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CHAPTER FOURTEEN

N arissa knew she was making a detrimental mistake.

Sprawled across Solarius’s lap with her velvet skirts tangled around her was just asking for trouble, especially when his capable hands snaked beneath her warming layers to glide up and over her bare thighs.

Goosebumps pebbled her flesh and she shivered, causing him to tighten his hold on her.

She threaded her fingers through his silky hair, admiring the way the soft strands blended from bright silver to inky black.

Even though her mind was screaming at her, begging her to stop, her heart was not in the mood to listen.

He did prove to be a most welcome distraction from her fear of flying.

She anchored herself to him, deciding right then that his mouth was magic, and if he was indeed attempting to divert her attention so that she was no longer terrified of falling out of the sky, then she would allow it.

His tongue swept through her mouth, and she liked how he tasted faintly of mint and whiskey.

She committed the flavor of him to her memory.

Kissing Solarius was like fighting against the currents—each time she tried to swim to the shoreline, to save herself, he dragged her back out to the sea.

And she was ready to let him drown her.

Her magic sang the song of a thousand sirens, summoning the beauty of the moon.

She let the silvery glow of moonlight wash over her, relishing the way her skin seemed to tingle beneath its affection.

The union of their magic was a hypnotic symphony, and she knew every note by heart.

Solarius’s hands skated farther up her legs and his thumbs traced the scrap of lace she wore, sliding beneath the thin barrier of fabric.

He hooked one finger around the strap, pulled, then let it snap against her hips.

Narissa gasped, breaking their kiss, and he seized the opportunity to plant a trail of kisses from her neck to the top of her breasts.

The teal gown she wore cut low, the satin corset doing very little to disguise her ample bosom.

It cinched her waist and shoved her breasts together, granting him easy access.

He scraped his teeth along her round flesh and Narissa’s head fell back, a desperate moan slipping from her.

She twisted her fingers through his hair, her heart skittering inside her chest as he molded his hands to her bottom and squeezed.

“We shouldn’t do this,” she murmured, melting into him despite her better judgement.

Solarius made a noncommittal sound, one hand sliding to the small of her back while the other settled between her thighs.

“I don’t even like you, Sol.”

She gripped his shoulders for balance and ground her hips against him, feeling the hardness of his shaft straining against his pants.

An excited thrill whipped through her, knowing she was capable of arousing him.

Not that she doubted her abilities, but it gave her a wonderful sort of satisfaction to know she could still have such an effect on him.

Just imagining the full length of him filling her caused delicious heat to blossom inside of her.

She rocked herself against him again, craving the friction their bodies created.

“Fuck.” His silver eyes flashed to her face, glazed with lust.

“Oh, trust me. I’m aware.”

Narissa pressed her lips together, lowering her mouth to the tip of his pointed ear.

She let her breath float past him as she whispered, “I don’t think you are.”

“Then tell me.” He nudged the lace aside, slowly stroking his knuckles up and down her center.

She was already slick, but he pretended not to notice.

“Tell me all the things you hate about me.”

Narissa almost whimpered, her nails digging into his coat as she attempted to angle herself, to quietly plead with him to touch her.

“Tell me,” he repeated, except this time it was more of a demand.

She met the intensity of his gaze, understanding that he wouldn’t go further, he wouldn’t touch her where she wanted until she did exactly as she was told.

Very well, two could play this game.

“I hate your cocky smirk, and I hate how you always know what to say to get under my skin.” She rolled her hips, and he pressed his thumb to her clit, rubbing small, tantalizing circles.

“Is that the best you’ve got?” he drawled.

“No.” Narissa shook her head, biting her bottom lip.

Solarius tracked the movement, his eyes expanding with tempered heat, and the bond started to throb, sending torturous vibrations through her.

“I hate the way you look at me. Like I’m coveted. And I hate that you can see right into my soul.”

“Hmm.” The hand fastened to the small of her back tensed, and Solarius extended two fingers along her slit, still refusing to enter.

His jaw clenched as he watched her.

“Is that all? You’re sure there is nothing else you’d like to add?”

She was panting now, every inch of her was on fire, prickling with awareness.

And it was all his fault.

He knew exactly what he was doing, stringing her along, teasing her with sensual promises yet denying her at the same time.

Narissa was no fool.

She knew Solarius was well versed in the art of seduction, and now he was proving the extent of his damning talents.

Worse, the proof of his own desire continued to nudge against her, and there was nothing she could do about it.

Tremors of anticipation wrecked her, and she was flushed with longing, with the agonizing need for release, yet he continued to edge her on.

Perhaps he was better at this game than she thought.

“I hate the way our magic chose each other. I hate how you know exactly where to touch me.” Narissa sucked in a ragged breath when his mouth melded to the side of her throat.

Her voice was scarcely audible as she said, “I hate how you weaken me.”

He pushed two fingers inside of her and she almost came undone right then.

It had been far too long since the last time she’d experienced any sort of pleasure.

Weeks, maybe.

Months?

She could no longer recall.

“And?” he taunted.

And…

Solarius was asking her a question.

Narissa blinked, struggling to remember what she was supposed to be doing.

He nudged his fingers a little further.

Ah, yes.

Listing things she hated.

About him.

“And I hate that you’re my husband.” The lie was bitter on her tongue, but his touch was an aphrodisiac, better even than the most well-blended mixture of purple moon lotus.

No herbal remedy or potion would ever leave her so aroused, so positively stimulated, so perfectly sated as him.

So, in a pitiful effort to earn more of his attention, she spewed another lie.

“I hate that we’re bound to one another for eternity.”

A low chuckle rumbled through his chest, and she never realized how much she enjoyed the sound of it.

“Is that so?” He pressed another kiss to her neck, bit softly, then swiped his tongue to ease the sting.

“Because I think you’re lying to me.”

The carriage dipped on another gust of wind, and a spike of fear pierced Narissa’s heart.

She shrieked, clutching at him, but Solarius was quicker.

He shoved those two fingers deep inside of her, curling them slightly, then withdrew, repeating the motion over and over.

His other hand continued to firmly hold her in place on his lap and each time the howling wind jostled the carriage, he pumped her faster.

Harder.

So she was caught somewhere between the crippling edge of panic and the soaring heights of sexual gratification.

His tongue flicked the lobe of her ear, toying with the hoop dangling there, and his raspy voice caused her nipples to harden until they ached.

“You’re so wet, Rissa love. But I thought you hated me?”

“I do,” she cried, bouncing on his hand, needing more.

She was so, so close.

“Then say it.” He dragged teeth along her jaw, moving to nip at her lip, and his movements slowed inside of her.

“Because if you tell me you love me, I’ll never believe you.”

A grievous emotion seized her then, twisted around the bond and yanked, so she thought her soul would be ripped from her chest.

Tears spilled down her cheeks, blurring her vision.

His torment knew no bounds.

“I hate you.” Narissa choked the words out, leaving her throat raw.

Solarius caught one of her tears with his tongue.

His fingers stilled completely and his gaze darkened, a line harboring between his brows.

“Saltwater.”

“Sol, please,” she begged.

“Please don’t stop.”

Seconds ticked by before he spoke.

His face was a mask of indifference and his mind was silent.

He angled his head to one side and his throat worked.

“Are you lying to me?”

“No.” She shook her head violently, frantic for him to continue.

Throwing her arms around his neck, silent tears continuing to fall, she looked him in the eyes and lied again.

“I h-hate you.”

Solarius clicked his tongue.

“That’s what I thought.”

Narissa couldn’t see his face.

The moon had vanished behind a blanket of clouds, and though the night sky was a hazy shade of sapphire ink, the carriage was swathed in darkness.

There was only the two of them, their shared breaths, and the feverish beating of their hearts.

He didn’t make her wait anymore, he drove her straight to oblivion.

His fingers slipped in and out of her with practiced ease, his thumb applying the perfect amount of pressure, so in the next moment she fractured, splintering into a hundred pieces.

The orgasm rocked her and she collapsed on top of him, sucking in greedy gulps of air.

Her body thrummed as she recovered, and she tried not to notice the way Solarius adjusted her skirts, or the way he smoothed her frizzy waves.

The way he seemed to genuinely care.

The carriage rumbled to a stop as it landed on solid ground, but the air between them was still ripe with tension, with everything she had said and everything he had not.

Narissa eased back as the lights from Windsong poured into the carriage, drenching them both in a golden glow.

Yet she couldn’t make herself climb off his lap.

And to her surprise, he did not remove her.

Instead, he leaned his head back against the leather seat and reached for her face, wiping away the dried saltwater upon her cheeks.

Solarius said nothing, but the look in his eyes was filled with a thousand emotions she couldn’t quite place.

The bond was eerily silent, save for an overwhelming knowledge, a profound understanding.

He knew she was lying.

Those tears she’d let fall were not tied to a true emotion.

Because Narissa didn’t hate him.

Not even a little bit.

Not at all.

In fact, it was unfortunately quite the opposite, and the very existence of such a thought would be her ultimate ruin.