His eyes darken, his pupils expanding as he takes in my naked body. His gaze moves from my face to my chest where most of my marks are clustered together, going all the way down to my thighs. There are different shapes littering my flesh, a haunting black against my lighter skin. I'm still not sure what they are, and no doctor has been able to tell us for sure if it's a tattoo, or if someone had branded my skin. I only know what they represent—years of servitude that almost erased who I was. Because of that, I've always been ashamed of them.

"You're beautiful, Luce," Nikki whispers reverently. "All of you is beautiful."

His intense scrutiny makes me blush, and I look away.

"Don't," he rasps. "Don't take those beautiful eyes off me."

A tremulous smile tugs at my lips as I slowly meet his gaze. After all this time, I still get self-conscious about the marks on my skin. I don't like them. Why should anyone else like them?

He kisses his way up my leg. When he reaches my marks, he pays special attention to them, kissing each one in turn, lingering on the larger ones. He moves slowly, trailing his tongue up my chest until his mouth is on mine. Wrapping my arms and legs around him, I pull him closer as I give myself to his embrace. He's slow but thorough, worshipping my body with his and bringing me to the brink, time and time again.

My skin is slick with perspiration as he spoons me from behind, his body still joined with mine. He trails light kisses over my neck, small touches that ignite me all over again.

"I think you'll like this last surprise even more," he murmurs in my ear as he trails his fingers down the valley of my breasts.

"I don't think anything can top today, Nikki." I smile languidly.

"Oh, I'll let you be the judge of that." He smiles as he pulls himself from me. I whimper at the sudden loss of his warmth, my arms still reaching for him. Going to the storage area, he pulls open one of the drawers and takes out a small box.

"What's that?" I ask as I pull myself into a sitting position. My skin is covered in goosebumps, and I wrap my arms around myself in an attempt to preserve heat.

He places the box on the bed, then opens it and lays the contents in the open.

I shuffle closer to get a better look, but I still don't know what it is.

"It's a tattoo kit," he explains.

"Tattoo kit?" I repeat, confused. "Why would you need a tattoo kit?"

"Because you're going to use it on me."

Now I'm even more confused.

"I don't follow," I frown.

"I know you're self-conscious about your marks, Luce. This way, we'll both have etchings on our skin."

I stare at him, flabbergasted. He... he wants me to tattoo him so I won't be the only one with marks on my skin?