Chapter 1540
They moved like a tide - undressing without fanfare, though most had nothing to remove. The ritual of it was enough. Hands touched skin, mouths found mouths, and the weight of the moment shifted from awe to hunger, from reverence to want.
Lucy pulled Jude down onto the moss first, straddling his waist with a heat that radiated from her skin like fire beneath silk. She cupped his face, brushing her lips against his, breath feathering his cheek. "We’re not just making love," she whispered. "We’re anchoring ourselves."
Then she sank onto him, slow and steady, her body welcoming him like something forged for his alone. Jude’s hands clutched her hips, fingers digging into the flesh that shimmered beneath his touch. She moved above him in a rhythm that matched the island’s breath, every roll of her hips pressing them deeper into the moss, into the island, into each other.
Emma lay beside them, her fingers tangled with Grace’s, their lips brushing softly. Natalie and Stella kissed languidly in the shadows of the new wall, bodies twined together like ivy. Sophie, always hesitant, stepped closer, then knelt, her eyes locked on Jude’s as Lucy rode him with reverence.
"Is this what it means to belong?" Sophie asked, voice shaky.
"Yes," Jude whispered, his voice hoarse with pleasure and love.
Rose moved behind Sophie, unfastening her braid, her lips brushing against the back of her neck. "Then join us."
Sophie turned, trembling, and Rose kissed her, slowly, deeply, until she melted into her arms. Jude watched as Sophie lowered herself beside him, her eyes full of heat and the faintest glimmer of surrender.
Zoey crawled to his other side, brushing Lucy’s hair from Jude’s face. "We can all feel it now. You. The rhythm."