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silky skin pressed to his, he dragged off his pants and eased her on top of him, his hands on her back, moving her against him as he rained kisses over her face. She was wet and slick for him again, and she made tiny noises in her throat as she moved against the swollen length of him.
    “Raise your hips a little. Let me . . .”
    A high sound escaped her throat as he eased himself halfway inside her. Going absolutely still, he watched her closely, steeling himself to stop. But she gave him a tremulous smile, and the smile turned to triumph as she tilted her hips and took him deep inside. For a trembling moment she looked overwhelmed. Then she began to move again, slowly at first, then driving in a frantic rhythm that captured him, sent him up and up toward the heavens, into the heat of the sun. His shout of satisfaction mingled with her cries as she followed him into the heart of the fire.
    His arms went around her, clasping her tightly, holding her to him, knowing that he would never let her go.
    When she raised her head, her eyes were shimmering. “Thank you. Not just for the pleasure. For the healing.”
    His throat was so tight that he could only answer with a nod.
    She slipped down beside him, cuddled against him, and his arm came up to cradle her close.
    “So now you can’t back out on the marriage part,” he said, more gruffly than he intended. “We can do it over the comm lines, with the records office in Spenserville.”
    “Rushing me into a signed contract?”
    “Before you have time for second thoughts.”
    “You’ve already had my second thought—and third and fourth and countless others,” she murmured. “I remember when my father sat me down and explained why I had to stop following you around. Until then, I didn’t understand much about ‘proper relations’ between Farlians and Dorre. But my father made it very clear.” She sighed. “Still, I couldn’t stay away from you. That night when you found me in the garden, I ached to tell you to wait for me, so we could go off and be alone. I ached to be with you—to do all the things my father told me I could never do until I was married to a man of the proper rank—and race. But I understood that being with you would only make things impossible for both of us if anyone found out. So I walked away. Now I know what I was giving up.”
    “Oh, Kasi.”
    “After the soldiers—” Her voice hitched. “After the soldiers, I thought I could never let a man touch me again. But then, I started imagining someone holding me in his arms, comforting me, making me feel whole again—and the man was always you. Never anyone but you. So that’s your answer. Yes, I want to marry you. I want to know you belong to me.”
    “Always,” he breathed before kissing her, a long, sweet kiss of longing and wishes fulfilled.
    When it was over, he looked down at her and vowed, “From now on, this place belongs to both of us. It’s our home. And I’m going to keep you safe here.” Then his face contorted. “But I’ve got to figure out where to get the money to buy more defenses.”
    She gave him an uncertain look. “Maybe we don’t need more money. Maybe we just need more people.”
    His eyebrows drew together in a puzzled frown as he watched her eyes take on an excited glow.
    “When I saw the estate,” she said, “I started dreaming—about refugees living here. Orphans, Dorre and Farlians who’ve lost their homes. And good people who could make a community where all of us would be safe.” She stopped, flushed as she anxiously studied his face. “Maybe it’s a bad idea.”
    “No!” With the adrenaline of excitement flooding his veins and his mind suddenly alive with ideas, he said, “It’s a wonderful idea! You’re right—children will accept people for what they are. And maybe some of the men I met in the hospital will want to join us. Men who never want another war. I’ll send for a few of them first so we’ll have a defensive force.”
    She