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His mouth trailed hot kisses down her neck and stopped at the hollow of her collar bone, where his tongue flicked out gently to taste her skin His fangs descended and gently scraped along the skin, but she didn’t care, because everywhere his fangs touched, his mouth did too

"Sorry" He pulled back and looked at her sheepishly She was vaguely aware of her poirling around the the material of her shirt on the floor He couldn’t help his body’s response any more than she could help hers

"It’s okay" Ree tilted her head at the spinning power along the floor Paden chuckled softly before returning his attention to her throat

She arched her back as his mouth continued its doard trek When his hot lips hed in pleasure and tangled her fingers in his hair He slid his hands back down to cup her botto She wrapped her arhtly while he moved across the floor

Paden set her down carefully before pulling his own shirt off Ree’s breath quickened and her eyes roamed over his chest, down to the white skin where his jeans hung loosely on his hips Paden looked down at hi at so raptly, which , he crawled onto the bed and slowly covered her body with his

Ree could feel his desire, his need, and it was overpowering when reedily returned his kisses When his fingers moved to slide the straps of her bra off her shoulders, she shifted so he could reach the clasp in the back Paden threw the bra away from the bed and looked down Intense heat washed over her body everywhere his eyes touched

He lowered himself so his mouth could touch hers in delicate kisses that made her heart pump harder When his hand slid between theht her heart would explode Her breathing beca into his shoulders

"Is this okay?" He pulled back a little, his hand splayed on her bare sto her to be honest, wanting her to want him She didn’t trust herself to speak, so she only nodded and pulled his head back down to hers When his fingers slid into her pants to touch her, she gasped loudly

"I can stop Just tell ently

"No Don’t stop Please" Ree shook her head to h her eyelids she could see the green current of her power running through the little cottage The glow seemed to intensify with each stroke of Paden’s hand

As he explored, Ree let her hands explore his body as well She traced the contours of his back, before running her hands over his chest When she hit the edge of his jeans she hesitated for only a roaned into her ement she needed She pulled at his pants until she had freed him, and her hands surveyed this new territory After a moment, he pulled her hands away from him and held them above her head

"Too much" He kissed her soundly "I want you too much for that"

Slowly, he leaned back and pulled at her jeans until they slid off of her hips He threw them on the floor next to her bra He lay back down next to her, kissing her again while his fingers traced the lines of her panties

"Off," Ree whispered against his ed at his pants

"Are you sure?" Paden looked at her with serious eyes The sun fro the stubble on his chin, and she wondered why it had taken theet to this point Her heart swelled with love and the need to be closer to him was unbearable

"Very" Ree watched as his ently before standing and shrugging out of his jeans His boxers landed next to the growing pile of clothing Paden’s cheeks turned a soft pink as she stared at him, and it was nice to know she had that effect on him as well She sat up on her knees and held her hand out to hi her to lay doith hiers pulled at her panties until they were down by her ankles and she was able to kick the places that had always been off-lih the clothes on the floor, she kissed along his neck and curved her body to fit against his

She kissed hi up and down his chest She was grateful he had brought so with him Now there were no worries to hold them back, no chance of an unplanned fa hiue flicked slowly over her pulse point Her back arched and she pressed against the length of his body

"Please," she whispered She wasn’t really sure what she expected, or just what she was asking for, but he looked at her with heavy eyes

"I can stop, anytime Just tell me" With that, he slowly joined their bodies There was a sharp jerk of pain, but it didn’t last long Whether it was her own body healing herself, or Paden working his own healingwas that they were there, together, and she had never been so full of love in her life

"ReeRee" He whispered her naainst her As their bodies twined together, her pohipped through the room She couldn’t control it any more than she could control her response to Paden As their bodies peaked, she gasped his na out of him in hot waves Carefully, he lay down to the side and cradled her in his arms

He buried his face in her hair "I love you, Ree"

"I love you, Paden" She snuggled closer to him and turned so her face pressed into the crook of his neck Her heart felt lighter than it had in a very long ti apart around them, they had each other

Paden shifted so he could wrap the blanket from the bed around them both Ree listened to his heartbeat and felt her ownbefore she couldn’t hold her eyes open any longer

Chapter Seventeen

The cold woke Ree up, and she snuggled closer to Paden’s warmth He shifted so he could pull her onto his chest and still keep them covered with the blanket She laid her head on his chest and sh her hair

The snap and hiss of the dying fire was the only sound in the room, and Ree felt incredibly relaxed and peaceful She could tell Paden was happy too His emotions were calm and joyful

"Why are you so happy?" Ree tilted her head and smiled up at Paden

"I just realized I don’t have to worry about ho histhe blanket with her She punched his arlared at him "Oh, that’s all?"

"Hey! It’s cold! Get back down here" Paden tugged her back down to his chest and chuckled when she pretended to be upset "Orup with you in "

Heat flooded Ree’s face, but she couldn’t help but grin He wasn’t the only one happy with this new experience They grew quiet again, siers through her hair while she lay there and listened to his heartbeat and breathing It wasn’t until Ree noticed that the sun was down that everything cahed, obviously sensing her change in e She had spent hours in Paden’s arms while her friends dealt with death and sadness

"Don’t" Paden sat up in bed and pulled her into his lap "You needed a break We both needed so to re for"