“Don’t. Move.” Each word was enunciated, and his eyes locked on hers as he waited for her to acknowledge the command.
Auraelia pulled her lower lip between her teeth and nodded. When he cocked his head to the side, she nearly rolled her eyes. Goddess, the way this man demanded control was both a turn-on and infuriating. But her desire to let someone else take the reins, to let someone else make the decisions for once, overpowered her need to retain that control.
Auraelia locked her gaze onto Daemon’s and let a coy smile form on her lips. “I won’t move.”
His eyes narrowed a fraction before he let them trail down her body, raking across every dip and curve like it was the first time he’d seen them. His hands followed the path of his gaze, and her magic followed his fingers, warming her skin from within and sending a flood of heat between her legs.
When she moved to press them together, Daemon’s hands shifted to her inner thighs and pulled them further apart. “Something you want,Princess?”
“Iwantthe thing you promised.”
Daemon’s hands slid up her legs, skirting where she longed for his touch before traveling back down the outside of her thighs.
Fucking hell.She’d nearly forgotten how much he loved to tease, and it had been so long since she’d been touched that it wouldn’t take much to tip her over the edge.
Daemon continued the movements, each pass bringing his hands closer and closer to the ache at her center. So lost in the feel of him, she hadn’t noticed when he’d palmed the hilt of her dagger and gently pulled it from its sheath.
“I hope you’re not fond of this corset.”
Her brows furrowed, and before she could comprehend what his words meant, he was sliding the blade between her tunic and corset, slicing through the fabric. “What the—”
The anger that had begun to form was quickly doused as wet heat covered her nipple. Her gasp quickly turned into a moan as he sucked the peak through her shirt, and his hand finally met the junction of her thighs. Heat licked up her spine at the sensation, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Every move of his fingers and draw against her breast sent her spiraling.
Daemon’s teeth grazed the tip of her nipple as he pulled his mouth away, his gaze burning into her own. “One piece of clothing down…”
He slid her dagger back into its sheath, then deftly undid the straps that secured it to her thigh and placed it on the table. Removing his fingers from between her legs, he stood upright, a small smile tugging on his lips.
Auraelia groaned at the loss of his touch, then pushed onto her elbows. “What?”
Daemon quirked a brow at her movements. “I do believe I told you not to move.”
She narrowed her eyes, but before she could respond, he continued.
“It’s nothing, really. I just remembered another time when your boots and pants were in my way.”
Waves of heat rolled through her as his gaze seared into hers. “Yes, well. If memory serves, it didn’t seem liketoomuch of an issue.”
The air became heavy as tension built between them. Neither of them moved to the other.
Auraelia let her gaze travel down his body. Taking in the way that his tunic fit the wide set of his shoulders, the way his pants hugged every contour of his legs, and the erection between them. Her eyes lingered on that ridge as memories of the way it felt to have him plunging into her swirled through her mind. Slowly, she lifted her gaze back up his frame as she swept her tongue over her bottom lip. But when her eyes met his once more, she pulled it between her teeth.
Daemon’s nostrils flared as he stared down at her like it was taking everything he had not to rip every stitch of clothing from her body. And, Goddess, did she want him to act on that feeling. The taut silence seemed to drag on for ages, but he snapped the thread with one word.
“Mine.”
She’d worry about the implications of that word later, but the way he said it? It was more growl than a word, and she felt it through every one of her nerve endings. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end as something deep within her soul clicked into place.
Chapter Twelve
Auraelia
Just sex?Who was she kidding?
It never was, and neverwouldbe, just sex with them.
It was always claiming and being claimed, and tonight was no different.
They came together like lightning striking the ground. Hard, fast, and potentially devastating.
