One Hundred and Two Dianna

The stone beside my head cracked from the pressure of his hand as he pounded into me. My back hit the wall with his every thrust, both of us panting and groaning as we took, took, took. There were no soft words or whispered pleading, just a primal need to feel, to know that we were both alive and together. His mouth dominated mine, stealing my breath, and I gladly gave it. His free hand clenched my jaw, his palm spanning my throat. My heart thudded, matching the same rhythm as his, my one and only.

I needed to not just know that this was real. I needed to feel that this was real, that I was not locked inside my head, and that Kaden had not won.

My nails raked across his back, and he groaned against my lips, tongue swiping across mine. “Tell me you love me,” I moaned, arching against him, crushing my breasts against the hard planes of his chest. My nails raked across his shoulders, his arms, anything I could attach myself to.

He angled my head up with his thumb and scraped his teeth along my neck, thrusting into me a fraction harder.

“I love you.”

Another heated kiss.

“I love you.”

Another.

“I love you.”

I clenched around him, and he pushed me harder against the wall, fucking me into it. I could feel his need to anchor himself in me, assuring himself I was here with him, alive and safe. Pleasure rippled across my skin with every thrust, his chest dragging across my nipples. I was burning alive with desire, whimpering against him. It was bliss, pure blinding bliss, and everything I needed. Wanted. I hadn’t realized how much he had been holding back. The part of my mind that was still capable of thought was worried about the foundation of our bedroom and this wing of our home.

My eyes closed, and I held on to Samkiel, wrapping my legs tighter around him, pulling him in until he was fighting my hold to thrust into me. I kept seeing that damned blade, their faces drawing closer, along with the destruction of my future. I had never been so close to losing before, never been scared of it, but today I was terrified. It had scared us both badly. Now, there was this insatiable need to claim, mark, and take what we both needed.

“Akrai, I . . .” He panted, and I felt the muscles in his thighs strain. I knew he was close.

“Me too. Me too.”

Pleasure built coiling low in my belly as he grunted and groaned, whispering filthy words in my ear. My back arched, white-hot pleasure sparking through every part of me as I came beneath him. He cupped my ass, driving deep and grinding against me until I saw stars, and he followed me over. He pressed his body against me, crushing me against the wall as we fell apart and came back together again. Silence fell, rain pelting the window as a flash of light illuminated our room.

Emotions bubbled to the surface after my release, and this time, when my body shook, it wasn’t from pleasure. Without having to ask, Samkiel’s arms tightened around me, and I buried my face against his neck and cried. With others, I could pretend that nothing touched me, protected by spikes, fangs, and claws, but there was no hiding from him.

“IT’S COLD,” I COMPLAINED. SAMKIEL LAY AGAINST MY BACK, HALF OF his massive body covering mine, his weight pressing me into the bed. I needed that, needed him that close. He always seemed to know what I needed. My hand wrapped around his, and I tugged it close, tucking it under my chin.

“I must have gotten the seasons wrong. Usually, it is bearable at nightfall this time of the year,” he said, his breath tickling my upper back.

“Hmm.” I felt his chest rise and fall. “I’m sorry for jumping you the second you walked in the door,” I said, and I was. I’d left the shower the second I heard our bedroom door open, not wanting to be alone, and jumped into his arms before the door even latched fully, my lips crashing against his.

“Never apologize.” He made a noise of contentment as we lay still, the covers bunched around us. “I’ll welcome it even when I’m old and feeble.”

My thumb passed slowly across the back of his fingers. “Will you grow old and feeble now that your powers are back?”

He took a deep breath, the muscles across his chest and abdomen flexing against my back. “Eventually. All gods do. My true immortality was tied to the realms, remember?”

“Vividly.” I glanced out the window. None of his power danced in the sky now, only the building storm as rain continued to fall. “Did you break the sky when you got your powers back?”

“Hmm?” he asked, the sound drowsy. I wiggled beneath him, and he adjusted, shifting to lie on his back. Scooting close, I placed my head on his chest. “I’m not sure, nor do I particularly care.”

“How did you do it?” I whispered the question, needing to know. I couldn’t sleep without knowing, no matter how relaxed I was. “How did you kill Kaden?”

“I taunted him,” he said, his eyes fluttering open. “With you.” A crack of lightning illuminated the room. The flash echoed in his eyes.

“Me?”

“Regardless of how vile or cruel, he loved you above all else. His methods may have been twisted and wrong, but we felt the same for you. So, I said things I knew would burn me to my core if said to me. He reacted, and I took his head with Oblivion.”

I drew random patterns over his chest, soothing the tension I could feel tightening his muscles. Samkiel brushed a kiss to the top of my head and took a deep breath. I was quiet for a moment, picturing Kaden’s death. A draft whispered over us, and I reached for the covers, pulling them tighter around us. I nestled closer and whispered, “No one has ever protected me like you do. I’m always the one taking care of everything and everyone else. You’re supposed to protect the world, not me.”

“You are my world.” He pulled me flush against him and tipped my head back to kiss my forehead, his hand running idly up and down my back. “I’ll always protect you, akrai. No matter the consequences,” he whispered against my forehead. “Even if I break the sky.”

I snorted at the last part, his breath tickling the hairs on top of my head. But I knew without a shadow of a doubt that he meant it. He was my sword, my shield, my heart, and my home.

“I’m sorry I don’t tell you I love you more often.” His hand paused the idle stroke down my back, and he pulled back to look at me. His brows furrowed as if he had not expected me to say that, but I went on. “I do love you. It is the only thing I know with absolute certainty in this crazy new world. Everything we’ve done, everything we’ve been through, I love it all. I was scared tonight.”

Samkiel raised up on his elbow as if preparing to battle even my own fears. “Dianna.”

“No, I was scared I wouldn’t be able to tell you. You are the love of my life, Samkiel. You are it for me, and I don’t always have the pretty words to tell you, but I can show you every single day.”

Another flash of lightning lit up the room, and I swore his eyes shimmered with unshed tears. He smiled softly. “Every day, huh?”

I nodded.

“Well, that will be a very long time, considering we have eternity.”

My head reared back even as my heart swelled. “Eternity? I don’t know if I agreed to that.”

His lips formed a half-smile, and he pointed to my ring. “You kind of did. Now, not even death will separate us. That’s what was in our vows. You said it.”

“I did?” I joked. “I was distracted. Can we change them? Is it too late?” I cringed. “I don’t know. Maybe we should rethink everything I just sa—”

He grabbed me and rolled, forcing me against the bed. I squealed and then laughed as his hands found that sensitive spot just beneath my ribs. His lips slanted over mine, and warmth seeped through my skin and into my bones. My words had built upon our bond, forging something stronger between us, brighter than fire and harder than steel.

Samkiel pulled back and gazed down at me, brushing a few strands of my hair from my face. “The love of your life, huh? I’ve never heard that before.”

“Is that why you’re grinning like a fool?”

His smile brightened. “Perhaps. I may need to hear that more.”

I fake scoffed as we settled back into bed. “How often?”

“Hmm, maybe every single day?”

“Absolutely not.”

He shrugged. “Okay, once or twice. Here and there.”

I fake-flopped back on the bed in mock disgust. “You’re pushing it. You are so needy.”

He placed a kiss on my forehead and then my cheek. His hand cupped the curve of my jaw, his thumb flicking my bottom lip. “I have no idea how I’ve survived this long without you.”

“Me either.”

He chuckled and brushed his lips along mine. “Go to sleep.”

I smiled and placed a chaste kiss on his lips before turning over and pushing back into him. His massive body curled around mine protectively, and his arms tucked me in close as I settled. “I don’t show it a lot, right? Because if people start thinking I’m nice . . .”

His laugh rumbled through the room, the sound chasing away the darkness.