Gia stilled, then pulled away to meet Aurora’s eyes, her face splotchy red and expression wild. She was as covered in dirt as Aurora, and it was the most transcendent thing Aurora had ever seen.
Heart racing, Aurora tangled a bloody and soil-stained hand in Gia’s messy hair and tugged her into a kiss, their mouths meeting in a desperate crash. Gia gasped, body stiff, then melted into Aurora, arms tightening around her.
Aurora groaned, almost a growl, and deepened the kiss, chasing the sweet taste of Gia. Their tongues tangled, mixing the bitterness of salty tears and soil. Aurora realized she was crying again and didn’t care. Hot tears had never felt so good.Summer air had never been so refreshing. Another body had never been this comforting against her.
For a second, Aurora swore she was floating. If Gia’s grip hadn’t been so tight, she’d have feared she’d vacated her body. But Gia grounded her, and Aurora never wanted to be anywhere else.
Gasping for breath was no longer terrifying. It meant she and Gia were one, consumed by each other, and Aurora chased the feeling. This kiss was life. It could devour her whole, and she’d never be happier.
Without breaking the kiss, Aurora crawled the rest of the way from her grave, flattening Gia on her back in the piles of dirt, and straddled her hips. Gia moaned, one hand finding its way to Aurora’s ass, the other in her hair.
Aurora couldn’t get enough. Her core tightened, and she rolled her hips, arousal spiking at Gia’s responding whimper.
She’d fuck Gia, right here. Make Gia hers, like it was the only thing that mattered in life. Because it was.
“Aurora,” Gia moaned against her lips. “I thought I lost you, and I can’t… I need you. Don’t stop.”
Aurora nipped Gia’s bottom lip. “I need you too.”
She didn’t mean Gia’s body, though she desired every inch of her. She needed Gia’s love and the opportunity to love her in return. Needed the two of them together from now on, so these feelings could blossom into something deeper. Because they would. The clarity of the realization would have shocked her if it hadn’t been so wonderful.
“I like a show as much as the next girl, but we need to get the fuck out of here.”
Aurora and Gia froze.
Viv stood over them, her hands on her hips. “Heard you screaming like a banshee, Gia. Not exactly subtle. Get moving.”
Aurora scrambled off Gia and held out a hand to pull her to her feet. “Are the Thornfields headed this way?”
“Not yet, but even without vampire hearing, I doubt anyone missed the scream fest.”
Gia glared at Viv. “Aurora was trapped in agrave. Underground.”
“I see.” Viv wrinkled her nose at the mess of upturned earth. “Let’s get the fuck going.” She marched off in the direction of the car.
Aurora grabbed Gia’s hand and pulled her after the vampire.
Poor Gia looked stricken. “I shouldn’t have been so loud.”
Aurora huffed. “No one but an immortal could have kept their head in this situation. Don’t worry about it. I don’t hear anyone coming yet.”
They picked up the pace, running through the trees until the magic door appeared up ahead.
Viv was already unlocking the car. “Grab the box when you’re through, will you?”
Gia stepped through the strange door, pulling Aurora after her. A sharp pain shot up Aurora’s arm, and she wrenched her hand from Gia’s.
Gia flexed her fingers. “Ow! What was that?”
All of Aurora’s giddy joy fled, leaving her empty. She was still on the other side of the boundary. Inside the compound’s grounds. She tried to step closer to Gia and couldn’t get her feet to move.
“Hurry up!” Viv yelled.
Gia’s brow furrowed. “Aurora, what’s wrong?”
She swallowed, her throat dry. “I can’t get out. It didn’t work. My whole plan. The spell. Leaving my body didn’t sever my ties.”
Gia’s expression was ashen. “What?”
