For a long moment, there was only the sound of their ragged breathing, their bodies pressed close, sweat mingling on their skin. Gavriel didn’t move, still inside her, still clutching her as though she belonged to him.
Althea, flushed and weak, lay beneath him with her eyes half-closed, her heart pounding.
She wanted to tell herself it was only lust, only hunger, nothing more. But the way he held her—firm yet almost tender—made it harder and harder to believe it.
Althea lay there, still trembling, her chest rising and falling in uneven breaths. His warmth had barely left her body when his growl broke the silence, as though he was forcing himself to stop.
“I have to go now,” Gavriel muttered, pulling away gently. His tone was suddenly detached—so different from the raw intensity just m
