Chapter 40 #2
“Maeve,” Severin says, narrowing his eyes at me when I don’t respond. “Why are you here?” His voice is tight and sharp.
I finally get my wits about me and shake off the adrenaline pumping through my veins. Tipping my head back to meet his eyes, I say, “How did you know I was out there?”
Now it’s his turn to hesitate.
His gaze shifts from my eyes to my neck, and slowly, he reaches out to push my long hair back from my throat. As his fingers brush the skin there, he whispers, “I could feel you.”
The words send a delicate shiver through me.
A beat of silence passes between us as his fingers continue to trail across my throat. Finally, I say, “It’s not just me, then.”
His gaze flicks to mine, and he immediately drops his hand. “You feel it too?”
“Yeah. Here. Ever since you fed from me.” Taking Severin’s hand, I lift it and press it to my chest, right over my heart. “Like we’re connected somehow. That’s what led me to you.”
Eyes narrowing, he furrows his brow. His hand is warm through my tunic, and suddenly, being this close to him, I get the intense desire to rip his clothes off and ride him right here on the floor.
Severin draws a breath, scenting the air, and his pupils dilate slightly.
Then he pulls back from me, putting distance between us. His voice comes out rough as he says, “You still haven’t answered my question.”
I shake my head a little. He’s being touchy tonight.
Reaching into my cloak pocket, I grab the cuff link and pull it out.
“I found this.” As I uncurl my fingers, the dim light from the candle on Severin’s desk catches the golden cuff link, making it glow.
Severin hesitates, then reaches out, taking it from me with delicate fingers. “You found it.” His eyes meet mine. “Where?”
I shrug. “On my way back from the bathhouse. I knew it was yours the moment I saw it and figured you’d want it back.”
Slowly, the harsh expression on his face softens. As he curls his fingers around it, he nods. “Yes. Thank you.”
Silence settles between us, and I take a moment to cast my gaze around his apartment. It’s small but cozy, with a quaint kitchen, a hearth hugged by an armchair, a desk, a wardrobe, and a—
My eyes land on Severin’s bed. It’s impeccably made, with no hint of a single wrinkle in the comforter or pillowcases. Of course he makes his bed like that. It’s so . . . Severin.
He must see something on my face, because he says, “What is it?”
But I just shake my head. With my tension melting away, I step deeper into the apartment, inviting myself to take a look around.
“Maeve,” Severin says from behind me, where he still hasn’t moved, as if his feet are rooted to the floor, “you’re not supposed to be here. This wing is off-limits to students.”
“I know,” I say, setting my bag with my bath items down next to his armchair. Then I reach up and unclasp my cloak, and I hear Severin’s small intake of breath as I take it off and drape it over the back of the chair. “But now that I’m here”—I cast a glance back at him—“I think I’d like to stay.”
He flexes his jaw, which is shadowed by stubble from the day. “No. You have to go back.”
I frown at him, then move toward the hearth, where the fire has burned down to embers.
“Come on, Professor,” I say softly. Conjuring a small flame in my palm, I send it into the hearth, relighting the fire.
Then I brush the heat from my hand and turn to face him.
“Just for a while. Once the castle has gone to sleep, I’ll go back to my room.
” A small smile tugs on my lips. “I promise.”
“If someone catches you here—”
“They won’t,” I say. “The door is locked.” One of my brows arches slowly. “And it’s hard to hear through stone.”
Severin’s throat bobs as he swallows, and he tightens his fingers into fists at his sides.
Without a word, he walks to his desk, where he sets the cuff link down.
Then he presses his palms flat to the wood, and I admire the curve of his back and the definition in his shoulders, which I can see through the thin material of his tunic.
“This is dangerous,” he says, still not turning to me. “If we get caught, I’ll lose my job, and you’ll—”
“Severin.” I pad across the stone floor, then reach out to rub one hand along his back.
His muscles are coiled tight. “I know the risk. I’m sorry.
And once the halls are quiet, I’ll go back to my room.
Until then, can we at least enjoy a moment together?
” I take a breath, then whisper, “I’ve missed you. ”
Beneath my palm, his muscles start to soften. He draws a big breath, then lets it out in a sigh. Finally, after a long moment, he says, “I’ve missed you too.”
With a smile, I ease around him and lift myself onto the edge of his desk, perching there, my feet no longer touching the floor. Severin straightens, looking down at me, the candlelight tossing a warm glow across his face.
“How was your week?” I ask.
His lips quirk up on one side. “Agonizing.”
“Oh?” I tip my head. “Why the agony?”
Severin hesitates, and I can see the thoughts running through his mind, can see the way his eyes narrow as he makes a determination about what he’s going to do and say next.
Then he presses my legs apart and steps close, so my knees are on either side of his hips.
“Because I think about you every moment of every day.” His hand finds my cheek, and he tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “You haunt me when you’re not near.”
“Good.” I lean forward, and Severin catches his breath as I press kisses along his stubbled jaw. Pulling back, I whisper against his skin, “I’ll be your phantom, Professor.”
He moves his hand to the back of my head, tangling his fingers in my hair. And then he finally captures my lips in his.
He tastes like whiskey, and as I deepen our kiss, drawing his bottom lip into my mouth and ensnaring it between my teeth, he groans.
Then his hands are on my hips, reaching for the waistband of my soft cotton pants.
We have to break our kiss, and I shift my weight on the desk so that he can slide the fabric off my hips and pull the pants down the length of my legs.
As soon as the fabric hits the floor, his mouth is on mine again, and I gasp as he reaches between our bodies, pushing my panties aside to sink a finger into my pussy.
He slides it all the way in, then moves his mouth to my ear to whisper, “Why so wet, Miss Vandermere?”
I spread my legs, wanting more, and gasp out, “It’s your fault.” My eyes open, and I meet his heavy gaze. “This is what you do to me, Professor.”
His red eyes simmer in the low light. He takes his free hand and grabs my wrist, guiding my fingers to the pressure straining against his slim trousers. “And what you do to me,” he whispers.
I draw my palm along his length through the fabric, matching his rhythm as he fucks me with one finger. Then I pull the cord loose and ease the trousers off his hips, my lips pulling into a small smile as his cock bobs free.
I lean forward on the desk, causing Severin to pull his finger out of me, and draw my tongue along the head of his cock, relishing the sound he makes. I slip my lips around his tip and suck gently. He’s hard and hot in my mouth, already prepared to sink inside me.
With a grunt that’s part pleasure, part frustration, he pulls my sweater off over my head, leaving me naked on his desk but for my thin black panties. Then those, too, come off, and he tosses them across the apartment, where they land silently on the stone floor.
He leans in to kiss me, then guides me back onto his desk, so I’m lying flat, my legs still spread.
Beside me, the candle flickers, making shadows and light dance across Severin’s face.
And I see the hunger in his gaze as he takes me by the backs of the thighs and spreads me further, fully exposing me, then lowers his mouth to my cunt.
I gasp out a breath as his lips close over my clit, his tongue bathing me in heat.
His tongue drags over my pussy lips. And then he sinks it inside of me.
Immediately, I scrabble for purchase on the desk, sending papers fluttering to the floor.
My fingers find the edge, and I grip the wood as Severin puts more pressure on my thighs, forcing me open as he continues to fuck me with his tongue.
My breathing goes heavy, and I close my eyes.
All I feel is Severin’s mouth and the heat building on my skin, the press of his fingers digging into the backs of my thighs.
His tongue swipes along my clit again, then plunges back into me.
Deep in my belly, a tightness starts to coil, my climax already building.
But I don’t want to cum yet. I’ve waited all week for this. It can’t be over this quickly.
“W-wait,” I gasp out.
Severin lifts his head from between my legs, his lips slick with my wetness.
And when he meets my eyes, I feel that pull in my chest. Even though I’m right here with him, his hands still wrapped around my thighs, I have the need to be closer, like even an inch of distance between our bodies is too much.
I say the words before I’ve even fully considered them. “I want you to feed from me again.”
The need to feel his fangs pierce my skin, to tingle with warmth as his venom floods my body, is immediate and undeniable. And in my chest, beneath my sternum, that odd sensation flares, like it’s hungry for the same thing.
His dark brows draw low over his eyes, and he straightens up.
I rise up onto my elbows on his desk, gaze dipping quickly to his cock, where precum is already beading at his flushed tip.
His hesitation makes me look up and meet his eyes.
And I’m getting ready to convince him to bite me when he nods once.
“If that’s what you want.”
Relief washes over me.
I press up off the desk, reaching for him, and he lifts me easily.
My legs and arms wrap around him, and I smile against his mouth as he kicks his trousers away from his ankles, where they were still tangled.
I expect him to carry me to the bed, but instead, he walks into the sitting area, and he’s still holding me as he sinks down into his armchair.
My knees settle along either side of his hips, his hard shaft trapped between our bodies.
“First,” I whisper as I break our kiss, “let’s get this off.”
I reach for his tunic and feel his eyes on me as I lift the fabric, then slip it over his head.
Now he’s naked beneath me, his pale skin like polished marble in the firelight.
Our breathing synchronizes as I draw my fingertips across his skin, following the rises and dips of his muscles, then tracing each of his ribs.
“You’re beautiful,” I say.
This makes him laugh. “Not nearly so beautiful as you.”
One of his hands cups my cheek, and he pulls me in for another kiss, my salty taste still lingering on his lips.
As we kiss, I reach between our bodies, wrapping my fingers around his shaft and starting to stroke him, going slow at first.
He sighs against my mouth, sinking deeper into the plush armchair, like his body is submitting to my touch.
Then, with one smooth movement, I rise onto my knees, guide his cock to my cunt, and lower myself slowly onto him, breath catching as my pussy stretches to accommodate his girth.
Once he’s deep inside me, I scoot my knees closer to his hips, letting my weight settle atop him.
Leaning back, I look into his eyes, watching the way they catch the firelight as he rests his head against the armchair.
His gaze follows my movement as I use one hand to push my hair back over my shoulder. “It’s healing up,” I say, tipping my head so he can see the faint red marks from when he last fed. “But I can’t wear a scarf forever. Where else can you drink from me?”
At my question, his cock pulses inside me, and I shift my hips just a bit, drawing a hitched breath from him.
“I could bite you here.” He lifts a hand, finding my wrist and circling it with a thumb.
His hand then moves down, finding my bare upper thigh, dimpling the skin as he squeezes.
“Or here.” I tremble as he draws his fingertips up the length of my body, then touches my collarbone, soft as the kiss of butterfly wings. “Or here.”
“What’s your favorite?” I ask.
His lips twitch with a smile. “You.”
The word sends a rush of pleasure swirling through me.
I lift my hand, putting it atop his where it still lingers near my collarbone. “Then drink here. That way”—I shift my hips again and tighten my cunt around him—“I can still do this.”
My movement makes him grit his teeth, and the tips of his fangs peek out from beneath his top lip, already dripping with what I now know to be his venom.
“You need to be careful,” he says. “Small movements only.”
I touch his face with my hand, brushing my thumb along his lips. “I know,” I whisper.
“It’ll hurt,” he warns.
I lean forward and press my mouth to his, then pull away to whisper, “That’s part of the fun.”
With a growl, he wraps one arm around my waist, grounding me firmly in his lap. His other hand comes up to grasp the back of my neck. Between the two of them, I’m trapped against him, and I doubt I could wriggle or flail free if I tried.
I catch my breath as Severin presses a tender kiss to my collarbone. My body tenses, waiting for the bite.
And when it comes, it’s so much worse than the first time. It takes everything in me not to scream.