I broke our kiss to ask, “Where are you going?”
“I want to make love to you under a Danutian moon,” he murmured, his mouth going to my throat to tongue my racing pulse.
Everan sat me on the wide, stone railing of his balcony and pressed his body forward to spread my thighs even further. His erection nudged my sex, but he was too intent on kissing his way to my breasts to do more than rub me a little. Ever bent me back, over his arm, to bring my nipple up and into his waiting mouth. I cried out when his wet heat enveloped me and clawed him closer. My nipple hardened and lengthened from his ardent sucking. He teased the other into a similar state with his thumb and pointer finger—pinching and pulling until it ached with ecstasy.
The river Lene rushed by far beneath me, shushing against the stone promontory that supported this end of the stronghold. Maybe I should have felt nervous, hanging out into open air like that, but I trusted Everan implicitly and enjoyed the mild thrill of being dangerously suspended over nothing but rocks and water. It didn't last long; he soon pulled me up into a partial lean—just far enough that my hips angled forward into the position he needed.
A cool breeze drifted up from the Lene, making Everan's heat all the more precious. I missed it the instant he eased back to guide himself into me, especially when the air met my wet breasts. But then he was back, pressed tightly against me, my pebbled nipples brushing over his and his body moving inside me with a slow grind. The Danutian moonlight he craved coated our skin, turning us silver and adding sexy shadows to Everan's face. I stroked a finger along his perfect jawline, just below one of those shadows, and admired my magical husband.
“I can lose Danu, but I can't lose you, Shalani,” Everan declared. “If the realm starts to fall, promise me that you'll leave without trying to save anyone else.”
I went still. “Everan, you can't ask that of me.”
“I can, and I insist.” He shoved himself deeper as his hand went to my shoulder, just beside my neck. He pushed me down as he surged up, his thumb stroking the hollow of my throat as his shaft speared me. “Every Danutian can twist; they'll have no need of your help.”
“What about the animals?”
“The animals are pure magic.” He ground his pelvis against me, making me cry out. “They cannot live outside of Danu.”
“What if someone—”
“Amara!” Everan snarled, grabbed me by the thighs, and spun me around. He shoved me up against the castle wall and started thrusting savagely. “Promise me that you will save yourself!”
“Don't you dare try to angry fuck me into submission!” I pushed on his shoulders until he let me down—his cock retreating with a heavy, wet caress. “I will act as I see fit. Twisting takes only seconds; if I can help someone before I leave, I will.”
“That's not what I was doing,” he protested. “I would never use sex to coerce you.”
“No, of course not,” I scoffed and headed back inside.
Everan followed me and grabbed my wrist before I made it halfway to the bed. He spun me around and started to kiss me again. He went back to the slow, tender motions, which was the only reason I let him continue. That Danutian tongue could work miracles when it tried. Ever lifted me again but this time he took me to the bed and laid me down gently on the velvet blanket.
“I'm sorry,” Everan whispered against my lips. Then he lifted his head and pierced me with his glowing, violet eyes. “I could lose everything, Shalani—my people, my home, my throne. The only thing keeping me calm is the thought that I would still have you. But if you won't promise to save yourself, I will not be able to focus on what needs to be done.”
“I'm immortal, Ever.” I stroked his wild hair back from his handsome face.
“Not even your kind of immortality will survive the implosion of a realm.”
That sobered me.
“All right,” I gave in. “I'll twist away if Danu starts to implode.”
Everan let out a long breath and pressed his forehead to mine. “Thank you, my love.”
“Let that be a lesson to you, Fire King,” I chided. “You get more flies with honey than vinegar.”
“What has honey got to do with it?”
I chuckled. “I'm saying that I respond better to sweetness than sour. Be nice and you'll get further with me.”
“Oh, you'd rather me be nice?” He smirked and rolled off me. “In that case, I'd better let you get some sleep. You have to wake up early in the morning.”
“There's a time for nice and a time for naughty.” I got onto my hands and knees, then looked over at him seductively. “What time do you think it is?”
The King of the South grinned wickedly and got onto his knees behind me. He was inside of me in two seconds flat and started pounding away savagely. I dug my fingers into the blankets and braced myself as he shoved deeper and deeper, the slapping sound of his pelvis hitting my ass making me clench around him. Oh, the incandescent pleasure of being filled by him—of that vicious slide of flesh inside me. Everan's hands gripped my hips fiercely. Pleasure built. I started to moan. My thighs began to tremble. Suddenly, he pulled out and moved into that other place.
My back arched with the shift in sensation and the abrupt retreat of my climax. I gave a wild shout of need and shock. Everan worked himself in and out of my grasping channel until he was fully encased, my desire easing the way. Then, with a heavy grunt, he went back to his wild thrusting. His voice deepened as he said the most explicit and erotic things to me—filthy, lecherous, taboo, and wonderfully wicked things that made my breath catch and my entire body quiver. I felt utterly possessed—claimed in a barbaric and devastatingly delicious way. Ever's hands spread my ass cheeks apart, baring our union to him, and his words melted into a delighted growl. Then one strong hand drifted down, over my belly and between my legs. He set three fingers against my sex and started rubbing briskly.
I tossed my head back and screamed as my body seemed to burst apart with pleasure.
