Page 24 of A City of Hearts and Feathers (The Order of Anubis #1)

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Z oe pulled off her dress and swallowed back the horror clawing up her throat. The things she had said to Kahil… She covered her face with her hands. What a nightmare. Swearing under her breath, she took off her makeup and got into the shower.

There wasn't enough hot water in Istanbul to wash away her embarrassment. She couldn't pretend it hadn't happened either. She had been drugged by magic, and it had been out of her control. Knowing that still didn't help her with the skin crawling shame.

That was not what was getting to her. It was the fact that she'd meant everything she had said. She did want to kiss Kahil more than she wanted to kiss anyone. Now, she looked completely ridiculous. This was not how she'd wanted this night to go.

Zoe had planned on telling him that she was getting feelings for him once they'd gotten home. Maybe kiss him and see where it went. She wanted to know if he actually meant anything behind his flirting.

You aren't going to find answers hiding in the shower, she told herself. Zoe got out of the shower. She was an adult, goddamn it. She could totally look a man in the eyes and say she wanted to kiss him.

Zoe got into her pajamas and unraveled her hair. She looked at her reflection in the mirror for a long moment. "You are going around Istanbul finding pieces of a magical book. You can talk to a man you like. Get your shit together. Gnothi seauton and all that."

Zoe half expected Kahil to have gone to bed without another word to her. Instead, she found him still sitting on the edge of her bed where she had left him, his beer now empty.

"Are you okay?" he asked, looking up at her.

"Yeah. I'm sorry about…everything I said," she replied, trying to keep her voice steady.

Kahil's face fell a little. "Don't be sorry. If you hadn't been drugged, I would have loved everything that came out of your mouth. I just didn't want you to regret anything that happened while you weren't yourself."

"That was kind of you." Zoe moved closer and gently pushed his bottle out of the way so she could stand between his legs. He looked up at her, his mismatched eyes like molten amber. "But drugged or not, this is what I want to do."

She placed her hands on his face, thumbs tracing his high cheekbones and did the one thing she had been dreaming about since they met. She kissed the scar on his top lip.

"Zoe…" The empty bottle dropped from Kahil's grip, and his big hands traced up the back of her legs to her satin sleep shorts. She tilted his head back and kissed him properly. His lips were warm and fit perfectly against hers. He pulled her closer, his mouth opening for her to take more. Maybe he was the drug she should be worried about because the more she tasted, the more she wanted. Each brush of lips was slow and silky, dragging her under with desire.

Zoe's hands stroked over his braid before using it to gently tug his head back and kiss her way down his strong neck to the soft skin behind his ear.

"You always smell so good," she murmured against him. She pushed his jacket off his shoulders and ran her fingers over the leather knife holsters he had on underneath. "You were worried enough tonight to carry all this with you?"

"I don't trust anyone at the moment. Especially not the likes of Akamos. I'm so sorry. I should have stopped you from drinking that wine," Kahil replied, his hands on her legs tightening.

"It's okay. You got me out of there. You kept me safe," Zoe reassured him. She gripped the leather straps and brought him in for another kiss. "I have to admit, these are kind of doing it for me."

"I'll wear them more often then," Kahil said and laughed softly. He stroked up her back. "You are so damn beautiful. I liked the dress, but these satin shorts of yours have been killing me for days."

"They have?"

Kahil nodded. "Everything about you has been driving me crazy since you landed in Istanbul."

Zoe ran her fingers over his cheekbones. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"Very good. I've been closed off for decades and meeting you is like feeling the sun on my face." Kahil twirled a lock of her hair between his fingers. "Everything is so warm again. It's like I was waiting for you and didn't even realize it."

Zoe's heart fluttered wildly. This man. She was still unsure enough to ask, "You…want me?"

"Yeah, honey, I want you. Every second." Kahil kissed her once. "Of every day." He pulled her into his lap so she was straddling him and kissed her again. "And I'm going to prove it."

"Oh, thank fuck," Zoe sighed in relief, and everything became a blur of kissing and hot caresses. She undid the buttons of Kahil's shirt, wanting to touch and taste all the tattooed muscles underneath it. He was too fucking gorgeous everywhere, and he was all hers.

She stared at him and his strange, mismatched eyes. A sweet ache lodged itself underneath her heart. She wanted him so deeply that it scared her.

"Fuck, if I wasn't enjoying it so much, I'd resent you being so damn hot," she said, licking the hard curve of his collarbone.

"Why resent something that belongs to you?" Before Zoe could try and answer that, Kahil shifted, lowering her back onto the bed. He slid off her and removed the leather holsters and his shirt with slow intent, his eyes never leaving her. Zoe made a mournful sound.

"Don't scowl, balim . The holsters will only get in the way for what I want to do to you," he said, his voice husky.

"Oh? And what's that?" she asked.

Kahil looped his fingers around the hem of her shorts. "What was it you so eloquently said when we were downstairs? 'My pussy isn't going to eat itself?'"

"I didn't," Zoe said, covering her face with her hands to hide her mortification.

"You did, and I have to admit, I haven't been able to think of much else since."

"I'm never drinking again."

"Lift," Kahil replied, and Zoe's hips obeyed. He slid the satin shorts and her panties off in one go and dropped them onto the floor.

Kahil went still like a predator before it pounced, eyes devouring every inch of her until Zoe struggled to breathe. The butterflies in her stomach were trying to warn her this wasn't a normal hook-up. She had never been silly over a man before, even her actual boyfriends, but now she was losing her mind before Kahil had a chance to touch her.

No, he wasn't just any man. In her mind, he had morphed from her father's killer to her protector, to her friend, to her safe space, to all of her fantasies rolled into one perfect package.

Zoe fought the urge to hide herself; the bottom half of her was so exposed and her skin was too hot. Just when she was about to move, Kahil leaned down to clasp her face and kissed her.

It wasn't like their other kisses. It was a searing, soul destroying embrace, hard and hot. Somehow, she knew he was claiming her as his in a way no one had tried to before. The knowledge of it built in her, and before it could break her, he pulled back and laid a gentle trail of kisses over her jaw and neck.

" Mia bella Zoe," he whispered against her chest like a prayer and followed it up with a line in Turkish. She remembered enough of the language to catch something about wanting to taste her soul. Jesus. She was done for.

Kahil tugged the front of her singlet down, baring her breasts to his mouth. He worshipped them with his tongue and teeth, hands roaming until she was sensitive everywhere and almost begging him to get inside of her. Kahil wasn't about to be rushed. He moved slowly down the curves of her stomach.

"I love this," he said, kissing the dip of her hip and waist. "You are the most perfect hourglass shape."

"Stop teasing and fuck me already," she replied, voice breaking.

"No." Kahil rubbed his face against her skin. "You're all mine, for tonight at least. I'm going to tease you until you get out of that head of yours, and you take what you want."

Zoe was about to sass him when he ran his tongue right up her center, and she lost her ability to speak.

"Fuck," Kahil growled. "I just knew you would taste fucking sweet." His hands went under her to grab her ass, lifting her up. He sucked on her clit hard enough that she saw stars and then went to work on the rest of her.

Zoe's hands buried in his hair, her legs moving over his broad shoulders. She was helpless against the steady, focused way he broke her. It didn't take long before heat burned low in her hips, and she came with a rattled gasp. Kahil hummed, his tongue dipping inside of her, making her cry out again.

"Please, please, fuck me, Kahil. I can't take it anymore," she begged.

"That's where you're wrong, Zoe." Kahil kissed the inside of her trembling thigh. "You're going to take whatever I give you tonight. Did I tell you that the elixir not only ensures we contract no sicknesses, but gives us incredible staying power?"

"Ah, what?" Zoe's brain was too fuzzy to comprehend what he was getting at.

Kahil stood up and undid his pants, letting them fall off. Zoe's mouth actually watered. Heaven help her. Even his dick was beautiful.

"Our healing abilities ensure that I'm not going to be one and done." Kahil lowered himself over her, and she ran her fingers down his back. "I'm going to fuck you within an inch of your life tonight, and then I'm going to fuck you back from the dead."

Zoe bit her lip. "That sounds like a threat."

"A promise, balim ," he corrected. "A promise." He kissed her as he lifted her up and pressed gently into her. Zoe gasped against his mouth, her legs coming around his hips.

"Okay?" he asked.

"Yes. God. Don't stop," she stammered.

Kahil's grin was pure smug male. "I wouldn't dream of stopping when I finally got you where I want you."

He went slow enough to make her swear at him until he was fully inside of her. He kissed her gently, staying still to let her adjust around him. Zoe wriggled her hips, trying to get him to go faster and making him laugh.

"Easy, love. I'll get in there, but I'm not going to hurt you," he replied. He gripped her hip and began to move slow and deep.

"Fuck," she groaned, her nails digging into him. He was big enough to hit her limit with every thrust. Maybe he had been right to take it slow until she got used to him. As Zoe's body relaxed, she began to meet him thrust for thrust, her body craving more of him.

"That's it, my beautiful, Zoe," Kahil said, running his thumb over her bottom lip. She sucked on it, making him groan. "So fucking tight and perfect in every way."

Kahil rolled them until she was on top. She cried out, the change in position sharp and sudden. He cupped one of her full breasts, his other hand resting around the side of her throat.

"I'm yours, Zoe. Use me how you want me," he demanded, his voice all gravel.

Zoe was too far gone to be self-conscious, her need for him was louder than any other thought. She rolled her hips in a slow circle, finding just where she wanted him before rocking hard against it.

"Fuck," she gasped, her head dropping back.

Kahil moved her face back towards him. "No, look at me. Look at me."

Zoe was lost in his gaze, her body moving and claiming his. She had never felt so greedy, so desperate to possess someone else before. She wanted his beautiful body, his battered soul, his immortal heart.

Zoe's nails bit in deep on the scarab on his chest, coming hard, her vision whiting as she sobbed his name. Kahil sat up, kissing her, his tongue fucking into her mouth. Zoe barely caught her breath before he had her on her knees, his hand buried in her hair.

"You said the other morning that you liked it rough. Was that true?" he asked, licking the sensitive place behind her ear.

"Yes," she said, pushing her ass against him.

"Good." He thrust back into her, hard and fast. His grip on her hair tightened, pulling just hard enough to make her feel it as he used her body.

Zoe loved his intensity, his strength and grip, the way he lifted her like she weighed nothing. She loved him, and she didn't care if it was crazy. Her whole life was crazy, and he never left her or looked away.

"Fuck, you're a vision like this," Kahil groaned, his other hand stroking over her ass and gripping it tight. "You just love to be used by me, don't you?"

"Yes," she gasped. "I'm yours too, Kahil. I want you to fuck me. Prove to me that you want me too."

Kahil pulled her head back and kissed her, nipping at his lips. "You will tell me if you don't like something." It wasn't a request.

Zoe nodded and kissed him back. "Yes." Kahil kissed her hard and unleashed himself.