THE WILD BETWEEN US

Salina's POV

“I’m going, and that’s final,” I declare, straddling Niko, my boyfriend. His hands rest on my thighs as he looks up at me, a mix of frustration and longing in his almond-shaped, brown eyes. For weeks, he’s been begging me not to go to the Amazon rainforest, pleading with every fiber of his being. But, as usual, I do what I want.

I let a sly smile creep across my lips, my fingers trailing down his torso. Taking him in my hand, I move deliberately, teasing him, coaxing him to submit to my will. His breath hitches as a low moan escapes his lips.

“Please,” he murmurs, though his resolve falters the moment I lower myself onto him, inch by agonizing inch.

“Oh, baby,” he groans as I settle fully against him, his body tense beneath mine.

Leaning down, I whisper in his ear, my voice dripping with mischief. “Tell me you’ll be a good boy while I’m gone.” I punctuate my words with a slow roll of my hips.

His jaw tightens. “No,” he growls, his defiance flickering, though I can feel him teetering on the edge.

I smirk, lifting myself off him only to lower back down, slowly, deliberately, testing his patience. “Not so fast, handsome,” I tease as his hands try to grip my hips for control. I quickly pin his wrists above his head, leaning close enough that he can feel my breath on his skin.

A growl rises from his throat, his frustration palpable. He bucks his hips in an attempt to take charge, but I squeeze my legs tightly around him, keeping him exactly where I want him.

“Not until you submit,” I whisper, my lips brushing against his ear. I nip at his earlobe, feeling the heat radiating off his skin. “All you have to do is say the words, and I’ll make sure tonight is unforgettable before I leave.”

His resistance crumbles as I kiss my way down his jaw, lingering at his chest. His breaths grow ragged, and finally, he exhales, “Okay, I’ll be a good boy until you come back.”

Triumphant, I smile and pick up the pace, moving faster now. Niko’s hands find my hips, and he pulls me down hard against him as he thrusts upward, our movements syncing. His lips capture mine, and I lose myself in the kiss, feeling the growing intensity between us.

As the pressure builds deep in my core, I arch my back, my breath hitching. My release crashes through me like a wave, leaving me trembling, my vision blurred by stars. Niko doesn’t stop, his pace relentless until he groans, his body tensing as he finds his own release.

Collapsing on top of me, he buries his face in my neck, his breaths heavy against my skin. “That was amazing,” he murmurs, pressing soft kisses along my shoulder.

“I’m going to miss this,” I admit quietly, my voice tinged with truth. We’ve never spent more than a few days apart since we started dating.

“Then don’t go,” he pleads again, his persistence wearing thin on my nerves.

Niko and I have been together for two years. We met in our final year of university, and he was one of my closest friends before we became something more. At six feet tall, with his strong build, short-cropped brown hair, and warm eyes, he’s everything you’d picture in the perfect boyfriend. He’s kind, supportive, and endlessly patient—a perfect counterbalance to my headstrong, independent nature.

But right now, his neediness is starting to irritate me.

He knows how long I’ve been planning this trip—five years of meticulous preparation. This isn’t just some vacation; it’s a mission. Yet, Niko keeps asking me to postpone it, to wait until his work placement ends. But I can’t. Everything is in place, and I feel it in my gut—this is the right time.

My father’s disappearance fifteen years ago has haunted me every day since. He was a researcher, convinced he’d discover something ground breaking in the depths of the Amazon. Two weeks into his expedition, he vanished without a trace. No body, no clues—just gone.

His absence broke my mother. She fell into a dark spiral of depression and, eventually, drug addiction. I tried to save her, to pull her back into the light, but it was no use. Three years ago, I made the hardest decision of my life and walked away.

My breaking point? Her boyfriend, Dan, tried to assault me. When I told her, she didn’t believe me. Instead, she cursed me for ruining her relationship.

Since then, I’ve cut all ties. She only calls when she needs money, and I’ve learned to say no. She doesn’t want help; she wants her next fix.

This trip isn’t just about finding closure—it’s about reclaiming a piece of myself. My father believed there was something extraordinary in the Amazon, and I owe it to him—and to myself—to see this through.

Niko sighs beside me, breaking me out of my thoughts. “I just don’t want to lose you,” he says softly.

I brush a hand through his hair, my voice firm but kind. “You won’t. But I need to do this.”

He nods reluctantly, his arms tightening around me as if holding on a little longer will keep me here.

But nothing will stop me now.