He took a step closer. “What do you need, Nia?” If it was in his power to provide it, he would. He wanted her to find some sort of peace onOrion.
She placed a hand flat against her stomach and shook her head. “I don’t know.” Then her fingers curled into a fist and lifted her chin. “How do I end this marriage thing?”
Even though it wasn’t an unreasonable request, his heart lurched in his chest. “I revoke the old laws and place you in common holding.” His answer made her tense, a stillness hovering around her body. He closed the last two steps between them and cupped her cheek in his hand. “I’ll see it done.”
If this was what she needed to feel safe here, he’d do it. He would need to remain diligent that no harm befell her in common holding, would pay off whoever he needed to.
Her russet eyes searched his face. No denial left her lips, and he understood then, it was the right thing to do. He should have done it sooner.
With the weight of that truth settling inside him, he nodded once and took a step back.
She stopped him by covering her hand with his own. Tingles spread down his arm at the touch. The memory of the kiss they’d shared resurfaced, how she’d pulled him with non-CORE-like passion.
Her eyes flared like she was remembering too, then her other hand rose and pressed against his bare chest. Prickles pulsed through his skin. He inhaled a sharp breath when her fingernails curled into his skin.
He grasped her elbow with his free hand. “What do you need, Nia?” he whispered, his throat too tight to speak properly.
The hand on his chest moved, inched its way upward, leaving a scorched path in its wake. Her fingers wrapped around his nape, then traveled further until they delved into his hair. Russet eyes darkened; her lips parted. Her gaze flicked to his mouth then returned to his eyes.
“You,” she said, and pulled his face to hers.
Nia didn’t know what she was doing.
Earlier, she’d been so furious, so full of rage at being married without her consent she’d attacked him in front of everyone, screamed liked she’d gone completely mad. And now it felt like all those emotions had been funneled into a state of desire so potent she had no way to fight it.
His lips crashed against her, brutal, and exactly what she needed. She didn’t want gentle. Anger, directed at herself, coursed through her veins. She shouldn’t want this but couldn’t fight it. She blamed it on being separated from CORE society for so long, for all the mood modifiers she used to pump into herself being out of her system. She allowed her emotions to dictate her actions, just like every other Tellusian.
But no excuse could justify the way she felt when Mace claimed ownership of the kiss, like a man starved, and she the only ration in sight. His tongue swept in, hungry, and ate her up.
Fire crept through her body, all-consuming. Her tongue reciprocated the exploration with an urgency she didn’t know she possessed. Heat settled between her thighs.
He pulled her against his body with enough force her lungs emptied on anoomph. She grabbed his shoulders and hung on tight. Mace’s hands traveled her spine to her bottom, pressing her against him. She plunged her other hand into his hair and her legs found their way around his hips. He growled encouragement, fingers curling into her buttocks.
His grip tightened, almost painful, as he pushed her against the table.More of that. She needed the sting to take away the guilt.
But it was like he’d heard her say the opposite, and his touch and kiss gentled. She couldn’t deal with tender. Not now. She bit his bottom lip. Hard.
He gasped and tore his mouth away. A dangerous glint entered his eyes, and she shivered, then dove back in, hands roaming over his shoulders, biceps, then up again. He lifted her onto the table. His nostrils flared as he leaned closer, inhaling the scent of her throat. Her breath caught in her chest, tingles spreading low in her body.
“Izar,” he whispered against her skin, “you have taken over my mind, body, and soul, and I cannot escape.”
A wave of heat washed over her to pool in the center of her body. His frantic hands lifted her shirt, caressed her breasts through the thin material of her bra. She arched her spine on a gasp. The throbbing heat in her center turned into a stab of pain.
He bit her nipple through the fabric, and she cried out. Nia held on to his hair. Her legs spread wide at the press of his knee. He kissed her abdomen downward until he breathed hot air on her swollen clit through her leggings. She almost orgasmed right then, a low moan rolling through her body.
“Mace, please.” She wanted him to satisfy this burning need inside her.
His face pressed between her thighs, he stiffened.
Distress cut through the haze of her passion.
No.Whatever internal battle he fought, she wouldn’t allow him to leave her like this. Her fingernails dug into his shoulders.
“This isn’t what you want,” he said as he leaned over her, hands braced on either side of hips, his expression haggard.
Desperation made her voice sharp. “Of course it’s what I want. Stars above, Mace, if you can’t tell when a woman is in high need, I’ll give you some blasted lessons, but don’t you dare stop.”
He shook his head. Her nails scraped his skin as he pushed away from the table, leaving her cold.
