Serenna squirmed, chilled marble meeting her bare skin when he set her down. Fenn slid the head of his arousal against her seam, teasing her center. Leaning forward, his warmth surrounded her, his lips claiming hers once more.
Locking her legs around his waist, Serenna dug her fingers into his biceps, tugging him closer. A low sound rumbled in Fenn’s throat when he sank into her a fraction, their ragged gasps tangling in the heated air. When she lifted her hips, Fenn surged forward, plunging deeper, her body taking in more.
Reality splintered, leaving behind only the tempest of shared desire. Serenna’s head fell back, a moan slipping free at the way he stretched her, at the way her body yielded to his girth.
Bracing a claw beside her hip, Fenn cradled her shoulders with the other, swearing softly into her neck. Leaning back on her hands, Serenna arched into his touch, moving with him, each slow thrust building a delicious ache.
As he moved to clutch the tops of her thighs, Serenna’s gaze swept over him, eyes lingering on the way he moved, how every muscle coiled and flexed. Water beaded along the ridges of his stomach, catching on the hard lines of his scars, his jewelry clinking faintly with every stroke.
Serenna rocked with him, every rolling movement reeling her closer to the edge. Fenn retreated, not quite letting her fall. The loss left her breathless, but he drove back into her, filling her completely.
Returning to her mouth, Fenn tugged her bottom lip between his teeth. His fangs grazed her skin, the scrape sending a shiver cascading down her spine.Serenna cupped his face,surrendering to the sounds he dragged from her, each noise breaking free from a place beyond control.
Brimming with smug satisfaction, Fenn smirked against her lips, triumph sparking as he seated himself fully. His hips rotated with slow precision, each deliberate motion a torment so exquisite it left her writhing. Serenna gasped as his claws drifted from her thighs, sliding upward to claim her breasts, rolling her sensitive peaks between his talons with reverent roughness.
“Touch yourself,” Fenn growled, his voice now a heated command. He froze, eyes glowing as they shackled her with the unspoken dare.
Primal heat ignited as Serenna nearly shivered with an inexplicable frenzy at his order. Even as warmth flushed her cheeks under his attention, her breath quickened. She held his gaze, embracing the challenge in his eyes, and let her fingers slip between them—eager to obey.
Tracking her movements with a lethal intensity, Fenn remained preternaturally still, his chest rising and falling faster than hers. He gave a low, satisfied rumble and sealed it with a kiss, his tongue sweeping past her teeth to dance with hers before drawing back.
Circling her fingers over her pulsing flesh, Serenna ground her hips into Fenn’s, tension twisting tighter with every motion. Her inner walls fluttered around his steel length—then she shattered. Stars burst behind her eyes as her body clenched around his, her cry piercing the air.
Fenn snarled and surged forward, driving deeper with relentless strokes. She sensed his pleasure erupting like oil catching flame, searing through her in blinding pleasure. The connection rippled with crashing waves, each one sharpening her awareness of him—of his fierce devotion, his undeniable need, his undying affection. Fenn shuddered against her as hespilled into her, each pulse of his release claiming her in ways that defied words.
Breathless and trembling, Serenna’s ears rang as her blood pounded, the echo of sensation leaving her half-dazed. She clung to Fenn, bracing herself as the world came back into focus one heartbeat at a time. The bond thrummed faintly now, a soft echo of their shared ecstasy, their hearts beating in perfect tandem—a harmony of belonging.
Fenn rested his forehead against hers as they caught their breath. “These magics…” He let out a rough chuckle. “I didn’t realize we’d feel each other’s pleasure like that.”
Unable even to form words, Serenna huffed a laugh, sweeping his hair out of his eyes.
“Let’s get you warmed back up,” Fenn said, wrapping his arms around her, his heat chasing away the cold. “And after that,” he added, “a few hours of sleep would be most welcome.”
CHAPTER 9
SERENNA
In her bedchamber, Serenna slipped into a silk nightgown, the fabric feeling weightless against her skin. Across the room, with a towel slung distractingly low on his hips, Fenn wandered to the blinds. Shadows swallowed the first blush of sunlight as he pulled each curtain closed.
Serenna perched on the edge of the bed, curling her fingers into the blankets as Fenn tossed his towel on a hook and swaggered toward her. Despite herself, she shamelessly stared at the exposed contours of his body, his lean strength etched with a tapestry of scars.
“Let me take a wild guess,” Serenna said, her cheeks heating as she steered her eyes away from the hollow of his hips and back to the smug tilt of his mouth. “You sleep naked, don’t you?”
Fenn’s smirk slowly unfurled as he shrugged. “I see no reason to imprison myself in fabric while I slumber.”
Serenna rolled her eyes, though a smile tugged at her lips. But whatever retort she’d been about to unleash dissolved on her tongue as hesitation flickered across his face.
Fenn rubbed the back of his neck, the nervous motion betraying what his steady voice didn’t. “May I comb your hair?”
Serenna blinked at the unexpected offer. It had been weeks since anyone had tended to her—and even then, the handmaidens in Vaelyn had acted out of duty.
But there was a quiet significance to his words that made it feel like more than just an idle gesture. Whatever it meant, Serenna could tell that it mattered. Her chest tightened and she nodded.
Forgoing her brush, Fenn settled on the bed behind her, his talons threading through her hair with an intimate gentleness. Each careful stroke sent tingles racing across her scalp, unraveling the tension from the night.
Serenna closed her eyes as the rhythmic pull steadied her, loosening more than just the tangles in her hair. She let herself drift, indulging in the moment. But the reprieve slipped away, fleeting as stars fading at dawn.
Although Fenn was showering her with unwavering care, she sensed an undercurrent of unease and sorrow—a muted ache lingering in his heart.
