He hits that spot again, hard, relentless.
I fall over the edge.
I scream, my inner muscles clamping down on him, milking him.
The sensation shatters his control. He groans, a guttural roar, and drives into me one last time, burying himself to the hilt. He holds himself there, trembling violently, as he pours himself into me.
He spends himself inside me. Warm. Heavy. Permanent.
He collapses on top of me, his weight crushing me into the mattress. I don't push him off. I hold him. I run my fingers through his damp hair, feeling the rapid beat of his heart against mine.
We lie there in the silence, our breathing ragged and synchronized.
The storm outside has broken, but the one inside has just begun.
After a long time, Silas lifts his head. He looks down at me. His expression is softer now, sated, but the possessiveness hasn't dimmed. It burns brighter.
He kisses my forehead gently.
"I unlocked the door," he murmurs against my skin. "But you’re never leaving this room."
He reaches into the nightstand drawer and pulls out the key.
He unlocks the cuff on my wrist.
The metal clicks open. My arm falls limp to the mattress, the skin red and indented.
Silas takes my wrist. He kisses the red mark. A kiss of apology? No. A kiss of reverence.
"Does it hurt?" he asks softly.
"A little," I whisper.
He pulls me into his arms, rolling onto his side so he’s spooning me, pulling the duvet up over our naked bodies. He traps me against his chest, his arm heavy over my waist, his hand resting possessively on my stomach where he just finished inside me.
"Sleep," he says. "I’ve got you."
I close my eyes.
I should feel violated. I should feel angry.
But as I drift off, wrapped in the arms of the monster who kidnapped me, with his scent filling my lungs and his seed inside me...
I realize the terrifying truth.
I don't feel like a prisoner anymore.
I feel safe.
CHAPTER 16
THE SILVER SHACKLE
POV: SILAS
The morning light filters through the heavy velvet curtains, casting long, dusty beams across the wreckage of the bed.
I am awake. I have been awake for hours, lying perfectly still, watching the rise and fall of Ivy’s chest.
