"We're really doing this. Building a life together."
"We really are."
"No more running. No more hiding."
"No more fighting just to survive." I pressed closer. "Now we get to fight for something better."
His mouth found mine, and the kiss was different from the ones before. Not desperate or claiming or born of fear and adrenaline.
This was celebration.
Joy.
The recognition that we'd made it through the darkness and come out the other side together.
His hands moved to the fastenings of my clothes—the borrowed Alliance uniform that didn't quite fit right. I helped him, my own fingers working at his shirt, needing to feel his skin against mine.
We shed the layers between us until there wasn't left but warmth and want and the bond singing between us.
He lifted me easily, carrying me to the bed. Laid me down with a gentleness that made my throat tight.
"You're beautiful," he said, his gaze traveling over me. "And you're mine."
"Yours," I agreed. "Always."
He settled over me, his weight a comfort rather than a burden. His mouth found mine again as his hand traced down my side, learning the curves of my body with the kind of attention that made me shiver.
I arched into his touch, my own hands exploring the planes of his chest, the ridges of muscle, the scars that told the story of everything he'd survived.
"I can feel you," I whispered. "Through the bond. Everything you're feeling."
"Good." His mouth moved to my throat. "Then you know exactly how much I want you."
I did.
The desire flowing through the bond was intense—but it was more than just physical need. It was emotional. Spiritual. The recognition that we were two halves of something greater.
When he finally entered me, it was slow and deliberate. A claiming that went deeper than flesh.
Our hearts beat in perfect synchronization.
Our breath matched.
And through the bond, I felt everything—his pleasure and mine, tangled together until I couldn't tell where I ended and he began.
We moved together, finding a rhythm that felt ancient and new all at once. His hands gripped my hips, holding me steady as he drove deeper. My legs wrapped around him, pulling him closer, needing more.
The pleasure built slowly. Intensely.
And when it finally crested, it crashed over both of us at the same moment—our bodies and hearts and souls perfectly aligned.
I cried out his name.
He buried his face in my neck, his own release shuddering through him.
And through it all, the bond held us together.
Unbreakable.
