Page 21 of A Tempest of Intrigue (Tempest of Shadows #4)

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Ellery

Electricity crackled beneath my palms, but I wasn’t drawing the power from the earth beneath my feet. This lightning didn’t come from our lightning-bearer abilities; it was because he made me feel… alive, powerful, and cherished.

We were the only ones who existed in this storm of our own making as he pressed my back into the barn wall. My fingers tangled in his thick hair when his fingers skimmed my waistband and stomach.

His tongue entwined with mine as his lightning danced across my skin. Instead of being unpleasant, the sensation made my skin come alive, and my nipples hardened in anticipation of his touch.

After he undid the button on my pants, Ryker pushed them lower. We had much to discuss, but this felt more right than breathing.

We both needed this distraction from the harsh reality of our lives. We needed each other .

The rigid length of his shaft against my belly, and the knowledge of what was to come, caused the power inside me to surge as wetness spread between my thighs. I was the one who made him like this, and only me.

Lowering my hand, I gripped his cock through his pants and stroked it. He arched into my touch, his body moving as if I controlled it. When his arms constricted around me, I felt the corded strength in his muscles as he enveloped me in a cocoon of security.

With deft movements, he pushed my pants and underwear lower before going to his knees. His hands gripped my thighs as he looked up at me, his silver eyes darker with passion and his face stormy with desire.

Power thrummed through the air between us. It shimmered as it bound us together.

My pants were around my ankles, and I was exposed to this man in ways I’d never been to another. I should feel vulnerable; instead, I felt like we could conquer the world.

In his eyes, I saw that he felt it too. There was something between us, something just beyond our grasp but almost tangible, as our lightning intensified.

“Ryker.”

“Yes?”

“I want you to fuck me.”

He smiled as he pulled my thighs further apart. “Your wish is my command, love.”

When his tongue found my core, my eyes closed, and my head fell back as the power swelled around us and grew within me. I couldn’t unleash my lightning here, nor could he, but it was in the air, waiting for us to pull it free.

Instead, Ryker unleashed something else in me as he tongued my clit, and pleasure spiraled out from my core and into my limbs. My fingers bit into his shoulders as my breath came faster, and I teetered on the verge of ecstasy before he pushed me over with a cry.

When my knees trembled and I almost collapsed, he rose, swept me into his arms, and carried me through the barn. I was still coming down from the high he’d created when he entered the tack room.

Shifting his grip, he held me with one arm while he pulled some of the winter blankets from a shelf. He tossed them on the floor and laid me down on them.

I smiled as I settled into the warm blankets. Compared to the ground in the Revenant Woods, this was a little bit of heaven, and I welcomed the smell of horse, leather, and feed enveloping me as I nestled into the cozy bed.

Ryker kicked off his boots and pulled off his clothes before kneeling before me. He undid my shoes and tossed them aside before removing my pants.

I removed my shirt and bra as he rested his hands on my knees and pushed my legs further apart. His eyes turned black as his gaze raked me, and two lightning bolts fired through them.

A deep, answering tug came from somewhere inside me; it was so fierce it ripped a whimper from me as lightning shot between my fingertips. There was something between us, something I couldn’t quite grasp, but it was growing.

Ryker’s smile was knowing as his fingers skimmed my legs, opening them further. When he bent to kiss the inside of my knee, delicious shivers ran through me as he left a trail of heated kisses down my thighs, up my hips, and across my belly.

Everywhere he touched, he sparked a blaze inside me that only he could douse. When he reached my breasts, he stopped his kisses to look up at me.

“You’re perfect,” he murmured.

“Far from.”

The corner of his mouth quirked into a sexy smile that caused my heart to stutter. “That is true, but you’re perfect for me.”

My laughter died away when he rose to claim my mouth. Before I could grasp the thick muscles of his biceps, he broke the kiss, rolled me onto my stomach, and pressed me deeper into the blankets as the heavy weight of his body settled against my back.

He didn’t put his full weight down on me, but it was enough to remind me of how strong he was and how vulnerable I was in this position. Instead of being intimidated by how small I was compared to him, I relished it. This man could do anything he wanted to me, and he’d decided to worship me.