The jagged edge of desire throbs through me, sharper than grief, louder than logic, but even through the haze I know that if I let this happen, nothing will ever be the same again.
Not between Elias and me. Not between me and Callum, or Dante.
I can’t help but let my mind explore the surging thoughts that follow.
If it had been Callum who walked through that door, with his reckless grin and easy warmth, would I have let him strip the pain from me instead? If it had been Dante, steady and logical for everyone else even when he’s unraveling, would I have reached for him?
The truth is a hard pill to swallow in its simplicity: I find them all alluring and dangerous in ways that draw me in. All three of them have seemed to lodge under my skin in their own right, splitting me in directions I can’t explain.
But it isn’t Callum standing here holding me together, and it isn’t Dante who crashed through the storm of my anger to stand by me now.
It’s Elias.
Ever since that first night we met on campus, we’ve always clashed together, unwilling to relent to each other. It has a ruthless edge that feels all consuming, and even if I want to deny it–to keep from stroking his already inflated ego–I know he’s the only one who can give me the kind of destruction I’m begging for right now.
I force my chin up, meeting his eyes with a glare meant to bury the softer truth he’ll never hear from me. My pulse poundstoo loud in my ears, my body trembling with a hunger I don’t want to admit belongs to him.
His lips curve into a knowing smirk. “Give yourself over to me, Briar. I’ll take care of you.”
My hands don’t know whether to push him away or pull him closer at that offer.
“I don’t want you to take care of me,” I whisper, my voice trembling lightly as I add, “I want you to devour me.”
The words barely leave my mouth before the air shifts with Elias’s grip immediately moving to my waist. Then I’m twisted from the wall, my back slamming into the mattress with a bounce that rattles through my bones.
He doesn’t climb on top of me like I expect him to, instead he remains standing at the side of the bed like a looming shadow of desire. His deep blue eyes spark with want, dragging over me until my skin prickles as if he’s already physically touched every inch of my body.
My chest heaves, heart racing against my ribs like it’s trying to break free. I’ve never felt so utterly devoured by a gaze before, not even with my clothes still clinging to me. It’s obscene how stripped I feel beneath the weight of his stare, as if he’s already taken me apart and catalogued every inch of how to make me tick.
His hands begin to follow the path of his eyes, sliding down the length of my legs as he leans over, palms rough against bare skin until they curl at the waistband of my shorts. A shiver passes through me at the soft drag of his fingers, settling low in my belly as his touch lingers there, heavy with intent.
For the first time, there’s no excuse for us to deny this need for each other. No haze of my blood clouding his judgment. No compulsion or manipulation. Just us wanting each other with nothing standing in the way.
His gaze flicks up, catching mine, like he’s waiting for any doubt to cross over my features before he continues. Slowly, deliberately, he peels my shorts down my legs, leaving me bare to him. The brush of fabric against my thighs feels louder than my breathing, and somehow much louder than the frantic pounding of my heart.
It’s proof of just how far gone I am.
“Just know,” he says, voice rough and threaded with restraint that seems like it’s tearing him apart, “I’m not going to be able to stop once I start. So this is your last opportunity to change your mind.”
My pulse stutters, not from hesitation, but excitement. My lips curl, sharp with attitude even as my body trembles with need. “You better have the skill to back up that mouth of yours.”
For a heartbeat there’s silence as we stare at each other. Then his grin flashes, wolfish in the predatory glint I see there, like I’ve just unleashed the side of him I should never have dared to provoke.
The challenge has barely left my mouth before Elias answers it with action. He yanks my shorts the rest of the way off in one rough motion, the fabric tangling for a second around my ankles before he drags my body roughly to the edge of the mattress. A startled gasp rips out of me as my hips slide over the cover, his strength leaving no room for argument, no room for second thoughts.
And then he drops to his knees.
The sight nearly unravels me–the enigmatic Elias kneeling between my thighs, prying me open without hesitation, his gaze devouring me like I’m the only thing in the world he’s ever wanted.
He lifts my legs and settles them over his broad shoulders, palms anchoring me in place as his arms curl around to settle at the tops of my thighs. It’s rougher than anyone has ever beenwith me. There’s no gentleness or careful worry that I’ll break like the fragile princess previous lovers have always assumed I am. For the first time, someone isn’t treating me like I might shatter.
My teeth sink into my lower lip hard enough to sting as realization floods me.
I like it. I like the way he handles me like he already knows I can take everything he wants to give.
Elias’s gaze locks with mine as his mouth lowers, the brush of his lips a hair’s breadth from my heat.
He rasps out, “Every moan that leaves your mouth tonight belongs to me, and I’m not stopping until you admit it.”
