Page 173 of This Life of Mine

Now,The Wraithhas a desire to provide…pleasure.

She was right. With her, I can shut the violent part ofThe Wraithoff. I can be her Alex with and without the mask.

And right now, I want to fulfill both of our fantasies.

I grab Lina by the waist and pull her against me.

The lenses register the change.

Her pulse spikes.

HR Monitor:112…113…114.

A faint indicator tracks the accelerated rhythm beneath her skin while her breathing pattern flashes near the edge of my display.

She inhales sharply. Her bottom lip disappears between her teeth. The movement is small, almost imperceptible, but the mask catches everything. Every elevated heartbeat. Every shallow breath. Every fraction of a second her gaze lingers on the black armor and the faceplate separating us.

The numbers continue to climb.

“Tell me what you want, Lina,” I ask her. I definitely don’t want to misinterpret this.

“I want you…right now,” she whispers, trailing her fingers up my gear.

“Mask on or off, Lina?” I ask.

“On,” she exclaims, as she searches my mask for an answer.

There it is. The confirmation I needed.

Fuck.

I pick her up, and she wraps her legs around my waist. The display instantly reacts. Heart rate elevated. Respiration accelerated.

Tiny indicators flicker at the edge of my sight, tracking every physiological response as I carry her toward the bed. The technology was designed for threat assessment. It was never meant for this.

I lower her carefully onto the mattress, unable to look away.

Through the lenses, I catch details I would have missed with the naked eye—the slight tremble in her fingers, the way her pulse flutters at the base of her throat, the rise and fall of each measured breath as she watches me.

I gently lay her on my bed, carefully removing her pants and then her panties.

She’s nervous. Excited. The readings are all over the place.

I remove one of my gloves. I want to touch her—feel how turned on she is.

I glide my hand down her stomach, lower now, to her very wet, glistening pussy.

I gently stroke and tease her clit.

She moans and writhes, grabbing hold of my forearm to help keep her steady.

“Alex…” she moans.

It is me. Right here. Right now. In this moment with her, pleasing my Lina.

I dip one finger in, feeling her warmth and tightness. Then two.

Damn, even just having my fingers inside her, I’m so fucking wrecked with need.