Page 87 of Dawn of Hope

“You do?”

“Yes,” I say. It comes out more breathless than I intend.

“Can I ask you a question now?”

I try to hide a smirk. “I thought you said you didn’t need to ask me any questions.”

“I don’t need to, but this one I want to.”

“Alright.”

“Do you have anybody waiting for you back in Blackwood?”

Of course I have people waiting for me. I have an entire kingdom waiting for me, and I hate thinking about what is going on in the castle, especially with my father. I hate wondering if he’s let her go, listening to the healer’s advice, or wondering if Edmond told him where I am, trying to give him hope to hold on to her longer.

I start to speak. My first reaction is to be honest, especially after how open he has been with me all evening. But the thought of giving up my identity stops me. I pause and think for a moment, trying to come up with an answer and finally settle on a response. “What do you mean by anybody?”

“I mean, if this doesn’t work out, if you are here for longer than you intended like most of us…are you going to stay?”

Oh.

So he isn’t asking about who I am bringing the cure home to, or what responsibilities I have. He’s asking about me, about my relationships, about me staying here with him.

“I,” I stammer, “I don’t think so.” I feel a pain in my chest as soon as the words are out. This place has been everything I have ever dreamed of, and the thought of leaving it is devastating. I finally escaped the prison of the castle walls and found a place I feel I belong. This island is filled with the possibility of happiness, friendship, and love. I don’t want to leave it.

But the future queen of Blackwood doesn’t have that choice. My duty is back in my kingdom, whether or not I am successful.

A decision I have yet to make is how long I am willing to stay without finding the cure. But in the end, the answer will always be no, I will not stay.

He nods quietly, his face stoic.

“I’m sorry,” I say, trying to do anything to save the moment, save this amazing night from ending so badly.

“I understand. It was unfair for me to ask. I just—” He straightens and spins toward me, extending his legs on either side of me and sliding in closer. “I just felt like I knew. I knew the moment I saw you, you were everything I had been waiting for.”

His words tear through me. No one has ever said anything like that to me, and I don’t know what to say.

I don’t know what to feel.

How can I tell him that in such a short time, he has become important to me? That he isn’t the only one with feelings, and that I wish I could change my future and stay here with him. How can I tell him it isn’t only Dawnlin that gives me hope for a better life, but him as well?

Words escape me, so I do the only thing I think will help convey the emotions swirling inside of me.

I push up on my knees and lean over him, placing both my hands on either side of his hips before bringing my mouth to his. He sinks his hand into my hair and pulls me to him, and I crawl over his body until I’m straddling his lap.

Delicious heat licks through my body as he pulls me closer, the flames of the fire no longer necessary against the cold. His lips part mine and his tongue delves deep as I caress the stubble on his jaw.

I let out a gasp as he flips us over, his powerful body pressing me into the soft sand. He runs a hand down my side, tickling and teasing until he reaches my hip. His fingers wrap around it, squeezing for a moment before he slides it around to my backside, squeezing the soft flesh before continuing down the back of my thigh. He hitches my leg up over his hip, changing the angle so his hips press into mine.

I moan against his mouth, the sound fueling his movements and he leans into me harder, the feeling of his excitement pushing against me. His tongue continues to stroke mine relentlessly, and I drive my hands into his hair, clutching him tighter. Fingers graze the front of my thigh, working their way back up toward my waistband. He reaches the ties and slowly loosens them.

I don’t want him to stop. This feeling, tonight, the heat pulsing between my thighs. It’s all because of him, and I just want to feel him.

He breaks the kiss, his lips peppering my jaw with more, and slowly drifting down the column of my neck as his hand flattens against my abdomen. Slow strokes of his fingers on my skin send me reeling, anticipating his hand moving lower, where no one has ever touched me before. I push my hips into him, silently urging him on.

He pulls his head away and looks at the sky as a crack of lightning flashes above us. He groans loudly, dropping his forehead to my chest before cursing and looking up to meet my eyes. The warmth of his hand leaves my belly and moves to cup my face.

“We need to get off the beach. This is probably the most unsafe place for us to be.”