I groaned against her lips. “You’re my mate.”
All my senses were stronger than ever. I could hear the water lapping nearby as though it were right in my ear. The air smelled fresh, like dirt and trees and sunlight. Would she taste different when I kissed her again? I would have to find out.
My fingers ran lightly over Ryllae’s wrists, tracing a path on her arms, down her shoulders, her back, her chest. Always moving, never staying still.
Gentle and soft and slow.
I needed her to know I would never force her. She could stop this at any time.
When Ryllae pulled away, her blue eyes searching mine, I waited for her to speak.
“I think we’re close to getting out of here,” she said, glancing at the tunnel that would hopefully lead us out of the mountain.
I nodded slowly. “It seems that way.”
There wasn’t a single part of me that wanted to get off this cloak right now, but if she wasn’t ready, I would wait. A day. A year. A century. It didn’t matter. I would wait for as long as she needed.
My Death Elf chewed on her swollen lips, and my muscles tightened. “What if… I didn’t want to go yet?”
Hope sparked within me. “You mean…”
“We could… spend the night here,” Ryllae said shyly, color rushing to her cheeks. “If you… I mean… unless you don’t…”
“I want to,” I replied. The gruffness of my voice surprised me. “There isn’t anything in this entire world that I want more than you. You’re it for me, Princess.”
“Thank the gods,” she whispered. “I feel the same way.”
I hadn’t known it was possible to be this happy. Joy threatened to bubble up out of me, and Ryllae smiled—really, truly smiled in a way that I had never seen her do before. Her fingers crept beneath the hem of my tunic; the movements timid, at first.
“You’re my mate,” she said again.
“I’m yours.” I offered her the mating words as a gift.
“You’re mine, and I’m yours.” Her words lit a fire within me as her gentle fingers skated over me, leaving a trail of sparks in her wake. I remained still, knowing that Ryllae needed to be in charge. By the gods, I was more than happy to let her lead this. This moment was all I had thought about, waking and sleeping, for weeks.
She grabbed the hem of my tunic, tugging gently.
“Take this off,” she whispered.
It was on the floor so fast, I barely registered the breeze brushing up against me. Here in this place beneath the mountain, we didn’t need to worry about privacy. We were alone.
Ryllae sat back on her haunches, studying me. “I want you, Daegal,” she murmured huskily.
My name on her lips caused all my muscles to tighten. I closed my eyes for a moment, inhaling deeply. I would cherish this memory forever. “I want you, too. So much.” My eyes searched hers. “But we don’t have to do this, Ryllae. I don’t want to push you. I will love you no matter what.”
My dark princess had been through terrible things in prison. I had Seen enough to know that any touches she gave me at all were a miracle. The things I had Seen haunted my nightmares and made me want to hunt down every Winged Soldier who had ever touched her. I wasn’t a violent male by nature, despite my abilities with a sword, but for them, I would unleash everything I had. I would rip their heads from their shoulders for what they did to my mate.
I wouldn’t force her to do anything she didn’t want to do, even if it meant denying myself.
Ryllae smiled, and her eyes were soft in the shards of moonlight coming through the cavernous roof. “I know you wouldn’t, Daegal,” she whispered. “That’s why I love you. Because you won’t push me. You never have, and I know you never will.”
Her fingers snagged the bottom of her tunic, and my mouth dried as she lifted it over her head. Then she stood, pulling off her leggings. They landed in a pile with my tunic, and she was in front of me, naked and beautiful and everything I could have ever wanted.
My breath caught in my throat. I was so gods-damned lucky. Those red swirls and whorls that were a sign of her power truly did flow from her neck all the way down to her feet. There wasn’t a single inch of her skin that was not marked in some way.
“You’re so beautiful,” I breathed.
Blood rushed to Ryllae’s face, and she sucked on her bottom lip, shifting from one foot to the other. “Do you really think so?”