Chapter 28
NICO
Staring down into Ember’s beautiful face, my heart split in half, waiting for rejection. This pain was indescribable, like someone scooping my beating heart out from between my ribs with their bare hands.
But…
Whatever her decision, I would obey.
Because I couldn’t do otherwise.
Emberline already owned my soul, so if she decided to take my heart with her when she left, then I would gladly let her, and this way, every part of me would always belong to her.
“My entire life, no one has ever given me so much as this, Nico.” Her dark brown eyes pulled me in, every word hooked deep. “You make me feel protected and loved and treasured. And as for your name?”
A vast stillness filled me as Emberline went up to her toes and pressed her lips against mine, tasting of lemons and life, of a future I didn’t deserve.
A chaste, gentle kiss.
A promise.
A vow.
“I don’t care about names. I don’t care where you came from.
” The weight of her palm over my heart was heavier than any vow, settling deep, like she was marking my soul.
“I choose you. I thank the gods for allowing me to find you in this world. And at the end, I will be grateful for whatever time we have together, whether that be weeks or months or years. Every second we share is more precious than gold.”
I staggered against her, my knees weak enough, I feared they might fail. But at the same time, warmth bloomed in my chest, a fragile hope I was afraid to embrace, lest it disappear.
No one in the world had ever said those words to me.
No one had ever looked at me with such open trust, as if I meant something.
Like I was worth something.
There had been days—most days—when I’d regretted my choice. When I’d wondered if it wouldn’t have been better to simply embrace my fate that day, so long ago.
But now, with her arms around me and hearing her speak of a future… of our future…
I’d made the right choice. No matter the cost.
“Now, kiss me because if you don’t, I’ll know I just said the wrong thing.”
“Never.” I brushed my lips across hers and paused, sinking my teeth into her bottom lip, letting her warm breath tangle with my own. “You could never say the wrong thing.”
I kissed her again and became lost, both of us moving together, my hand sliding down to the small of her back, her fingers digging into my shoulders to pull me closer. I tangled my fingers in her hair as she pressed her hips against mine, against my cock, aching to be inside her.
Every time I was around her, I lost myself to a desperation bordering on madness. All my years of training disappeared the second she touched me. I simply… starved for Emberline. For the sight of her, the sound of her voice, the smell of citrus and lavender.
Her tongue stroked along mine, urging me without words to angle my head and delve deeper. Pressing her lips apart, I pushed my thigh between her legs until her moan vibrated against my mouth and down into some hollow space inside of me.
I laid her back on the bed, the expanse of blue velvet like the sky behind her, dark hair fanned out like a halo, her hands curled into half-fists. I rucked her nightgown up to her hips, taking a moment to admire her creamy thighs, the way her flawless skin goose pimpled.
“Gods, you are just perfect,” I stroked my hand over her flat stomach, tracing her belly button with my index finger before dragging the gown higher and then higher still, revealing full breasts and dark nipples, erect and growing harder as the cool air hit them.
“I just want to make you happy.” I urged her hands over her head, stripped the nightgown off, and tossed it to the floor. “All I want is to see you smile.” I pressed a kiss to her temple, a long, sweet sigh of air escaping between her lips.
Her hands came up to rest on my shoulders, fingers pressing deep into tensing muscle, then the bite of nails when I traced the edge of her jawline with the tip of my tongue.
“There will be a day, Emberline, where we wake up in the morning, and we will have nowhere to be. No one to fight. I will feed you breakfast in bed and make love to you all day, and in the evening, we’ll sit by the water and watch the sun go down, then we’ll do it all over again the next day.”
“Gods, that sounds impossibly good.” She stared up at me through hooded eyes, long, dark lashes practically threaded together.
Lowering my head, I fastened my mouth over her collarbone, savoring the feel of soft, velvety skin against my tongue as I skimmed my fingers between her legs, finding nothing but slick, wet heat. My cock pulsed, trapped behind my zipper, aching to be thrust inside her.
All I smelled was sweet and citrus as my fingers stroked deep inside her cunt, the silky feel of her against my fingertips nearly making me spill. I grit my teeth against the urge, pulled my fingers out, and stuffed them in my mouth, licking frantically to get every drop.
I rose with a growl, ripping my pants open before I remembered this was a dream and I could just…
I was naked, shadows swirling away as I crawled up over Emberline, settling my weight over her, lining my cock up with her glistening entrance. She was swollen, juices coating the insides of her thighs and the smell… the fucking smell… A sound built deep in my chest, something primal.
“Gods, you’re so wet.” I dragged the crown of my cock through all that glorious slick, coating myself in her until I was weeping. “I have to get inside you. I can’t wait.”
“I’m right here,” she urged, hips bucking. “I want to feel you inside me.”
I thrust all at once, straight into her heated core, tunneling deep into pulsing heat that swallowed me like an iron glove, squeezing tight.
“Fuck.” I dropped my head and braced a hand beside her head, staring down into those dark eyes that threatened to swallow me whole. So beautiful, she broke my damn heart. “I need to…”
I didn’t get another word out before her legs came up, heels digging into my ass, urging me deeper.
Or faster.
Or both.
I slammed deeper, harder, faster, coating myself in all her delicious slickness, sharp heat and bright pressure building at the base of my spine as Ember moved with me.
Then I lost myself, one hand gripping her hip so I could angle mine, hitting that lovely place inside her over and over until she threw her head back and screamed.
My name.
Five fucking times.
My climax exploded through me, racing up from my balls until I was pulsing inside her tightening core, pumping her full of everything I had. Take it, I thought to myself. Take every drop. Let me fill you up with life, as you’ve done to me.
“Gods. You fucking wreck me,” I murmured against her ear before shifting my weight, dropping next to her so the length of our bodies touched. “I mean that in the nicest of ways,” I added, cradling her head to my chest, a lazy sedation turning my bones to lead.
“Now go to sleep, because when we wake up, we’re doing this all over again.”
“I do hope I’m not interrupting.” Blackwood strolled into my illusion as if he belonged here, the walls knitting back together behind him like the backdrop of a play as the air stalled in my lungs.
It took me a moment to get my bearings.
To remind myself he wasn’t really here, that he was an illusion, too.
Even so, the bastard’s foul power throbbed like a curse, blood hierarchy making my body instantly bow. Not only because he’d sired me, but the thousand-plus years he’d walked this earth.
Fear flashed. How did this bastard keep finding me?
But… I reminded myself he wasn’t real in here. This was my dream, my realm, the place where my power was absolute.
I threw my feet over the edge of the bed and pulled the silk blanket over my sleeping princess, lashes dark crescents against her pale cheeks. This was the safest place for her, nestled into my bed.
“Whatever the fuck this is, we’re not doing this here.” I conjured up pants from the shadows because I wasn’t talking to this asshole with my cock hanging out. Stalking out of the bedroom, I waved my hand, changing the setting to an austere room with nothing but two wooden chairs and a stone floor.
“Now. What do you want?”
Those cold, dead eyes skimmed over me, from the dragon branded into my chest to the scars peppering my body; my father took inventory, a vein throbbing in his pale temple.
“What I’ve always wanted.” My father’s tone was detached. “You. Back home. By my side. Where you rightfully belong.”
Deception. Even without Truthtelling abilities, I would bet everything that came out of this bastard’s mouth was a lie.
“I thought you wanted me dead because I was an embarrassment to my heritage?” I threw his words back in his face. “Now, you want me to wear the crown. What’s the matter? Can’t make up your mind?”
“That was anger speaking before. This is logic.”
“Riiight.” I rolled my eyes. “Whatever you say.”
“You’re no good to me dead. I realize that now,” he snapped, as if the truth offended him. “Soon enough, your allies will be mindless slaves. I’m here to offer you a future. Join me in Rome. Serve at my side, like you were meant to. Together, we’ll rule the Bellamorte Dynasty.”
Yeah, fat fucking chance, stronzo. Like always, my father was driven by his own selfish motives, which were not having his wayward son by his side. And why not just turn me into one of those mindless slaves and control me like everyone else? No, whatever his game, he was after something else.
A chill ran through me.
Something bigger.
He eyed the stark, wood chairs, then pinched his lips together in distaste. No, Father didn’t do uncomfortable.
“Romulus is at your side,” I pointed out, curious to see how he’d respond. “Like he’s always been. You don’t need me.”