“Why does it matter?” I press, curiosity overcoming caution. “Whether I’m here or not?”
She hesitates, something vulnerable flickering across her face before her expression hardens into resolve. “Because I had planned to bond with you and Ares tonight,” she says, her voice steady despite the weight of her words. “Unless, of course, you have something more important to do.”
The deadpan statement is enough to steal my breath more effectively than any punch to the ribs. Bond. With me and Ares. Tonight.
“You—what?” I manage, my usual composure deserting me entirely.
“You heard me.” Her chin lifts slightly, a challenge in her eyes. “But if you’re too busy playing royal emissary, I’m sure Ares and I can manage without you.”
She turns on her heel, dress flaring around the curve of her hips, knowing damn well I’m watching every step as she strides away.
Icollapse against the silk sheets, sweat-slick and gasping. My lungs burn with each breath, muscles trembling with exhaustion beyond anything I’ve experienced in battle. Three days. Three days of this marathon, and still her heat shows no sign of breaking.
Beside me, Ares groans and flops onto his back, his massive chest heaving. “Gods above,” he rasps, voice raw from overuse. “Is it always like this?”
I shake my head, lacking the breath for words. The Omega women I’ve been with before—courtiers, nobles’ wives, the occasional palace servant—were all past the age of intense heats. Controlled, manageable affairs that bore little resemblance to the inferno we’re currently navigating.
Maya’s heat is relentless. Primal. A force of nature that consumes everything in its path.
The bed shifts as she crawls over me, her naked body flushed and glowing with sweat. Her purple hair falls in tangled wavesaround her shoulders as she straddles my hips, pressing kisses to every inch of skin she can reach.
“Again?” I manage, the word more breath than sound.
She smile, a feral, hungry thing that sends a jolt of renewed desire through my exhausted body.
“Again,” she confirms, reaching between us to guide me inside her.
I’m still sensitive from our last round, nerves singing with almost painful pleasure as she sinks down on me. My hands find her hips automatically, steadying her as she begins to move. Is this the fourth time tonight? The fifth? I’ve lost count, lost track of time entirely in this haze of sex and sweat and Maya’s cherry-champagne scent.
“Fuck,” Ares mutters appreciatively, turning his head to watch us. His green eyes are heavy-lidded but alert, his cock already hardening again despite his exhaustion. Alpha stamina is legendary, but even we have limits. Limits that Maya seems determined to push past.
She rides me with single-minded focus, her body hot and slick around mine. Her hands brace against my chest, nails digging half-moons into my skin that will join the constellation of marks she’s already left. I thrust up to meet her, finding a rhythm that makes her gasp and arch her back.
“So good,” she breathes, her voice husky and raw. “You feel so good inside me.”
Pride surges through me at her words, primitive and possessive. I may share her with Logan, with Ares, with Cillian, but in this moment, I’m the one making her feel this way. I’m the one she chose for this round, this pleasure.
Her movements grow more erratic as she chases her release, her inner muscles clenching around me in a way that makes it nearly impossible to hold back my own climax. I grit my teeth,determined to make her come first, to prove my worth even in my exhaustion.
“Let go,” I urge her, sliding one hand between us to circle her clit with my thumb. “Come for me, Maya.”
She shudders, her rhythm faltering as pleasure overtakes her. Her head falls back, exposing the elegant line of her throat, and something primal stirs in me at the sight. The urge to mark, to claim, to make her mine in the most ancient way possible.
As if sensing my thoughts, she leans down, her body still trembling with aftershocks. Her lips brush my ear, her breath hot against my skin.
“Do it,” she whispers, the words sending a shock through my system. “Mark me, Poe. Make me yours.”
Before I can respond, she shifts her position, tilting her head to expose the side of her neck—the traditional place for a bonding bite. My heart hammers against my ribs, desire and disbelief warring for dominance.
“Maya,” I manage, my voice strained with the effort of holding back my orgasm. “Are you sure?”
Instead of answering, she sinks her teeth into my shoulder. I groan, hips bucking involuntarily at the sharp pain-pleasure of it.
“Do it,” Ares rumbles from beside us, his voice thick with desire. “She wants it. We all want it.”
That’s all the permission I need. As Maya continues to ride me, I wrap my arms around her, holding her close as I thrust up into her with renewed vigor. She moans against my skin, her body tightening around mine as another orgasm builds.
I turn my head, my lips finding the side of her neck. I kiss the spot first, tasting salt and sweetness, feeling her pulse race beneath my tongue. Then, as I feel my own climax approaching, I bite down—hard enough to break skin, to leave a mark that will scar, that will bind us together in the most primal way possible.
