Page 106 of Monstrous Serpent

His fists twist in the sheets and a choked grunt punches out of him with every thrust.

“So good. You feel so fucking good. Can’t get enough.” The bed frame smacks against the wall. Sweat drips down my back. I lean over, press my mouth to his, and fuck him harder. “Mine. Fuck, Cody. You’re mine.”

“Yours.”

The pressure at the base of my spine detonates and rockets through my cock. I slam in one final time, coming so hard my vision whites out.

My cock still twitches as I collapse forward, catching myself on my forearms before I crush him, my forehead resting against his collarbone.

His legs slide off my shoulders and fall open on either side of me. “Holy shit.”

I huff out a laugh, then press my lips to his damp skin. “Yeah.”

Sex has never felt like that. Not once. Not with anyone. Before, my body barely showed up. All I could think about was how long until it was over. But right now, I don’t want to move, don’t want to pull out.

“You’re crushing me, dipshit.”

I nip his earlobe. “Be nice.”

He slaps my arm. “Well, I’d like to be able to breathe.”

Groaning, I carefully pull out and flop onto my back. Should clean up, but fuck, I’m too tired. Instead, I grab Cody’s arm and pull it across me until he’s tucked into my side. He snorts, and I kiss his forehead, breathing in the coconut scent of his shampoo. “I like it when you’re smiling.”

“Thought I'm only cute when I'm angry.”

“You're cute all the time. I'll deny saying that if you ever repeat it.” My fingers trail up and down his spine. “But sad? Nah. I don't like sad. Sad makes me want to hurt people on your behalf. I was this close to tracking down whoever was responsible the other day.”

He buries his face into my chest. “Told you what it was about. And you can't beat up grades.”

“No, but I can beat up your professor.”

Cody slaps me so hard I grimace. “Absolutely not. It's not his fault I'm stupid.”

I thread my fingers into his blond hair, grip tight, and yank his head back until his blue eyes meet mine. “Don't say that.”

“It's true—”

“Cody.” I press my lips to his, soft, then pull back just enough to look at him. “You're not stupid. And the next time that word comes out of your mouth about yourself, I'm going to make you regret it in ways that are fun for me and very uncomfortable for you.”

He snorts. “That's not the threat you think it is.”

“We'll see.” I kiss the tip of his nose and let go of his hair.

He settles his head back on my chest, tracing patterns, fingers trailing down my body. He runs them over the scar on my thigh, and my heart beats so hard it's pounding in my throat. “What happened?”

I swallow hard and stare at the ceiling, forcing myself to take a deep breath. “Nothing important.”

His finger runs along the raised edge of skin. “It looks pretty deep. Must've hurt.”

Fuck.

I try to slow my breathing, but it’s no use. Every part of my body starts to lock up. I squeeze my eyes as a tremor runs through me, then another, until my whole body shakes.

“Atlas?” Cody snuggles in closer, wrapping his arm around me. “Hey, I’ve got you.”

Hunter said the same thing that night.

But Hunter knows who I am. What I've done. What we did in those woods.