Chapter 6 #2
He hesitated, his gaze flicking between me and Damon for a second, then he accepted the inevitable and motioned abruptly to the flames still holding him in place.
I peeled the front of them away, allowing him space to walk forward; he did so, straight into the sphere.
Like Prince Damon, he was gone between one heartbeat and the next.
“Will they really be deposited in the badlands?” I asked.
“Yes, but the slip that could have taken them on to Zephrine has already been dismantled.” He sheathed his sword, moved toward the sphere, and deactivated it.
As the rainbow colors faded and the magic dissipated, he turned and strode toward me.
“I need to confront my parent, but it pales in comparison to my need for my wife.”
The desire I’d briefly glimpsed in his eyes only minutes ago was now a pyre that set me alight, but I could not let it get the better of common sense. I scrambled out the other side of the bed and flung up a hand.
“We need to talk before anything else happens.”
“Can’t we talk after sex? You have no idea?—”
“And you,” I exploded, “have no idea what I’ve been through.”
He stopped abruptly. “Bryn?—”
“Don’t ‘Bryn’ me in that tone,” I growled. “You left me, Damon. You left me , without explanation, without any idea if you intended to come back or not.”
“That is not entirely true, because this thing we share—” He angrily stabbed at his chest with a stiffened finger. “This bond that binds us is far stronger than mere words, be they spoken or written on a page. You’ve always known I would return; any thought to the contrary was fear speaking.”
“Are we talking about the bond that is so fucking strong, you couldn’t even share what you were planning?”
“And I told you why. ”
“Oh, I understand not saying anything when you first arrived. I even understand not saying anything after the wedding, or when it became obvious that we did share something special. But—” I flicked the band on my arm.
“Given this thing protected me from mental intrusions, why couldn’t you have shared your plan?
Why couldn’t you have, at the very least, left some sort of explanatory note the day you disappeared? ”
“Because there was no time?—”
“You spent days planning the journey, creating the sphere, and plotting your moves with whoever was on the other end of the scribe tablet saying it was dangerous. Don’t fucking tell me there was no time, Damon, because that’s a damn lie.”
His eyes flashed, and his anger roiled through the air, through me. I might well have stabbed him right through the heart with that accusation. “I have never lied?—”
“You’ve never told me the truth, either. Not the whole truth.”
He swore, unbelted his sword, and threw it on the ground, then stalked around the bed. I retreated from his fury, only to come to an abrupt halt when my back hit the wall.
“Bryn,” he growled, an odd, dangerous, but oh-so-sexy light in his eyes, “I have loved you from the minute I met you, but my mother and my sisters had to come first, even if that meant risking the one thing that finally gave my fucking life meaning.”
He stopped barely a foot away from me and placed his hands on either side of my head, effectively pinning me in place. Anger radiated from every pore, its heat washing across my skin, drying my throat and making my heart race.
Though not in fear, damn it.
“You weren’t here , Damon,” I whispered, my gaze searching his, silently begging him to understand.
“You weren’t here when my world was blown apart and everyone I cared about—everyone I loved—was simply gone.
I was alone, and frightened, and forced to take on a role I wasn’t ready for. I needed you, and you weren’t here.”
“And don’t you think I know all that?” His growl was both furious and anguished. “Don’t you think I felt everything you were feeling? You touched the sphere in grief and damn near exploded my mind with your pain. I ached to help, but I couldn’t abandon my family. Not even for you.”
I hesitated, torn between wanting to maintain the rage and giving in to the need to lose myself in the warmth and security of his arms. To once again explore the body I’d ached for in the long nights of anguish that lay behind me.
“And are they safe? Is anywhere safe from your father’s retribution?”
“They’re in Angola. Blood witches might be a fading dynasty these days, even on that holy island, but the old spells are maintained.
There is no force that my father can bring to bear that would breach its defenses.
” His lips seemed so much closer even though he hadn’t moved.
I licked mine, and his gaze dropped, following the movement.
The intensity and heat burning the air between us was now so damn fierce, pinpricks of sweat were dotting my skin.
“ My defenses, on the other hand, never had a chance of withstanding the force of nature that is my wife.”
And with that, he kissed me.
Not softly, not gently, but fiercely. Forcefully. Desperately .
The determination to talk had no hope against the strength of need.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my length against his, anger lost to wanting. Our tongues twined, danced, and tasted, our hearts beat together in desperate rhythm, and the desire burning between us now was so fierce I felt incandescent.
He broke away and trailed kisses down my neck, my shoulders. I shivered in delight, but it wasn’t what I wanted, wasn’t what I needed. Maybe later, but right now, I needed him in me, claiming me in the most basic way possible.
My fingers found the lacings on his pants; I quickly undid them, then pushed them down his hips to free his cock.
He made a low sound deep in his throat, then gripped my butt and lifted me up and onto him.
My back hit the wall; the stone was smooth but icy against the heat burning across my bare skin, but I barely even felt it.
I wrapped my legs around his waist and drew him closer, drove him deeper, his thick hardness stretching me, completing me in a way no other man ever had.
Lust, raw and unbridled, ran around us, through us, but for several seconds, neither of us moved. We simply stared into each other’s eyes, acknowledging what lay unsaid between us, at least on my part.
Then he made a low, desperate sound and began to thrust, every movement hard and fast. Shudders of delight rolled across my entire body, a wave that increased in ferocity with every beat, with every stroke.
I tightened my grip on him, riding him fiercely, desperately, wantonly.
Lust and desire and need spiraled between us, burning the air and filling every breath.
The deep-down ache rose sharply; I couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t do anything more than close my eyes and chase that moment of utter perfection to its glorious end.
My orgasm hit hard and fast, and I was shuddering, gasping, moaning. He came a heartbeat later, the deep groan torn from his lips echoing mine as his body stiffened against mine and his seed exploded within.
As the high ebbed, I rested my forehead against his, letting our breaths mingle, aware that neither his desire nor mine had fully abated.
Once my breathing had eased to a more normal level, I couldn’t help but ask, “Did you really fall in love with me the minute you saw me?”
He laughed, kissed me long and tenderly, and then gently lowered me to the ground. “You were fierce, independent, and dangerous, and very obviously hated my father. How could I not?”
There was a part of me wanting to dance in happiness and admit that the feeling was mutual, but there was an even bigger part that was simply afraid to.
Maybe it was foolish to think that such an admission would change whatever plans Túxn might have for us, but I wasn’t about to tempt her, especially given how many favors she’d already thrown our way.
Which didn’t mean for one second that I wouldn’t show my feelings in every other way, but I’d already glimpsed what my life would be like if he was taken from me, and I really didn’t want to face that again.
Of course, refusing to verbally acknowledge my feelings would not, in any way, ease that utter devastation, but I just wanted something to give him once we’d fought our way through the darkness that lay ahead.
Was that stupid? Possibly. But I had a feeling Mom would have understood, even if she’d have also advised not to hold back.
But she wasn’t here... and never would be, ever again....
I blinked against the sting of tears and briefly lowered my gaze. “I obviously need to work on my game face if you saw said hatred so easily.”
“You forget that we are attuned to each other. I saw what few others could or would.” He hesitated, lightly raising my chin, then dropped a gentle kiss on my lips. “I am really sorry about your parents, Bryn. I wish I could have been here for you.”
I sighed. “I do understand your reasons, Damon, even if your refusal to confide in me continues to rankle.”
“And if I promise a future containing no more lies and secrets?”
“Then I might see my way to forgiving you.”
“Might?” he mused, eyebrows raised and amusement lurking in his expression. “What else can I do to ensure forgiveness?”
I hesitated. “Move here to Esan? I know it’s a long way from Angola, but my life?—”
“Not to mention your crown and your drakkon,” he cut in, amused.
“It’s not my crown. Not anymore,” I said. “Garran’s alive, Damon. It’s why your brother risked using Makki to break into my suite tonight.”
And it’s probably how they intended to get rid of Garran once they’d “sorted” the whole problem of my marriage to my fake husband not being consummated.
Damon touched my arm, his fingers oh-so-warm against my skin. “I’m glad he survived, Bryn, but where in Vahree’s name has he been this last week? Why could no one contact him?”