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A low, rumbling growl escaped from the depths of Bael's throat as I tugged him to his feet. With a swift motion, he undid his belt with one hand and leaned forward, his hands pressing down on either side of my head as he loomed over me. His powerful presence filled the room, casting a shadow that seemed to engulf me in its darkness.

I stretched my body, arching my back as far as it could go, meeting his intense golden stare. Without hesitation, he thrust inside me with such force that a deep gasp escaped my lips. “Like this. You want me to fill you when you come?”

Every nerve in my body tingled with pleasure as he filled me completely and the intensity of our connection ignited like fire between us. “Yes,” I demanded. “More.”

He slammed into me again and withdrew slowly, seeming to enjoy my whine of protest.

His body collided with mine once more, the force causing my back to arch and a whimper to escape my lips. He withdrew slowly, savoring the moment as if it were the ultimate pleasure.

“Faster,” I insisted, rolling my hips to increase the friction between us.

Bael's hands tightened around mine, his grip firm and commanding as he held them above my head. His lips grazed across my breast, sending shivers down my spine.

His hand left my wrists and found its way to my hair, tugging back my head so our eyes could meet in an intense gaze that sent electricity through my veins.

Hot. Destructive. All consuming.

Our eyes locked as he pounded into me, hard and frenzied, and my entire body coiled tighter and tighter like I might snap at any moment.

My mouth fell open in a silent scream, my legs instinctively wrapping tightly around him as I trembled from within. He plunged into me again with a force that left me breathless, all the while muttering curses in a language I didn’t understand.

My body gave out, surrendering to the intense pleasure that coursed through me. I collapsed onto the bed, my limbs splayed out and trembling from the aftershocks of my orgasm. Beside me, Bael rolled onto his back. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he tried to catch his breath. Our eyes met, and for a moment we simply gazed at each other in silence, basking in the aftermath.

“It’s getting harder and harder not to claim you,” he said, still looking at me with an intensity that made my stomach feel as if it had turned inside out.

I opened my mouth to reply and closed it again, merely nodding. I was afraid to voice the truth: that I also felt the pressure to complete the bond, and sooner or later we’d have to confront it.

7

LONNIE

THE OBSIDIAN PALACE, EVERLAST CITY

Several hours later, Bael and I lay in bed in comfortable silence.

I shifted slightly, rolling onto my side. Without saying a word, Bael lifted his arm so I could more comfortably rest my head on his shoulder. I smiled. How could there have ever been a time when I was afraid of him?

Of course, Bael had changed since we’d first met, but not in any way that made him less objectively terrifying. He was still a bit loose with his morals, and there was still something slightly unnerving behind his eyes. Like the lion was peering back at me—his Unseelie side trying to force its way out to play. If anything, now that Bael had embraced his Unseelie power instead of suppressing it, there were more reasons to be afraid of him now than there ever were.

But, in that same time, I’d changed as well.

I wasn’t sure when it had happened. It might have been when I’d killed King Penvalle, or else when I spent those long months inthe dungeon plotting my revenge on the Everlasts. It might also have been when I’d first drank Bael’s blood, or when I let myself consciously use magic for the first time. Perhaps it was all those moments, and all the ones in between.

But at some point, I’d ceased to recognize the former version of myself. I’d moved further and further away from my mother’s teachings, until now, we had far less in common than I did with the male lying beside me.

“What are you thinking about, little monster?” Bael asked. “You have a strange look on your face.”

Rather than tell him exactly what I’d been thinking—which would have been far too embarrassing to voice, even to my mate—I answered a question with a question. How very Fae I was becoming. “Do you think we can trust that what my mother told me is true?”

He sat up slightly, leaning on his elbow facing me. “What do you mean?”

“It just seems very naïve to think she wouldn’t lie. After all, she’s the one who taught me that deception was our greatest weapon against the Fae.”

Bael pursed his lips, thinking. “It’s a very intricate story. Even if she wanted to deceive you, I doubt she could have invented something so detailed right there on the spot. I’m inclined to think she was mostly honest. To the extent that she’s aware, that is.”

“What do you mean by ‘to the extent she’s aware?’”

“Not all falsehoods are lies, little monster. Sometimes people are simply wrong.”