Page 28

Twenty-Eight

S till held in his unyielding grasp, Leonie watched as Karian reached for the fastenings at his chest. His silken robes, so intricate and intimidating, now seemed only a barrier between her and the full truth of him.

And he knew it.

His hands moved slowly, deliberately, as if savoring her gaze. Each movement of his long fingers sent a ripple of fabric sliding away from his luminous skin. He was unveiling himself not just as a ruler, not as a warrior, but as a being meant to be seen—meant to be desired.

His chest emerged first, sculpted and pale like polished stone, but alive with subtle movement—his breath deep and slow. The strange markings she'd glimpsed before now glowed brighter, swirling in patterns of cerulean blue that danced across his shoulders, down his arms, and curled along the planes of his abdomen like living ink.

She couldn’t look away.

Leonie felt suspended in more than just the physical sense—trapped in the gravity of him. Her heartbeat echoed in her ears. Her body still trembled, hypersensitive from the pleasure he’d just given her.

And he was far from finished.

He growled—low, guttural, primal. The sound vibrated through the air and through her, and something about it made her feel wanted in a way no one on Earth ever had. His gills flared again, drinking her in. And she found herself aroused all over again, as if those gills were tasting her emotions, feeding off her desire.

The last of his robe vanished.

She gasped.

His body was breathtaking. Alien, yes—but achingly beautiful. His skin gleamed faintly, the intricate blue patterns continuing down his hips, framing what lay beneath. His anatomy wasn’t quite human. She hadn’t expected it to be.

But the sight of him, fully aroused, still stole her breath.

At his core, he bore a thick, ridged shaft—obsidian-dark, pulsing faintly with luminous veins of blue. Around it, delicate, supple tentacles—seven of them—shifted and twined in an almost hypnotic rhythm. They pulsed as if reacting to her, tasting the air between them.

The combination was nothing she could have imagined.

Exotic. Fearsome. Stunning.

Her mouth parted, but no words came. Heat curled low in her belly. She stared—helplessly fascinated.

And Karian… he watched her watch him.

He looked utterly pleased.

Like a god being worshipped, his form bathed in the glow of his own power, and hers.

And somehow, she wanted him even more.