A frown knitted across his brow until she slowly started untying the laces of her corset. He watched as she tossed it aside, his gaze darkening with desire as she shimmied out of her dress, the embroidered cotton pooling at her feet. He said nothing as she undressed, as she stood in the nude before him, her flesh kissed by starlight.
Flashing him a teasing smile, she turned on her heel and ran toward the sea. Gentle waves licked her ankles, the water warm and welcoming. She waded further so it reached her thighs, and as soon as it hit her stomach, as it washed over her scars, she dove under.
Caelian surfaced a moment later, shoving her wet hair back from her face, shrieking when a pair of strong hands encircled her hips.
Kjeld shot up out of the water, yanking her to him. The smile on his face was nothing more than a promise of wicked pleasure to come. His rough palms scraped under her thighs, lifting her, and she wrapped her legs around his waist. Draping her arms over his shoulders, she grabbed a fistful of his braided hair and kissed him hard. His beard was rough against her mouth and jaw, but she loved it, loved the raw and rugged feel of him. Kjeld was firm and unshakeable, a solid wall of muscle pressed againsther soft, lush curves. The salt of the sea clung to his lips, and she licked them, swallowing a sigh when his tongue tangled with hers.
This kiss wasn’t frantic or aching, it was mellow and languid. A melding of lips, a bonding of souls. The sea moved around them, with them, for them.
When Caelian arched away to float on her back, Kjeld let her go, but kept one hand resting lightly upon her thigh.
“Tell me why you were so determined to leave Aeramere,” she said softly.
He didn’t answer right away, and she dared a look at him to see if she had accidentally struck a nerve. Instead, she found him staring back at her, his gaze intense and focused.
“I felt lost. Like I no longer had a purpose in this life.” He shifted in the currents, his fingers tapping a sporadic rhythm on her damp skin. “Odryss, Svartos, and Astrylys could fend for themselves. Drake no longer required the services of a general. And as a fae without magic, I didn’t quite belong. Everything about me was overbearing. My presence. My stature. I was too much, and I could not cope.”
Though she knew they were having a serious conversation, Caelian couldn’t help the quirk of her lips. “I like you being too much.”
His response was a low, rumbling chuckle. “So I’ve noticed.”
He coasted his hand a little further, so his fingertips grazed her inner thigh.
Caelian tried to disguise her shiver by flicking her hands through the water, but her nipples peaked and goosebumps pebbled her flesh.
“Do…” She rolled her lips together and tried to ignore the way he was suddenly standing over her, like she was laid upon an altar and completely at his mercy. “Do you still feel that way now? Lost? Without purpose?”
“No.” Kjeld’s sapphire eyes raked over her naked body. His thumb grazed her slit and her breath caught. “I have a wife. I have three baby dragons to raise and train. My purpose in life may not be what I expected or planned for myself, but I am better for it. Because of you.”
Her eyes filled. “Kjeld?—”
But her voice was lost as he lowered his head and sucked her nipple into his mouth. She gasped but it was hollow, because then he braced one hand on the center of her back, keeping her afloat, while the other moved between her legs. He slid two fingers inside her with ease and tension coiled through her. He worked her slowly, his tongue leaving a river of heat as he laved and licked her breasts, all the way to the hollow of her throat.
Caelian floundered but Kjeld kept her steady. He pressed a kiss to her neck, humming quietly, and her voice wobbled when she asked, “What if someone sees?”
“Only the stars can see us now.” He shoved his fingers deeper, curling them, reaching her pinnacle. “Besides, wasn’t me fucking you in public one of your requests?”
Spasms of pleasure tore through her and she struggled to think clearly.
“Yes. B-but…”
“But what?” he crooned, planting kisses along her jaw.
“I didn’t mean with your fingers.”
Kjeld stilled his torturous ministrations, his fingers slipping out of her. The look on his face was one of primal hunger. His teeth scraped over his bottom lip, snagging on his scar. His eyes were dark, unreadable pools of midnight shadowed with greed. “You want something else, sweet wife?”
“Yes,” Caelian breathed, all the air pulling from her lungs as she vibrated with anticipation.
“Perhaps it is my mouth you need.” He lifted her out of the water, carrying her in his arms back toward the shore. “I would very much like for you to come all over my face.”
She shook her head, liquid heat pooling at her core at his bold language.
“No?” Kjeld clicked his tongue, padding across the sandy beach. He laid her down on a swath of burgundy cotton, and realization clicked into place. He’dplannedthis for her. Everything leading up to this moment had been intentional. Purposeful. He planned to unravel her beneath the stars.
Caelian propped herself up on her elbows, unable to tear her gaze from him as he spread her legs wide. She tried to remain focused on his face, to not embolden his already supreme ego, but then he knelt between her legs, and she caught sight of his shaft. Already he was hard, his erection thick and full, ready to fill her, and her mind emptied of all rational thought.
“Hm. Not my fingers nor my tongue.” Kjeld moved closer, lifting her left leg and draping it over his shoulder. “Is it my cock you crave, sweet wife?”
