Page 89 of Secrets of Ruin

As the water fell around her, blood ran down the drain in rivulets that turned the water pink while Brokk tenderly washed her hair. Kaylia didn’t know what to say as Fabian’s blood streamed down the drain; she’d thought she’d be relieved the abhorrent man was dead, but she was still too astonished over her actions to feel much of anything else.

Brokk grasped her shoulders as he carefully turned her in the water until she was staring at his chest again. The starburst scar over his heart remained, as did the lashings from the ophidians’ whips, but he was still perfect.

He’d released the magic covering some of his ciphers to reveal them all again. The black markings had ceased being their sickly grayish hue and were now a vibrant, healthy black.

She traced the markings on his chest and down to his waist as she marveled at their beauty and him. He trusted her with the secret of his markings and often revealed them to her when they were alone.

That knowledge penetrated the haze of numbness clinging to her since they’d left the human realm. “What I did⁠—”

“Was necessary,” he interrupted.

“I went far beyond necessary. I butchered a man.”

Brokk grasped her chin and tilted her head up until their eyes locked. “It was necessary for you. It’s what you needed to help heal. Besides, you were far kinder to him than I would have been. If you hadn’t killed him, I’d still be cutting pieces off him.”

“I was out of control.”

“We’re all occasionally out of control, but few have endured what you did at the hands of that monster. Don’t feel guilt or remorse for what you did to him; he didn’t feel it for you.”

With that, he caressed the healing cut under her chin. It had stopped bleeding and was mostly closed, but she still winced as she recalled the repulsive feel of Fabian’s arms around her. It had been so familiar yet so wrong.

Despite the heat of the water, she shivered as she stepped closer to Brokk. She needed to rid herself of the memory of Fabian, and only he could do that for her.

She slid her arms around Brokk’s waist and pressed closer as she rested her head on his chest, over his heart. The familiar, well-loved thump was a relaxing beat that called to her as her heart matched the rhythm.

His warmth and the sense of rightness that came from touching him washed away Fabian’s wrongness as Brokk pulled her closer. His presence comforted her, and the joy swelling in her heart confirmed he was the only man she’d ever loved. The only one she’d ever love.

As the water ran over them and her hands stroked his back, the feel of his chest and ridged abs aroused her. He could shut out Fabian and the world, and she yearned for that so badly.

Turning her head, she kissed away the water running down him as she closed her eyes and savored his scent while tasting the saltiness of his skin. This man she’d loathed when they first met was all she ever wanted and more.

“Kaylia.” He bent to kiss her forehead. “What do you need from me?”

“You. I just need you. You’re more than I could have dreamed for. You helped break through the potion’s hold on me by making me love you before I ever drank the antidote. You helped heal me, and I plan to move on.”

While she talked, her hand slid down the edged contours of his abs to grasp his stiffening cock. She relished the sound of his breath sucking in.

When she met his eyes again, their aqua blue had grown darker with passion, but concern shone in them.

“I want to forget Fabian, and even if that’s impossible to do forever, you can make it happen for a little bit,” she said.

“We don’t⁠—”

She silenced whatever he was about to say with a kiss. Rising onto her toes, she draped her arms around his neck as the kiss deepened.

The taste of him, so familiar and welcome on her tongue, made her groan. Memories of this awful day and the horror of the past few months faded as his hands slid down to cup her ass.

A tingle raced up her spine when the rigid evidence of his erection prodded her belly. Electricity ran up and down her arms, causing her hair to stand on end as every part of her focused on him and the escape he provided.

She bit his lower lip as she sought more. Normally, she loved his teasing touch and the way he stoked the fires of her desire, but now she was desperate to have him inside her as they became one against the world.

His fangs lengthened when she bit his lip again, letting him know what she sought from him. When he nipped her, he licked away the blood that formed on her lip.

Her fingers tangled in his hair, and she pulled him closer as he lifted her. Locking her legs around his waist, Kaylia wiggled against him until she found the head of his shaft and slid herself onto it.

She gasped as he stretched and filled her; her hands tightened in his hair, and the air sizzled and popped around them when her magic seeped out to mingle with it. The water poured down over them as her head tipped back, and she cried out in ecstasy.

Everything about him was right; everything about them was wondrous, and she never wanted it to end. Not only did he make the rest of the realms disappear, but he filled their small part of them with pleasure and love.