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 power swirling around them, stirring 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 downward trek. When his hot lips moved over the wet material of her bra she sighed in pleasure and tangled her fingers in his hair. He slid his hands back down to cup her bottom, and moved her gently against him before standing. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held on tightly 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 himself, as if not sure what she was looking at so raptly, which made Ree want to giggle. Shrugging, he crawled onto the bed and slowly covered her body with his.

Ree could feel his desire, his need, and it was overpowering when mixed with her own. She ran her hands over his chest and greedily 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 them to undo the button of her jeans, she thought her heart would explode. Her breathing became ragged, and her fingers dug into his shoulders.

“Is this okay?” He pulled back a little, his hand splayed on her bare stomach and looked down at her. His eyes bored into hers, wanting 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 me.” His hand stilled, and he kissed her neck gently.

“No. Don’t stop. Please.” Ree shook her head to make her point before turning to kiss him again. Through 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 moment before cupping him through his clothes. He groaned into her mouth, and that was all the encouragement 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 mouth and tugged at his pants.

“Are you sure?” Paden looked at her with serious eyes. The sun from the window glinted along the stubble on his chin, and she wondered why it had taken them so long to get to this point. Her heart swelled with love and the need to be closer to him was unbearable.

“Very.” Ree watched as his mouth turned up in a slow smile. He kissed her gently 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 him. He slid onto the bed, pulling her to lay down with him. When his mouth covered hers, his fingers pulled at her panties until they were down by her ankles and she was able to kick them off. Their hands slid over each other, touching and stroking places that had always been off-limits. When he rolled over to dig through the clothes on the floor, she kissed along his neck and curved her body to fit against his.

She kissed him while he carefully put on protection, her fingers running up and down his chest. She was grateful he had brought something with him. Now there were no worries to hold them back, no chance of an unplanned family. He rolled her over so he was holding himself above her, his mouth closing on her neck, where his tongue 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 healing magic, she would never know. The only important thing was that they were there, together, and she had never been so full of love in her life.

“Ree.Ree.” He whispered her name like a prayer as he moved against her. As their bodies twined together, her power whipped 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 name, and clutched at his back. He shuddered, his breath washing 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 time. Even with the world falling 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 own match pace. It wasn’t long before 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 smiled to herself when he ran his fingers through 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 homework.” He narrowed his eyes, a small smile playing along his mouth.

Ree sat up, pulling the blanket with her. She punched his arm and mock-glared 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. “Or maybe it’s just that I really like waking up with you in my arms. Especially when you aren’t wearing anything.”

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, simply enjoying their time together. Paden ran his fingers 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 came crashing back.

“We need to go back.” Paden sighed, obviously sensing her change in mood.

“Yes.” Guilt made Ree cringe. 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 something happy, for just a little while. Something to remind us what we’re fighting for.”

“Ellie is dead. And while our friend grieved we…” Ree motioned between them.

“Do you think this was a mistake?” Paden looked at her with a neutral expression.

“No! No. I just… I don’t know.” Ree shook her head.

“Ree.” Paden cupped her face in his hands so Ree couldn’t look away. “People deal with grief in different ways. We’ve had so much sadness, so much anger lately, that I’m glad we spent the time together.”

“I am too.” Ree sighed softly and leaned forward to kiss him softly. “I just hope they won’t hate us for leaving them to deal with it all.”

“When I left, Melanie and Kay asked to be left alone for a while. They probably didn’t even notice we weren’t there. The others aren’t going to care where we were.” Paden leaned forward and touched his head to hers.

“I wish we didn’t have to leave.” Ree whispered.

“Me too.” Paden kissed her softly. “I wish I could keep you here, naked, for years.” Ree couldn’t help the giggle that escaped at his words.

“That would be nice.”

“Oh, nice? That’s it?” Paden pulled back and frowned.

“Perfect. Fabulous. Amazing.”

“Much better.” Paden leaned down to kiss her neck. “When this is all over, we’ll go away together. Somewhere peaceful, somewhere no one will bother us.”

Ree tilted her head so he had better access to her throat. “Hmmm. That sounds perfect.”

“It will be sunny, with crystal clear water, and you can wear little bikinis.” Paden moved Ree a little closer on his lap.

“And you can wear some of those little swim briefs guys wear in Europe.” Paden sputtered against Ree and she burst into laughter. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him tightly to her. “I love you, Paden.”

“Love you, too.”

Ree pulled back from him and looked mournfully at their clothes on the floor. “Time to face the music.”

Paden kissed her one more time before playfully pushing her toward her clothes. “Get to it.” He leaned back on the bed and folded his arms behind his head.

Ree looked at Paden and raised an eyebrow. Grinning, she pulled the blanket with her as she stood up. Laughter bubbled out of her throat when she looked back at him and his bottom lip was sticking out. She searched through their clothes until she found her panties and bra, quickly pulling them on while he pouted.

“No fair.” Paden stood up and stretched. Ree felt her eyes glaze over as she stared at the perfection of his chest and shoulders. He smirked broadly as he took his time pulling his boxers on and shook out his jeans. Shaking her head, she dropped the blanket and reached for her own clothes.

Once they were dressed and the fire had been put out, they headed back to the house to see what the others were doing. Tonight they needed to say goodbye to the people they had lost, but tomorrow Ree intended to hit back. And hit back big.

The house was exactly the way it was before they had left for Savannah. As Ree walked through the halls she felt odd and out of place. Just a few hours ago, the entire place had been destroyed. A complete mess of rubble and charred furniture. She stopped in the kitchen and leaned against the doorframe. It felt empty somehow, as if the loss of Pam took away the homey feeling that once permeated the room.

Something glinted on the window frame above the sink. Ree walked over slowly and let her fingers dance gently over the plaque. Her heart tightened as she looked out the window at the beautiful Magnolia tree that was blooming at the wrong time of the year.

“For Pam, a woman that bled Southern hospitality. You shall be missed.” Paden read over Ree’s shoulder softly.

“Do you think they truly cared?” Ree didn’t look away from the large tree with its beautiful white flowers.

“I think that they wouldn’t have done this, had they not cared at least a little.” Paden looked at the tree with clouded eyes. He squeezed her shoulder and pulled her away from the kitchen.

The house was quiet, but Ree could feel where everyone was located. She headed for Weylin’s room. Paden knocked once before opening the door slowly. Juliette and Bryce were curled on the floor in front of the fireplace. Weylin sat in a tall wingback chair. His hands were lying on the armrests, his face taught with grief. Ree went to him and made him scoot over. She sat next to him, pulling his hand into hers, just offering strength and love quietly. She would turn the world around if it meant saving those she loved from the pain of the last few weeks.

He squeezed her fingers. No one said anything for a little while, just finding a little peace in each other’s company. The last few weeks had been so hard for all of them, and Ree knew they would never go back to normal. How had the other Alastrianas returned to normal lives? Hadn’t they felt the need to pay back all the hurt that had been inflicted upon them? Had they hunted Dark Ones for the rest of their lives?

“We should go to Melanie.” Weylin’s voice was hoarse, his eyes red-rimmed.

“Okay.” Ree stood up and pulled Weylin into a hug.

“What do we do?” Juliette asked quietly. Bryce stood, holding her hand, his eyes dark with compassion. Only Ree could feel the anger bubbling under the surface of her friend’s expression. He wanted revenge. Ree nodded her head in Bryce’s direction to let him know she understood. She wanted it too.

“We need to find them a final resting place.” Paden answered Juliette’s question, but kept his eyes on Weylin. He nodded his head once and they all headed toward Melanie’s room.

Roland sat on the floor next to Melanie’s door, his head tilted forward, his confused emotions swirling through the hallway. Ree wished she could make him understand what he was feeling, to point out the obvious, but she knew he had to figure it out on his own.

“They wouldn’t let me in.” He looked up when they got closer, his eyes bleak. He studied Ree and Paden for a minute before looking away. Ree wanted to help wipe the despair from his face, but knew only time could do that.

Paden held his hand out to help Roland up. Ree squeezed his arm before she walked to the door. Taking a deep breath, she knocked twice softly. The door came open slowly and Melanie looked at Ree with sad eyes. Ree stepped forward and wrapped her friend in a hug. The pain from the two women in the room was like drowning in hot water. It was thick, suffocating, and stifling. The others slowly came in the room behind Ree. Weylin went straight to his aunt and wrapped her in his arms. Kay looked fragile next to Weylin’s tall frame, her eyes closed as he whispered something quietly to her. She reopened her eyes and grabbed Weylin’s face.