Chapter 11 Esag
ESAG
The instant the venom surged through Tula, she went limp in Esag's arms. He felt the shift before he saw it—one moment her body arched against him in pleasure so sharp it bordered on pain, the next her muscles softened, her breath fanned warm and slow against his chest, her mind sinking into the venom-induced euphoric dream.
Well, sinking was perhaps the wrong description. Soaring or flying was how most described it.
Usually, the venom bite was triggered by his orgasm, but he hadn't wanted his mind clouded by the haze of sexual desire when he bit Tula for the first time. Esag wanted to remember every moment of it, every expression on her gorgeous face as this unique pleasure washed over her.
He withdrew his fangs from her neck, tenderly licking the wound closed.
The taste of her lingered on his tongue—wild, sweet, and utterly intoxicating.
His entire body trembled with the force of holding himself from coming all over her while she soared on the clouds of euphoria, but that's not how he wanted this to go, so he would hold on until she came back down and invited him inside of her.
He held her close for a long moment, forehead pressed to the crown of her head, letting his breathing steady.
He'd forgotten how profound the connection felt.
He'd forgotten how all-consuming it was to bite an immortal female, and this time around, there would be only her and no other.
He knew that without varying partners, the addiction would settle, but he welcomed it, and he hoped Tula would welcome it as well.
She knew that the venom was addictive, right?
She'd been only twelve when she'd left with Areana, but after shadowing Annani and Gulan for years, she must have known much more than any other twelve-year-old girl.
Besides, she'd been given the venom bite to induce her transition before her journey north with Areana, so someone must have explained the basics to her.
"Tula…" he whispered, caressing her cheek.
She didn't stir. Of course she didn't.
She wouldn't come back until the euphoric trip ended. Immortal females didn't stay out for as long as human females did, but since it was Tula's first bite in over five thousand years, it might take just as long.
He curved his body around hers, arranging her carefully and covering them both with a blanket. Her hair spilled across the pillow in dark waves, her lips parted in soft breaths, her skin flushed with leftover pleasure. The marks of his mouth on her throat had already faded.
Fates, she was breathtakingly beautiful.
He lay beside her, fighting the ache tightening every muscle in his body. His desire hadn't eased with her blackout. It had intensified, sharpened, coiled itself low in his spine like a live current. Every instinct in him screamed to claim her.
But instinct wasn't in charge.
He was.
Esag closed his eyes and centered himself. He had waited millennia without hope of finding another immortal. He could wait thirty minutes.
When Tula began to stir, her breathing lightened and accelerated, and her head rolled slightly to the side.
Esag leaned forward, bracing on his elbow as he watched her emerge from the haze.
Her eyes fluttered open, heavy-lidded and unfocused.
He exhaled softly. "Welcome back."
A slow smile pulled at her lips. "That was…" She didn't finish.
She didn't need to.
He brushed two fingers down her cheek. "Amazing?"
She huffed a weak laugh. "Addictive."
He sobered immediately. "You know that the venom…"
"Yes," she interrupted him with a finger on his lips. "It's okay. We'll know if we are meant for each other long before the addiction settles."
He already knew that they were fated, but he would leave her to figure it out on her own.
"How do you feel?" He stroked her arm, letting her return at her own pace.
"Boneless," she muttered, trying to push herself upright. "Like I don't have a care in the world."
He slid an arm behind her back, lifting her into a sitting position against the pillows. She leaned into him, head resting against his shoulder.
Her hand drifted across his abdomen, tracing him lightly, almost absently—until it wasn't absent at all. Her fingers dipped lower, brushing against his erection, and he sucked in a breath.
She stilled. "Too soon?"
"No," he croaked. "Not too soon."
She pulled back enough to meet his eyes. Hers were clearer now, still soft from the venom's afterglow, but bright with intent.
She pushed on his shoulder until he was on his back, and then she climbed over him, straddling his hips. The warmth of her body seeped into him, her thighs bracketing him, her hands planted firmly on his chest.
He swallowed hard.
"And I want to feel this with clear senses, and not just the venom's echo. Thank you for giving this to me."
Desire tore through him.
He sat up, sliding his hands over her hips, bracing her against him. "Tell me what you need."
She leaned in, tracing her lips along his collarbone. "I need you to stop being careful."
"Tula…"
"I came harder than I ever have in my life, but my body is still hungry." She rocked her hips against him, a teasing pressure that instantly stiffened every muscle in his body. "Don't hold back."
"I don't want to overwhelm you."
"I want to be overwhelmed." She cupped his jaw, her eyes blazing with inner glow. "Let go."
The commanded request did the trick. His restraint snapped for the second time tonight, and desire punched the air from his lungs.
His hands slid down her thighs, slow and reverent, before he guided her closer. She braced her knees at his sides, lowering herself carefully until the heat of her hovered above him.
Her breath shivered. "Esag…"
He steadied her by the hips. "I've got you."
She sank onto him, inch by inch, her body tight and extraordinarily warm. Her breath hitched, her fingers clutching his shoulders as her muscles stretched around him. She paused halfway, eyes closing, adjusting to the intrusion with a soft exhale.
He forced himself to stay still.
"Slow?" he asked.
She shook her head, opening her eyes, pupils wide. "Just full." She rolled her hips experimentally and gasped. "Fates. Oh—Esag…"
His hands tightened, fighting the desperate urge to thrust upward. "Take your time."
She didn't.
She took him deep, seating herself fully with a broken moan that nearly made him erupt.
Esag groaned, head falling back, eyes squeezing shut. "You feel so good."
"So do you," she breathed, chest rising and falling quickly. "You fill me so perfectly."
She began to move, slow at first, then found a rhythm that suited her, rolling her hips with growing confidence. He met her motions with steady support, hands guiding, stabilizing, savoring the way her breath hitched each time she took him deeper.
Her body was exquisite—tight, responsive, eager. Her desire was unfiltered, honest, entirely focused on him.
"Tula," he groaned, dragging his hands up her spine, "you're going to break me."
"Good," she whispered, leaning forward to kiss him, her lips hungry and warm. "I want you ruined for anyone else."
"That happened weeks ago."
She stilled, eyes widening, caught off guard by the sincerity in his voice.
Esag cupped the back of her neck. "You ruined me the moment you looked at me on that submarine, fierce and terrified and pretending that you still hated me.
" His thumb stroked behind her ear. "I knew then.
In fact, I knew when I kept carving your face when I aimed to carve Wonder's.
The Fates were telling me that you were the one. "
She blinked, expression turning raw. "Esag…"
Before she could speak further, her body tightened around him, her breath catching on a sharp inhale. She clung to him, nails digging into his shoulders.
He shifted, rolling them with one fluid motion until she lay beneath him, her legs wrapping around his waist. He braced himself over her, kissing her deeply as he began to thrust, slow, controlled, each stroke coaxing her higher.
Her breath turned ragged. She met him thrust for thrust, her voice breaking in soft, urgent sounds that pushed him closer to the edge.
"You're perfect," he murmured against her jaw. "My goddess."
Her hips arched. "Esag—"
Her climax hit fast—her body tensing, her breath catching, her lips parting on a cry that he swallowed with his. Her inner muscles tightened around him, rhythmic and insistent.
He groaned, losing the last shreds of control. He thrust harder, burying himself in the heat and pulse of her, riding the wave of her climax until his own tore through him—hot and overwhelming.