Page 140 of Daughter of the Serpent

Like warm liquid honey hitting hungry longing lips, she could finally taste life’s sweetness.

Her soul rose in her body, joyful, rapturous.

She gasped under his lips, his body so close there wasn’t air between them. His hands were in her hair, on her body, gripping into her skin. A moan of crackling pleasure rose from her all too willing mouth, releasing the pent up tension she could feel building in her body. He pushed against her, guiding her backward till their bodies met the shore, the water a blanket of crashing warmth against their naked flesh.

He loomed over her, his body the fire she desperately craved, his lips the only water that could quell her thirst, the ache that pulsed, throbbing in her own body, her own soul. It was like he had memorized every slope and bend of her body, his lips worshiping her rose blushed skin like she was a goddess in human form. She arched against him, wanting, needing…she couldn’t get enough. He growled against her, her body curving to his like it was already his own, like it was always meant to be there, molded to him. Her hands came to his shoulders, her fingers gripping into him pulling him closer.

More.

She needed more.

Her hunger was ravenous, pure desire thrumming through her veins.

She had heard what happened behind closed doors, in the marriage bed when divine partners were finally mated - but she had never truly known it could be likethis.

She was drowning, and she didn’t want to ever come up for air.

He devoured her lips, his hand snaking along her skin, smoothing up her arms till they were pinned above her head. Water still moved around them, his hands holding her wrists against the shore as his body moved between her legs, his lips drawing a line from her breasts to her navel.

For a moment he pulled away, his eyes roving over her body, her face. Bathed in moonlight she stared at him, helpless beneath him, a question in her eyes.

A hand came to her, lightly grazing around her left eye. “You are so beautiful.”

She held her breath, disbelief flooding through her, yet she knew he didn’t lie - she could feel it through the shared bond tugging around her heart.

As his lips caressed hers one final time, a bright light consumed them. She could feel her magic instantly rising, her energy and his pulsing with radiant energy. He stilled his movements, his eyes assessing the light all around them.

He looked at her, and she smiled, a laugh bursting through her chest in complete and utter joy. She had never felt so full, so alive. Her energy expanded, mingling more and more with his own. For a moment she felt so consumed by the light, it felt like she no longer had a body, that her and Axel had become ethereal beings that needed no flesh nor skin - just soul.

She closed her eyes, surrendering to this moment where they soared together as one.

“How is this possible?” she whispered, her heart hammering in her chest. “This must be a dream…”

“Then let it be so.” He answered back, laughter in his voice.

Even with her eyes closed, the world before her was awash in gold, vivid and unrelenting. The light wasn’t static - it moved, alive,unfurling in delicate ribbons that twisted and coiled like ethereal vines. The threads of light shimmered, weaving themselves together in intricate, mesmerizing patterns. They stretched and twisted, slowly merging, their movements deliberate, purposeful.

As she watched, the threads began to solidify, their glow intensifying until they formed something tangible, something powerful. She reached out, her hand dipping into the light, and soon she was sucked into it completely. Before her, a door then emerged. It shimmered with an otherworldly brilliance, its surface a blend of pure white and molten gold, as though it had been forged from starlight itself.

The sight of it stirred something deep within her - a pull, a recognition. The door wasn’t just an object; it was alive. It called to her, a silent yet insistent beckoning that resonated in her chest. Her breath caught as realization dawned, the certainty blooming within her like the first light of dawn. This wasn’t just a door.

It was the door - tohim.

Somehow, she knew the truth as she stood before it: once the door opened, there would be no going back. Beyond it lay everything - his essence, their bond, and the answers she had been chasing through shadows and secrets. To step through meant surrendering to the unknown, binding herself to him in ways she could scarcely comprehend.

The pull was irresistible, her yearning thrumming in her veins like a song with no end. She moved toward the door, her body almost weightless, drawn by something far greater than her own will. Her hand rose, trembling, and her fingers brushed against the cool brass handle. The sensation sent a shiver racing through her, electrifying and grounding all at once.

She grasped it, her grip tightening, and pulled. The latch gave way with a soft click, and the heavy door began to shift. The hinges groaned, protesting as she urged it open, the sound reverberating through the stillness like a warning. A sliver of golden light spilled through the narrow opening, sharp and blinding, its intensity making her eyes squint.

A low, guttural roar rumbled from the other side, vibrating through her chest as though the sound itself was alive. It surged, deep and ancient, promising truth but danger. The air around her thickened, pressing against her like an invisible tide. Her fingertips burned on the handle, her soul alive with anticipation.

And then, without warning, the door wrenched itself from her grasp.

It slammed shut with a force that rattled through her very bones, the sound deafening in the sudden void. The golden light vanished in an instant, swallowed by the darkness, leaving her gasping and disoriented.

The bond snapped.

She felt its immediate severance - clean, violent, as though a thread connecting her soul to his had been cut. The emptiness rushed in, vast and unbearable, and she was flung back, her body colliding with her own reality like a crashing wave.