Cursed by Bandits (Once Upon A Curse)

21. Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

I held Milo’s hand as we ran to hide behind the waterfall. The walls glistened in the moonlight, light reflecting off each droplet of water. I felt like I was surrounded by diamonds and fireflies. The sight took my breath away as the magic of it enveloped me. However, this form of magic meant it wasn’t long before the mist soaked our clothes and hair, making us as wet as everything around us.

I turned towards Milo as soon as we were out of sight. “What do you think you were doing showing up like that. You almost got us caught.”

He at least had the decency to look contrite. “I don’t know. I was worried about you . . . so I checked your room, and you were missing this.” He held up his invention. “I knew it was your plan to use it to escape.”

“I would have figured it out. Please don’t do it again. I can’t be worried about you getting us caught or worse. Promise me it won’t happen again.”

He opened his mouth, clearly wanting to say something more, but thought better of it and nodded his acquiescence to my words.

“This way,” I whispered, taking the lead and guiding him deeper into the cave. The roar of the water was nature’s cover for our illicit activity. It masked our movements and voices. We were both drenched, our clothes clinging to us, but we didn’t stop. The urgency of what we were doing pushed us forward.

It wasn’t long before we reached a small alcove, almost completely hidden from view and shielded from the worst of the mist. I leaned against the damp stone, trying to catch my breath as I watched the waterfall from above. Milo stood close, his presence a comforting warmth despite the cold water dripping from us.

“That was close, too close.” His voice was barely audible over the waterfall’s roar. His eyes met mine, filled with a mixture of excitement and concern. “Are you okay?”

I nodded, squeezing his hand. “Just a bit wet.” I threw my head back and laughed, the sound almost lost in the cacophony around us. “It actually worked, Milo. The gold is out of my uncle’s hands and on its way to Lockersley and my people.”

I couldn’t sit still as adrenaline and something else coursed through me. We had succeeded in a way I wasn’t sure was possible. My uncle had almost caught us, and we had leapt from a building and flew to safety. It had felt like we were going to die more than once, but here we were, safe, together. Leaping to my feet, I spun and spun until I fell, dizzy, into Milo’s arms.

He smiled down at me. Relief and pride flickered across his face. “I’m so glad you made it out of there.” He pulled my body in closer until I was sitting in his lap. “You’re the bravest person I have ever met.”

I looked at him, feeling a rush of emotions come over me. I was thankful and something more, something deeper. It had been growing between us over these past weeks, as much as I hadn’t wanted it to. I wasn’t even sure if I could pursue this, not with Lockersley still hurting, not if I wasn’t enough to save it on my own. “Thank you, Milo. For believing in me. For being here by my side.”

He reached up, brushing a wet strand of hair from my face. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.” His fingers lingered on my cheek, brushing across my lips, and for a moment, the world outside the waterfall ceased to exist. It was just us, standing in the moonlit cave, the sound of the water creating a cocoon of privacy.

“Milo,” I began, but whatever I was going to say was lost as he closed the distance between us. His lips were on mine, soft and warm despite the cold droplets all around us. I melted into the kiss, the world spinning away until there was only the sensation of his mouth on mine, the warmth of his body against mine.

When we finally separated, I was breathless, my heart pounding in my chest. “We should move,” I whispered, my mouth mere inches away from his, though part of me wanted to stay in this moment forever.

He nodded, his eyes never leaving mine. “We should.” But he didn’t move immediately, but instead he took a moment to rest his forehead against mine. “I will always be here, supporting you, Rowan. If you let me.”

I closed the distance between us, my lips crushing his, opening my mouth, and our tongues twisted around each other, exploring, sparring. I heard myself whimper as Milo moved away from my mouth and trailed kisses down my neck, moving my wet clothing out of the way as he did so.

Shivering, I reached out, my hands running up his chest, the wet fabric incapable of hiding his muscles that were beneath it. I couldn’t stop my hands from wandering over his abdomen, finding the hem of the shirt and lifting it over his head and tossing it aside.

My hands touched his bare skin. It was hot under my icy fingertips. Milo watched my hand travel from his chest down to the ridges of his muscles, slowly caressing each one. His hand covered mine, placed it behind his neck, and lowered his head until our lips met again.

“It seems unfair for my shirt to be gone, but you are still wearing yours.” Milo’s breath was hot against my neck.

My cheeks grew hot as I thought about his words. “Is there something you would like me to do about it?” My words sounded much more confident than the voice in my head.

He reached for the laces on my leather bodice. His eyes met mine. “Is this okay?”

I nodded without hesitation. In the back of my mind, the thought this wasn’t the right time to do this lingered, but I couldn’t stop what was happening.

Not that I wanted to.

Milo’s fingers made fast work of the laces and slipped the bodice off my shoulders. The sound it made as it hit the ground was drowned out by the roar of the waterfall.

My blouse was plastered to my body, clinging to my skin in a way that showed more than hid. Milo untucked the shirt. His fingers grazed the hem that now rested against my thighs, sending shivers of desire through my body. I held my breath, waiting to see what he would do next.

It wasn’t long before I found out. He grasped the bottom of the shirt and pulled it over my head. Instinct caused me to cover my small chest, but when my eyes met Milo’s, all I saw was desire and it made me brazen and my arms dropped to my sides, allowing him to look as much as he wanted to. I let my eyes wander over his body, watching the way water ran down his chest and slowed over the ridges of his abdomen.

I bit my lower lip as I debated whether I should reach out and touch him or lean forward and kiss him, letting our bare bodies press against each other. The decision was made for me when he took my hand in his and tugged me towards him. Our lips met, melding together as our bare skin touched for the first time. The heat of our bodies, slick from the water all around us, pressed together overwhelmed my senses. I didn’t have any words to describe every nuanced sensation I felt, not that I needed any words. Which was good because the only coherent thought I had was I wanted more. More of what I was feeling right now, more heat, more tingles, more of everything.

I whimpered when Milo moved his mouth away from mine until his lips rested on my neck and he kissed and nibbled his way down and across my collarbone and then farther down, until he was cupping my breasts and switching between sucking on my nipple and lathing it with his tongue, starting a fire inside me that would not abate. I fumbled with the metal holding his kilt closed, my normally nimble fingers stiff with cold.

“Here, let me help with that,” he whispered against my ear.

His hands closed over mine and worked the item out of the fabric until it fell away from his body, leaving him in nothing but a pair of leather boots. My eyes widened at what I saw, his muscular, lean, lanky body completely exposed in front of me. I would be trying to cover myself, but he stood there unashamed of what I saw—or what my eyes devoured as I allowed them to graze over every inch of him.

Milo reached for me, his arms encircling me, as we were lost in each other’s kisses. I felt his hands at the waistband of my leggings, tugging them down as far as he could without having to take his lips off mine.

I pulled away, taking his kilt and laying it on the ground before I sat. My fingers fumbled as I rushed to take off my boots. Once again, he came to the rescue. He moved slow and deliberate, taking my foot into his lap and untying the laces before slipping the brown leather off, followed quickly by the leather of my pants. I was about to protest when his fingers grazed my calf and up my thigh. Any thought of speaking vanished as I watched his hand. He went back to removing my other boot. Momentarily, my thoughts wandered to how wide my thighs looked at the moment. But the thought was brushed away by the way Milo’s hands swept over them, not to mention the desire in his eyes as they took in my naked body.

Once again his mouth was on mine, then it moved, raining kisses all over my body. I ran my hands through his hair and over his wet skin, placing my lips on whatever bare skin I could reach. Wanting more, I pulled him until I could kiss him again, so I could run my lips down his neck and nibble on his ear like he’d done earlier. My control did not last long though as his hands ran along my hot skin, one finding its way between my legs. He caressed me there, sending jolts of lightning down my limbs, at least those were the only words I could find to describe it. My toes curled as everything intensified. I could feel one finger slide into me. I pressed my eyes closed, not knowing exactly how to react to such intimacy. But as his hand started to move, I felt more and more that was unexpected. I barely registered the use of his second finger other than everything feeling inside and around me becoming more intense. When there was nowhere else for the sensations to go, it was like a burst into a million pieces of pleasure .

“That was . . .” I paused, not knowing what to say.

Milo rolled us over so I was atop him. His cock felt like silken heat as I slid my hand up it. He stopped me.

“Not this time.”

My eyebrows raised, not knowing what he wanted. He lifted me up, showing me what to do. I took it in my hand and lowered myself on to him. The stretching was both pleasant and not. At least at first, but as I sank farther down, everything I felt before rushed back. His hands grabbed my ass, kneading it as he directed me to ride him. He let me control the rhythm as I slid up and down on him, slowly at first, reveling in his reaction, the power, my body coming alive. But then it wasn’t enough. I needed more. I wanted faster, so I moved faster and harder until I shattered again. My body clenched around him, his moans of my name letting me know he felt the same thing.