"We should stop," he whispered, though his fingers tightened in my hair, betraying him completely. "This power, it's volatile, Aria."
I reached for him, blind and desperate, my fingers tangling in the silk of his robes. "Don’t you dare," I gasped.
His breath hitched. "Aria?—"
"Ichoosethis," I said, my voice raw, scraping out of a throat tight with desire. My heart pounded so hard I could feel it echoing in my ears. "All of you. Here. Now."
The bond flared, a supernova of shared desire that banished the darkness of the cavern.
Kaelen’s hands tightened on my waist, his mouth finding mine again, his kiss bruising and demanding. Flynn’s teeth grazed my earlobe, his breath hot and wet against my skin. Thane’s thumb traced the curve of my hipbone, his touch steady, grounding me to the earth. Elias’s magic wove through us all, a cocoon of turquoise light, humming with power and the promise of breaking cycles.
Then the world dissolved into pure sensation.
Kaelen’s mouth on mine, his hands roaming my body with a warrior’s precision, claiming every inch as his territory. Flynn’s teeth on my throat, his nimble fingers tangling with Kaelen’s as they worked together to strip the last tattered remnants of my clothes away. Thane’s solid presence, his large hands sliding along my skin, his touch a quiet, heavy contrast to the storm of the others. Elias’s magic, a living thing, wrapped around us, binding us together in a web of light and heat that smelled of ancient libraries and desert winds.
The bond became a fifth presence in the cavern, a living, breathing entity that fed on our touch, our breath, our shared hunger. It pushed us deeper, further, eroding the boundaries of self until the lines between us blurred entirely. I wasn’t just Aria anymore. Instead, I was the storm and the fire, the earth and the sky. I was the lock, and they were the keys, and together we were opening something archaic.
Something unbound.
The cavern trembled around us. The Titan’s roots, visible in the cracks of the ceiling, pulsed in time with my frantic heartbeat, the stone groaning deep in the earth as if in response to the massive discharge of magic surging through the air. Distantly, vaguely, I was aware of Steve chittering in excitement from a high ledge, his presence a warm, curious hum at the edge of my awareness, like a gargoyle watching a ritual, eager to bear witness but wise enough not to intrude.
But none of that mattered.
All that mattered was the heat of skin on skin, the taste of magic on my tongue, smoke and lightning and the deep, green scent of the forest after rain. The way the bondsangbetween us, a chorus of need and promise and a thousand screamingyeses.
Kaelen’s hands were rough, demanding; his mouth trailing down my throat, his teeth leaving marks that would lingerfor days, branding me as his. Flynn’s fingers were restless, relentless, tracing patterns over my ribs, my stomach, sliding lower, until my breath came in sharp, desperate gasps that sounded like sobbing. Thane’s touch was a counterpoint, slow and deliberate, his large hands mapping the curve of my waist, the dip of my spine, grounding me even as the others set me alight. Elias’s magic was a whisper against my skin, a promise of what was to come.
"More," I gasped, the word half plea, half command.
Kaelen’s growl vibrated against my skin, his hands gripping my thighs, lifting me effortlessly and bracing me against Flynn. "As you wish, fireheart."
The world narrowed to a pinpoint of sensation, to the slide of skin, the clash of teeth, the way the bond burned between us, a golden inferno consuming everything I used to be. Kaelen's mouth found my nipple, his teeth grazing the sensitive peak, the sharp pain sending a jolt straight to my core that made my knees weak.
Thane’s hands slid between my thighs, his touch grounding even as it stoked the fire higher, finding the slick heat of me as he spread me wide. Elias’s magic hummed around us, a protective shell, his voice a whisper in my ear, urgent and breathless, “Let go, Aria. Let us catch you.”
And gave in. I let the walls fall.
When the release came, it wasn’t just mine.
It was ours.
It was a shared explosion of light and heat, a supernova of magic and need that shattered the stillness of the underground. The cavern lit up as if a star had been born within the rock, the golden veins beneath my skin blazing like the sun, casting long, trembling shadows against the ancient carvings on the walls. The bond flared, a living, tangible thing between us, and for a heartbeat, we weren’t five separate beings with separate scars.
We were one entity.
Panting, trembling, I slumped against Kaelen’s chest, my legs useless, my skin slick with sweat, my body humming with the violent aftermath. His heart hammered beneath my ear like a war drum, his breath uneven, his grip on me possessive, unyielding, as if he feared I might vanish if he let go.
Flynn was pressed against my back, his forehead resting against my shoulder, his breath hot and damp on my skin, scenting me again and again. Thane’s hand rested on my hip, steadying me, his touch a silent vow of protection. Elias’s magic still hummed around us, a slowly fading protective shell, his fingers tracing idle, reverent patterns against my arm.
The bond pulsed between us, satisfied but not sated. It was a permanent architecture now, a connection that wouldn’t fade, a thick capability of gold and light that tied us together, unbreakable.
I tilted my head back, breath still coming in hitches, looking at each of them.
Kaelen’s golden gaze burned with possessive heat, his expression one of dark, arrogant satisfaction, like a king surveying a kingdom he’d just conquered and found worthy. Flynn’s amber eyes gleamed with wild, untamed triumph, his grin sharp, his canines still glinting with the remnants of our shared hunger. Thane’s brown eyes were warm, steady, profound depths that held a silent promise of safety. Elias’s turquoise irises swirled with something deeper, something that looked like awe, like wonder, like the first sight of the sun after centuries of total darkness.
TWENTY-EIGHT
Aria
