Chapter 22
Chapter
Twenty-Two
MAX
“Do you hate knowing another woman was in my bed, kitten?” he asks, scenting me. “Perhaps you hate knowing even now, females are willing to entertain me.”
The growl of jealousy sounds from me again and I’m too incensed to ignore it. Is this what he meant by things would turn baser, my instinct to take and claim once the bond grew—accepted?
I didn’t accept the bond, not outright. But perhaps, there is something growing inside, feeding off my ability to understand the heir. When I submitted in the woods, when I opened my heart to him, the bond forged.
Yanking him close, I whisper darkly, “Are you saying you’ll take a mistress? If so, maybe I should take a lover too. Fenrir seems willing to repeat the past.”
He slams me back into the wall, my head banging into the stone. He’s on me before I can blink, body caging me as if to shield me from others.
“Sose chose Fenrir when she couldn’t stand to be around me.
When she grew too afraid of what I might do to her.
” He presses close, our chests moving as one.
“The idea of Fenrir being anywhere near you makes me want to hunt him down, rip his head from his body and stake it outside my walls to warn anyone who would dare to have what is mine.”
We’re so close, lips brushing with every word. In the forest, it was easy to pretend it was all a dream, as we clawed at each other like wild animals. Here, I’m pushing his buttons, daring him to do something in this terrible mess of jealousy, grief, and rage.
“I’m not yours,” I taunt, staring up into his eyes.
Kaden smiles, fangs glinting in the low light.
“You’ve been mine, Max. Since you cut open your chest, pulled out the bloody organ and gave it to me for safe keeping in the Eternal Night Forest all those weeks ago.
And I’ll tell you another secret, pet. I’m not giving it back.
Seti could call me home and I would still have your heart. Because you have mine.”
The words rock me, shock coloring my cheeks. It’s the first time he’s said it. No power play for domination. Just us, in this shadowed alcove, alone with small truths and secrets being spilled.
I want to hate him. I want that pain, that grief to fuel me. I should escape and forget the coup, his plans, his promises and be free. If I stay, there is no guarantee I will not be an enslaved weapon if he fails.
But I want him more than I want anything else.
I’m too tired of fighting it. Fighting him. Fighting the bond that’s driven me near-mad. Fighting fate with my other half here, with me, wanting me as surely as I want him.
He chose me.
“What do you want?” he asks, words full of need.
I don’t think as I breathe, “You.”
He stalls for a moment. A brief second to think, consider if it’s really me asking or if he’s dreaming. Then it vanishes as he surges forward, claiming my lips in a bruising, tortured mess of teeth and tongue. He’s not waiting long if this is a trick.
His hand tangles into my locks, grabbing my head for better access. Tasting me as if I’m the last thing he needs, his tongue sweeps deep. I am his air and he needs me to live, my breath sustaining him.
The painful kiss consumes me. He wants to brand me, turn my lips raw and face pink so others know who I belong to. This kiss is ownership and lust, the darkest love that has me pushing back with as much passion as I can muster.
I want to brand him with my essence too, devour as surely as he will. My body reacts, my heart pounds and that irritation seems to disappear under the weight of sinful desire. My body aches for more.
The kiss is over too quickly, Kaden pulling back just enough to rest his forehead against mine. Our harsh breaths echo into the small space.
“I’ve waited too long for those words, Max.” He sounds like a broken man.
Without warning, he drops to his knees, startling me. “What are you—”
“I can’t wait another second.” He peels my skirt from my legs, holding it high. He gives me a dark look. “Hold these.”
My hands grab my thin skirt, but I protest. “Kaden, not here. Anyone can see—”
“See me enjoying my mate?” He pushes closer, kissing my inner thigh, biting at another spot. A spark of pain flares under his teeth but his tongue soothes the burn. “See me kneeling for my queen? They should be so lucky to witness this.”
My heart is in my throat, even as my shaking hands grab his shoulders. He lifts one leg over and forces me to balance against the wall. Servants are still milling pass, courtiers walking with sure steps. We’ve been lucky to have not be caught yet.
What if someone sees?
“I’m sure there’s something against the heir kneeling for a monster.”
“You are no monster, kitten.” His tongue laps at the thin fabric covering me from the air and I gasp.
He smiles, eyes flaring in depraved heat that stutters my breath.
“You are my mate, my future queen. I told you once, I would kneel for you as long as you begged me for it. Now? The Gods couldn’t keep me from kneeling for you. I just need you.”
Confident fingers slip under the lacy fabric, pulling them to the side, seeing the evidence of my arousal. He groans softly. “Fuck, kitten. You’re so wet.”
My body trembles as his tongue finds my slit, moaning deep in his throat. “Sweeter than I remember.”
Once he samples me, he dives in like a man starved.
The band snaps, my panties thrown to the side. Kaden adjusts, his body over me as his tongue spears me deep within, and I’ve no choice but to hold on.
Lewd noises echo around us in the tight confines, the general’s golden eyes judging me from the shadows of his bust. I hear footsteps but my body doesn’t seem to listen.
If anything, I grow wetter, hotter. Adrenaline and the apprehension of being discovered heightens everything, every touch, every lap of tongue.
I’m panting, head rubbing into the rough brick as I try to find purchase, Kaden’s talented tongue swirling in my innermost areas. Everything aches, everything burns with a passion so alive, I’m sure I’ll combust. White-hot fire runs down my legs from my core and my knees shake.
I’m so close, already. This male knows exactly what to do and I should hate him for it. Instead, I grind myself closer to his mouth, feel his smile as he holds my hips, black claws cutting into my skin.
More marks. More ownership. It spurs me on, my body tense with need. Release barrels closer to the edge and I moan, loudly, biting my lower lip to keep the noise at bay.
“No, no.” He chuckles, nipping at my clit. I yelp, breathless and mind scattered.
He pulls back. His chin glistens and he licks his lips. My cheeks flash hot but it’s the look in his eyes that holds me captive. “Let me hear it. I want to hear all the filthy, dirty things I do to you, float from those devious lips, pet.”
Kaden goes back, my skirt crumpled in his hands. If I thought he was perfect before, it was a tease to how he tastes me now. His lips nibble on my flesh, his tongue lapping over the places abused. He avoids where I need him, fucking me with his tongue until I’m squirming, begging for more.
Laughing, he levels the second leg over his shoulder. “Impatient, kitten.”
“Please.” I sigh, close to tears. He’s playing with me now. Sadist. “Please, Kaden.”
“Gods,” he breathes, blowing warm air over my engorged clit. “You don’t know how good you sound when you beg for me. I’ll finish before I’m inside of you.”
My hand finds his locks, holding him tight, as he mouth descends once more.
Now, he doesn’t avoid the bundle of nerves, no, he lays claim to it.
My body is nothing more than his enjoyment, being played like an instrument that only he knows the correct notes to.
My back arches, body tightening once more, my knees clamping down around his ears.
He doesn’t say it, but I can feel his amusement, tasting every bit of me as I cum loudly on his tongue. My head thrashes, back scratched against the granite stone, the disappointing looks of long dead relatives watching us. Servants probably can hear, and yet I don’t care.
This is everything I’ve wanted and needed. Kaden on his knees for me and only me, my core clenches as he slowly, reverently, drops my legs, kissing my knees, then thighs as if still tasting me.
My body shudders, mind blank except for the need for more.
He cages me against the wall, heat blistering as I pant. “You taste exquisite, like fruit from the Gods,” he whispers against my shoulder, fangs skittering my neck. “I need to feel you, kitten. Now.”
He quickly undoes his leathers, lifting me against the wall, arms firm and muscles bunching under my touch.
My mind isn’t keeping up, but I know this is what I want. Still, he pauses, brow furrowed.
I don’t let him pull away, grabbing his face. “Don’t,” I tell him, a repeat of when this all began.
He kisses me, stealing my words as I taste my release on his tongue, my hands hold him close, heart stuttering.
This goes beyond simple need and lust. This is rightness and salvation wrapped into the bodies of two monsters who see the other for more.
When he pulls back, I feel him at my core. “There are things we should probably discuss.”
“Probably,” I agree, mouth dry. “But not right now.” There are still too many secrets, too many unsaid emotions. That can wait. For now.
Kaden is a burning flame, meant to sear me to the bone and yet, he warms me. Like a torch in the night, he is a beacon and my body is all too eager to welcome him back. My heels dig into his back, forcing him closer.
Amber eyes flash, though his smirk is tight with restraint. “Tell me you want this, love.”
Narrowing my eyes, I ease him into me, just enough. It’s a tease, a taunt for us both and his jaw clenches.
“I want you,” I stress.
That’s all he needs. His hips snap forward, fitting himself completely inside me, friction deep as my body stretches to accommodate him.
Kaden growls, breathing harshly, teeth nipping at my earlobe. “You’re so fucking tight, kitten. You’ve turned me into an inexperienced Fae.”
I laugh, heart pounding. “So you won’t last?”
He pulls away until just the tip rests inside me, before slamming back, my tailbone grinding into the wall. It’s a delicious pain, pleasure and excitement rolled into one.
Then he stills, the jerk.
“For you? I’ll fight the world’s armies to keep you like this for as long as I can.” He sets a punishing rhythm, my body rocking along with him. Every thrust I meet, demanding more.
My body is full to the point of breaking, but I’m greedy. I want more—of him, of this. Whatever he’ll give me.
Gods, the Heartbond is a vicious thing, making me hungry for one person. Insatiable, needy.
Kaden pulls out before slamming back in. My body adjusts, pleasure skyrocketing as he moves. It’s brutal and slow, painful even but my thoughts blank as I just feel him.
This connection, this need to be with him, must be a combination of everything. All the lies, the secrets, the betrayals have twisted us so tightly into each other’s lives, that neither of us will be free of the other.
I don’t last long as Kaden pummels into me, before I’m grabbing his tunic to yell into his shoulder, riding the last dredges of my orgasm as he groans into my hair. Warmth floods me, his release giving me more pleasure than one would think.
“Fuck, Max.” He heaves, breaths stuttered. He looks absolutely wrecked. “What have you done to me?”