CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR #2
Daphne stood perfectly still as he looked at her, drinking in every detail of the garment, noticing the way his face changed as he did so.
His pupils grew, dilating until his entire irises were black.
A muscle in his temple twitched, and she knew he had clenched his jaw.
This was everything he wanted from her—to see her in something he thought she would look beautiful in.
Daphne couldn’t imagine what this moment must feel like for Kronos.
All she knew was that it felt like heaven for her.
“Daphne,” Kronos rasped. “Please.”
She went to him, crossing slowly to the bed, stopping only when she was a foot away.
She wanted to prolong this moment, to enjoy how it felt when he was just looking at her.
When she was ready, she climbed onto the mattress, settling herself once more in his lap.
It was the same position she’d been in a moment ago, only now she was nearly naked, her exposed center perfectly placed on the bulge between his legs.
Kronos brushed his fingers gently over the pearls, following a single strand from her hip to her waist. A shudder went through her as he did it. “I did not think I would get to see you wear this,” he whispered. It was impossible to miss the awe in his voice.
“Then why give it to me at all?”
To her surprise, Kronos smiled. “So that I could imagine you wearing it.”
“That’s hardly the same as seeing me in it.”
His smile widened. “That is true.”
The moment deepened. They both knew the rules had changed between them, that the boundaries Daphne had set in place when they first met were breaking.
The crest had obliterated what was left of her walls, and Daphne did not know how much longer it would be before they fell.
Still, she hesitated. What she’d felt while they were dancing was still true—there was no future for them.
At least, not one she could picture, not one where they would be accepted into each other’s worlds.
She couldn’t imagine that getting involved with a human was encouraged behavior in basilisk culture.
She wanted to ask more questions, to seek clarification.
But Kronos’s body was warm against hers, and his fingers were on her back, brushing gently up her body. Perhaps there was no future for them. Perhaps it didn’t matter.
“You do not understand what it is like to have you on top of me,” Kronos whispered. He was still stroking the string of pearls. The motion sent a shiver down her spine.
“You don’t understand what it’s like to have you under me.”
Slowly, Kronos’s hands slid down the curve of her waist. He gripped her hips, pulling them open even more. Her wetness was soaking his trousers.
“You’re doing it again,” Daphne whispered.
He rose his eyebrows. “Doing what?”
“Tempting me.”
His hands stilled. “Am I truly tempting you?”
“You know you are.”
He shook his head. “I know nothing when it comes to you.”
“I know nothing when it comes to you either.”
“That is not true.”
“Then tell me something.”
“Such as?”
The air was too warm. Daphne gestured at the lingerie. “Tell me about this.”
“What do you wish to know?”
“Where did you get it?”
“I made it.”
Daphne raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t realize you were so skilled at beadwork.”
Kronos let out a soft chuckle. “That is not what I mean.”
“Then what do you mean?”
He paused. Deep, fierce desire flashed in his eyes. Daphne was almost afraid of it.
“Shall I show you?”
“Yes,” she answered before she could stop herself.
The air grew even warmer as he shifted beneath her, sitting up so they were at eye level. He didn’t say a word. Yet Daphne knew something was happening by the way his pupils were rapidly expanding. Then she felt the heat.
The pearls were rippling—moving—traveling over her skin as if they had a mind of their own.
They skimmed over her breasts, gathering around them and tightening.
She gasped as they squeezed her. It was as if Kronos’s hands had done the motion.
As soon as pressure was applied, it alleviated.
The pearls moved again, rolling up her sternum and wrapping around her neck.
The garment had split; the strands that connected the bottom were breaking, creating two distinct sections of pearls.
Daphne’s hands gripped Kronos’s shoulders for support. She did not understand what was happening; she had never seen magic like this before. All she knew was that the hot pearls felt glorious against her skin. It was like getting licked by a thousand flaming tongues at once.
“How?” she gasped. “How can you do this?”
“It is an ancient magic,” Kronos said, equally out of breath. “Only basilisks are capable of it. I cannot explain it.”
“But you’re not…”
“Not what, Daphne?”
Daphne was nearly out of breath. Kronos was similarly affected. His eyes were solid black, his fists gripping her hips. A fine sheen of sweat dappled his chest as delicate curls of smoke rose steadily from his shoulders.
The strands around her neck were tightening.
The pearls around her hips began to gather, forming a mound between her legs.
Daphne gasped as they solidified, merging into each other until they formed an object that pressed against her center as solidly as a cock would. She stared down at it in wonder.
“Shall I continue?” Kronos whispered.
Daphne had no idea what was about to happen. But she understood that it required her consent. She chose to trust that whatever it was, it would be pleasurable.
“Yes.”
Kronos didn’t reply. Instead his eyes fell to her center, and they both watched together as the object between her legs began to slide inside her.
Daphne let out a moan as it disappeared inch by inch, stretching her as it did so.
It was thicker than any cock she had taken before and far smoother—almost as if she were being penetrated by stone.
Part of it was still outside her, pressing up against her clitoris.
The rest of the pearls were also in motion—caressing her breasts, squeezing her neck.
Two long, thin strands slid down both of her arms. Daphne let them guide her hands behind her back, feeling them wrap around her wrists, holding them in place.
She was entirely exposed now; the pearls on her breasts circled her nipples before cinching around them into two tight, perfect circles.
Daphne moaned again, unable to hold herself back any longer.
It was too much stimulation at once, in too many places.
The pearls cinched tighter. Daphne gasped.
“Did that hurt?” Kronos murmured.
“No. It feels…”
But there were no words.
The pearls were vibrating against her skin, tingling in alternating frequencies, never keeping the same cadence for too long. Sometimes they pulsed slowly, creating a luxurious rhythm. Then they would speed up, matching her heartbeat, which was sprinting.
Kronos watched it all.
His only involvement was his hands on her hips, which had stayed there since she first straddled him.
Now he moved them slowly, encouraging the motion she was already doing, helping her rub against him as the object filled her.
Daphne let him move her, losing herself in the motions, thinking of nothing but how astronomically good it felt.
“Daphne,” Kronos murmured.
“Mmm?” It was all she could manage.
“You are making too much noise.”
Daphne hadn’t realized how loud she was being.
But she couldn’t help it—the sensation was phenomenal.
For all the sex she’d had, she had never felt anything like this.
And this wasn’t even sex. She wasn’t sure what it was.
All she knew was that she never wanted it to stop.
Yet Kronos was right; she was making too much noise.
Her mother was right next door. Between the crest and the lingerie, it was a miracle she hadn’t already heard them.
“Daphne,” Kronos whispered. “We should not go on.”
Daphne shook her head. The thought of him stopping was impossible. “Why not?”
“Because if we go on, I am going to try to fuck you.”
She barely believed him. Despite the way they were intertwined, his hands had barely moved since the start of this entire process, his self-restraint the only constant in her world.
“No you won’t,” she said.
Kronos let out a soft laugh, his breath light against her lips. “You hold too high of an opinion of me.”
“What opinion should I hold of you?”
“A negative one.”
Daphne shook her head. Even that caused the pearls to ripple, vibrating across her skin. “You’re an honorable man,” she said through gritted teeth.
“I am not a man.”
And yet, Kronos was more of a man than anyone she had ever met.
“Don’t try to fuck me,” she whispered. “Just make me come.”
Kronos raised his hand, touching a single finger to her bottom lip.
He traced it over her chin and down the column of her throat, brushing between her breasts before continuing the line straight to her center.
He pressed against the object, applying pressure on her clitoris.
Daphne could barely contain her gasp. The pearls around her throat tightened.
She had never felt so surrounded—so full.
Her hands were bound yet she was completely free.
Kronos leaned in, pressing his lips to her neck. “Daphne,” he whispered.
She’d lost track of how many times he’d said her name tonight.
Each time sounded even better than the last. Just as she was about to say his back, a pulse shot through her center.
The object inside her was vibrating. Daphne thought she’d already experienced all that the pearls had to offer.
But she never could have anticipated this.