Page 36

For one suspended second, Ryneth just stared up at him, dazed and breathing hard, his body sinking into the silver silk. Then he looked past Daven at the sealed glass walls, the low gold light, the distance to the door, and understanding hit.

“No.” He scrambled backward, his heels digging into the silk as he tried to find purchase. “Stay back,” he spat, his voice cracking.

Daven grinned. “Yes.”

He was on him before the light even faded. He caught Ryneth’s wrists and slammed them into the mattress, pinning him there. Then he settled his weight between Ryneth’s thighs and pressed him down into the sheets. He could feel Ryneth’s heart hammering through the thin shirt. Ryneth bucked hard, trying to throw him off, but Daven didn’t move.

He reached for the golden device on the nightstand. A hiss filled the air. The scent of acacia followed.

“That’s it. Breathe.”

Ryneth inhaled despite himself, his head thrashing side to side as he tried to escape the mist.

Within seconds, his body started to loosen under Daven’s hands. His mouth trembled. His lips parted without permission. The silver of his eyes went wet and unfocused. “What is that?”

“Acacia opium,” Daven murmured. “It’ll loosen you up and make that static of yours a little more needy. Can you feel it yet, aethera?”

Ryneth didn’t answer, but color spread high across his chest and throat. Daven felt the hardening length trapped between them, growing heavier against the silk. “I’m… I’m feeling funny. Everything is moving.”

Daven leaned closer, his breath at Ryneth’s ear, savoring the way the man shivered under his shadow. “Did you have a bed this nice on Düren? Is anyone waiting for you there?”

“Multiple,” Ryneth snarled, but the sound was weak, lacking its earlier bite. His pupils were so blown they were nearly erasing the silver of his irises. “And the rest is none of your business.”

“It is now.” Daven’s hand moved to Ryneth’s jaw, holding him still. “You look good on my silk, aethera. You’re mine. If there was anyone back there, they don’t matter anymore. From now on, you answer to me.”

Silver eyes stayed fixed on Daven as the drug pulled him under.

“I bet they told you how spectacular you were on Düren.” Daven splayed his palm over Ryneth’s chest, feeling the static hum beneath the surface. “I bet they fought over you.”

A spent spark of white light crackled against Daven’s skin, but it was no longer a weapon, it was a caress.

“They told me to work,” Ryneth wheezed. His struggle had slowed to a sluggish, rhythmic swaying of his hips, already searching for friction. “What’s… what’s happening to me?”

“Nothing. You’re doing really good.” Daven pulled their hips together, smiling when Ryneth shuddered at the hard length pressed against him, trapping him more firmly against the bed.

A broken sound slipped out of Ryneth’s throat. “No… no…”

“Fuck,” Daven whispered. “You’re incredible.”

He reached down and caught the hem of the recovery shirt, pulling the thin fabric over Ryneth’s head in one fluid motion. He tossed it aside, exposing lean muscle against the silver silk.

Ryneth made a weak, angry sound and tried to drag his knees together.

“Uh-uh. Not gonna happen.” Daven’s air coiled around his thighs.

Ryneth’s breath caught as his legs were forced apart anyway, inch by inch, his gaze dropping between them in stunned horror.

“Shh. Your body knows.” Daven watched the way the other man’s pupils dilated. “It knows exactly what it needs.”

Daven’s hand found Ryneth’s groin.

“Oh… fuck,” Ryneth moaned.

Daven palmed Ryneth’s hard cock and started pumping him in a slow, punishing rhythm. “I left you shaking and unfinished earlier,” he rumbled. “Light, how I loved watching you fight me. But you can’t win against me, baby. Now you’re going to beg me to let you come.”

Ryneth let out a broken snarl. He shoved at Daven’s chest, his palms sliding over skin and sweat. “Get off,” he wheezed. He bucked his hips, trying to wedge a knee between them, but Daven pinned him flat. “I’m not… I’m not begging you for anything.”

“You will,” Daven murmured. He leaned down and bit Ryneth’s throat, then dragged his tongue behind Ryneth’s ear, tasting the salt on the skin. “Your body is already screaming for it. Tell me how you lived, aethera. Who waited for you at home?”