Chapter 16 #2
I tapped my foot restlessly against the ground, my body straining toward the rhythm while Dalkhan worked me into a complete frenzy.
Dalkhan’s lips brushed against my ear, his voice a sinful whisper. “Dance for me.”
A shiver shot down my spine, and I melted under his command.
He didn’t have to ask twice.
He released me, but not before tracing one last torturous path along my inner thigh, so close to where I needed him most.
I nearly sobbed.
“Remember,” he muttered as I stood on unsteady legs, “every eye will be on you, but you’re dancing only for me.”
The music took hold, and I surrendered completely to its call. My hips began to sway, finding the rhythm as naturally as breathing. I skimmed my hands up my sides, tracing the curves of my body, letting the beat flow through me until I became one with the melody.
Dalkhan’s eyes tracked every movement, every subtle shift and arch of my body. He leaned forward in his seat, drawn to me like a moth to a flame. He gripped the armrest of his chair so tightly the wood cracked under the pressure.
Women attempted to approach him with sultry steps and inviting smiles. They glided eager hands across his back in silent invitation, whispering promises I could easily imagine.
Their boldness should’ve bothered me, but instead it fuelled my confidence.
I was the one he wanted.
Then his power cracked through the air like a whip.
Torches flared violently, their flames leaping toward the sky in hungry tongues. A gust of scorching heat sent the women stumbling back, yelping. Their carefully composed seductions crumbled in an instant.
Dalkhan barely spared them a glance.
The power shift was intoxicating. I knew exactly what I was doing, and I savoured every second of his unravelling.
Slowly, teasingly, I spun away from him, my back bending as my hips moved in a taunting rhythm. The heat of his stare burned into me, his restraint visibly snapping with each sway of my body.
Then his scent surrounded me—rich oud and warm amber mixed with something uniquely him.
Strong arms encircled my waist from behind, pulling me against the solid heat of his body. Every nerve ending came alive as the length of his arousal pressed against me. A tremor of pure anticipation started at my core and radiated outward until I was thrumming with need.
His hold tightened, one hand sliding up to rest just below my breast.
“You’re killing me, little flame,” he whispered against my temple, his breath hot and ragged.
Shocked whispers swirled around us, eyes boring into me from every side, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. The women who had been circling him moments before now watched with naked jealousy.
Mercifully, Iznia was nowhere to be seen.
My focus narrowed to the man consuming me, body and soul. His lips traced along the back of my neck with reverence before he sank teeth into my flesh, just enough to leave a mark.
“I’m going to worship every inch of you tonight,” he promised. “Until you’re begging me to stop.” His tongue traced the imprint of his teeth. “And I won’t.
My head fell back against him as we continued to move together. My body responded to his with an abandon that should’ve been embarrassing, but instead, I felt powerful. Desired.
Utterly alive.
He inhaled deeply, his nose buried in my hair.
“So desperate for me already?” He dragged his hand up my side and cupped my breast, his thumb brushing over my hardened nipple.
I could hardly manage a nod, lost somewhere between his touch and the pounding music.
As seamless as if it were part of our dance, he spun me around to face him. He cupped my face, palms warming my cheekbones.
“Mine,” he whispered, then kissed me, both tenderly and consuming. A warning to anyone foolish enough to think I could belong to another.
I gripped his arms, pulling him closer. He deepened the kiss, his tongue sliding against mine with skilful precision that left me dizzy.
The world around us faded away—the feast, the music, the watching crowd. There was only him. Only this moment.
Smoke curled around us, and the world dissolved. When the haze cleared, we were no longer among the gathered.
I was in his chambers. On his bed.
Dalkhan stood at the edge, his chest heaving and pupils blown wide with need.
It didn’t matter how we got here. I wanted him. Now.
“Do you have any idea what you have done to me?” He stalked forward, ready to devour me whole.
The flames around the room flared brighter, casting the chamber in molten gold.
One knee hit the bed as he braced his arms on either side of my body. “You have driven me mad,” he rasped, his face inches from mine. “I can’t stop thinking of you. I can’t stop wanting you.”
His lips found my throat, dragging a scorching path over my pulse. I moaned breathlessly as his fingers dug into my waist. The material of my dress whispered against my skin as he gathered the fabric in his fist.
With one sharp tug, he tore the garment away.
I shuddered as cool air met my exposed flesh.
A sharp hiss slipped through his teeth as he cupped my breasts, his thumbs rolling over the hardened peaks. “Perfect,” he murmured. “So fucking perfect.”
His mouth descended, lips closing around one nipple. He flicked and swirled his tongue, teeth scraping the sensitive flesh, forcing a sharp cry from me.
He groaned against me, switching to the other breast while his hand slid lower to grip my thigh, dragging me closer to the edge of the bed.
Invisible, smouldering tendrils of heat coiled around my wrists and ankles, pinning me to the mattress. I writhed as an unseen force held me open.
His fingers traced over the slick heat between my legs, teasing with feather-light strokes.
“Tell me what you want.”
“You,” I whispered. “I want you.”
“More specific.” He slid through my wetness, collecting my arousal on his fingertips. “What do you want me to do to you?”
The words caught in my throat. “I want… I want your mouth on me.”
“Where?” He leaned down, breath hot against my ear. “Here?” His lips brushed my jawline. “Or here?” His hand cupped my breast, kneading with slow, teasing pressure. “Or…” He traced a tantalising path across my lower stomach before settling against my clit. “Here?”
“There,” I moaned. “Please, there.”
He settled between my thighs, his shoulders forcing my legs even wider. “Since you begged so nicely.”
I cried out at the first touch of his tongue, jerking against the bonds. He was merciless, tongue flicking and stroking, consuming me like a man starved. His hands dug into my flesh as he held me steady. I tried to twist, to squirm, but the invisible bonds tightened.
“Stay still,” he ordered. “Let me taste you properly.”
He sucked hard, a deep pull that made my vision blur.
The pleasure built and built until I couldn’t contain it anymore. I broke apart beneath him, body convulsing as waves crashed through me. But he didn’t stop.
He. Didn’t. Stop.
“Again,” he demanded. “Give me another one.”
I panted, trembling. Overwhelmed. “I can’t—”
“You can.” His tongue worked me relentlessly, flicking over my swollen clit with renewed vigour. “And you will.”
The bonds shifted, releasing my wrists but forcing my legs even wider. My hands flew to his hair. I tried to pull him away, but he just chuckled.
“Not yet, little flame.” His fingers joined his mouth, sliding into me with ease and stretching me open. Filling me. “I need to feel you fall apart again.”
I sobbed his name. “Dalkhan, please—”
“Please what?” He curled them, and stars exploded behind my eyelids. “Please stop? Or please don’t stop?”
I could only whimper as he worked me toward another peak.
“That’s what I thought.” His free hand pressed against my lower belly, holding me steady. “Now come for me again.”
The second wave hit me like lightning, even more intense than the first. I seized, screaming his name as tears streamed down my cheeks.
Only then did he pull away, his lips wet. Satisfaction was written across his features.
“Completely undone,” he said, his thumb tracing my lower lip, “and I haven’t even fucked you yet.”
I could taste myself on his skin.
His lips formed a wicked smirk as he began to shed his remaining clothing. “I hope you’re not too exhausted, little flame, because I’m nowhere near finished with you.”
Dalkhan revealed the full glory of his form, bronze skin gleaming in the firelight. Every muscle was defined and perfect. He leaned back against the frame of the bed, legs spread wide. He wrapped his hand around his cock, stroking slowly. His eyes never leaving mine.
“Come here and ride me.”
It wasn’t a request, it was an order. My limbs trembled with exhaustion, but I couldn’t disobey even if I wanted to.
I ached for him. Craved him beyond reason. The emptiness between my thighs was an almost physical pain that only he could ease.
I moved forward on hands and knees, approaching like a predator of my own. His eyes darkened further, his hand continuing its slow strokes along his length.
I straddled his powerful thighs, pressing against his chest for balance. His heat wrapped around me like a living thing, his grip securing my waist as I settled over him. The brush of his hardened cock against my sensitive core made his entire body go rigid. He hissed sharply through his teeth.
“Take me,” he growled. “Now.”
I lowered myself onto him, his hardness stretching me inch by inch. My breath caught as pleasure and pressure tangled in a dizzying blend. The burn was exquisite, my body struggling to accommodate his size yet always craving more.
“Fuck…” He strained beneath me. “You feel so good.”
He groaned, molten tendrils of power lashing out and curling around my waist, forcing my hips down harder. Deeper.
I cried out as he filled me completely, stretching me to my limits.
“You can take it,” he murmured against my ear. “You’ll take everything I give you.”
He let me move at first, slow and tortuous—his hands guiding my movements.
But patience had never been his virtue.