Where Ashes and Oaths Collide

Chapter 73: Mmmm

Luz’s breath came in ragged, heavy bursts as he moved between her thighs, his body a sold, burning weight against Amelia. The heat radiating from him was intense, a feverish warmth that seemed to seep into her very bones. His hands were everywhere– on her waist, on her thighs, pulling her closer as if he could merge their bodies into one. He paused for a single moment, his forehead resting against hers, both of them gasping for air. His eyes searching hers, the amber glowing like embers in the dark, and for the first time in years, they were clear– no crimson, no shadow, just the man who had loved her before the world broke. “Amelia, I love you. O never stopped,” he whispered, his voice cracking with an emotion he could not name.

“I love you too,” Amelia murmured, her hands moving to the hem of Luz’s shirt. His hands came up to meet hers, his fingers catching the hem of the light fabric. he did not wait for her to pull it off; he gripped the cloth and dragged it upward in one fluid motion, baring his chest to her. The light from the dying fire caught the scars and the dark winding black veins that crawled up his neck, but they were dim now, almost faded. Beneath them, his muscles were taut, his skin hot to the touch. “Then do not let go,” he rasped, his voice barely audible over the sound of their shared breathing. “Not tonight. Not ever.” He pulled her hands up from his waist, pressing her palms flat against his bare chest, right over his heart.

Luz’s heart was thudding wildly, a frantic rhythm that betrayed everything he could not say with words. He leaned down, his mouth finding Amelia’s again, but this time the kiss was different– softer, almost desperate, as if he were trying to drink her in. his hands slid from her hips to her back, pulling her up against him until she was draped over his chest, her skin flush against his. He rolled them both over in one smooth motion, pinning her beneath him on the mattress. His arms braced on either side of her head, his body a heavy, warm presence that anchored her to the bed. “I am going to make you forget everything else,” he promised against her neck, his voice a low rumble that she felt more than heard. “The war, the darkness… none of it exists here.”

Luz’s hand slid down to pull the midnight-coloured dress further down, past Amelia’s hips, so she was completely bare beneath him. His breath hitched. The movement was slow, deliberate, as his fingers hooked into the fabric and drew it down past her hips, clearing the path between them. The air in the room seemed to thin, leaving only the heat of their bodies and the frantic rhythm of his heart. He looked down at her, his amber eyes wide and luminous, tracing the soft lines of her body with a hunger that was almost painful to witness. His hand lingered on her hip, his thumb brushing against her skin in a way that was both possessive and tender. “You are perfect,” he whispered, the words torn from him.

Luz lowered himself again, his weight settling between Amelia’s thighs, his skin meeting hers in a searing contact that made him groan low in his throat. His hands found hers, interlacing their fingers and pinning them against the pillow beside her head. “Mmmm,” she sounded out sweetly. His jaw tightened, his eyes darkening as he looked down at her. The sweet sound she made– the soft, melodic moan– was the final thread of his restraint snapping. “Amelia,” he breathed, her name a ragged plea. His hands released hers, sliding down her body to grip her thighs, pulling her closer until the friction of his trousers against her bare skin sent a jolt through both of them. He was hard, unyielding, and the heat radiating from him was almost overwhelming.

Luz leaned down, his lips finding the sensitive hollow of Amelia’s throat, biting gently there before trailing a path of searing kisses down to the swell of her breast. His hands moved to the fastening of his own trousers, his movements hurried now, stripped of all the careful deliberation from before. “I have waited so long,” he rasped against her skin, his voice thick and desperate. “Met too,” she murmured. “You have no idea how hard it was today. You in that armour… being so protective of me…” he froze for a heartbeat, his hand still working at the fastening of his trousers. he lifted his head, his amber eyes searching hers with a raw, vulnerable intensity that stripped away every layer of the commander he pretended to be.

“I could not even look at you,” Luz confessed, his voice barely a whisper. “Every time I saw you in that crowd, every time I had to say something cold to you… it felt like my own skin was burning off.” He finally freed himself from the heavy dark fabric, his body trembling with the effort of holding back. He leaned over Amelia again, his weight supported by his forearms, his gaze burning into hers. “I spent the whole time thinking about how to keep you alive,” he said, his voice cracking. “How to make sure you got away. And how much I wanted to just–” he trailed off, his jaw tightening. “I wanted to carry you out of there myself.” She cupped his cheek. “Hey, you protected me,” she said soothingly. “And you looked irresistible doing it.”

A low, rough laugh broke from Luz throat, half-amused and half-exasperated. He leaned into Amelia’s palm, his eyes closing for a brief second as he savoured the simple, human warmth of her touch. “Irresistible,” he repeated, the word tasting strange on her tongue. “I am supposed to be the most feared man in the kingdom, Amelia. I am supposed to be a monster.” He opened his eyes, and the amber was so bright it almost seemed to glow in the shadows. He caught her wrist, pressing a kiss to the centre of her palm– right where her pulse thrummed beneath the skin. “But you are the only one who sees anything else,” he murmured. He shifted, his body hovering just above hers, the tension between them pulling tight like a bowstring ready to snap.