19. Chapter 19
“What are you doing?” My rage spiked. How could he be so careless? How could he allow that thing take control? I watched in fear as he gave himself over just enough to stay as Peiro, but the thing inside clearly became more present, as evidenced by the wicked smile.
Logic told me to run or to put an end to this, but the power that was engraved in my bones savored the feel of the energy that radiated off him in building waves. My fingers trembled at the sensation that emitted around us.
I felt it more, the intoxicating need to wrap myself in its arms. To be consumed by its lust, to control what vibrated against my essence. Having the Ancient One present fueled the want to have more. To take more.
I could almost taste it.
And I wanted to.
“You need a worthy opponent if you’re not planning to relent anytime soon,” he snapped as he pulled his sword from his belt. “What better way to wear you down?”
Reason beckoned at me—no, screamed at me—to listen. It warred with the power that crept through my veins, finding a way back home. He was doing this for me?
No.
You can’t allow this! my heart roared, reason fighting for control. Why is he doing this?
Oh, but think of the fun this will be, my mind sneered back, overpowering any rational thought. My fingers flexed, itching to Wield.
“You know I can just easily command you to kneel? Command you to stop?” I hissed between my teeth, struggling to grasp my control. That power was mine for the taking, and I wanted to be consumed by it.
Ever so subtly, he licked his bottom lip. “Well, then, I best find other ways to keep your mouth busy.” Peiro’s smile turned saccharine as an eyebrow arched.
Heat spread through me, and I hated how much I welcomed it.
Before I could retort, Peiro attacked at a speed I hardly registered, forcing me to roll into a dodge at the same time his sword struck the tree I had been standing next to.
Deeper he drove me into the trees, slicing against the air, missing me by inches.
His movements became stronger, faster, more precise as the magic around him stirred and built.
“You want to pick on those who are less powerful than you?” he snarled as he swung again, hitting another tree I had just dodged away from.
“You think you can obtain ultimate power by getting them to bend to your will?” The blade clanged loudly against one of the large boulders to my right.
“Who does that sound like, Ophelia?” his roar echoed.
“Fuck. You!” I protested. A frenzy of bitter emotions flooded me with his audacity to compare me to the very people who stole my family’s kingdom from underneath our feet.
With a firm stance, I summoned forth the power of the moon.
Its force encased every nerve ending within my body, and once again I willed my magic to form the teal-hued blade within the palm of my hand, using my power to lengthen it into a sword.
Calling on the illicitus to control the being within him would be too easy, and my magic screamed that it wanted the thrill first.
I felt Peiro’s presence before I had time to look up and used my hand that held the Wielded blade to block the downswing of his sword.
My strength wavered with the force he pressed.
Gritting my teeth, I pushed with every bit of energy I had.
I called more Wielding to meet my other hand and forced it off the hilt to blast another gust of wind toward him.
It was just enough relief to grant me the moment I needed to maneuver my feet and move out of his reach.
Holding the Wielded blade in one hand, I called forth more Wielding in the other, feeling the energy drain from my body to keep my power steady, but not near burnout.
Not yet. I combined it with my other hand to feed more into the Wielded sword, which grew to a bright hue, illuminating the forest around us and his silvering eyes.
I took a step forward and thrust my blade toward him, narrowingly missing.
“You’re getting better.” Peiro twisted away, colors continuing to war within his eyes.
The swirl was almost mesmerizing. “But you won’t be able to win everyone through force.
Or through your power.” He swiped at me again.
I blocked and parried just in time, but not before the edge of his blade caught the sleeve of my tunic and tore through my skin.
I hissed at the bitter pain, but dodged his blows as he continued to strike again and again.
My rage started to lose its hold, relinquishing its grip on me.
My vision slowly cleared from the gray haze as I refocused on Peiro’s attacks.
Left. Right. Behind. It was just like he’d taught me as we trained.
The muscles in my lower back began to cramp and my thighs ached, but I continued to fight, finding myself more on the defense with every blow.
Awareness flooded my mind. The light in my Wielded sword flickered momentarily, giving away that I was losing strength.
My body grew hot with the impending burnout—something I never thought in a thousand years I would understand.
My hand wavered, weakening under each of his attacks.
My arms grew heavy, even as my Wielded sword felt light in my hand.
I tried to dredge up the energy to hold him back with more vines, but the roots around our feet barely stirred.
And yet Peiro refused to ease up. “How does it feel, Ophelia?” His sword hit mine, stinging my hands.
“To be met with brutality when there are other ways to find resolution?” he roared as he swung toward me again.
I hated the way he called out my name without devotion.
Everything in our exchange felt distant and cold.
The moon moved across the sky as our dance went on.
Peiro blocked my tiring swing with such ferocity that I lost my footing.
Before I could fall, something caught hold of me.
I found myself twirling in the shadows as my back hit something solid, and a hard breath escaped my lungs.
The clattering of a sword hitting the ground rang in my ears.
My arms once again were pinned next to my sides.
Peiro gripped my arms harder and shuffled me forward from behind to pin my thighs against one of the large boulders.
I was trapped, unable to move. I thrashed as hard as I could, trying to shake his hold, but failed.
The light in my Wielding hand flickered again but my mind refused to relent, even as my body continued its protest.
“Seems like you have found yourself caught between a rock and a hard place,” Peiro said next to me. “Quite literally, might I add.” His hand gently grasped my throat as his warm breath caressed me, causing a new thrill to skirt along my skin. “Put away your weapon.”
“No,” I said between my teeth as I wiggled against his hold.
Lips pressed against the shell of my ear. “Find control. Don’t let this power take you. I see the war that rages within you…because it wars within me, too,” he whispered as his lips traced along my ear, finding their way down my neck. “Come back to me, moonlight.”
“No,” I panted, feeling the internal battle of logic and magic inside me. Magic refused to give way while rationality screamed at me to let go. To give in to him.
“Please.” Peiro’s warm breath now curled between my neck and shoulder, and he planted a deep kiss at the hollow.
His teeth dragged hard against the exposed skin at my collar—a moan escaped me when his tongue swirled over that spot.
He pulled back and I cursed myself for how much I already missed the touch.
“If you can’t find release through us fighting, then I will help you find your release another way. Here. Now.”
My core was set ablaze with liquid heat at the promise.
Darkness surrounded us as my Wielded blade finally dissolved from my hand, concealing us within the shadows of the night.
Peiro’s lips pressed into my neck again and he curled his arms around my waist. I arched into his solid form as his hands rose to my breasts, kneading them adeptly.
I moved again, the hard ridge of his arousal pressing into my backside, proof that he was enjoying this as much as I was.
I held onto his forearms as his mouth trailed along my jaw and tilted my head enough for his lips to finally claim mine.
My mind battled with letting go of the power that threatened to consume me.
I needed him to take control. My heart thundered at the mere thought of being at his mercy, of letting down the walls I’d so carefully crafted for others. To let go of the anger.
“Heartbeat, Ophelia,” he drawled. “Your body practically gives you away. Relent. Give in to me.”
There was nothing soft or gentle in the way he commanded my body, and I enjoyed every ounce of it.
His tongue overpowered mine and he pinned me harder to the stone with his hips.
I let out another moan, my breathing growing more rapid, my body aching to be touched.
To be filled. I knew I couldn’t move yet I writhed against him all the same, chasing the friction between us.
Peiro growled low and squeezed harder on my breasts.
I pressed into his touch and the delicious pressure.
A whimper escaped me with the way his hands worked.
I wanted more. I needed more. The throb between my legs was becoming too much, but the way he had me pinned, I could find no relief.
A whimper built in my chest, desperate against the rising tension.
I suddenly felt a wisp of cold where Peiro ripped his hands away from my body, my breasts already missing his touch.
Before my mind could comprehend, his large hand gripped my hip as the other pushed my shoulder forward so my chest met the cool stone before me.
The sensation sent lightning through my body, greeting my feverish skin.
He pinned my wrists to the stone; Peiro wedged his knees between mine, forcing my legs to move wider apart.
Air curled around my breath as I rested my cheek on the rock, waiting in anticipation. With a grip still tight around my wrists, Peiro tugged my trousers down.
He released a ragged breath at my exposed skin, sending a primal hunger low in my belly. “So beautiful,” he murmured. I didn’t have time to grasp his words before he grabbed me by the waist again and thrust his entire length in deep.
I buckled and gasped at the intensity, fueling my desire.
Peiro moved at an unforgiving rhythm while my body stretched across the boulder.
My body continued to climb higher, coil tighter, when his pace increased.
It was becoming too much from the relentless force he drove into me.
But it made me feel wild and free. I whimpered, trying to find friction where I needed it the most. My center pulsed, craving his touch.
As if he’d read my mind, Peiro released a hand from my waist and slid his fingers between my legs.
His rough hands held no mercy as he worked around my bundle of nerves, sending me higher.
The strain built to a fierceness I hadn’t known existed before I saw stars behind my closed eyes.
The cosmos were tangible as I soared then crashed into waves of decadent explosions.
I screamed Peiro’s name until I was hoarse.
My wrists became free the moment he worked to keep his hold along my hips.
I climbed onto my forearms, not caring about the jagged edges of the boulder that dug into my skin.
The movement sent him on edge while his rhythm grew frantic.
He groaned my name as he found his own release, toppling on top of me so that I was once again pinned between him and stone, but I didn’t mind.
We laid there, our mingled breaths the only sound around us.
A peace settled over me as my racing heart slowed.
A laugh bubbled up, my cheeks turning bright red at the realization of what we’d just done and where we’d done it—of who might have heard it.
I prayed to the giants that no one was in the vicinity as the smile on my face widened.
The deep rumbles from Peiro’s laughter vibrated against my back.
“Are you feeling better?” he whispered, planting soft kisses along my shoulder. He adjusted to his forearms, relieving me of some of his weight but not enough to allow me to move completely.
“Hmm. I think so.” I smirked.
“Not going to kill anyone if I unpin you, are you?” I heard the laugh in his voice.
“And what if I say yes?”
Peiro’s hips pushed against me in warning. “Then we will continue to distract you until you’re too exhausted to even try.”
We.
I wanted this to continue. I wanted to stay here and find myself wrapped up in his arms until the end of my life, but I knew we needed to return to the manor. “No,” I said with a sad smile. “No, I will not kill anyone tonight—even if it is just.”
Peiro chuckled in my ear. “Are you sure? We don’t mind staying here. Like this.” His teeth nibbled my ear as his hips pressed against me once again.
“You’re very good at distracting me.” My mind started to unravel what had happened moments ago, and the sinking feeling that threatened to ensnare me. I closed my eyes, feeling the shame creeping up within my chest. “Thank you,” I whispered.
Peiro planted a swift kiss into my hair and lifted himself before proceeding to help pull my trousers back up to my waist. After finally being adjusted, I turned and wrapped my arms around his neck and rested my head against his chest. We stood there, his arms wrapped tightly around me, allowing me to hear each thump of his heart.
I drew back, studying how the colors of his eyes continued to swirl against one another. “Never do that again. What were you thinking?” Desperation laced every word, but I was cut short as Peiro engulfed me tighter in his hold.
“You came back to me,” he whispered. “That’s all that matters.” He pulled back to look into my eyes, as if reading something, then leaned down and kissed me in a way that made my knees weak.
It was so easy to pretend that we weren’t being chased by lies or feeling the threat of looming monsters.
It was easy to simply be. Moments passed, and I hated every second of breaking something so precious.
“We need to head back.” I looked up and could see from the moonlight that he was still in control.
Peiro’s lips grazed my knuckles as he whispered, “I love you.”
My heart threatened to burst knowing that even through all of my weakness and shortcomings, he still saw me though it all.
Nodding, I pulled out of his hold and began to walk back toward the manor.
Strong fingers grasped mine, pulling me back just a step so he could kiss me once again, and then led me into a walk as we stayed hand in hand.