Page 49 of Reverie
I snap. “Canyou take care of me?”
The words are hard, harsh, and when I utter them, Hunter looks stricken. I wish I could swallow them back. But then…do I really have this question in my mind?
Canhe take care of me?Canhe keep me safe?
I cast my eyes downward, staring at his bare feet. When I look back up to him, his face morphs. And he grins.
“Hmm, let’s see, Sunbeam,” he says, his voice so low that I feel it in my clit.
“See what?” I whisper. Our mouths are inches from each other’s.
His grin turns into a smile.
SEVEN
HUNTER
Ilearned long ago that the one person who can bring me to the edge of sanity and keep me teetered there is Winter Leigh Vaughan.
I’ve grown as a human over the course of our relationship. I don’t want to keep her out of the loop. But I’m still struggling with the unknown, and if I bring her into this more, how much more danger will that put her in? We’reinthis shit now, and the thing that’s fucking with me the most is that I can’t guarantee her safety. No matter how fucking much I want to.
So when Winter challenges me with those six shitty words, I want to shatter right here. Because in the way she most needs, I’m unsure.
But there’s one thing I am sure about.
Canyou take care of me?
“Yeah, baby. I’ll take care of you.” I run my nose up the side of her neck, and I’m mesmerized by the movement of her throat as she swallows.
“Stop distracting me. You’re shutting me out,” she says, her breaths coming quicker.
“No. I’m taking the opportunity to remind both of us that we’re alive.” I nip at her earlobe, and a visible tremor runs through her body.
“Why won’t you tell me what’s going on?” she asks. I pinpoint the moment when she gives herself a stern talking-to, divorcing her body from the lust that’s so palpable between us.
“Okay, Sunbeam. Keep asking me questions and I’ll answer them,” I say, following the words with a kiss to her collarbone. Her breathy sigh straddles the edge of turning into a moan.
“What is The Legion, specifically?” She grasps my jaw with one hand, pulling me around to face her. Her eyes flit to my lips, and I bite my bottom one.
She silences a squeak.
“Thetl;dranswer is that The Legion is a group of elitist fucks who have a plan to perpetrate a mass genocide to create their version of utopia.”
Her head jerks back a fraction, and I run my finger along her collarbone. It’s a feather-light touch.
“Okay,” she says lightly. “Who makes up The Legion?”
I trace my hand from her collarbone to the back of her neck, squeezing the tense muscles more gently than I usually would because of her injury.
“A bunch of people do. There are people who are connected to this organization all throughout the world. Some are higher up than others.”
“You’ve only answered part of my question—oh, God!” She groans when I ghost my lips down her chest and between her breasts, crouching so that I’m level with the right spot.
I smile against her flesh. “Be more specific, then,” I whisper.
Her hand plunges into my hair, gripping the strands at the roots. “What if August walks in? Or anybody, for that matter?” she whispers, a slight edge of tension weaving through her voice.
I nod and pull away, taking a moment to analyze the control panel on the wall near the entrance before pressing a button I’m sure will close off the room. Turning my back to the whirring mechanics of the sliding opaque pocket doors, I stalk back to Winter, returning to my position.