Page 156 of Dare

47

Flare

I stirred in his strong arms, drowsy from slumber. As my eyelashes fanned open, early morning clung to the waterfall crags, and I caught him staring down at me with a fond expression. We’d been lounging naked at the bank all day, pausing only to eat and drink and touch, with the canopy of trees shielding us from the sun.

My fauna pack lounged atop one of the brackets beside the cascades. The jaguar lapped at her paw, the butterfly perched on a boulder, and the boa tucked herself into a shaded bush sprouting from the rocks. According to Jeryn, the feline had guarded me while I’d been unconscious and Jeryn had rushed to find his vial. She had left after the prince returned but came back at some point while he and I were sleeping. This time, my other two kindreds had accompanied her.

Jeryn’s body temperature eased the aches in my muscles. Though, I wasn’t the only one caught in an afterglow. The prince’s features were relaxed, his complexion refreshed from all we had done, how long and loud we’d pinnacled.

A masculine hum resounded from his body as I curled into his side. He braced one hand behind his head and cradled my scalp with the other, his hands toying with my hair. Tucking my cheek into his chest, I slung one leg over his waist and drizzled my fingers across the cobbled surface of his abdomen.

Jeryn’s timbre roughened, his cock already half-hard. “You tread a fine line.”

To our senses alone, my laugh came out husky. I craned my head toward him, balanced my chin on his torso, and drummed my digits against his muscles. “When has that warning ever worked on me?”

He let out a rare but faint huff of mirth. “True.”

“You know, this is the first time we’ve gotten to do this.”

“Do what?”

“Savor the aftermath.”

He hesitated. “Could you get used to it?”

I pretended to give it some thought, then chuckled when he nudged my side as if offended. “When you delay like that, it torments me.”

“Does it?” I teased, crawling higher up his body. “Tell me more.”

“Bewitched. Smitten. Obsessed,” he listed while nibbling on my neck. “Do not pretend you don’t know this.”

I bit back a giddy smile, then shrugged. “I might get used to it.”

Pleasure spread across his face. I liked seeing Winter this way, casual and carefree. It would shock the world.

Sprawled across the grass, with all that marvelous flesh on display, the sight caused my heart to skip. Long layers fell around Jeryn’s face as he pulled away from my throat and mouthed, How are you?

I glanced at the sparkling cascades. “Thirsty.”

The prince rose, not bothering with clothes, which allowed me to admire the taut motions of his ass. Minutes later, he returned with our canteen, which he’d brought from the ruins—along with other supplies including food and a blanket—while I rested. After everything that had happened, I’d simply wanted to stay here by the waterfalls, soaking in the peaceful atmosphere.

While I sat up with my breasts hanging freely and the blanket puddling around my waist, I guzzled from the vessel. By then, my fauna pack had come nearer, to check on my wellbeing.

As I drank and greeted my friends, Jeryn unpacked a bottle of plumeria salve he’d made for me. Concoction in hand, he strode my way but frowned at the boa, jaguar, and butterfly settled against me.

“Off,” he ordered.

The animals hissed and growled and flapped wings. But at my gentle whisper, they returned to their spot by the waterfall.

Motioning for me to sit up, Jeryn lowered himself to the ground and rubbed the balm across my neck. I sighed, inhaling the floral essence.

The prince had told me the story, what happened after I had bitten through the vines, how they’d poisoned me, and how Jeryn had found me. The whirlpool had taken his necklace months ago, yet he’d jumped back in and found it with the help of my sand net. Afterward, he had fed me the last of the vial’s liquid, not knowing if the antidote would work or if I’d keep swelling and turning to ice.

I moaned as his hands kneaded the floral ointment into my shoulders. “Your fingers.”

“What about them?” he asked.

“The way they sink into me, reaching so deeply. Prince Jeryn, the Cruel Healer. Yet your touch isn’t cruel, it’s lavish.”