Page 56 of When the Universe Sings

For once, I obeyed without question, letting him slide the fabric down my legs and throw it to the side before he gave the same treatment to my shirt. His pupils blew wide as he gazed down, hands sliding up and down my thighs as if he couldn’t bear to not touch me. Questions bubbled and then died on my lips.What does this mean? Who are you really? What will you do with the stone?

For now, none of it mattered, not when he slid off the bed and knelt on the floor. Not when his hands wrapped around my waist and tugged me to the edge, spreading my thighs so wide they burned to accommodate his shoulders. He pressed a wide palm against my belly below my navel, forcing my hips to cant while he took one long lick up my center.

“Fuck,” I cursed, fingers knotting into the tangled sheets around me.

The sentiment was echoed on his lips before he dove down for more, lapping and sucking until stars burst across my lids, until my mouth fell open on a silent scream. Never had I felt like this, never had I even believed my body could respond likethis.

His tongue circled my clit before he sucked it between his lips, two fingers sliding up my seam and pressing inside. There it was, the relief for the ache I’d felt since before we ever left the ship, and yet it wasn’t enough. Even when he pumped his fingersinside of me, curling them in a rhythm echoed in the sucking of his mouth, it wasn’t enough.

But then his teeth grazed my clit and my silent scream turned into a sob as I shattered, pleasure rippling down my spine like flame. His name fell from my lips as if it might be the one thing that could save me from the fiery fate and yet I welcomed the burn. As my first release rolled into another, as he pressed down against my belly and lapped harder at my clit, I thought I finally understood just a tiny bit of what he’d meant when he spoke of the beauty of the universe and its song.

Even though I couldn’t hear it, it was as if I could feel the echo of its melody running through my bones, the vibration of a song only he knew the words to.

Asher’s movements slowed until he pressed one final kiss to my thigh and sat back to look up at me. The lower half of his face shone with my release, yet he sucked his fingers into his mouth as if he loved the taste. But when I reached for him, he only pressed a kiss to my palm, then my wrist, and rose to his feet, passing me my shirt. He climbed slowly into my bed like he was waiting for me to object, but when I didn’t, he wrapped me up in his arms.

“How did you get in here?” I murmured against his throat.

He brushed back my hair from my temple, tucking me closer beneath his chin. “I have a universal key.”

A million more questions swirled through my mind, but for some reason my whole body seemed to sigh into sleep, and I slept, for once, without dreams.

CHAPTER

THIRTY-EIGHT

I wokea few hours later cocooned in warmth.

My eyes shot open and I stared at the pale silver markings on Asher’s chest. His arm was slung over my hip, hand beneath my shirt, fingers splayed wide across my back. Soft black waves spilled across his face, fluttering with his breath. As I watched him sleep, fragments of the night ricocheted across my mind.

His mouth on mine.

His hands on my waist.

His fingers gripping my hips.

Each image flashed like a lightning strike until I had to push away the panic with slow breaths. Carefully, in incremental movements, I slid out from beneath his arm and froze beside the bed, watching for any indication he’d woken. Though his hand splayed out across the sheets where I’d been and his brow furrowed, he slept. I slid on a pair of trousers and grabbed my boots while I padded to the door. I winced at the hiss of it opening and closing.

Maker, what had I done?

Not wanting to run into any of the crew, I darted down the halls until I made it to the observatory we’d practiced in. The expanse of space spilled out before me, distant planets dancing across the glass, bright green and blue gas vibrating around the small star system. I pressed my palm to the window and watched the progression of one moon around its planet. From here it appeared tiny; even the planet looked like I could have held it inthe palm of my hand. But it was home to hundreds of thousands of beings with their own lives and stories and heartaches.

It made me feel so small. Maybe that was what I needed while my mind raced and my blood thrummed through my veins and the memory of Asher’s lips on my skin was too much to bear. I couldn’t decide who I was betraying anymore—my people, Lunastra, or myself. Or maybe it was all three. The right thing would be to ensure it never happened again, to finish the job and get the stone and return to theDaskquahas quickly as I could. But the thought of running from him made my stomach twist and my chest give a hollow pang.

It also shocked me that I wasn’t upset to know all this time Asher had a universal key and he’d been able to access my room any time he wanted. No, it only reinforced the confusion I felt when I thought of the male and all the masks he wore. Leaning forward, I pressed my forehead to the glass, rolling it back and forth.

Over the beating of my heart, I barely caught the door opening, but I didn’t need to look to know who it was. Not with their heavy steps or their quiet breaths. When his hand slid up my back I didn’t even jump, only squeezed my eyes shut and tried to build a wall between my heart and the comfort his touch brought.

“You left,” he breathed.

I didn’t answer. Beneath my palm the glass fogged and my fingertips slipped over the condensation. But his touch was gentle as he brushed my tangled hair to the side before curling a hand around my shoulder and turning me.

“Why did you leave?” Sleep-mussed and shirtless, he leaned down enough to look me in the eyes, his flicking back and forth across my face.

There was too much to say and yet I couldn’t find the right words as I looked back at him, my mouth opening and closing.Soon, I knew, I would have to ask the question that would damn us both. The hollow pang in my chest spread wider until I wanted to double over with it, until my vision blurred and a soft, low groan echoed in the back of my throat.

Somehow my hand landed on his chest and he covered it with his, thumb stroking against the back of my palm while the corner of his mouth tugged down. Whatever was there on my face made his entire body tighten as his other hand slid into the back of my hair and he tugged me into his arms.

I went willingly, throat burning. The last time I’d been held this way had been the day of my climbing. My mother had taken me aside before the descent and spoken words I could barely remember now about duty and responsibility. But I remembered she’d told me she loved me and I’d been so nervous I hadn’t said it back.