Chapter 45
The energy in the courtyard was exciting, verging on dangerous. This was a different world. The members here certainly lived life to the fullest, absorbing all the revelry that they could, while they could. There was a sense of urgency to take it all in. To live.
I swore I could see it in the twinkle of the man’s eyes—a challenge to let go. I could do that. I needed to, or else I’d be stuck in my room, with nothing on my mind but the General…
No. Be in the moment.
With a confidence I had never known, amplified by the liquor, I strolled over to him, catching the way his eyes traced my form. Adding a subtle sway to my hips, I approached, concealing my amusement as one of his buddies jabbed him playfully in the side.
“And what brings us the pleasure of having the General's Riftborne sidekick in our midst?” teased another one of his friends. I didn't flinch.
Fine by me, being the odd one out here.
My smile turned sickly sweet as I faced the one who spoke. He seemed two bottles deep, blonde hair all over the place, like he'd been unsuccessfully pushing it back all evening.
"Hoping for a drink and some entertainment. Think you're up for it?" My gaze found its way back to the dark-haired guy, his blue eyes still sparkling with promise.
"I'm Fia, by the way."
"I’m Ren. That’s Hayden," he replied, smiling and leaning forward in his seat, forearms resting on the table. "I can help with the drink, but subjecting a lady like you to this lot's entertainment? Wouldn't dare."
"Hey! We're plenty entertaining!" Hayden protested, nearly toppling off his chair as he reached for another bottle.
"I’ll be the judge of that." I shot them a wicked grin and leaned against the table.
"Then by all means..." Ren handed me a bottle, contents uncertain. I tossed it back, savoring the sweet warmth of wine.
When I looked up, Ren was smiling at me again. His dark hair was close-cropped, and his features, sharp at the edges, gave him a somewhat feminine allure compared to Laryk’s harsh lines. I shook the comparison from my head.
“So why did you tag along with the General? I thought only Narissa did that,” Ren questioned.
“You’ll have to ask him.” I smirked, taking another long sip of the wine. Hearing her name made my ears burn.
“Sounds like there’s some tension there.” The blonde one laughed.
“I’m just looking for fun tonight.”
“Do I look fun to you?” Ren asked, a curious glimmer in his eyes.
“I wouldn’t be here otherwise.” Even I was shocked by my behavior tonight.
He stood and approached me, confidence showing in every step. His hand found its way to my lower back as if we'd known each other longer than this fleeting moment.
I felt the warmth of his breath at my ear, and my eyes fluttered closed, anticipating the meaningless sweet nothings that would clear my mind and this endless ache.
But the words didn't come.
I slowly opened my eyes. The courtyard’s rowdy noises had hushed.
All I heard was the subtle clink of blades and footsteps heading toward our table.
"Nice to see everyone's fully prepared for an attack." Laryk’s cold words pierced through the quiet, dripping with sarcasm.
I didn't dare turn around.
"General! We were just messing around! Plans of finishing up soon." Hayden scrambled to regain his composure.
"Based on their past patterns, they won’t be back for a few days," Ren chimed in.
I felt him shift at my side, his grip slipping off my back as he turned to face Laryk.
The void left by Ren's hand quickly filled with the white-hot gaze of the General. I hadn't even turned around, yet I could sense his eyes drilling into me.
"I've had plenty of men die with similar assumptions." His voice came out in a growl, holding back what seemed like a torrent of frustration.
"Fia.” It was all he said as he walked off, yet it resonated like both a command and a punishment. Am I some kind of thing he can summon to follow him? After avoiding me all day?
I think not.
My grip on the bottle tightened, knuckles whitening as I took one more swig and slammed it down, rising to my feet. My mood was shattered, replaced by anger.
I stomped after him, not bothering with goodbyes. He had a head start, but I saw him vanish into the corridor seconds before I bounded in after him, racing until we were standing in his quarters .
"What the fuck is your problem?" I shouted, unable to control myself.
"Your irresponsibility knows no bounds. Getting drunk and taking lowly Base soldiers as company. That sure seems like the way to prepare for this war," he hissed.
Rage simmered in my core.
"I don’t see how it’s any of your business. You brought me here for what? To hide in my room? I don’t know what the next few days will bring. I don’t know what we’re going to find when we get to Stormshire. I just wanted to feel something.”
"And what were you trying to feel tonight, Fia?" he snarled.
My insides were screaming. I clenched my fists, holding myself back from launching at him.
"Anything, Laryk! Anything to calm this maddening urge to..." I trailed off, jaw clenching as I shut my mouth. I wouldn’t let the alcohol get the best of me. I wasn’t going to say it.
“So fucking that boy was the answer?" His rage turned serpentine, almost mocking.
It infuriated me even more.
I wouldn't let him belittle me.
“I was certainly going to give him the opportunity to try!" I snapped. "I'm sure he was just about to escort me to a more private setting when you?—"
He flew across the room, dropping his weapons unceremoniously to the floor. "I nearly ripped his arm off when I saw it on your back," he said, his tone dark.
He stared straight ahead, and I could see his muscles shifting under his clothing, as if he was forcefully holding himself in place.
The room fell deafeningly silent.
I didn't move as I scrutinized him, really taking him in.
His face wore a cold, blank mask as he took calculated breaths, fixating on nothing but the space in front of him.
"You have no idea the absolute fucking wreck I've been since I met you, Fia. "
Suddenly, I wished he would look at me.
I yearned to see the mask break, to witness his barely contained desire and anger rush out all at once.
I walked toward him slowly, and his eyes snapped up to mine, the only thing offering a glimpse into what he was feeling behind his stoic features.
My breath caught in my throat at the need I saw there. Before I could fumble for words, he was upon me. My mind went blank.
His lips seared into mine, my body molding into his shape, completely succumbing to the onslaught of pent-up emotion that we both allowed to explode at once.
I heard myself moan, but I was so lost in the sensation of his hands clawing possessively down my body that I couldn't find it in myself to care if others could hear me.
My fingers tugged desperately at his clothing, needing to feel his skin against mine like I needed air to breathe.
He scooped me up in one swift motion, his fingers digging into the flesh at the backs of my thighs.
My legs wrapped around him, another moan escaping my lips at the hardness I felt pressed against my lower stomach.
“You’re mine,” he growled against my throat.
In a haze, I nodded my agreement, tilting my head back to give his wandering lips better access.
I had just managed to work his shirt up over his torso when I felt his knees hit something solid. I quickly followed him down as he set me onto the mattress, finding a place between my legs at the edge of the bed.
He pulled his shirt off the rest of the way exposing his muscular chest and frame.
He was a work of art. Truly.
His chest heaved as he stood above me, his eyes frantically dancing down my body, taking everything in.
Only a few of my buttons had been undone but I already felt completely bare .
“I hope you were prepared for a sleepless night because I intend to recreate every dream that I’ve had of you thus far.”
His words sent a jolt of pleasure through me–the realization that the dream I’d witnessed was not his first.
“What’s been holding you back?” I whispered.
His eyes avoided mine as he lowered himself down, his face level with my chest. He began to kiss his way across my collarbone. Each word tickled my skin as he violently rid me of my blouse.
“I can’t allow myself a distraction like you,” he huffed. His fingers gripped my waist so hard I knew they’d leave a mark. His mouth moved to trace the shell of my ear as he lowered his fingers and tugged on the buttons of my trousers.
“Nightly dalliances here and there are one thing… but you… you’re so much more than that.” He finally lifted his head to look at me. “You’re important.”
He didn’t specify whether I was important to his cause or important to him, but the longing in his eyes had me hoping for the latter.
I raised my hand to his face, my thumb brushing against the fullness of his bottom lip. He captured it between his teeth with a devious smile. My mind flashed to his dream, and my core went molten. I wanted his lips elsewhere.
I grabbed the back of his neck and pulled his face to mine, my mouth opening up to him. I felt dizzy by the time he broke away, starting his journey down my body.
His breath felt hot against my skin. I reached towards his waistband, but he stopped me, grabbing my wrists and pinning them above my head.
I tugged against his grip, arching to resist him.
A smug look crossed his features as the movement pushed my chest towards his waiting lips. He chuckled darkly and clamped down on one of my nipples. The sound that escaped me seemed foreign to my own ears.
He made sure to leave scalding red kisses and bite marks across the tender swells of my chest.He was relentless in his teasing, but I would not give him the satisfaction of begging like I had in his fantasy.
The mixture of pain and pleasure had my body twisting under him. I kicked the trousers that were still tangled around my ankles away. His hold on my wrists loosened and I used his distraction and the strength in my now-freed legs to flip us.
Now I was in control.
“You look good underneath me,” I taunted, sitting astride him.
The surprise in his eyes heated as he took in my naked form above him. I could feel his need pressing against me. I reached down, my hand boldly caressing his considerable length through the straining fabric.
Laryk groaned, the muscles in his stomach clenching tightly as his hips lifted into my touch. I moved down his body, just enough to give myself room to work on the elaborate clasps of his uniform.
Laryk held his breath as he watched my movements, looking every bit like a predator lying in wait.
My fingers hooked onto the edges of his waistband, and I pulled.
His member sprung free, pulsing upwards to lay against my stomach, resting just below my belly button.
My mouth watered at the sight, but Laryk had chosen this moment to make his move, one arm wrapping around my waist in a vice, the other fisting my hair.
He lifted me up until my entrance was hovering just above him.
“Fia,” he whispered hoarsely, tightening his grip against my scalp. “Do you want me to fuck you?”
I nodded, my hands pushing against his hold as I rushed to lower myself, needing him inside me immediately, but his arm only tightened, denying me.
I bit my lip, groaning in frustration. A wicked smile spread across his face and suddenly the room spun as he flipped me, my back slamming into the mattress. His knee parted my legs, his strong thighs pushing them apart, the weight of him pinning me down.
“I want to hear you say it, Fia.” It was a demand. He wasn’t going to back down.
“Fuck me, Laryk.”
The tip of him slid down my center. I could feel how wet I had become.
“Laryk-”
In one powerful thrust he was inside, the sheer size of him robbing me of my breath. He moved to slide out of me, pausing for only seconds before burying himself to the hilt yet again.
My body rocked up the bed at the force of it, and we both let out a moan. I gripped his shoulders, digging my nails into his skin as the movements became unrelenting.
Euphoria rushed through me, leaving me in a tangled mess around him. Each stroke brought me closer to the edge, to the oblivion I so desperately craved.
More.
My hips met each of his thrusts as they became more fervent, more unforgiving.
My moans echoed through the chamber, and my breath came in quick gasps. I tangled my fingers into his hair, my face buried in the crook of his neck as my body became rigid.
“Come for me, Fia.”
His command was followed by a final thrust that had me falling apart at the seams. Waves of pleasure surged through me, giving way to spasms of ecstasy that rocked me to my core.
My tensed muscles turned liquid, my body trembling beneath him, breathless and lost to reality.
“You feel so fucking good,” he growled against my neck, breath heating me once again.
“More,” I whispered, running my fingers down his back and shifting beneath him .
“That’s what I like to hear,” he murmured, tugging at my ear with his teeth.
In one quick movement he pulled out of me, flipping me onto my stomach. His hands grabbed my hips, forcing me up so that my knees dug into the sheets. His hand came down hard, stinging the skin of my behind, sending sparks through me. And in an instant, he shoved himself back inside me.
Again.
And Again.
A rhythm that went on for hours as he made his dreams into reality.