Serenya tilted her head back to meet his storm-gray eyes. “Thank you for believing in my strength when I couldn’t see it myself. For trusting me, protecting me, and loving me.”
He leaned down and captured her lips in a slow, passionate kiss filled with promise and hope for whatever future they would build together.
“Tonight,” he murmured against her lips, “I show you what it means to be completely mine.”
TWENTY-TWO
VAELRIK
Vaelrik’s hands moved with deliberate slowness, the kind of unhurried confidence that came from knowing she was his, irrevocably and completely. His fingers worked the buttons of Serenya’s blouse, each one a deliberate act of unraveling the barriers between them. The fabric slipped from her shoulders like a discarded veil. His breath hitched as her skin was revealed, sun-warmed gold with the faintest dusting of freckles, her lumen sigils glowing softly beneath her skin—pale gold against the flush of her arousal.
“You’re breathtaking,” he murmured, his voice low and gravelly, the kind of tone that made her shiver in anticipation.
His fingertips traced the line of her collarbone, the faint tremor in his hands betraying the depth of his emotion. His shadowfire lay dormant, a quiet hum beneath his skin rather than a seething storm. The completed brand on her heart—his mate mark—pulsed faintly, a reminder of the bond that tethered them together. He traced the intricate design with a reverent touch, the coiled wings and thorns of his Obsidian sigil forever etched into her skin.
“This changed everything,” he said, his voice thick with awe. “You changed everything.”
Serenya’s hands tangled in his black hair, her green eyes alight with a mixture of tenderness and desire. “Vaelrik,” she whispered, her voice trembling with the weight of her emotions. “You’re finally free.”
He didn’t respond with words. Instead, he claimed her lips in a searing kiss, one that spoke of possession and adoration in equal measure. His hands slid down her body, peeling away the rest of her clothing until she stood bare before him, every inch of her a testament to her strength and beauty. She was lean and athletic, her body honed by years of battle and sigilcraft, and yet there was a softness to her that drew him in like a moth to a flame.
His lips left hers, trailing down the column of her throat, nipping and sucking until she was gasping. His dragon rumbled with approval, not frantic or hungry, but present. Grounded. This was not the desperate coupling of two people clinging to each other in the face of danger. This was the slow, deliberate claiming of a man who had finally found his home.
“Every inch of you is mine,” he growled against her skin, his hands roaming her body with a possessiveness that he could tell sent heat through her.
He cupped her breast in his palm, his thumb brushing over her nipple in a slow, maddening circle before he leaned down to take it into his mouth. His tongue flicked over the sensitive peak, drawing a sharp gasp from her lips. He lavished attention on each breast, alternating between licking, sucking, and teasing until she was writhing against him, her fingers tightening in his hair.
“Vaelrik,” she moaned, her voice trembling with need. “Please.”
He obeyed without hesitation, his hands sliding down her waist to grip her hips, his lips trailing lower. He knelt before her,his eyes locked on hers as he spread her thighs wider, his breath hot against her most sensitive flesh.
“You’re perfect,” he murmured before leaning in to taste her.
His tongue traced her folds with excruciating slowness, drawing out her pleasure until she was whimpering, her hands gripping his shoulders for balance. He lavished attention on her clit, sucking and licking in a rhythm that had her trembling on the edge. When he slid two fingers inside her, curling them just right, she cried out, her back arching as pleasure ripped through her.
“That’s it, my love,” he murmured against her skin, his voice thick with satisfaction. “Let go for me.”
And she did. Her orgasm crashed over her like a tidal wave, her body convulsing as she fell apart in his arms. He didn’t stop though, drawing out every last shudder of ecstasy until she was boneless, her legs trembling so badly she would have collapsed if not for his strong hands holding her steady.
When she finally came down from her high, she looked down at him with a dazed, sated smile. “Your turn,” she said, her voice soft but determined.
He let her push him onto the bed, his body thrumming with anticipation as she knelt before him. Her hands worked the buttons of his trousers, her green eyes locking with his as she freed his aching cock. Her touch was firm and confident, her fingers curling around him as she leaned down to take him into her mouth.
“Serenya,” he groaned, his hands tangling in her dark red hair as she worked him with a skill that had him seeing stars.
Her lips wrapped around him, her tongue teasing the sensitive underside of his shaft as she stroked him with her hand. The sensation was almost too much, her pace just slow enough to drive him mad but not enough to tip him over the edge.
“You’re going to be the death of me,” he growled, his voice rough with desire. “You’re so damn perfect.”
She hummed in response, the vibrations sending a jolt of pleasure through him. His grip on her hair tightened, his hips bucking involuntarily as she took him deeper. Just when he felt the telltale tightening in his gut, signaling he was close, he pulled her up, his chest heaving with the effort of his restraint.
“Not yet,” he said, his voice low and commanding. “I want to be inside you.”
She smiled, a wicked curve of her lips that made his dragon rumble with satisfaction. “Then take me,” she whispered, her voice a sultry promise.
Vaelrik rose from the bed with fluid grace, his muscles rippling beneath his bronzed skin as he pulled his shirt off in one swift motion. The fabric fell to the floor as his eyes locked onto Serenya. She stood bare before him, her skin still glowing faintly with the soft luminescence of her sigils. Her dark red hair spilled over her shoulders, a cascade of fiery gold undertones that caught the dim light of the chamber.
“You’re all mine,” he growled, his voice low and possessive, the alpha in him surging to the surface.
