Page 49 of The Dragon and the Dove

Pip shoved between them, clambering into his lap.

He chuckled, scratching the sweet spot behind his ears. ‘Knew I’d grow on you eventually.’

‘You have that effect on people,’ she murmured.

‘Is that right?’ He hummed, pressing a kiss to the corner of her mouth.

Heat crawled up her neck. ‘Let me concentrate,’ she pleaded.

‘As you like, spitfire.’

Sera finished her letter under great duress and read it aloud. With his head on her shoulder, they pored over it together, tweaking it until it sounded just right.

Night fell, and the world went quiet.

After wrangling a treat for himself, Pip took off on his evening walkabout. They were alone then. Sera tucked the letter into her bedside table. When she turned back, Ransom had that look on his face again.

A mix of fear and regret.

‘I almost lost you today, Sera.’

‘I’m not going anywhere,’ she said. ‘Fate has other plans for us.’

‘How can you be so sure?’

‘Because you’re here. I’m here.’ She hooked her finger around his. ‘Against all odds.’

He chewed on his lip, disquieted.

‘You’re anxious.’

‘I can’t stop thinking about it. How it could have gone.’

She didn’t want to think about it any more.

Tugging at the collar of his shirt, she pulled him close, ghosting her lips against his. ‘Come to bed, Ransom.’

His shoulders went slack as he kissed her, soft and slow, like he was savouring the taste of her.

The brush of his tongue was tentative at first, a question. An ache. She answered it with her own, tugging him down onto the bed.

He slid his hands under her chemise, casting a trail of goosebumps.

She palmed him through his trousers, found him straining for her.

He groaned into her mouth. ‘My Seraphine.’

She was a lit flame, every nerve ending inside her firing at his touch.

He angled his knee between her legs, just right, and trailed his lips down her neck. Nipped at the soft skin of her shoulder.

She slid her hands into his hair, begging for more.

The world moved in a blur as they undressed each other, desire making them frenzied. Soon, there was nothing but skin between them, breath gasping, bodies slick as they came together on her bed.

She tipped her head back, parting her legs as he knelt over her.

His magic glowed under his skin, responding to her nearness.