“You do. Trust me. Because if we continue, I will not be gentle. I will claim you. Mark you and mate you properly. And you are not ready for that.”
He was right. Damn him, he was right.
I pressed my forehead against his chest, trying to catch my breath and calm the desire burning through my veins. It was just supposed to be a light brush of our lips, for fuck’s sake. I was a damn pervert.
“This is torture,” I muttered.
“Agreed.” His voice was strained. “But necessary. When I finally claim you, little mate, I want you to be certain. I want there to be no doubt. No hesitation or fear.”
Well. I wasveryclose to that.
“I’m not afraid of you.”
“Perhaps not. But you are afraid of the bond, of what accepting it means. Of the permanence.” He pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “And that is reasonable. So we must wait. Kissing in bed…It is very dangerous.”
“Wait even though we’re both going to sleep horny as hell?”
“Even then.”
I huffed out a laugh. “You’re way too noble for a king who reads porn.”
“There’s nothing noble about me, little mate,” he corrected. “I will be taking my revenge for what this kiss did to me tonight. But do not be scared. I will make sure you enjoy your punishment.”
Oh, my. I was speechless.
I settled against him, still frustrated and aching but also weirdly content.
“Goodnight, Mal,” I whispered.
“Goodnight, little mate.” He pressed another kiss to my hair. “Dream of me.”
As I drifted off in his arms, I realized something terrifying. I was falling for him. Hard and very fast. I had no idea how to stop it.
Didn’t even know if I wanted to.
13
— • —
Malachar
“You like this, wife? You like when I fuck you like the dirty little slut you are?”
I scowled at the words on the page, re-reading them to ensure I had not misunderstood. No. That was truly what the male character had said during an intimate moment.
The females in Wen’s book club had mentioned something called a “degradation fetish” during one of their discussions. The concept baffled me. Why would one wish to degrade their mate during mating? The act itself should be about worship. About claiming and cherishing in equal measure.
Would Wen enjoy such talk?
I glanced up from my position on one of the reading nook couches, studying her as she helped a customer at the register.No. I did not believe she would. My mate had fire. Pride. Strength. She would not wish to be called such names, even in passion.
But perhaps other words...
My mind drifted without permission, conjuring images I had been fighting all morning. Hell, all week, since the day she kissed me. Wen beneath me. Above me. Her eyes glazed with pleasure as I-
“Come here, little mate,”my fantasy-self growled.“Let me fuck you so hard you will be dripping my cum for days.”
In my imagination, she moaned. Arched into me.“Yes, Mal. Fuck. Please-”
