95 - A Real Man

I watched Sin as he slept peacefully, his fingers loosely holding mine, his hair ruffled. He looked completely harmless this way, his guard down. I wanted to believe that his guard was down because of me. That he felt safe enough to be around me.

I pulled the sheets around us, then slowly ran my hands across his face, my lips parting in a small smile. His lashes fluttered gently, and I moved my hand away from his face for fear of waking him up.

He immediately brought my hand back to his cheek, holding it there to make sure I wouldn't move it.

"What are you doing?"

His eyes opened, and he moved a bit closer, even though the close proximity was already threatening to make me lose breath.

"I should be asking you that. What are you doing?"

I shrugged. "I was moving my hand and..."

"Exactly. Why were you moving your hand?"

I rolled my eyes, then gave a small laugh. "So you don't want me to move my hand?"

"No," he answered, moving closer. "I sleep better when you touch me."

I bit down on my lips. "You don't seem like the touchy type."

"I don't seem like the type to lie in bed naked, but here we are."

"You really didn't have to say that out loud."

He gave a small laugh, then moved, his body moving upwards so the sheets fell slowly downwards, dangerously low as he leaned to my lips, his eyes meeting mine.

My breath hitched, and I held his gaze, my mind freezing. "What are you..."

"I just want to tell you that I am naked underneath these sheets," he said, chuckling. "Do with that information what you will."

I bit down on my lips. "You are not tempting me."

He broke into a laugh and slowly lay back, his hand holding mine, his eyes soft and tender.

"What have you been doing?"

I shrugged. "I wanted to help you with the tents. So I made them before coming up here."

He gave a small smile as he moved my hair to tuck it behind my ear. "You did that all on your own?"

"They were just tiny tents," I said with a laugh. "You will see them later."

He nodded. "I am sorry I passed out. I guess the fatigue got to me."

"Oh, please. I have never really seen you sleep, so it was a novel experience."

"You make everything sound better than it really is, Annalise."

My brows furrowed. "Well, why does my name make me feel like I got a demotion?"

He gave a hearty laugh, his fingers gently squeezing mine. "A demotion?"

"Mhm. I was princess just earlier."

He gave a chuckle. "You don't seem like the cute type. But here we are."

"Did you just call me cute?"

"Mostly," he said with a shrug. "But you are more of fierce."

He sat up, pulling the shirts to rest on his waist, his back resting on the headboard. I slowly pulled forward as he looked down at me, his fingers running down from my hairline to my face, his eyes holding mine.

I rested next to his waist, then placed a small kiss on the very edge of his waist, all the while holding his gaze.

He gave a small sigh, then smiled. "You naughty vixen."

I laughed, then leaned back. "You were telling me something."

"Which you just demonstrated. You are fierce. Not cute. You are gorgeous. Not just beautiful. So it's a different kind of fire. A different kind of flame."

I mulled it over. I guess I had never been described that way, but I could at least give credit to that fierceness for even getting me here.

"You don't look like much of a poet, but here we are."

"Princess," he said, leaning to cup my chin, his fingers running slowly around my skin, his smile small.

There was something in his eyes that made me perfectly ready to lose control. Perfectly ready to give it all up for him. My lips parted, and he gently bit down on my lower lip, sending waves of desire coursing through my blood and sending each nerve on fire.

He leaned away, his eyes still fixed on my lips. "We are all the sort of people to eventually transition into poetry, sweetheart. We just need the right muse."

I leaned up, my forehead resting on his, my breaths hoarse. "Am I the right muse for you, my love?"

It was the first time I was calling him that even though I had felt it for a long time. Was it the very first moment I met him? The moment he saved me? Was it between those hugs? The things we saw together? The times he looked at me like I was prey? A prey who has dangerously fallen in love with her predator?

He gave a small smile. "I can't quite get enough for you, sweetheart. Even if you are wrong, I have absolutely no desire to be right."

My heart swelled, and moving my weight to one hand, I grabbed the nape of his neck and kissed his lips hard, channeling all of the tension I had to endure. Good thing he knew how to reciprocate because he took the lead in the kiss fast, his heartbeat loud in my ears as it synced with mine.

He broke the kiss and smiled against my lips as he ran a tongue over his own lips. It made me bite down on my own lips, and my mind could think of a million and one ways to put that tongue to use.

He kissed my cheek and then my earlobe, all the while massaging my waist and playing around with the thin material of my underwear.

"I wonder what innocent boy Dan will think, seeing you draped over my arm tomorrow."

I broke into a laugh as I moved away to look into his eyes. "Are you jealous of Dan?"

He rolled his eyes, and it only made me laugh even harder. I could never imagine Sin being threatened by his own subordinate. No man could even come close.

"I don't give a fuck about him. He could have had you, but I will show him what a real man does with the opportunity."

"What opportunity?" I asked, knowing very well what he meant, reading the words in his eyes.... yet wanting him to say it.

He turned me over, however, his body hovering above mine, and as I closed my eyes, the pleasure filling me up, I was grateful that Sin was a man of so few words.