WARNING: This chapter contains smut from basically start to finish. The chapter is skippable (though this is not recommended).


Caesar

Lydia hadn't shown up tonight at their usual spot down by the river, in what she had now jokingly dubbed "their own little corner of the world". Caesar had liked that idea from the beginning – them having a place all to themselves, where nothing and no one could question them. Where no one could reach them. Not the damned fight with the humans or the internal problems of the Ape Colony.

Where nothing existed but the two of them.

That being said, Caesar still hated how they had to play pretend during the day, acting as if they were nothing but the best of friends when in fact, they had become so much more than that.

A pleasant shiver ran through his pelt at the thought – they were much, much more than friends nowadays. Ever since that night eight months ago.

One would think that the long days spent away from each other would make it easier for them to hide their bond, but it only ever served to make them long so much more for each other's touch when they each came back from a day packed with pressing tasks. His people demanded his attention and her duty as a hunter in the colony could not be ignored.

Oh, how it pained him that he could not go straight to her when they both returned to the safety of the colony, lay his arms around her in a fierce embrace and press his forehead lovingly against hers.

Like he did when they came down here.

At first, it had been the place they had both gone to for contemplation on those nights when sleep wouldn't find them, which happened much more frequently now than it had in the past. They were both stressed out, as the rest of the colony was, but had soon found comfort in each other's embrace rather than conversation.

In each other's touch.

The thought of her mouth against his had Caesar inhale deeply in an effort to calm himself. She was probably asleep by now, since she wasn't here, and he really should be glad that she was getting some much-needed rest for once.

That didn't make him pine any less for her. Her hands against his broad chest, her soft lips pressed to his own rough ones, her slender legs locked around his rocking hips.

Her soft pleas of his name as he took her for his own. Again and again.

Caesar's hands clenched on top of his thighs and his brow creased. Try as he might, he could not will away the image and his tranquil surroundings did nothing to soothe his burning desire.

The water lapping at the edge of the cave floor only served to remind him of that time she had bathed in front of him here, completely at ease with him seeing her naked, soaking wet body as she rinsed away the dirt and grime of the day. The moonlight peeking in through the overhanging roots and moss clinging to the cliff above him triggered a memory of her bathed in that very same, pale light as he had her laid out beneath him, the shadows dancing and making intricate patterns across her smooth skin as he had pounded into her core. He couldn't even revert his gaze to a damn wall, as they reminded him of how he would take her against them, pressing her into the unforgiving surface with his own body, hooking his hands underneath her thighs when her legs finally gave out.

No matter what he did, his mind kept returning to her. To the woman he had come to adore. The female he had come to need like the air he breathed.

A growl resonated through his chest.

Yes, he needed her. It was no use denying himself what he craved so fiercely.

He had to go and find her. Now.

And he knew exactly where to look for her.


None of the sentinels and guards questioned him as he moved through the colony. He was their leader, after all, and he went wherever he pleased, whenever he pleased. Besides, they were used to him being up at odd hours, unable to find rest, so it wasn't like his nightly prowling was an unusual occurrence.

It made it all the easier to sneak down the cave corridor where Lydia's own little hovel was located – it wasn't much more than that really, a hovel in the wall, separated from the corridor by two well-fitted deerskins to shield her nest from prying eyes.

It would do well enough for what he had in mind. At least he hoped so.

When he finally reached it, Caesar discreetly looked up and down the corridor for any witnesses, before he nudged the pelt aside and slipped into Lydia's dwelling, making sure to put the skins back in place so nothing would seem amiss from the outside.

The Ape King turned around and was faced with the warm light of a torch fixed to the wall – one he knew she kept burning at night ever since Orion had left. She hated sleeping alone in the dark, she had told him.

The dogs had both been roused by his entrance and had lifted their heads in curiosity at him. They were lying a bit away from the nest itself, on the small floorspace which was left outside the sleeping area – it really was a small dwelling.

Storm and Blaze quickly settled down again, however, realising it was an ape they knew well, and went back to sleep rather easily.

Smart creatures indeed, Caesar mused, thinking about how Lydia usually referred to them.

His eyes finally found her in a nest which seemed much too large for her frail-looking human form, covered in pelts to keep warm in the cold, moist cave she resided in.

She would not need those pelts if I could be here to keep her warm through the night, the Ape King mused ruefully, his gaze trained on her like a hawk's, studying her as she slept.

Lydia was lying on her side, her bare arms resting in front of her face and chest. Caesar could see she was wearing a top with thin straps, providing him with a great view of her shoulders and neck, the slender curve enticing him, beckoning him to come closer and run his lips against it.

It was a call he could not refuse.

He only had to take two steps to reach the edge of the nest, leaning down to position himself over her smaller frame and looming above her as he followed the contours of her face.

Lydia was an attractive woman, there was no denying it. Her brows curved gently above her closed lids, her nose was straight and her lips full and feminine. Right now, they were slightly parted as she slept.

Caesar reached his hand up to brush some of her loose, dark hair behind her ear, looking on as the stray locks fell back from her shoulder to reveal more of her neck. She didn't even stir at his touch, prompting him to lean down and nuzzle his face against her hair and take in her scent. It was as intoxicating as always, the distinct smell of the forest clinging to every inch of her.

He moved his lips to her temple and from there, he began trailing gentle kisses down along the side of her face, across her cheek and jaw, down to that delicate neck of hers.

That seemed to be enough to pull her from sleep and Caesar reasoned that he really should have felt sorrier for it than he did at the moment. He just couldn't keep away anymore.

He needed her.

The soft moans she released upon waking did nothing to quell his thirst for her either, groggy and impossibly erotic as they were to his ears.

By now, those only served to fuel his desire for her.

As did the sound of his name on her lips.


Lydia

Lydia had been woken up at the feeling of something trailing against the side of her face and neck, starting out as a tickling sensation which soon transformed into a sensual drag of lips down the curve of her throat. It should have startled her, it really should – no one was supposed to be in here but her and certainly no one was supposed to be looming over her, pressing their mouth to her skin in such an enticing manner.

The moan that left her as she woke only seemed to make the kisses more intense and she involuntarily bared her throat to provide better access, moving to lie flatly on her back.

She knew who it was before she even opened her eyes, the feel of his lips and the smell of his body so familiar to her by now that she instinctually recognized it even while she was only half-awake.

"Caesar…?" She spoke softly, confusion at his presence evident in her voice.

"Shhhh…" He hushed her gently, his breath hot against her ear as he lowered himself onto her with his hard body, pinning her down to the soft nest underneath her. His hand reached up to cup the side of her face, the thumb brushing along her jaw, gently but firmly directing her face upwards to give him more room to lavish her throat with even more soft licks and kisses.

Her own hands reached up to wrap around his neck, pressing him further against her exposed flesh. She still hadn't quite woken up and the only thing her groggy mind could register right now was how impossibly good the Ape King's hot, wet tongue felt as it trailed up and down against the column of her throat.

Caesar let go of her face to reach down and remove the pelts covering her, exposing her bare legs to the cool air of the cave before he brought that same hand up along her flank, slipping it underneath her top in the process.

That was what finally woke Lydia up, the feel of his large, warm hand slowly inching up from her hip towards her breast.

They were in her cave… her cave… in the very heart of the colony!

"You shouldn't be here…" She whispered worriedly, though she couldn't stifle the quiet moans leaving her as he pressed his hips down against her own and she felt his warm, straining member rest heavily against her inner thigh.

"I could not wait." He spoke in an urgent whisper just below her ear, stroking her hair with the hand that wasn't currently making its way across her ribs. "I could not stop thinking about you. About this."

That voice. That deep, baritone voice and the things it did to her!

Still, this should not be happening, not here, at least…

And yet, there was something thrilling about the thought of letting him have his way with her here, in her own nest, where anyone could barge in if they thought something was amiss.

"Caesar… We shouldn't. If anyone hears us- Oh! If-if anyone sees us like this…!" His hand had finally reached her breast, his calloused palm moving over the supple flesh insistently. Lydia couldn't help bending one of her legs, rubbing it up along his own in response to his ministrations.

His hips pressed forward against her own, making his cock jut impatiently right against her clothed core. Caesar swallowed the pleasured groan that left her with a hungry kiss, exhaling sharply when their lips finally met and savouring the feeling just as much as Lydia did.

His eyes were positively feral-looking when he pulled away from it.

"I need this more than you know…" He said lowly against her mouth, gravelly and possessive as he kneaded her breast.

As if to underline his statement, Caesar reached the hand in her hair down to take hold of her hip, keeping her in place with an iron grip as he thrusted his pelvis forward once again. It made Lydia bite her lip to keep back the pleasured moan threatening to spill from her mouth. He was so wonderfully hot and hard against her already!

The Ape King himself lifted his head away from Lydia's, his lips pressed into a thin line and nostrils flared as he drew in a sharp breath, obviously struggling to keep himself in check.

Her hand reached up to take a gentle hold of his jaw, her slender fingers sifting through the thick, greying beard lining it. Lydia found it immensely attractive on him, the grey strands on his chin only serving to amplify his rugged good looks by making his strong jaw even more prominent.

Caesar looked down at her once again with those intense eyes of his, his breathing heavy by now as it danced warmly across her face.

"I…" She began, struggling to find the words as she got lost in his gaze. The light of the torch cast a warm glow on his handsome features, highlighting all the little creases in his skin, as well as the golden flecks within his green irises.

He was truly a wonderful sight to behold. Especially with that lustful gleam in his stare...

It sent a pleasurable jolt through her abdomen and had that familiar, aching feeling occur between her legs.

But what to answer? She wanted this just as much as he did, the tingling heat running through her body a testament to that fact, but the risk of them getting caught – the consequences that were sure to follow – were impossible to ignore.

Or they would have been, had his heavy body not been dominating hers so thoroughly, pinning her down as he felt her up with warm, eager hands. Her top had been pushed up above her breasts by now, letting Lydia feel Caesar's stomach and chest press flush against her sensitive skin.

It was too enticing a feeling to ignore.

"I-I want this too…" She finally admitted in a breathy whisper against his mouth, arching her back up to feel more of the Ape King as she hooked a leg around his hip, begging him to get closer. "Please, Caesar…"

He shuddered above her as the whimpered plea left her lips, his blunt nails beginning to dig softly into her flesh with the effort of his restraint.

He slowly moved his head down to lay his cheek against Lydia's, his mouth just above her ear.

"You must stay quiet." He whispered darkly, blowing hot air against her ear and neck, almost as if to test her ability to do as he bid her.

The sensation sent a tingling rush of pleasure down across her skin.

His warm breath, his hushed, baritone voice, his unyielding body bearing down on her – It was almost enough to make Lydia quiver with pent-up desire already.

She nodded in agreement and from then on, Caesar wasted no time lowering his head down to resume his hungry licks and kisses along the tender flesh of her neck, going steadily down towards the dip between her collarbones. Once there, the Ape King reached up and grabbed hold of her top, pulling it off her body with relative ease to clear the path to her breasts.

A shuddering breath left Lydia's throat as Caesar scraped his blunt teeth down over one of the mounds, stopping at her pert nipple to take it into his hot mouth. She had long since let go of his face and neck, choosing instead to grab hold of his biceps as he made his way down her body. She could feel how his muscles rippled underneath her palms, straining with the effort of keeping his full weight off her.

It was already a struggle for Lydia to keep quiet when she felt his warm, wet tongue drag across her entire breast, and she knew he was keeping a keen eye on her as he did this, scanning her face and soaking up every little pleasured sigh he could elicit from her.

This was a game, she realised then. A game intended to test her self-control, taking advantage of their precarious location.

Lydia didn't know if the Ape King had planned this from the beginning, but she wasn't about to ask questions now when his mouth was moving so seductively against her supple flesh.

Soon enough, Caesar trailed further down his lover's body, skimming his hands across her midriff with his tongue following suit only moments later, down, down towards…

She couldn't help letting a small moan escape when she felt one of his large, calloused fingers hook around the waistband of her panties and pull them down across her mound. Lydia was convinced he let the digit rub against her mound on purpose as he went about ridding her of her last piece of clothing, but she wasn't about to complain as the fabric slid down her thighs – she was just happy to finally have the barrier separating them removed, eager to get what she knew they both craved right now.

And yet, her blue eyes went from lidded and lustful to wide with shock once the garment had been removed and Caesar settled back into position, not on top of her, as she had expected him to, but between her spread thighs, his face so close to her core she could feel his hot breath against it.

"C-Caesar…?!" She couldn't help the startled utterance of his name.

"Shhhhh…. Relax." He urged gently, quietly, as he settled his broad shoulders between her thighs, effectively blocking her from closing them and giving him a perfect view of her most intimate area.

His intentions were clear in his keen gaze and Lydia was left breathless at the sight before her.

Caesar, the Ape King, her secret lover, lying flat on his belly with his head between her opened legs, staring up at her with eyes full of dark, sinful promises. She bit her lip for the umpteenth time that night, anticipation rippling through her entire being as she felt his hot breath against her slit.

His hands snuck around her hips to keep her in place and, knowing how eager she got during intimacy, that was probably a smart move on his part.

Still keeping his eyes on her face, Caesar lowered his mouth onto her core and began tentatively running the tip of his warm tongue along her folds, paying special attention to her clit by circling it once he reached it.

Lydia closed her eyes and let her mouth fall agape in a silent cry at the sensation, so sensual and oh so deliciously warm and wet that she could barely remember to keep quiet.

Caesar repeated the action several more times, each push of his tongue more insistent than the last and each of them making Lydia squirm with pleasure underneath his impatient mouth. After that, his licks became slower, more languid as he eased his tongue further still between her sopping wet folds.

It was so tantalizingly close to being the penetration Lydia's body was screaming for at this point, and yet it still wasn't quite enough. She needed to be filled, properly, and even if his tongue, so incredibly hot and greedy, dipped into her aching core, it didn't nearly reach far enough to satisfy the empty feeling inside her.

She let a pathetic, keening whimper slip between her lips as she attempted to buck her hips against his iron-clad hold, desperately seeking more of his touch.

After a few more, torturous swipes of his tongue, he fixed her with a searching stare. Lydia guessed there must have been something in her gaze which had told him what she needed, because he let go of her hip with one hand, sliding it firmly down her leg as he continued laving at her centre. Then he twisted it around to ever-so-slowly trail it up her inner thigh.

He temporarily removed his mouth to slide a single, rough finger up and down her slit, staring down at it in what seemed to be a mixture of quiet contemplation and fascination as it became soaked with her essence.

At this point, Lydia was on the verge of begging, her chest heaving and her bottom lip sore from her biting it as he continued to tease her.

She threw her head back and panted harshly once Caesar finally decided to plunge the large digit into her heated core, reapplying his lips to her clit and sucking relentlessly at the same time. Her hands gripping the animal skins underneath her to stifle the groan threatening to spill from her throat as pleasure shot through her.

She could feel the Ape King's eyes on her, drinking in the myriad of expressions flashing across her face once he began to slowly pump his finger in and out of her heat, all the while holding her down with his other hand to make sure she did not buck her hips too much.

To make sure he was still in control.

When he added a second digit moments later, Lydia's hands shot up above her head to grab hold of the edge of the nest as she spread her legs further for him. Using her newfound leverage to her advantage, she pushed herself down onto his hand and mouth, a subdued, broken moan leaving her lips as his fingers slipped deeper into her, stretching her in the most wonderful way possible.

Caesar tightened his hold around her hip and squared his shoulders against her inner thighs in response, growling lowly into her heat.

Oh, he is such a goddamn tease! Lydia thought as she closed her eyes and brought a hand down to run it feverishly across the side of her face, brushing her dishevelled, dark locks away as wave after wave of pleasure shot up through her body from deep within her core.

He knew this would make her whimper and moan and he chose to do it to her in the fucking middle of the goddamn colony! In the caves, no less, where sounds and their echoes travelled much further than, say, in the safety of the forest…

He was so going pay for this later…

That is, if she could even remember to be angry about it by then. The mounting pleasure rising from her centre might just be enough for her to forget about it altogether.

When she looked down at the scene playing out between her quivering thighs once again, Lydia was met with hungry, green eyes boring into her own, so impossibly intense and lustful that she almost forgot to breathe. In that moment, he used the hand on her hip to pull her towards his mouth, his nostrils flaring as he took in a sharp breath in preparation before he began sucking tightly around her clit.

Coupled with the slow, knuckle-deep thrusts of his fingers, it was more than enough to send Lydia careening over the edge of orgasm and she eagerly canted her hips up to meet his touch as pleasure overtook her.

Her hand flew up to cover her mouth to try and stifle the moan she released then. She just couldn't help it. He had worked her up so expertly that keeping quiet had become an impossible task for her. She had needed to voice her pleasure, whether she wanted to or not, and he damn well knew this.

It took quite some time for her to come down from her high, especially since he had managed to prolong it by continuing to pleasure her with his mouth throughout her orgasm. It only made it that much more intense and she felt absolutely boneless once it had passed completely. Lydia's entire body slumped gracelessly on top of the soft padding of her nest, every single nerve ending tingling with the aftershock of her reaching that pleasurable peak and her harsh pants the only sound to be heard in the room.

She shuddered at the loss as he withdrew his hand from her heat, pulling his fingers slowly from between her legs – ever the tease – and placing loving kisses across her abdomen before he moved up to loom over her again.

His green gaze was as intense as ever, but Lydia noticed that there was also a deep, loving affection to be found in those wonderful, gold-specked orbs of his, as there always was when he looked at her after having brought her to orgasm. He seemed to relish in the way she looked as she came down from her pleasured high, chest heaving, eyes lidded and her hair all dishevelled around her head.

Caesar leaned down to brush his lips gently across her cheek, speaking in that deep, breathy whisper once he reached her ear.

"You did well."

Lydia didn't know if she should smack his shoulder or laugh at his unexpected sass. Not two minutes ago, he had been eating her out like he had been starving for it and now, he had the gall to tease her in the midst of her afterglow – never mind that he had seemed to enjoy doing it to her quite much as well if his dilated pupils and deep intakes of breath were anything to go by.

In the end, she decided to humour him – after all, it wasn't often these days that Caesar indulged in his more playful side, so Lydia would enjoy it while it lasted. She loved that side of him.

She released a quiet, breathy laugh against his ear and neck, reaching up to lay her arms around his broad shoulders and running her fingertips gently though his fur. It was nice and thick under her slender digits and even if it looked coarse, it was actually relatively soft to the touch.

The parallel to the Ape King's personality did not go unnoticed by Lydia – coarse and unapproachable on the outside, but soft and gentle once you got close to his heart.

"You didn't make it easy…" She informed him breathlessly, her voice nothing more than a gentle whisper against his greying beard.

"I know…" Was all Caesar said as he reached over to brush the back of his calloused knuckles gently against her cheek. She could literally hear the satisfied smirk in his voice – that impossible ape!

Before she had a chance to reply, the Ape King lowered himself onto her once again, as he had done when he had first entered her little cave, and Lydia now felt his hard member, hot and heavy against her over-sensitized core, pressing forward insistently.

The sensation served to fan the embers of lust remaining after her peak, turning them back into a roaring flame inside her once again – he was still very much aching for her.

Lydia hooked her legs around Caesar's hips, pushing him further against her body to indicate what she wanted him to do. What she still craved, and Caesar wasted no time obeying her silent command.

His hard cock slid inside her with ease and he released a low, strained growl above her at the feeling, burying himself to the hilt in her soaking wet heat. Lydia herself uttered a satisfied hum at the sensation of being filled once again, so very pleased with how his body seemed to completely encompass her own with the action.

There was nothing quite like having a large, dominant male like Caesar have his way with you, so tender and loving while at the same time so intense and all-consuming in his actions.

His weight was heavily pressing down onto her as he set an agonizingly slow pace, his hips making stroke after languid stroke against her body, though he always ended on a firm note as he bottomed out between her legs. This move ensured that his pubic bone rubbed against her clit with every single thrust, making Lydia dig her nails into the skin beneath the fur on his shoulders with the effort to keep quiet.

It already felt too good!

He kept his face close to hers, his warm huffs of breath dancing across her cheek and ear as he moved with her, so very slow and calculated, almost as if he was savouring the feeling of dragging his girthy member along her slick inner walls with each thrust.

It seemed to go on forever, steady and deliberate, and it struck Lydia that their lovemaking had never been this leisurely paced before.

Most times it consisted of them being utterly caught in the throes of passion, eager to touch, feel and please all at the same time. It was most often frantic and needy, desire sweeping over them both like a thunderstorm sweeps across the land, wild and untamed as they were in their passion for each other.

This… this was different, however.

What they were doing right now was more akin to a slow trickle of rain, calm, even and steady, but surely building itself up into a torrential downpour as time passed. She wasn't quite sure what had caused this change, be it the intimate setting of her small, firelit cave or the risk of getting caught prompting them to go slower to keep down their pleasured grunts and moans.

Lydia loved it all the same and buried her face in the crook of Caesar's neck as wave after wave of pleasure shot through her in time with his deep, languorous thrusts. By now, he had wrapped his long, muscular arms possessively around her shoulders and pressed his muzzle against her neck, baring his fangs as keeping quiet became more and more of a strain.

He had never been overly vocal during sex, the sounds he made usually amounting to low, pleased hums, sharp hisses and deep grunts from time to time. Until he reached his peak, that is – by then he would groan loudly and grittily into the night, the sound gushing forward from his throat in time with his release.

"Oh, Caesar…" Lydia uttered against the crook of the Ape King's shoulder, muffled but no less passionate as he slid into her repeatedly, heightening her pleasure with every stroke he made against her inner walls.

"Shhhh…" He hushed gently into her ear in reply, though he seemed to be having a hard time staying quiet himself right now, his breathing laboured against her throat, verging on the edge of a pleasured grunt.

The intimacy of all of this, his large bulk pinning her down, dominating her, his arms wrapped around her so tightly, keeping her in place, and his slow pace as he thoroughly fucked her, had that familiar coil in Lydia's abdomen tighten further and further.

It still wasn't enough, though – despite their closeness, the deep, primal bond they shared in this moment.

Lydia needed him to go faster. Harder. Deeper.

She needed some control over this – and she was pretty sure she knew just how to get that:

By challenging his dominance over her in a way he had never experienced before.

Let's see how well he can keep quiet, Lydia thought smugly, remembering how he had driven her over the edge earlier, doing everything he could to elicit noises from her when he damn well knew he shouldn't.

It was payback time.

Clutching his shoulders with her slender fingers, Lydia nuzzled further against the furred crook of his neck until she found the perfect place. Then, she opened her mouth wide and bit down with her blunted teeth, not breaking the skin, but still firm and insistent as he continued to rock against her.

The reaction was instant and oh-so satisfying to Lydia that it sent a thrilling sensation through her entire being.

At first, Caesar's entire body tensed above her as he drew in a sharp breath, his ribcage expanding with the action and for a moment, Lydia almost feared she had crossed a line she was not meant to even go near.

Then, Caesar surged down to bury his face deeply into the crook of her neck, releasing a muffled, primal groan which went right to Lydia's core.

From that point on, the Ape King seemed to lose the last of his self-control, now rutting into her tight heat, merciless and needy all at once, and hitting all the right spots as he took her.

She quickly let go of his shoulder with her mouth, throwing her head back to arch up against him – even if it was largely impossible for her due to his bulk – and releasing a choked moan at the increased force of his thrusts.

This… This was exactly what Lydia needed to get off and soon enough that was exactly what happened as white-hot pleasure suddenly rushed through her like a tidal wave, making her clench around the Ape King's impossibly hard cock deep within her.

Caesar swallowed the loud moan spilling from her throat by capturing her lips in an open-mouthed, urgent kiss, his hands reaching up to cradle her head in both of his large palms. She figured the kiss was just as much to stifle his own deep groan of pleasure as he found his own release, pulsing pleasantly within her as he gave a few last, powerful thrusts of his hips.

He was still kissing her deeply as the last of her pleasure ebbed into that wonderful, post-coital tingle that always followed in the wake of their lovemaking, and Lydia let herself get lost in the feel of his lips as they continued to work fervently against her own. In the meantime, her hands released their vice-like hold on his shoulders, instead reaching down to skim tenderly across his strong back.

When he finally pulled back from their kiss, Caesar closed his eyes and took on a stern expression as he tried to regain his composure, drawing in deep, calculated breaths through his nose while his mouth set into a thin line – quite similar to when he wore that customary stern frown of his, but with a distinctly rumpled appearance added that was only ever present on him after sex.

Lydia relished in the fact that she was the one who got to see him like this, so wonderfully satiated and at peace with himself in this moment that she could not help but stare up at him in open affection. Perhaps this was what he saw when he studied her after having brought her to release? Peace.

Satisfaction.

Love.

They stayed like that for a long time, completely wrapped up in each other as the minutes passed by, and for a time, they were both utterly oblivious to the world that lie outside that little cave.

He was staring down at her again with those beautiful, green eyes, admiration clear in his gaze as he brushed her cheek with one of his thumbs. He was still cradling her head in his hands, fingers buried in her dark tresses, massaging her scalp soothingly. Lydia breathed a sigh of contentment, only half-aware that he pulled out of her as she focused on his warmth and love surrounding her.

Oh, how she wished he could stay, keeping her wrapped in those strong arms of his as they both drifted off to sleep, basking in each other's presence.

Lydia sighed softly at the thought.

Maybe one day, it would happen but for now, reality was beginning to creep up on them and they both knew that their stolen moment in the caves was coming to an end. He needed to get back to his own nest before anyone noticed something was amiss, seeing as he had probably already been gone for longer than usual.

The guards were bound to take notice of his absence soon.

Caesar pressed his forehead to Lydia's, sighing heavily as well and lifting his body reluctantly from hers.

"I must go…" He breathed apologetically against her face, the look in his eyes telling her that leaving was the very last thing he wanted to do right now.

It couldn't be helped.

"I know, Caesar… I know." Lydia spoke softly, caressing his jaw as he covered her with the animal skin that usually kept her warm during these long, cold nights.

He rose to his full height after that and moved slowly towards the exit of her little cave, stopping at the very last moment to look back at her over his shoulder, his eyes still tender and caring as they met her own across the room.

"Goodnight, Lydia." His voice was a deep, soft whisper as it left his throat, and very soothing to her ears.

"Goodnight, Caesar."

And then he left, pulling the animal skins covering the mouth of the cave aside and slipping out between them, silent as if he was on a hunt out in the forest.

She stared at the exit he had slipped out of for a long while after he was gone, wishing with all her heart that he would come back, even if she knew it wouldn't happen. They couldn't risk their relationship being exposed to the colony just yet – the time still wasn't right.

It might never be the right time, Lydia mused clinically as she finally settled back down into the skins and pelts of her nest. Even as she laid there, surrounded by soft padding and thick furs, she still shivered at the absence of Caesar's body, his warmth and comforting presence.

This was how it always ended – with each of them going to their own nest with only the memory of what they had just done to keep them company.

It was agony, sometimes. For both of them.

Still, they were in too deep now to back out, Lydia reasoned as sleep finally began to creep up on her, satiated and exhausted as she was by now. She loved the Ape King too much to call off… whatever this was, and she knew he felt much the same.

And it was that comforting thought which prevailed as sleep finally claimed her. The knowledge that his love for her ran as deep as hers did for him.

And as long as that was the case, Lydia could wait forever.