26. Soren

Chapter twenty-six

Soren

M ari looks exhausted. Even in the gold sprite-light lantern, she looks sallow. Dark circles line her drawn eyes. We barely slept last night, and it shows.

I should take better care of her, not satiating my needs. Those needs are pounding in my bloodstream even now. To smell her, to taste her, to take her.

She looks longingly at the makeshift bed in our tent, then back at her boots, then herclothes.A tired sigh escapes her lips, and I knowjustwhat to do.

"Come here," I say as gently as I can, reaching for her boot. I untie the laces for her and pull her foot out. I do the same with the other. When I'm finished, I rub the arches of each foot until she sighs with pleasure instead of exhaustion.

"Better?" I ask.

"Hell, yes," she says, relaxing into the bedding while still fully clothed.

I rub her calves, then her lower thigh; I reach for the buttons of her pants but stop, wanting to make my intentions known. "I'm simply helping you undress. I'm not trying to dick you ."

She laughs, throwing her hand over her mouth to stifle the sound. She is full of hysterics and tears spring from the corners of her eyes. It's a glorious sight, even if it is at my expense.

"Oh, my god," she says through choked giggles. "Please never say that again."

I crook a smile in her direction. "If it makes you laugh like that, I'll say it daily."

"Please, no, if you ever want to dick me again." She wipes the humorous tears from her eyes, trying to control her laughter.

"You win," I say and reach for the buttons of her pants again. The material slides down her soft skin as if it were silk, and I choke back the groan building in my chest at the mere sight of her exposed skin. She is a marvel, even in this tired, disheveled state. She is a goddess.

She lets me pull her shirt off and hang it on one of the wooden tent poles. I try to avert my gaze, tamp down the temptation to touch her again. To hear my name on her lips when she comes.

Get yourself under control.Sheis tired, and you aretired . According to the elders, there are days left of this storm.

I have time.

She yawns and tucks herself under the sheets. She looks so sweet like this. I realize now I've never seen her this way. Tired, vulnerable, and comfortable . She's comfortable with me now. At least, right now she is.

I let that thought build and bloom in my mind and chest. She feels safe with me. Relaxed around me.

It's such a stark difference from the beginning that my breath catches in my throat watching her.

"Are you coming to bed, or are you just going to stare at me?" she says,anotheryawn escaping herfulllips.

"Is it so wrong? That I could stare at you all night and be content?" She feels the sincerity of my words; I know she does by the way she stills. Her dark eyes, for the first time, are lit with emotion. She opens them wide before blinking back whatever was building in her chest, in her thoughts.

"Liar," she says, breaking the moment. "Come to bed." Her hand reaches for me, and I take it greedily, settling into the covers beside her.

I wrap my arms around her and bury my face in her hair, inhaling her scent.

"Good night, My Warrior," I say, kissing her neck. Her body goes soft in my grasp, and her breathing evens out.