Chapter 13 - Nyx
NYX
Her mouth found mine before I could process what she'd said, before I could ask if she meant it, before I could do anything except respond with every fiber of my being.
My fangs throbbed so hard I tasted copper. My tongue went electric, every nerve ending firing at once. Heat surged through my body, pooled low in my belly, made my cock swell against my leathers with enough force to hurt.
She tasted like salt and determination and something underneath that was pure Lexa. I couldn't get enough. My hands found her waist, pulled her closer, needed her flush against me with nothing between us.
Not enough.
Never enough.
I backed her toward the canyon wall. She came willingly, her fingers digging into my scales, her mouth fierce against mine. When her shoulders hit stone, she gasped, and I swallowed the sound.
Mine.
The word pounded through me with each heartbeat. She'd said yes. She'd chosen this, chosen me, chosen us. After days of distance and careful neutrality and treating me like a mission asset, she'd finally stopped running.
I caged her against the rock. My wings spread instinctively, blocking out everything that wasn't her. Creating a space that belonged only to us.
Her hands were everywhere. Tracing the leather on my chest, finding the sensitive spots where scales met softer skin, sliding up to grip the base of my neck. Each touch sent sparks racing down my spine.
My tail coiled around her waist without permission. Possessive. Claiming. She didn't pull away, didn't tense. Just made a small sound in the back of her throat that went straight to my cock.
I needed to feel her skin.
Needed the barrier of fabric gone, needed nothing between us.
My claws found the buckles of her leathers. I forced myself to move carefully despite the urgency screaming through my veins. One wrong move and I'd shred the material, leave her with nothing to wear for the rest of this journey.
She had no such concerns.
Her fingers tore at my chest plate, yanking at straps with enough violence to snap one. The leather clattered to the ground. She went for my shirt next, shoving it up and over my head.
The moment her palms touched my bare scales, I nearly lost it.
Sensation flooded through me. The texture of her skin against mine, smooth and impossibly soft. The heat of her, burning hotter than Volcaryth's suns. The way her hands explored like she was trying to memorize every ridge and muscle.
I got her armor off. Then her shirt. The fabric stuck to her skin with sweat, and I peeled it away slowly, savoring each new inch of flesh revealed.
She was perfect.
Scars marked her body. Old ones from Earth, newer ones from Volcaryth. The bandages on her ribs stood out white against her skin. Evidence of her strength, her survival, her absolute refusal to break no matter what this planet threw at her.
I wanted to trace every scar with my tongue. Wanted to know the story behind each one, wanted to worship the body that carried them.
My cock pressed against her through my pants. The pressure was exquisite torture. I could smell her arousal now, sweet and sharp and absolutely intoxicating. It mixed with her natural scent, created something that made my head spin.
She reached between us. Her hand found the fastenings of my pants.
"Off," she demanded. "Now."
I obeyed.
My hands shook as I worked the buckles. Pathetic. I was a warrior of forty years, veteran of countless battles, member of the Blade Council. I should have more control than this.
But control had walked out the door the moment she'd kissed me.
The pants hit the ground. My cock sprang free, already leaking, the tip flushed dark with need. The scales at the base were hypersensitive, each brush of air making me twitch.
Lexa's eyes dropped. Locked on. Her pupils dilated.
"I want to touch you," she said.
"Later." The word came out guttural. "I need to taste you first."
I dropped to my knees.
The stone bit into my scales, but I didn't care. All that mattered was the woman in front of me, the scent of her arousal, the way her breath hitched when I ran my hands up her thighs.
I unfastened her pants. Peeled them down slowly, taking her undergarments with them. She stepped out of the fabric, kicked it aside.
Bare.
My mate was bare before me, legs slightly spread, skin flushed with heat and want.
I lifted her leg over my shoulder. The position opened her to me, gave me access to everything. She braced one hand against the canyon wall, the other found my head.
The first taste nearly unmade me.
Sweet. Gods, she was sweet. And wet, so wet I could feel it on my tongue, coating my lips. The flavor was indescribable, something I wanted to drown in.
I explored slowly despite the urgency pounding through me. I used every advantage, tracing through her folds, finding the bundle of nerves that made her gasp.
Her fingers tightened in my hair. Not quite painful but close.
I focused on that spot. Circled it with the tip of my tongue, felt her thigh tremble against my shoulder. Her other leg was shaking too, struggling to support her weight.
I wrapped my arm around that thigh. Held her steady. Let her know without words that I had her, that she could let go, that I'd never let her fall.
She made a sound. Half moan, half curse. Her hips rolled against my mouth, seeking more pressure, more friction, more everything.
I gave it to her.
The fleshy tip of my tongue found her entrance. Pressed inside slowly, feeling her clench around the intrusion. She was tight, so tight I could barely fit just this part of me. The thought of sinking my cock into that heat made my vision blur.
Later.
Right now was about her. About learning what made her gasp, what made her curse, what made her hand fist harder in my hair and her hips buck against my face.
I worked her with my tongue. In and out, shallow thrusts while the rest of my tongue stayed flat against that sensitive bundle of nerves. The dual stimulation had her panting, her whole body tensing.
Close.
I could taste it. The change in her flavor, the way her muscles started to flutter. I increased the pressure, the speed, chased her toward the edge.
Her orgasm hit like a thunderclap.
She cried out, the sound echoing off the canyon walls. Her body clamped down on my tongue, pulsing in rhythmic waves. Her taste flooded my mouth, sweeter than before, and I drank it down like a man dying of thirst.
Perfect.
She sagged against the wall, her leg sliding off my shoulder. I caught her before she could collapse, gathered her against my chest.
Her heart hammered against my scales. Her breathing came in ragged gasps. Sweat sheened her skin, made her scent even stronger.
And my cock was so hard it hurt.
I needed inside her. Needed to claim her properly, needed to feel her wrapped around me, needed to mark her so thoroughly that every creature on this planet would know she was mine.
I lowered her to the ground. The bedroll was somewhere behind us, but I couldn't bring myself to care. The stone was smooth here, worn by wind and time. It would do.
She lay back without protest. Her eyes were dark, pupils blown wide. Her chest heaved with each breath, making her breasts rise and fall in a rhythm that mesmerized me.
I loomed over her. My wings spread wide, bracketing us in shadow. My tail slid along her inner thigh, the tip teasing higher.
Power surged through me.
This woman beneath me had chosen me. Had accepted the bond, accepted my claim, accepted everything I was offering. She was mine in a way that went beyond possession, beyond ownership. She was my mate, my equal, my other half.
And I was hers.
My tail found her entrance. The tip circled, gathered her wetness, used it to ease inside.
She arched off the ground. Her hands reached for me, nails scraping against my shoulders.
"Nyx." My name on her lips was a prayer and a demand. "Stop teasing."
I pushed my tail deeper. Not far, just enough to make her squirm. The appendage was sensitive, could feel every clench and flutter of her inner walls.
"You're so tight," I said. My voice had gone rough, barely recognizable. "I need to make sure you can take me."
"I can take you." She rolled her hips, trying to force my tail deeper. "I already have. Stop playing around and fuck me."
The crude language sent heat racing through my veins, made my cock leak another bead of fluid.
I withdrew my tail. Positioned myself between her thighs, my cock in hand. The head brushed against her entrance, and we both groaned.
I pushed inside.
Heat enveloped me. Tight, wet heat that gripped me like a fist. I had to force myself to go slow, to give her time to adjust despite every instinct screaming at me to bury myself to the hilt.
Inch by inch, I sank deeper. The scales at the base of my cock scraped against her entrance, the sensation almost too much. The fleshy tip flexed, seeking, finding the spots inside her that made her gasp.
She wrapped her legs around my waist. Locked her ankles at the small of my back. Pulled me deeper with strength that shouldn't have surprised me but did.
I bottomed out. Fully seated inside her, our bodies joined completely.
For a moment, I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. Could only feel the perfection of this, of her, of us.
Then she shifted her hips, and the moment shattered.
I started to move. Long, slow strokes that let me feel every inch of her, let the fleshy tip of my cock explore and tease. My tail coiled around her waist, anchoring her to me.
She met me thrust for thrust. Her nails found purchase on my scales, not quite breaking through but close. The slight pain only heightened the pleasure, made everything sharper.
I'd never felt this powerful. Never felt this complete. The mate-bond sang through me, connected us in ways beyond the physical. I could feel her pleasure as an echo of my own, could sense when I hit a spot that made her vision blur.
My wings flared. Instinct driving the display even though there was no rival to intimidate, no threat to ward off. Just the primal need to show that this female was mine, that anyone who challenged my claim would face my wrath.
The rhythm built. Faster now, harder. The sound of our bodies meeting filled the canyon, punctuated by her gasps and my growls.
My tail unwound from her waist. The tip found the bundle of nerves at the apex of her thighs, circled it with the same pressure I'd used earlier with my tongue.
She keened. The sound was high and desperate and absolutely beautiful.
"Nyx." She was close. I could feel it in the way her body tensed, in the way her inner walls started to flutter around me. "I'm going to …"
"Yes." I drove deeper, angled my hips to hit that spot inside her that made her see stars. "Come for me, kyvara. Let me feel it."
Her orgasm crashed through her. Through us. She clenched around me, rhythmic pulses that dragged me over the edge with her.
My release hit hard. Pleasure whited out my vision, made my wings spasm. I buried myself as deep as I could go, felt my cock pulse as I spilled inside her.
When I could think again, could process anything beyond the overwhelming satisfaction, I found myself collapsed on top of her.
Too heavy. I was crushing her.
I tried to move, to roll aside. Her legs tightened around my waist, holding me in place.
"Stay," she said. Her voice was wrecked, hoarse from screaming. "Just for a minute."
I stayed.
My wings folded carefully, creating a canopy over us. My tail wrapped around her thigh, a gentler hold than before. My cock was still inside her, softening slowly, reluctant to leave the heat of her body.
Her hands traced patterns on my back. Idle touches that felt more intimate than anything we'd just done. Like she was learning me, memorizing the feel of my scales under her fingers.
Eventually, I had to move. Had to let her breathe properly, had to get us both situated before exhaustion dragged us under.
I withdrew carefully. She made a small sound of protest that sent satisfaction curling through my chest.
I gathered her against me. Pulled her into the curve of my body, wrapped my arms around her. My wings came next, folding over us both to create a cocoon of warmth and darkness.
She fit perfectly. Her head tucked under my chin, her back pressed to my chest, her legs tangled with mine. Like we'd been designed to slot together this way.
My tail coiled around her once more. Possessive even now, even in the aftermath.
This was right.
Her breathing evened out. Deepened. Sleep pulling her under.
I pressed my face against her hair. Breathed in the scent of us mingled together, my pheromones marking her skin, her natural sweetness mixing with my smoke and stone.
Perfect.
The word drifted through my mind as my own exhaustion caught up with me. My eyes grew heavy, my body relaxing for the first time in weeks.
I had my mate in my arms. She'd chosen me, accepted the bond, given herself to me as completely as I'd given myself to her.
Everything was finally right between us.
We just had to complete this mission, and I would let the whole world know.