasp this time, not in pain but in awe. I can’t see what’s happening because of my shirt, but the end of Arit’s thread has grown roots, and those roots are now burrowing into my chest, slithering outward toward my arms and legs, as well as winding themselves around my heart.

Don’t ask me how, but I can sense a question pulsing through the filaments as they seek out every nook and cranny of my body. And without saying a thing, my soul answers for me, gently, willingly, tenderly splitting down the middle and sending itself outward, where it’s absorbed and accepted by Arit’s life bond.

I hear him gasp again, and when I look up, lost as I was by what was happening to me, I see tears in Arit’s crystal-clear eyes, which are now sporting a brown ring around the irises. Knowing how long my man has been waiting for this moment, I ignore the rest of my inner goings-on and step forward to take Arit into my arms.

“Thank you,” he breathes, and his chest hitches. I feel a resounding sense of gratitude and bone-deep happiness expel like a sigh from within. I respond to his inner self-expression by sending back my own. Love, joy, excitement, peace, desire—it all comes pouring out, and Arit laughs, holding me tighter and picking me up to spin us in a splashing circle. His joy is radiant and pulsing, a living, tangible thing.

When he sets me back on my feet and takes my face in his hands, tears are flowing freely down his cheeks. “I’m human,” he says, awe and reverence clear in his tone. “I’m human and I’m free. And it’s all because of you.” Then he kisses me like I’ve never been kissed before.

Salty tears mingle with an unfamiliar taste, like sugar and spice but laced with passion, and I realize with a start that Arit finally is human. For as long as I’ve known him, Arit has never had an odor, never had a taste, only his cum being sweetly addictive. But as he pulls back and stares at me in awe, I know he can taste me too.

“Holy shit,” he whispers, and that makes me laugh because that’s the most human thing he’s ever said.

“Good?” I ask, a tease I accompany with my nibbling lip.

Arit’s cock bucks against me in response. “I can taste you,” he says. “The first thing I’ve ever tasted.”

Well, that makes me wish I’d packed my toothbrush, but Arit doesn’t seem to mind. “You taste pretty good too. I’ve always thought it was odd that you never had a taste or scent.”

“And I do now?” he asks eagerly, like my answer will confirm his humanity.

With an indulgent smile, I dip my head and burrow my nose into his neck, snuffling around like a bloodhound. Arit laughs and squirms away, a sudden shriek of disbelief escaping his mouth.

“What?” I ask, already knowing it’s nothing bad.

“Your beard. I’m ticklish.” The wonder in his voice makes my heart expand even more for my newly fragile boyfriend.

“Then I’ll be careful with you until I can use that to my advantage.” I shoot him a wink.

Arit’s smile seems like it will never dim. “I can’t wait.”

After several long seconds of simply staring at each other and smiling like two lovestruck fools, Arit finally turns his attention to Ada, who has been silently giving us our space. “Thank you,” he says earnestly, and Ada dips her head respectfully.

“My pleasure,” she replies. “After all your years of service, I only wish you could have had this sooner.”

Arit looks back at me, his wonder and joy shining from his eyes. “I don’t. This is exactly how our story was supposed to go. You and me, together forever.”

And I swear I feel his life bond give my soul a squeeze. I take his hand in mine, needing to get Arit alone, and look back at Ada. She dips her head in that same considerate manner, her radiant warmth and friendly personage making her the perfect Fate Mother. I send her a grateful smile, squeeze Arit’s hand, and led him back out of the pool.

Neither of us speak as we carefully make our way back to our hut, the only light to guide us being that of tonight’s ethereal moon. Without Arit’s superior senses and surefootedness, I do manage to stumble once or twice, but he does too, and every time it makes him laugh.

With matching smiles, we ascend our small porch and enter our temporary home.

We stand there, bathed in the partial moonlight of the open front door, and the only thing I can think to say, the one thought running on a loop in my head, is “I love you.”

Arit cups my cheek, his thumb tracing over the trimmed edge of my beard, and says, “I love you too. Forevermore.”

We meet in the middle, both of us leaning in at the same time, and this kiss is even better than our first. Now, we take our time, making the kiss slow and sweet, in no rush to hurry to the finish. Tender sweeps of our tongues against each other set off a slow ember of need that I know will only grow. As Arit holds the back of my head, I wrap my arms around his neck, keeping him as close as I possibly can, breathing him in and tilting my head to get better access.

Arit gives everything he has and more, using his free hand to hold my side, pulling me against him and pressing his erection against me. By some unspoken signal, we break our kiss and immediately pull our shirts over our heads, too eager to get back to each other to fiddle with buttons. The moan that escapes Arit’s throat when we’re skin to skin ratchets my need even higher.

“You feel incredible,” Arit murmurs, moving his attention to my neck and ear. “You always felt good, exactly the right shape and size, the perfect fit to hold in my arms, but now, you’re even better. Warm, strong, with this musky sweetness, you’re”—he licks a strip up my neck—“irresistible. I’m going to taste every single part of you.” Then he nibbles my earlobe, sending a shiver down my spine.

I’m putty in this man’s arms.

Together, we make our way to the bed, uncaring of the open door, and shed the rest of our clothes. Arit stands next to me, completely naked, but the only thing he seems to notice is me.

“You’re so beautiful, my Nixy love. Creamy skin, freckles, this dusting of amber hair.” He reaches out and rubs his palms over my chest. “You’re sweet and fiery, and I can’t believe you’re mine. That after all these years we’re finally together.”

Reaching out, I copy my man’s move and place my hands on Arit’s chest, right over his heart. The usual hum and low-level vibration I’m accustomed to feeling from Arit’s life force is gone, but in its place is now the strong and unmistakable rhythm of his steadily beating heart. I close my eyes to soak in the sensation. Incredible is too mundane a word to describe everything that’s happened between us, to us, for us. Miracle comes close, but even then I know it has more to do with Fate. This is how our lives were always meant to be.

I lean in and gently place a kiss on his chest. Arit cups the back of my head, and I look up, knowing how much this means to him too. His eyes are intense, not only with emotion but with lust and love as well.

“Make love to me,” he says, his voice low and gravelly. “I need to feel you. All of you.”

“I know.” And when our lips meet again, we barely come up for air.

Arit follows me down to the bed, our lips never breaking contact, and when he drapes his body over mine, all hard and perfect, we both groan at the feeling. “That’s it, babe. I love the way you feel on me,” I say. Arit breaks our kiss and buries his face in my neck, breathing with me as I run my hands up and down his muscular back. “You feel so good.”

Pressing one more kiss to my neck, Arit pushes up, looking down at me as he holds his upper body away from mine. He doesn’t say anything, but everything he’s feeling and thinking is clear in his eyes. And thankfully, I can hear him. At least we didn’t lose our mental link when Arit transitioned.

Without saying a word, I know Arit is overwhelmed. He’s feeling too many things to give voice to, but aside from love, which is sitting at the forefront of his thoughts, he’s so profoundly grateful—to be here, to be with me, to be human. And he wants more than anything to connect with me on every level.

I stare right back, resting my hands on Arit’s hips and letting him see that I feel exactly the same way. The moment is intense in its own way, not sexually motivated, but brought to life by our mutual desire for each other. A desire that encompasses more than just the physical.

But the way Arit’s cock is digging into my thigh is also making me long for the physical part of this union to take a front seat.

Arit reads me perfectly, a sexy little smirk tugging his lips as his eyes turn molten. He repositions himself and rolls his hips, his cock rubbing decadently alongside mine. I stare at him, trying to keep my eyes open as he does that again, repeating his languid thrusts as I map his hips and ass with my hands.

The way his gorgeous hair falls over his face, dark against his brilliant, liquid eyes, his kiss-swollen lips, and his panted breaths, he’s like the perfect Adonis, made just for me. And as I brush my fingertips over his crease, Arit stills, his eyes fixed on mine.

“Do it again,” he rasps, so of course I comply. This time I make no move to hide my actions, dipping in farther and repeating the move until I brush over his hole. Arit sucks in a breath, a shudder working its way through his body. “Sensitive.”

“I know. Feels really good during rimming.” A flash of Arit doing that to me passes through his mind, but it’s quickly replaced by me doing that to him. I smile and tease his hole again, sending him a mental image of us being able to do this whenever we want from now on. He grins wickedly, rolls his hips one more time, and then lowers himself down, only to wrap his arms around me and suddenly flip us both over.

I give a mental fist pump that I now have control and take full advantage, spending long minutes peppering kisses to Arit’s neck, his chest, and downward to his abs. I give his cock a few leisurely strokes with my hand, cupping his balls and tugging them gently. With Arit splayed out for my perusal, I look my fill, enjoying his panted breaths, the way he grips the sheets, and the way his cock bucks in my hand. I press a kiss to the tip of his cock. “Knees up to your chest,” I say, and I’m rewarded with a bead of precum that wells at his tip.

Holding Arit’s gaze, I lower my head and lap at his cockhead, closing my eyes as I savor his flavor. That same honeyed nectar is still there, and I know without a doubt, I’m going to spend my life on my knees for this man, drinking his cum like it’s candy.

Arit’s rumble of approval at my indecent thoughts brings me back to the present, and he does as I ask, bringing his knees up to his chest and presenting his hole to me, his virgin hole that has never belonged to anyone else. That thought sends a flash of primal possession through me, and I reach out, rubbing my hands up the backs of his thighs and down over the rounded globes of his ass, watching as his hole clenches under my gaze.

Arit’s cock bucks and dribbles a glob of precum down onto his abs, smearing into his skin as he pulls his legs tighter against himself. “I need you,” he says, desperation bleeding into his voice.

At the moment, I don’t want Arit to be desperate. I want him to be satisfied, and I want him to come apart on my tongue. So I lean forward, lap at his cockhead one more time, then make my way downward, alternating kissing and licking as I go. Using my thumbs, I gently apply pressure to widen Arit’s hole, take a deep breath of his most intimate scent, and then lick a long stripe straight over his star, loving the way he squirms and gasps, moaning my name the whole time.

I must spend twenty minutes lapping, sucking, and nibbling at Arit’s hole because by the time I sit back, saliva dripping down my chin and out of Arit’s soft, pink pucker, we’re both dribbling a steady trail of precum from our cocks. Arit looks half crazed, his pupils completely blown and his hair a tangled mess, but the gorgeous pink flush running down his neck and across his chest is more beautiful than any sunset I’ve ever seen. This man is alive, and he’s reaching for me, kissing me senseless, and asking me to fuck him for the first time.

And who am I to deny him?

I need to make love to Arit just as much as he needs to make love to me. “I’ve got you, baby, hold on. We’re almost there.”