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Zann smiled at the taste of Lydia’s gasp of pleasure and flexed her quad, giving Lydia a firmer base to grind on as she rocked against her. It took less than two heartbeats for them to settle into an easy rhythm that had them abandoning their kisses as they instead panted against each other’s mouths, and her chest tightened when Lydia nuzzled her cheek and whispered, “Open your eyes for me,” against her lips.

It was a request easier made than obeyed, but she managed it eventually, and then her breath left her in a rush when she saw the unabashed affection that shone in Lydia’s dark, dark eyes. “Lyds…”

Lydia smiled and tenderly brushed Zann’s hair from her brow. “You are so beautiful,” she whispered as she leaned in to kiss her so sweetly that it brought tears to Zann’s eyes. She touched her forehead to Zann’s as she rocked forward. “I could do this forever.”

Zann slid her hand from Lydia’s behind to press against the small of her back as she confessed, “I would let you.”

Lydia’s lips fell open with a trembling breath, and her eyelids fluttered prettily. “Zann…”

I love you, Zann thought as she stared, enchanted by the emotion that played across Lydia’s face as their hips continued to roll dreamily together. She pulled her hand from Lydia’s hair to tuck the dark, silky strands behind her ear so she could drink in her beauty as she slipped further and further beneath the veil of passion that enveloped them as they rocked slowly together in a dance that was uniquely and beautifully theirs.

It wasn’t long before pressure in her belly began to spread outward, and she lifted her chin to whisper, “I’m so close,” against Lydia’s lips, wanting nothing more than for them to fall over that blissful edge together.

Lydia’s hips stuttered, and Zann swore she’d never heard anything more beautiful than the way her name sounded as it scraped past Lydia’s lips on a moan as she sank into her. “Me too.” Lydia choked on a sob as she bore down on Zann’s thigh. “Oh, Zann…”

“That’s it, baby,” Zann encouraged. She caressed Lydia’s back as she increased the tempo of her hips, chasing the release that seemed perilously close to dragging Lydia under. She cradled Lydia to her as they moved together, letting the heavy fall of Lydia’s breath against her lips pull her closer and closer to oblivion. When they fell, it was with a shared, cracked moan of relief that was quickly swallowed by a kiss so deep and powerful that it set Zann’s soul alight.

She caressed every inch of Lydia’s body that she could reach as she drifted on the waves of her release as they washed over and through her, leaving her feeling adrift and oddly grounded at the same time. It was an intoxicating dichotomy, and she sighed against Lydia’s lips as the ripples of her orgasm faded and she sank into the golden afterglow of their lovemaking.

“That was…” Lydia began, but the rest of the thought was lost to an indistinct mumble when she buried her face in the crook of Zann’s neck and went limp on top of her.

Though Zann didn’t know what, exactly, Lydia was trying to say, the smile pressed to the side of her throat and the way Lydia was draped bonelessly on top of her spoke volumes, and she caressed her back tenderly as she agreed, “It was.”

Zann’s throat tightened with affection when Lydia murmured something unintelligible before snuggling closer and lightly tracing the line of her collarbone with the pad of her thumb. She kissed Lydia’s forehead and then, with a contented hum, let herself sink into the tenderness of Lydia’s caress.

A gentle warmth blossomed in her chest as they laid there, the silence around them as comforting and warm as the touches they shared. She matched the steady glide of her fingertips along Lydia’s spine to those drifting back and forth across her collarbone, and let her breaths slow to match the steady puffs cascading warmly against her throat.

It was a peace she’d never known, and, now that she had, she wondered how she would ever exist without it.

As if sensing her thoughts, Lydia’s touch stilled, and Zann blinked her eyes open slowly as Lydia shifted so that she could prop her head on her hand to meet her gaze. Though Lydia’s features were soft, uncertainty shadowed her eyes as they darted over her face, searching for the answer to a question that hadn’t been voiced.

Zann licked her lips as she reached up to tenderly cradle Lydia’s jaw. “What’s going on in that beautiful brain of yours, baby?”

“I…” Lydia’s throat bobbed, and Zann’s heart ached at the fragile insecurity that furrowed her brow as she whispered, her voice shaking with nerves, “Did you mean it when you said you wanted to keep me?”

Oh, my beautiful girl. Zann nodded. “More than I’ve ever meant anything in my life.”

Lydia’s eyelids fluttered as a tremulous smile tipped her lips. “Okay…” she exhaled. Then, a little stronger, “Good.” She blinked her eyes open. “Me too.”

Zann’s heart swelled at the confirmation that she wasn’t in this alone. She caressed the curve of Lydia’s cheek with her thumb. “I know this is crazy-stupid-fast, but can I say that I…” She hesitated but then decided fuck it. “I love that you’re in this with me?”

Her breath caught at the quiet joy that sparked in Lydia’s eyes, and she felt a tug in her chest when Lydia tipped forward to kiss her. She’d move fucking mountains to have Lydia smiling at her and kissing her like this every day for the rest of her life.

“My god, Lydia…” Zann murmured against Lydia’s lips when the kiss finally broke. She blinked her eyes open, and found herself utterly spellbound by the way Lydia’s eyes glowed like smoky quartz in the early-morning sun that was beginning to spill through the sliding doors opposite the bed. “How are you real?”

Those beautiful, jewel-like eyes crinkled as Lydia replied, just as wondrously, “How are you?”

Zann smiled and touched her thumb to the corner of Lydia’s lips as she confessed, “I never expected to find anything like this.”

“Me neither,” Lydia murmured. “But now that I have, I don’t want to let you go.”

“So don’t,” Zann whispered as she lifted her head to claim Lydia’s lips in a kiss that was heavy with the weight of the emotion behind those two simple words. Her heart swelled at the way Lydia sighed into her mouth as she melted against her, and she slid her hand from Lydia’s cheek to lightly scratch at her scalp before tangling her fingers in her hair as she let her kiss convey just how much she meant it.

She caressed Lydia’s back and behind as they lost themselves in each other and the breathtaking depth of this magical connection that had consumed them. Her hold on Lydia’s waist tightened as she used the pressure of her lips and a deft twist of her hips to roll Lydia onto her back. She smiled at the quiet gasp of surprise that tumbled from Lydia’s lips at the shift, and slid her right leg out to spread Lydia wider as she rocked against her, needing to feel all of her.

Lydia mewled beautifully at the firmer contact, and Zann nuzzled her cheek as she checked, “Okay?”

“God, yes,” Lydia whimpered. She curled her hands around Zann’s shoulders and pulled her close. “You’re perfect. Don’t stop.”