“You can’t keep her in this state,” I said as I stepped forward, slow and deliberate, dragging a single finger down the center of her chest.
Her pupils blown wide, her breath shallow, hungry, she arched into my touch like it would hurt not to.
Van’s arms tightened, trying to steady her, trying to protect her from me. Too late. She was already mine.
“It’s a shame, darling…” I murmured, leaning in until our foreheads nearly touched. “To leave you this needy.”
My hand slid down her trembling stomach, and I let it settle right between her thighs. I rubbed my thumb against her clit, firm and slow.
Her lips parted in a cry, and that ridiculously sexy silk dress was soaked within seconds as her whole body bowed toward me.
I gripped her chin hard with my other hand, pinching her face as I stroked her, my voice dropping to a dangerous growl against her lips.
“That’s not very gentlemanly, is it?” I tilted my head, flicking a glance toward Van, whose eyes glowed with restrained fury. “Is it, Van?”
Her breathing came in shallow gasps, her moans low and pleading. She was unraveling in real time, right there in his arms. I let her go and vanished at the speed of light, reappearing across the balcony with my arms crossed, face blank.
“Go on, then,” I said, cool as ice. “Would hate to see a lady left trembling like that. Unless, of course, that’s your kink, leaving her a mess for everyone else to clean up.”
Van looked like he was a breath away from tearing me apart. Magic pulsed at his fingertips, but he wouldn’t drop her, not yet, not with her in this state.
Then she collapsed into him, slumping backward, breath ragged. Her voice came out soft and pleading. “Please, Van… I don’t think I can take it much longer.”
Her thighs rubbed together, her hands blindly searching for him as she kissed his chin, body trembling from need.
His resolve cracked. I saw it. Felt it. He shifted, lifting her legs to position himself underneath her, but that wasn’t what I wanted. Not like this.
“Now, Van,” I said, raising a finger to pause his movements. “Let’s be fair, shall we? You gave her a mouthful… seems only right that you return the favor, don’t you think?”
I smirked, leaning against the railing as if I wasn’t seconds away from leaping across the space and tearing him off her.
He growled, the sound edged with warning. “What’re you playing at, Lucus?”
“Playing?” I echoed, my voice tight, barely holding back the fury curling inside me like a live wire. “I’m not playing a damn thing. I’m watching. You like that, don’t you, darling?”
My eyes cut to her, and she looked right back. No flinching. No blinking. Like she could see beneath the cocky mask I wore to the chaos underneath. The pain. The anger. The ache I refused to name.
But she didn’t stop. No. My mate wasn’t scared of anyone. She lifted her chin in defiance, her gaze locking on mine with purpose—an acceptance of the challenge.
“Yes,” she said without hesitation. “That’s what I want, Van.”
Of course, like the bastard could read her mind, he moved with the ease of someone certain he belonged to her. He guided her back onto the balcony railing, then turned to me, his eyes lit with something close to fury.
“You want a show?” he said, his voice dark and daring. “I’ll give you a goddamn show.”
His fingers danced in the air, green sparks igniting around them. Vines shot up from the floor, thick and alive, coiling toward her with familiarity.
Those evergreen vines twined around the delicate straps of her dress, lifting it over her head, leaving her gloriously bare, her skin bathed in moonlight. I nearly stepped forward, instinctoverriding fury. The need to taste her, to claim her, was right there on the edge of my control.
She didn’t get even a second to breathe before more vines sprang to life, binding her wrists and pulling them above her head until she was suspended in the air like a divine offering. Her gasp cut through the night air, sharp and sensual.
Van knelt right there in front of me, staring me down like he had something to prove.Go ahead, pretty boy. Let's see what you're made of.
He guided the vines to lower her, his hands spreading her thighs with a precision that made my jaw clench. “Watch and learn,” he said coldly, before he tilted his head back and buried his face between her legs.
Her cry shattered the silence, raw and exquisite.
I felt my fingers dig deep into my arms, blood trailing down to my elbows as I fought the roar rising in my throat, but I didn’t look away. I couldn’t.
