“Shall I help you?” I crooned. “Do you need a hint?”
I left her entrance and strummed her clit until she squealed, then backed away, once again content to play far from where she wanted me most.
“K-kaiden. Godsdammit!” She cried when all her squirming got my fingers no closer to her throbbing bundle of nerves.
“Admitting how you feel won’t snap the bond in place.” I circled her clit, not allowing even the slightest graze. “It’s okay to like one another.” Muffled curses and unintelligible words were smothered by her pillow. She was close. “What was that?”
She turned her head to the side, those curls covering her face in a wild tangle.
“I like you,” she panted.
About damn time. I’d longed to hear those words since I learned her name. Since her picture first slid across my desk. They weren’t the exact words I was holding out for, but thosewould come in time. My power begged for release, and I let it free.
“Good fucking girl.” My shadows pushed on the backs of her thighs until she understood what they wanted. She lifted onto her knees, and they wound around her waist. “Hips up,” I commanded, my magick already adjusting her.
I couldn’t hold back my deep growl of approval. Face down and that perfect ass propped up on display, her juices dripping down her inner thighs. I’d wanted a taste of her ever since that small sample I got off my fingers in the stairwell. I used my thumbs to spread her open, ready to jump right in.
“What are you doing?” she whimpered, her body tense now.
“Something you’re going to love,” I told her. I hope she loved it. I would never do something that hurt her. “If I do something you don’t like, you can always tell me to stop. I swear on the gods, I will.”
I rubbed up and down, spreading that sweet proof of her desire. Leaning in, I allowed my breath to ghost over the most vulnerable part of her. When that didn’t push her from fear to curiosity, I blew a steady stream of air right on her clit.
“We can’t,” she gasped, but there was no power behind her voice. Better still, arousal saturated the bond.
“We can,” I hummed and dipped a thumb down to her entrance, pressing. “And I’m gonna, so you better get ready.”
My thumb sank all the way inside and rubbed along her walls while I blew once more on her clit. I paused, giving her one more chance to stop me, but that was the last thing on her mind. Her thighs trembled so hard only my shadows kept her up and presented for me.
“Arch your back.” She did, and I made her scream with one swipe of my tongue. Her hips curved, trying in vain to escape the now overwhelming touch, and I slapped her ass strong enoughto leave a mark. “Now, princess. Arch your back and leave it there.”
Pushing her knees wider, I leaned in and went to work. My hands held her in place as my tongue worked in tandem with my fingers to bring her to the edge again and again. I sucked and nibbled her onto the cusp of an orgasm, then filled her tight channel with a digit until she tightened so much it couldn’t move.
I licked up every drop that escaped her. Ignoring her pleas for mercy, I pressed my tongue deep inside her until she clenched around it. Until she tried to escape. Until I couldn’t understand the cries coming from her lips—some variation of ‘please’ and ‘I can’t take it.’ I traced my way back to her clit, and as soon as my lips wrapped around it, she shattered, my name ringing off the walls from the force of her shout.
She rode it out on my tongue until she went limp and boneless, held up only by my magick. I gently set her back down on her stomach with her legs spread and glistening from my attention. It would be so easy to slide inside her, to break her with round after round of more earth-shattering pleasure.
Instead, I held on tight to my control and forced myself to cover her with a blanket. She was already halfway asleep and hopefully worn out enough that the nightmares wouldn’t return tonight. Pulling the blanket up to her shoulders, I brushed her hair to the side and left a light kiss on her cheek.
“I like you too, princess.”
My hands clenched around my bag, and I threw myself out the door before I gave in to the urge to take her. Not yet. But hopefully someday soon, she would be all mine.
Eryn
I awoke alone and fully rested for the first time in what felt like forever. My body melted into the plush mattress as I burrowed deeper into the covers, hiding from the early morning glow that lit the room. Rolling over, I rubbed my bare legs against the cool sheets and frowned. I was usually overly hot and wrapped around Kaiden despite all attempts to put distance between us.
Memories from last night converged on me in a rush; Kaiden waking me from a nightmare, his deep voice, his warm body hovering over mine. He gave me a massage and then—his tongue…and his shadows… My body warmed again as I relived every sound and arch he’d wrung from my body.
Gods, and I’d admitted to having feelings for him! There was no taking that back. I waited for the anger or panic to set in, but none did. Did I even want to take it back?
There was no more room for pretending and hiding from myself was impossible. I was loath to admit it, but maybe Kaiden was right. My small admission wouldn’t seal our bond even though itwasone step closer. We were already lots of steps closer. I shoved a pillow over my head to muffle my frustrated groan. I never thought I’d meet him, let alone be comfortable half-naked in his bed. Nothing in my life was going according to plan.
“You’re going to be late for breakfast with Rani if you don’t get up,” Ezra called from the other side of the door, ending with a gentle knock. “I really don’t want to start my first encounter with her today already in the doghouse.”
I huffed a laugh and dragged myself out of bed to get ready, blushing when I found my discarded panties on the floor where Kaiden must have flung them. Not having him here felt wrong somehow, like I’d gotten used to doing everything with him bymy side. Or at least, I felt safe when he was always around. His lack of presence was noticeable, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.
My blond bodyguard leaned on the kitchen island as I came downstairs, bouncing like a golden retriever getting ready for his daily walk. Ezra hated being cooped up as much as I did, and any excuse to see Rani was met with too much enthusiasm and a whole lotta lust.
