She stares down at me, breathing hard, panic flickering behind the haze of desire. “I am letting go.”
“No, you’re not.” I kiss her thigh. “You’re still holding back. You’re hiding behind the sensations.”
“I’m not—” Her voice catches.
I stroke her soft skin, keeping my voice steady even though I’m afraid to push her too hard. “You’re still trying to control what you feel. What you let me see.”
Her jaw clenches. “What do you want from me?”
“I want you to stop being afraid of wanting me without magic or curses forcing your hand.”
“Hannah…” It’s half plea, half warning.
My heart is pounding so hard I can barely breathe. I know nobody has coaxed total surrender out of Julia Moreau before, but we need this if we want to unbind.Ineed this. I need to know I’m not just someone to feed on.
My throat tightens, but I make myself say what terrifies me most. “I care about you, Julia. You’ve changed me and made me braver. You’ve shown me a part of myself I didn’t know existed.” I hold her gaze, letting her seemy want, fear, and hope. “Tell me you want this too. Not because you have to break a spell. Tell me you want me because you want me.”
29
Julia
WhenHannahpullsback,I want to scream.
But her words make me freeze, a cold sensation flooding my veins.
I care about you, Julia.
My chest heaves as I look down at her, my whole body aching for release. She looks back at me with those deep blue eyes.
What the hell does she think she’s doing?
She licks a slow, torturous circle, keeping me on the edge. Draws her fingers out, then in. Molten heat blazes through my middle. The pleasure is maddening, but she won’t finish it.
“Tell me what you’re feeling,” she whispers.
I’m trembling. I tangle my fingers in her hair, trying to guide her mouth, but she resists.
Damn her. She is going to keep me here, teetering on the edge, until I…
Realization crashes over me like cold water.
Surrender.
This is not some game of torture she’s playing. She is trying to make me surrender in her own way.
Does the binding spell requiremeto give in completely? Both of us, perhaps?
My heart skips a beat as the pieces slot together. The spell has been behaving strangely these last hours, tightening and loosening in response to something I could not identify. It wasme.Mysurrender. Whenever I softened to Hannah, the spell hummed, coming closer to snapping.
She is trying to guide me back to that place. This clever, infuriating woman has figured out what Rebecca’s spell needs and is doing everything to take me there.
I should be furious. I should push her away, reclaim control, remind her who holds the power here.
But her words echo in my head.Tell me you want me because you want me.
My heart squeezes. Does she fear she’s no more than a body that feeds my magic? Is that what I have led her to believe?
Of course I have. I’ve made it clear that I take what I need and discard people when I’m finished with them. She has no reason to think she is any different.
