Tower of Tempest: A Steamy Fantasy Romance (Stolen Crowns Book 3)

Chapter 42

“First, there are far too many pieces of clothing between us,” Loch growled.

He undid the clasp of my cloak with one hand, and it floated to the ground. He still held me tight to his body, his thumbs kneading into my ass.

“You’re going to have to kiss me now,” I said.

His lips crashed into mine as he spun us around and pressed me against the carriage door, his mouth teasing mine open. Spirits below. Tendrils of heat slipped down my body as his lips roamed over mine, tasting, teasing, nibbling. All the while, he pinned me to the door, and I clutched his shoulders tight, then let my hands wind around to the back of his head, my fingers tangling with his hair.

He pushed his tongue into my mouth, his palms splaying wide across my ass. We kissed like that for what felt like forever. Our mouths moving together with an insatiable hunger, until my lips felt swollen with the most delicious heat. All the while, he held me so firm and steady, and I never once doubted that I was completely safe in his arms.

“We should fight more often,” I said.

“I don’t care what we do. As long as it’s together.” His lips met mine once again, kissing me with a frenzy, a deep-seated need blooming between us. He broke our kiss, and a guttural sound came from my throat.

“Poppy,” he said, breathing hard. “I want you, but if you’re not ready for this, that’s okay. I will wait as long as you need me to.”

“Say that again.” I played with the hair at the back of his neck, making him shudder.

“Say what again?” he asked.

“My name. Say it again.”

A smile curved his lips. “Poppy.”

I kissed him hard, sucking at his bottom lip before letting it go. “I’m ready.”

His eyes blazed with desire, all of it for me. “Are you sure? Because there are other things we can do, other ways I can make you come apart.”

“Oh, I know. I remember.” I brought my hands to his face. “But I said I was ready to give you everything, and I meant it, Loch. I want you. I want all of you.”

“That’s the point. You already have all of me.”

I laughed. “Do you want to see me naked or not?”

He choked out a breath, then rested his forehead against mine. “I just want to make sure you’re not doing this because you think you have to earn my love or give me something in return for me loving you.”

I unwrapped my legs from his waist and slid down his body, my feet landing on the floor of the carriage. I slipped past him, sitting on the plush carriage seat and patting the space next to me. Loch sat down, angling his body toward mine.

I gazed at him. “I’m sorry about what I said earlier. I’ve been in a really bad place these last few days.”

He grabbed my hand, drawing it into his lap. “Of course you have. Your mother just died. We almost all died. Your father is being a fucking idiot, and I swear I might just accidentally start a war if he doesn’t pull his head out of his ass. And soon.”

I laughed. “For someone who doesn’t like conflict, you’re very aggressive tonight.”

“I told you that I will fight for you.” He brought my hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to it. “I meant it.”

“I know that now. I just have been feeling so”—I took a deep breath—“worthless. I couldn’t save my mother from the shadows. I couldn’t save us from falling to our deaths. I can’t even convince my father that I’m his daughter.”

Loch’s hand tightened around mine. “You are not and will never be worthless. You give so much of yourself to others. Who else would spend hours listening to Driscoll’s endless gossip and just smile and laugh like it’s entertaining?”

“Well, it is kind of entertaining.” I smirked, and he narrowed his eyes.

“You are worthy of everything,” he continued. “Not because of what you can give but because of who you are.”

Tears welled in my eyes. “Stop saying all these ridiculously romantic things. I’m going to melt right into a puddle of tears.”

“What can I say?” He winked. “You bring out the romantic side of me.”

I swatted him, then stood, making sure I held his gaze as I took a deep breath and summoned my bravery. Loch had overcome his fears tonight, put himself out there. I could do the same. Besides, he had, technically, already seen me naked and very clearly approved. I still remembered the way his hard length had pressed against me in that bath. “My point with all of this,” I said as I kicked off my boots, “is that I want you, Lochlan Aster.” I undid the laces of my trousers and slowly pulled them down, revealing my pink panties.

His eyes turned black with untethered desire, gaze sweeping from my feet and trailing up my legs, slow, as if he wanted to savor every bit of this. I shrugged off my jacket, slipping it over my wings, and it fell to the floor behind me. Then I undid the front laces of my tunic and shrugged it off, leaving me in nothing but my undergarments.

He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat. “All those nights I dreamt of you, and my mind could never have created this.”

I gave him a look as I took a step forward. “You dreamt of me in my tower, where I was definitely clothed.”

“Oh, Poppy.” His eyes glittered. “Not in my mind you weren’t.”

“And you’ve seen me naked before,” I reminded him.

“Yet you’re even more glorious this time. Even more beautiful.”

I seated myself in his lap, straddling him, wings spreading behind me. He ran a finger down the middle of my wings, and a shudder rippled through me.

“Spirits below, woman,” he rasped. “You’re going to be the undoing of me.”

I kissed the corner of his mouth, nerves fluttering in my stomach. I’d felt brave moments ago with his gaze swallowing me whole, but now I felt unsure, clumsy in my movements. I wanted to make him feel good, not because I thought he’d abandon me if I didn’t but because I loved him too.

I’d known it for so long but only now finally admitted it to myself.

Loch gripped my hips, fingers massaging my skin, his touch so intimate. “Do you know how breathtakingly beautiful you are?” His gaze dipped to my breasts, down to the curve of my waist, to my thighs pressed into his. His thumbs moved in a slow steady rhythm over the dips of my body. He leaned forward and kissed my collarbone, trailing his lips down to my breasts. Then he took a nipple into his mouth, making my body bow against his, a moan escaping me.

His tongue swirled in slow, tantalizing circles that made my thighs tremble. An aching throb grew between my legs, and on instinct, I rubbed myself against him as he continued to suck and lick. The bulge in his pants stiffened further, my center slick with heat, ready for him.

He released my nipple and took the other one in his mouth while I fumbled with the laces of his trousers. Spirits below, these things were so unnecessarily difficult. I finally untied them and yanked them down as far as I could when Loch flicked my nipple with his tongue and made me gasp, my gaze shooting to his smoldering one.

“You’re going to have to get these off now,” I said. “You’re doing things to one part of my body that are somehow affecting other parts. Parts that need you.”

“Someone is being bossy,” he teased.

I practically growled, and he laughed as I shimmied off of him and onto the cushion. He stood and pulled his tunic overhead, putting all his muscles and hard edges on display. Bloody skies. This man. He was a marvel.

“I finally get what all the fuss is about,” I said.

“Just now? The balcony wasn’t enough?” He grinned. “Well, don’t worry. I’m just getting started.” I waited with bated breath as he tugged down his trousers, revealing a thick and very stiff cock.

I’d seen drawings, anatomical and educational in nature, and I never really understood the appeal of this particular appendage—until now. Bloody skies, he was glorious. And he was mine. All mine.

Then he was on top of me, his body rolling me over onto the wide seat of the carriage as my wings curled over us like a blanket. He tugged my panties down and discarded them on the floor. His cock pushed right at my entrance and sent sparks of need shooting through me. I tilted my pelvis, ready for this. Ready for him.

He brushed a tendril of hair from my forehead. “This is probably going to hurt,” he warned. “Promise you’ll tell me if you’re uncomfortable or want to stop?—”

“Loch.” I grabbed both sides of his face. “Shut up.” My mouth fastened to his, and I pushed my entrance against his hard length, reveling in the feel of his moistened tip, so slick and hot against me. A shudder rippled through both of us when I angled my pelvis higher, the top of his hard length so close to slipping inside of me.

“You already feel so fucking good, and I’m not even inside of you yet,” he whispered.

“Let’s fix that, shall we?”

He chuckled. With a slow and steady pace, he pushed himself in, stretching me, filling me. A sharp pain shot through me, and I sucked in a breath.

He stilled. “Are you okay? Do you want me to stop?”

My nails dug into the muscles of his back. “Don’t you dare.”

He rocked his hips, pumping in and out, and slowly, the pain eased and the heat grew again. I writhed against him as he thrust, wringing pleasure from me with each movement. His cock rubbed against my inner walls, hitting all the right spots, filling me in all the right ways. I moaned as Loch dipped his head and kissed my neck.

“You feel so good,” he murmured against my skin. “So fucking perfect.”

Everything in me tightened. I loved this in a way I never knew I could love something. I’d always known sex would feel good. But this was far beyond good. It was explosive.

“Faster,” I said. “Please.”

He thrust again, and I bucked under him, the weight of him so delicious on top of me. He rolled onto his back, then, letting me settle atop him. My thighs squeezed over his hips, and he absorbed me with his dark gaze.

I couldn’t believe I’d worried that I wouldn’t know what to do. My body knew for me, taking over as my brain shut off completely, overrun by the burning heat spreading to every corner of me. I rocked on top of him, and he palmed my breasts, rolling a nipple between his fingers.

I let my wings spread out behind me, and Loch stared in awe.

“Fuck. You’re not of this world. You can’t be.”

“Careful,” I said between heavy breaths. “I might become addicted to this. To you.”

I rocked faster, and he met my movements, thrusting up into me. I bent over him, rubbing my clit against him while feeling that slick, hard length slipping in and out of me.

“Good because I’m yours,” he rasped. “Completely and utterly yours.”

My walls squeezed tight around him, and I threw my head back, insides turning molten at his words. “Loch, I think...” Spirits below, I could barely get the words out. “I think I might be...”

Stars exploded in my vision.

He groaned, and his cock pulsed inside of me, sending me straight over the edge.

Showers of sparks lit every corner of my body, and I shattered around him, crying out and throwing a hand against the back window of the carriage. Loch’s cock twitched as he spilled into me, his body tensing under mine while he came. Both of us trembled until we were nothing but liquid, melting into each other. I wanted to stay on top of him like this, keep him inside of me for a little longer, but my need to feel his heart beating to the same rhythm as mine won over.

I slipped off of him and lay against his chest, our sweat-slicked bodies pressed together as we breathed and came down from that high. I didn’t want to move from this spot, didn’t want this perfect moment to end. He stroked my hair, then my wings, and that delicious desire for him grew hot between my legs again. I kissed his mouth, pressing my entrance against his cock, and he chuckled.

“Let’s get you cleaned up first.” He lifted me and sat me next to him. “You’re bleeding, and I don’t have anything to clean you with.” He knelt down, looking for something. “Wait a minute.” He pulled a silk handkerchief from under the bench.

My eyes widened. “That’s Driscoll’s.”

“I don’t give a damn,” he said as he pressed the cloth to my thighs, gently cleaning the blood from them.

“Mr. Lochlan Aster,” I said. “So far tonight, you’ve promised to fight with me, to start a war with my father, and now you’re using Driscoll’s silk handkerchief to clean me. He’s going to have a fit.”

Loch grunted, finishing cleaning me. “Let him.”

My laughter pealed through the air, and Loch pulled me into his lap, letting me curl into him as my wings trailed behind me. He ran his fingers up and down my arm, his sweat-soaked skin warm against me.

“I think I might want to do that again,” I said. “At some point, I’m pretty sure I saw actual stars.”

“Give me a minute.” I felt his mouth curve into a smile against my head. “And I’ll show you every damn constellation in the sky.”