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My eyelids lifted further, then snapped wide at what I beheld.

Two sets of massive wings arched high above us.

My eyes trailed over the onyx feathers that seemingly shimmered like black diamonds in the soft light of the lampstand.

The feathers ruffled, creating a rippling wave-like effect that swept through the wings.

My gaze dropped to Drake’s angular face.

“You…the wings…,” I stammered weakly, my mind still short-circuiting from the mind-rending orgasm.

Drake’s wings tucked in close to his body. He then removed his fingers from my core. His brow hardened. “My wings tend to appear whenever I lose control of myself. Originally a defense mechanism, but they can be triggered with arousal, it seems.”

I swallowed and then raised my hand toward the wings, the wings tucked in tighter, and my hand froze in mid-air .

“You’ve exposed your wings during sex before?” I asked, hating the bud of anger and jealousy that sprouted inside my chest at another woman having witnessed such awe-inspiring beauty.

“Never.”

Shock sank its talons into me. “W-what?”

“I’ve never exposed my wings during sex,” Drake said simply. He watched me like I was the only thing that mattered. And a small part of me sensed that the subject of his wings was important, that my reaction meant something to him.

I reached my hand toward his wing again.

Every muscle in Drake’s body locked as he waited for my touch.

I gently ran my fingertips along his wings.

They felt finer than velvet, the texture so smooth, it might as well have been polished onyx.

A shudder rippled over Drake’s body, and he dropped his head, his long hair falling forward to drape over me like a waterfall of night.

I immediately drew my hand away. “Does that hurt?” I asked. I gnawed on my lower lip.

Drake slowly shook his head. Then he raised his head up. His eyes glowed like mystical light—like a lavender petal illuminated within.

“No,” he breathed, his voice hoarse. “It feels…divine.”

I blinked, unsure of how to respond. Though satisfaction flared inside my core at bringing him pleasure from a simple touch.

I smiled up at him, and that seemed to be enough for Drake, for his eyes softened, and he flashed an easy grin.

I gasped softly at the feel of his fingers once again inside me, the touch more assessing and exploratory .

“You’re so wet,” Drake growled. “I had to prepare you for me. This is your first time…and I’m not exactly a small male.” He swallowed. “I don’t wish to cause you pain.”

He’s concerned about me… Most males would have charged ahead, seeking their own pleasure—never questioning if the female was a virgin.

It would be a given that she was experienced.

At least, people thought I was due to my royal status.

But the truth was, I’d never been interested in anyone until Drake.

Tears swam in my eyes, my vision going blurry as I was overcome with emotion. “Thank you,” I whispered.

Drake reached a finger out and caught a stray tear. “No thanks is required.”

He drew away from me and stood. Stripping out of his leather pants, he returned to loom above me once more.

Then I felt him push at my entrance. Slowly, he worked himself in, gazing at me carefully.

I hissed as I felt a sharp pain rip me deep inside.

Drake paused and pressed soft kisses across my cheek, my jawline, trailing lower across my neck and lower still.

He was comforting me, and my heart swelled all the more for his tenderness.

I wiggled my hips beneath him, signaling that I had adjusted.

Drake slid home, thrusting to the hilt. A moan rolled past my lips.

He was big, almost too big—the fullness I felt almost flaring at the fringes of pain.

Again, Drake paused as he lavished my neck with open-mouthed kisses, his hand falling to my hip, massaging the soft skin.

He gave an experimental thrust, and it felt as if the world pulsed with energy, every sense sharpening—my skin humming with every thrust. I moaned and buried my hands into his long hair, gripping the strands as I rode the wave of pleasure that rose to a fevered pitch.

Drake groaned and pressed another kiss to the slope of my shoulder. The pleasure pulsated and throbbed like shockwaves. My heart hammered against my chest with such force my ribs were in danger of breaking.

“Drake,” I gasped out. “Oh, Drake.”

“That’s it, Ember,” Drake grunted. He thrust again, the rhythm that he set picking up. “Just like that, come for me.”

The swelling ecstasy bloomed, pushed outward, and I went head first over the cliff in a delicious free fall.

A scream tore from my throat as a tumultuous orgasm ripped through me.

My sex spasmed, clamping over the length of Drake.

He let out a guttural moan, his own body jerking as my climax dragged him under.

He buried his head into the crook of my neck, his hands gripping tightly to my hips.

I moaned and whimpered as the remnants of pleasure washed over me in waves.

My body convulsed and trembled under the weight of such ecstasy.

Drake lay atop me, his slick body warm again my sweat-dampened skin.

He raised his head and pressed a soft kiss to my brow.

“Mie Amorala,” He breathed.

I vaguely recognized the language of the fae, yet was too sated to chase after the meaning. Stars still danced in my vision, my head airy like it was filled with clouds.

Drake rolled over, pulling me with him as he tucked me against his side. The last thing I recalled was him nuzzling the hair atop my head, and then exhaustion seized my limbs, spreading along my body like a warm blanket. My eyes drifted shut, and I allowed the darkness to consume me.

I woke to a bright light shining behind my closed eyelids. I groaned groggily as my eyes cracked open. The early light of dawn slanted through the windows—its violet-blue tint washing over the sheets tangled around my legs.

My eyes landed on the dark burgundy curtain, the nightstand with a single lamp atop it. My brow furrowed as sleep still clung to me.

This isn’t my room, I thought. Then I felt a strong muscular body pressed against my back, an arm draped across my hip. My heartbeat spiked, hammering inside my chest.

No, please, no.

A very naked, very male body spooned me. In my heart, I knew who lay behind me, whispers and fragments of memories coming back under the intoxication of the liquor being lifted. But I didn’t want to believe it; I couldn’t bear to look. I glanced over my shoulder anyway.

Drake’s angular face, softened in sleep, stared back at me. My heart dropped as despair rose from my throat. I quickly clamped a hand over my mouth to stifle my sob and squeezed my eyelids shut. My eyes burned with tears.

This couldn't happen; it wasn’t supposed to happen.

Bitter shame curdled inside of my gut like sour milk over the thought that I had given it.

Intoxication of the liquor, the seduction of Drake, the words he’d purred in my ear—the way my body had hummed when in contact with his.

He was drunk too. I remembered the way his eyes were glassy like twin marbles.

Bile rose in my throat. I had taken advantage of him.

A shudder crawled across my skin, goose bumps breaking out along my arms .

Drake only slept with me due to the intoxicating effects of the liquor; he didn’t want me. His last coherent words were that he could never mate with me.

My heart still clenched as I recalled those words in the garden, the flat resignation in his eyes.

This was a mistake. Our coupling was wrong.

And though I knew it was wrong, I couldn’t help the little small part of my heart that swelled with joy at finally having belonged to Drake in some fashion.

But that didn’t erase the fact that he didn’t want me, had rejected me.

A chill slithered down my spine at the thought of him waking up and finding he was in bed with me in some seedy inn.

I couldn’t let that happen. I had to get away, never live within shadow fae palace walls again, nor the werewolf palace.

Going home wasn’t an option. I knew my mother’s determined will and my father’s iron conviction.

They would try to force me to go through with the engagement whether I wished them to or not.

The fact that Drake and I were fated mates trumped all else.

The fact that our union would stave off war was all that mattered.

I raked a hand through my hair. Where could I go? Where could I get away from all the heartache, the hurt, the unrequited love?

My thoughts wandered to a realm that I knew of where only banished werewolves were sent to.

A realm with no magic, no unearthly majestic landscapes with exotic creatures and flourishing plants and fauna.

A world where technology reigned. A planet that was slowly being consumed by its own inhabitants’ misuse of it.

The human realm .

I swallowed thickly, my throat narrowing. But it was the only choice I had, the only place where I would not have to worry about soldiers from the shadow fae hunting me down or the werewolves of my kingdom searching for me.

It’s a place where I could start over.

And with that thought, my plan was cemented.

I slowly slid out from underneath Drake’s arm.

I stilled when he groaned slightly in protest and shifted a little beneath the sheets.

Then, he remained still. I sat on the edge of the bed, frozen, eyeing him to see if he would stir—my heart in my throat.

But he never moved so much as a hair again.

I breathed a small sigh of relief, then straightened, making quick work of dressing.

Once I was fully clothed, I walked to the door.

I stopped before it, my hand on the handle, then glanced over my shoulder for one last look at Drake—my forbidden love.

“I do love you,” I whispered, my voice ragged with hurt and longing for what could never be. The tears pricked my eyelashes, and I bit down hard on my lower lip. With that, I turned the doorknob, opened the door, and stepped out onto my new path and the new life that lay ahead.