I adore that sound.
She immediately wraps herself around me.
Arms around my neck.
Legs around my waist.
Like the lunar pythons that once curled around the silver trees of Nightfall.
My birthplace.
My punishment.
My shame.
I have not seen my homeland in centuries.
My father's sins became my burden to carry. The Prime sentenced me to exile and stripped me of everything.
Banishment.
Isolation.
And the curse.
Find my fated mate while living among humans… or lose myself entirely.
For many years, I believed the old Prime cruel.
Unjust.
Unforgiving.
But now?
Now that my mate is in my arms?
I find I no longer care.
Not one iota.
Because everything I want—everything I need, and all that I treasure—is right here.
“What are you—”
I grin and, unable to resist, press my lips softly to hers.
Not demanding.
Not claiming.
Simply needing to feel her in this moment.
And by the gods—she is sweet.
The taste of her floods my senses.
Sweet.