Chapter 17 #2
Relief crashes through me with enough force to shatter stone, though I refuse to let it show on my face.
The poison recedes slightly, appeased by her admission.
She felt nothing. The kiss that's been driving me to distraction, that made me consider creative dismemberment as a viable life choice, meant absolutely nothing to her.
But the rage is still there, simmering under my skin. Because even if she felt nothing, she still allowed another man to touch what belongs to me. And that cannot go unpunished.
"Close your eyes," I command softly, my voice gentling despite the chaos still raging in my chest.
"What?"
"Close your eyes, hatun . Go back to sleep. We're not finished with this conversation."
She stares at me for a long moment, uncertainty flickering across her features.
Before she can protest, I move closer and press my fingertips to her forehead.
Shadow magic flows through the touch—not harmful, but compelling, wrapping around her consciousness like silk.
Her eyes flutter closed almost instantly as the spell takes hold, drawing her into the deep sleep I need to bridge our minds.
"Sleep, sevgilim ," I whisper as her breathing evens out into the rhythm of enchanted slumber. "Dream of me."
And I follow her back into dreams with very specific intentions about how this night will end.
When consciousness finds her again, she's standing in my throne room in the Shadow Court—not the crumbling ruin it became after her departure, but the magnificent hall it was during our brief, tumultuous marriage.
Obsidian pillars stretch toward a vaulted ceiling painted with constellations that shift and dance with their own inner light.
Shadows pool in the corners like living things, waiting for my command.
The fire in my veins sparks to life, spreading down to my groin, hardening my cock. She's exquisite, and tonight I'm going to make her remember exactly why the connection between us never ceased to exist.
Nesilhan is fucking beautiful, and it kills me that she's not giving me that defiant, enraged look that I am used to, her dark hair loose around her shoulders as she turns in a slow circle, taking in the impossible grandeur surrounding her.
"Where am I?" she asks, her voice echoing in the vast space.
"My throne room in the Shadow Court," I say, stepping out of the darkness behind her with sharp grace. "The heart of my realm, where I once ruled with you at my side."
"So this is where I was forced to live before?—"
"Nesilhan, don't fucking do it again," I growl, being so close to her, ready to tear her clothes apart and feast on her until she begs me to stop. It was just the kiss, but it drives me towards destruction.
Her eyes find mine, wide with confusion and growing awareness. "Don't do what... oh Kaan... yes, I won't, and I am sorry." She hesitates before she adds. "Is this another dream?"
Instead of answering directly, I move with shadow-enhanced speed.
I pull her back against my chest, bringing her closer to me and inhaling the scent of her skin as she glows with light magic.
I can't get used to not feeling the severed bond anymore.
It's been months, but tonight I will make her experience what we used to have.
The massive mirrors along the walls catch our reflection—her small form pressed against my larger frame, my fingers tangled in her dark locks with possessive authority.
"Look," I command, turning her to face the largest mirror while my throne looms behind us like a monument to power. "Look at yourself, hatun ."
She glances up, her eyes widen as she sees her flushed cheeks, and my cock strains in my trousers. This woman is breaking me slowly, deliberately, and she doesn't even know it yet.
"Kaan, I'm not sure about this—" she begins, but her protest dies when I twist her hair in my fist and move her face only inches from mine.
Then I drag my hand over the center of her chest, and with one swift motion, I rip her dress, cupping her left breast in my palm.
Nesilhan's pulse speeds up as I pinch her hardened nipple, then lower my mouth and lick it slowly. She lets go of a hollow breath.
"You are sure," I contradict with absolute certainty, my free hand moving to her stomach, resting there, and sensing the baby's movement.
"Your body knows me, responds to me, even if the blood bond between us is severed.
I can sense your desire, sevgilim . Feel how your pulse races, how your breathing changes when I touch you. "
She parts her lips and blushes. I know she's not shy; she's far from it, but this new innocence caused by our severed bond drives me fucking crazy. I want to go fast, but I'm going to take my time with her tonight.
"I'm wet, kiss me," she pleads, her voice trembling with fear and something deeper, darker.
My smile in the mirror's reflection is all sharp edges and dangerous promises.
"I'm going to do so much more than kiss you, I will break you slowly, sevgilim ," I murmur against her ear, my breath hot against her skin as my finger continues to circle her left nipple, and she releases another sharp breath.
"Piece by piece, touch by touch, until you forget every other man who's ever dared put his hands on what belongs to me.
Until the only name on your lips is mine.
Until you're on your knees begging me to stop. "