Page 15 of The Scouts

I leant in and hauled him towards me in one move. Using all my strength, I crushed him in my embrace, trapping his chest flush against mine as if I never meant for us to separate again.

His arms gripped me just as tight in response.

“Gods, Lochan. Bloody hell.” My breathing turned slightly wheezy at this point, but getting enough air didn’t seem like a priority. I wished I could tell him so many things, now that I'd finally been freed to admit my feelings and speak my mind. Yet suddenly, I had nothing but a string of words in the Mountain Dialect that I whispered into his ear. “T’anani me tú e agrha, mu’hrōnye. Tey mu-ehrs es. Mu-ehrs. Suru tey akai?”

He grunted.

I nipped the tip of his ear, smiling. “You’ll be the end of me one day, I swear.”

“Doubtful.” His lips brushed my hair and I shivered. “I’d never kill you.”

I snorted, pretty certain he meant it as a joke and a genuine pledge at the same time. Granted, I appreciated both—his assassin humour and the sentiment.

“Come here.” I shifted to make room and lay down again, pulling him on top of me. He let me move and position him precisely the way I wanted.

Right then, I couldn’t think of a better place to be than in that bed with him curled up close around me—his scent and warmth all over my body. I let my eyes close, feeling comfortable for the first time in what seemed like an eternity.

Lochan’s muscles relaxed against my own.

Funny how I'd always expected such an occasion to demand grand gestures and mad outpourings of lust. Not that my loins weren’t into it—as my hardening shaft could testify—but this moment of quiet tenderness seemed to be what we both craved. So we just rested for a while, perfectly slotted into each other.

My heart leapt for joy. A light, floaty sensation engulfed me as if I’d become intoxicated anew. This time, however, my head remained clear. Despite my weariness, I'd never felt so alive. So in sync with myself and aware of another person—so in tune with him.

Love. How did such a small, inconspicuous word wield the power to turn everything on its axis? To give it a whole lot more depth, a new inner dimension? To improve—no—refine it all?

And as much as I longed to give in to elation and simply bask in this new intimacy, we weren’t done talking. I still had to understand what’d occurred.

Meanwhile, Lochan appeared perfectly happy to be moored to me and not discuss anything further. No surprise there, then.

I squeezed his shoulder to get his attention.

He lifted his lashes and fixed his gaze on me. It soon grew sultry and very distracting.

I swallowed a groan, completely conscious of his intentions. How many times had I fallen for it, letting him wiggle out of a conversation? I’d be damned before I allowed him to divert my attention on this occasion.

“Lochan, stop it.” I assumed the tone of someone who didn’t fuck around when asking for answers. “Tell me what happened. How come she gave you all this?” The scrolls at the foot of the bed gave a crunching noise when I nudged them with my foot. “And without getting what she wanted in return?”

The look in Lochan’s eyes became furtive. “But she did. We… renegotiated the terms of the agreement.”

The reluctance in his words forewarned me I wouldn't be all that thrilled with the revised deal, either. “All right.” I sighed. “What was the condition?”

He held up three fingers.

Fucking grand.

For a time, he remained silent. “A kiss. She wanted me to kiss her the exact way you kiss me.”

The muscles in my hand spasmed, balling it into a fist.

Lochan covered it with his own. “Meaningless pretending. And better than…” He faltered.

Better than the alternative, I agreed. Still, the concept had my innards in knots. I had enough sense not to inquire about specifics. I forced a slow exhale instead. “What else?”

“She had me promise I would tell you I loved you.” He turned away from my gaze, avoiding it altogether. “She said she wanted you to owe her.”

The pleasure of hearing him repeat those words again outweighed a fit of pique at the woman’s bizarre, mind-fucking games. Just what kind of manipulative narcissist were we dealing with here? One who got a thrill out of playing with others people’s shit, that was for certain.

Lochan swept his knuckles over my jawline.