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“Harder,” she gasped, fingers pressing into my fist. “Take me.”

I shuddered, plunging into her.

Sera strained against my hold, and her voice was fevered as she whispered, “Fuck me.”

My breath was ragged against her cheek as I held her in place just as she wanted—as she needed from me.

And I gave it to her.

I drove my cock into her slickness, over and over. Thrust harder as I turned my hand beneath hers. I took her as I threaded our fingers together. Fucked her as I took her hand in mine, holding it.

Her moans brought forth a rush of savage satisfaction. I drove my cock into her, each stroke going deeper as I felt her tightening around me.

Dragging the bridge of my nose over her jaw, my lips coasted over her throat as I pounded into her. My mouth opened when I ground against her, and I scraped my fangs along the skin of her neck.

Sera began to tremble as her release took hold, and she let go of all the pleasure that had been building in her core. Ecstasy powered down my spine. When she came, she took me with her over that cliff. I sealed our bodies together, leaving no space between us. Our moans mingled. I wanted to feel every tiny contraction of her muscles. I needed her to feel each pump of my cock as my body found the same pleasure as hers.

We rode the aftershocks, and I slowed my movements against her as she went utterly limp beneath me. As the tension left her body, a sweet taste gathered in the back of my throat, reminding me of chocolate—chocolate and berries.

Unsure what I was picking up from her, I lifted my mouth and made sure I hadn’t pierced her skin.

I hadn’t.

“You are always safe with me, liessa,” I promised.

That was an oath I’d never break.

Because she trusted me.

And that was a gift. One I would cherish and protect.

NYKTOS

Also known as Ash

The Primal of Death / King of the Gods in the Blood and Ash timeline

Court: The Shadowlands

Click here to see a full-size image of Nyktos by Alicia MB Art.

Click here to see a full-size image of Nyktos’s crown by Creatively Agnes.

Hair: Thick. Reddish brown. Wavy. Falls against his cheeks.

Eyes: Silver.

Body Type: Unbelievably tall. Broad shoulders. Lean stomach. Defined chest.

Facial features: Skin a luscious golden-brown like wheat. High and broad cheekbones. Straight nose. Full, wide mouth. Thick lashes. Looks to be in his early to mid-twenties.

Distinguishing features: Wears a silver band around right biceps. Scar on chin. Black lines on the insides of hips that curve downward, creeping along the sides of his body—blood drops; one hundred and ten. Ink also stretches across his entire back. At the center of his spine, the ink is a circular, twisted swirl that grows larger and lashes out in thick tendrils that wrap around the front to his waist and connect to the ones down his hips. The drops represent the lives he’s had to take. His marriage imprint is on his left hand.

Preternatural features: Swirling eather in his eyes. When using power, he sometimes glows. When he becomes full Primal: shadows bloom under his skin and swirl, glowing white veins appear. Eather-laced midnight pours out of him. Air thickens and sparks as eather wings spread out behind him. Skin becomes the color of midnight streaked with pure eather and gets hard as stone. Wings can turn solid like a draken’s—a seething mass of silver and black. Eyes spark with so much power the pupils disappear.

Personality: Stoic. Private. Doesn’t like attention from the other gods.

Habits/Mannerisms/Strengths/Weaknesses: Deep, husky laugh. Can sense and taste emotions. One of the strongest Primals. Young for a Primal. Able to call his horse Odin to him at will, the equine turning into shadow and sinking into the skin around his silver band when not needed—a part of him. Can see the souls of the departed. Can shadowstep anywhere, no matter the distance. Can summon a soul with a touch. Can use compulsion. Can shift into a silvery-white wolf. Doesn’t make a habit of punishing mortals for speaking their minds. Fights gracefully. Bites his lip when attraction flares. Used to like to read. Doesn’t particularly like to be touched—except by Sera. A quick learner when it comes to sex. Views love as a weapon—an unnecessary risk. Loves to swim; spent plenty of time at the lake when he was young. Has beautiful penmanship.