Chapter 26: Morning After

Rin had never realized how quickly her body temperature rose in the morning until her eyes fluttered open that next day. Strands of hair were stuck against her cheek and lips, and suddenly she felt as if the temperature underneath the sheets had increased ten degrees. Raking a hand back to peel away the sweaty tresses, she was about to push back the sheets when the sound of steady breathing beside her caught her attention. Twisting around, Rin's breath hitched at the sight in front of her.

There, still dozing beside her with the sheets bunched near his waist, was Mikoto. He was splayed on his back, one arm resting just above where her head had lain, and Rin was suddenly aware of his left leg tangled with her own. His flaming red hair was slightly mussed from sleep, causing a small smile to creep up her face. She doubted Mikoto would ever look anything but strong and powerful, even in his sleep, but there was something relaxed about him in this moment. Something peaceful. Her eyes wandered down his toned chest, and a heat rose in her cheeks when she eyed where his pelvic lines dipped below the bed sheets.

Feeling dazed, Rin ran another shaky hand through her hair. Last night seemed almost like a dream. If it weren't for the position she just woke up in Rin doubted she would have believed it had even happened at all. A blush that colored even her ears tinged her face at the memory of the previous evening. She had dreamt of something like that for so long, and it had been even better than she could have imagined.

That still didn't mean she didn't want to bury her face in the pillow to hide her embarrassment. The Rin that had been under these sheets last night…and on top of them… and against the door… had been a side of her she hadn't let loose in a very long time. There was no doubt she had enjoyed it, but…had he? What if he had been disgusted or annoyed by her behavior? Perhaps she had turned him off?

Biting her lip, Rin tried not to get anxious and over think things. Mikoto wasn't even awake yet and already she was trying to decipher his thoughts. She thought about lying down and curling up beside him until he awoke, but, truthfully, she was beginning to roast from the heat.

Pushing herself onto her elbows, Rin gently tried to disentangle herself from beneath Mikoto's leg without waking him. Despite her best efforts, a warm arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her back down, and soft lips pressed against her temple.

"Leaving so soon?"

"Wouldn't dream of it," Rin murmured as she closed her eyes and smiled into his touch. Her body seemed to hum with electricity from where his arm touched her bare waist. "But seriously, Mikoto, you're a furnace."

"Mmmm," he murmured against her temple, making her chuckle.

"Sleep well?"

She only received another 'mmm' in return. The Red King seemed to be distracted by her exposed neck, slowly nuzzling his way up until he nipped her earlobe. His ministrations were doing an excellent job disrupting her own train of thought.

"No nightmares?" Rin breathed.

Mikoto's lips made their way back down her collarbone, leaving a trail of kisses in their wake. His fingertips lightly trailed down her ribs and into the dip of her waist, and suddenly Rin went from feeling overheated to being covered in goosebumps.

"None," Mikoto's voice rumbled in his chest.

Every inch of her was hyperaware of his touch, and, despite feeling a bit sore from the previous night, she found her hands burying themselves in his hair and her body shifting until she was beneath him.

Mikoto pulled away to look at her – cheeks flushed, hair mussed, eyes shimmering brightly – and the corner of his mouth quirked up in satisfaction. His eyes trailed down her neck, across her delicate collarbone, lower to the dip between her breasts, and would have continued farther south until Rin let out a small squeal of embarrassment.

"Mikoto!" Despite her self-consciousness, a smile crept up her face as she hid her eyes behind her hands.

"Don't be shy," He murmured, nuzzling her temple.

Peeking out from beneath her fingers, Rin gave him an indignant look. "I am not shy!"

She could feel his lips quirk up against her skin and his voice seemed to drop another octave. "No, I suppose last night you were anything but."

The flush that had been fading from her cheeks colored once more, but she did not duck behind the safety her hands. In fact, despite never feeling more vulnerable in her life, Rin forced her eyes to meet his. They were warm, albeit slightly amused, but the same as when she had first met him.

"Well, I guess I don't feel like I need to hide with you."

"Hmm, why's that?" Rin could hear the smile in his voice, and her heart soared seeing how at ease he was with her. She was so warmed by the thought that her next words seemed to just tumble from her mouth.

"I trust you."

Mikoto sobered at that, hovering above her as he processed what she had said. Her words rang with such honesty, that Mikoto was stunned into silence. Rin watched him with a small smile on her face, and for the first time since he met her he felt as if her eyes were no longer shuttered.

Mikoto was quite familiar with trust. His clan trusted him to take care of them – Anna even went so far as to trust him with her life entirely - but this was a different kind of trust, one that Mikoto was rather unfamiliar with. Plenty of women had thrown themselves at his feet in the past, but Rin, well…

Tachibana Rin had always been a woman that had intrigued him from the beginning. Her strength, her wit, her independence… He supposed they were what had attracted him in the first place. Yet she had always seemed to keep herself at a distance - whether it was about her past, Ayami, or Niaka - and Mikoto had accepted that. All of his clansmen had parts of their past they wanted to keep buried deep. But hearing those words on her lips, knowing that she was entrusting him with her heart – something she had kept guarded since the minute she had stepped foot in HOMRA – allowed him a brief realization of just how far she had come since joining so many months ago. Looking into those wide, amber eyes and glimpsing those thoughts and emotions she kept buried deep caused the Red King's protective urges to rise to the top.

Mikoto was not a man of many words, so he leaned down until the tips of his crimson hair brushed against her forehead. His thumb gently swept across her cheekbone, pushing back a few loose strands of hair, while his lips lowered until they hovered above her own. With her mouth parted, it felt as if the two of them were sharing the same space, the same breath, and she wanted nothing more than to close those last few millimeters between them.

"I'm glad." His words came out an exhale that ghosted across her lips. "I don't want you to hide."

And while she melted into his kiss, Rin couldn't help her muscles from tensing at his last words as a feeling of unease settled in her chest. It wasn't lying what she was doing - she could never lie to him – but she knew that she couldn't hide her involvement at Seventh Heaven from Mikoto much longer, now that he was out of SCEPTER 4's hold. The Red King had an awareness for all things that happened on his turf, and Rin would rather he didn't blow her cover before her mission was complete. She needed to act soon, within the next day or two, if she was to keep Mikoto from finding out. That knowledge lay heavy in the back of her mind, and her brain was already whirring as to what her next moves would be.

As if sensing her resolve, a frown creased the Red King's forehead and he pulled away once more. That connection he had felt a mere moment ago suddenly ceased, as if a door had slammed shut in his face. While her eyes still blinked widely up at him, a feeling of unease, like something was hiding just out of his reach, crept into the corners of his mind. He searched her face for any trace of deception, a difficult task since his eyes continuously flickered to her swollen lips, but he only received a questioning look in return.

"Mikoto?"

Upon finding nothing concrete, he finally relented.

"Nothing."

Author's Note: Thankyouthankyouthankyou! I really appreciate those of you who left reviews about the last chapter. I'm glad it received such positive responses! Again, let me know in a PM if you weren't able to access it and I will send it to you. Also, I apologize for the delay. I've actually been working on an original fiction novel of my own, and worldbuilding takes a lot of time. Plus, I was at my cabin for two weeks with no internet access. This chapter was surprisingly hard for me to write. I guess I lacked a little inspiration, which is why it's so short. We haven't had much fluff between Mikoto and Rin this story, so I hope you didn't mind seeing them get a little more lovey dovey than usual. Now, it's back to some action!

Guest: Hiiii! Thank you for the review! I am thrilled to hear you love Rin. I know my readers probably see me write this a lot, but it really is the warmest feeling knowing that you guys have embraced my OC into the canon world and enjoy learning about her! I'm also glad to hear you don't mind me moving the previous chapter off the site. I know that it toed the M/NC-17 line, and the last thing I wanted was for my whole story to be deleted. Besides, I just don't want any of my readers to feel uncomfortable! So while I know it was an absolute hassle for some, I'm really happy to hear that there are readers who were okay with making the extra effort. Anyway, it says you have to be 18 on the site but if you feel you're comfortable with reading the chapter, let me know and I can send it to you some way (whether you feel like getting an account and I PM you or some other way). And NO REVIEW IS EVER TOO LONG. I looooooooove long reviews, so thank you for leaving one!

Ohai: Hellooooo my lovely reviewer! I wish you luck on remembering your password! I have that happen to me too sometimes. Anyway, onto your review. Yes, I definitely like that MikoRin is more actions than words. When it comes to YataRin, I'm kinda leaving it a little bit ambiguous because I think Yata doesn't really know or want to admit anything either. Thank you too for your review on the smut chapter! I actually took your advice and fixed a few words (such as 'boner' to 'erection' – it just stood out too much.) Sometimes you notice these things after a couple days of not looking at it, so thank you for pointing that out! Hope you liked this latest chapter, dear!