Page 42 of Cursed Dreams (Shadow and Dreams #1)

He leaned in, brushing a kiss to her collarbone, then lower, the tips of his fingers trailing reverently down her arms, her ribs, her waist. The contact sent waves of heat and anticipation spiralling through her.

“I dreamed of this,” he murmured, kissing her shoulder. “What your skin would feel like beneath my hands. How your breath would hitch… just like that.” He kissed the swell of her breast, his voice growing rough. “But dreams are shadows compared to you.”

He took her nipple between his lips, warm and soft, and she gasped, her fingers threading into his black hair.

When he sucked gently, her back arched toward him of its own accord, the moss beneath her cool against fevered skin.

A soft moan slipped from her lips as his mouth claimed her other breast, his hands sliding to her waist, strong, steady, possessive.

Every inch of him was muscle and heat, thrumming with restrained power, shifting beneath her touch.

His chest rose and fell in slow, deliberate breaths, each one winding the tension tighter between them.

“I love every inch of you,” he said, voice hoarse. “Every sound you make. Every heartbeat. You are mine, Thalia. You always were.”

Her throat tightened at the raw truth in his voice, tears burning at the corners of her eyes.

Not from sadness, but from the way he looked at her, like she was seen in every way that mattered, body and soul.

When he kissed her again, deep and slow and full of need, she forgot everything but the feel of him, the taste of his mouth, the way her body yielded to his as if it had always belonged there.

Caelum’s kiss deepened, but it was the way his hands moved, slow and sure, that made her knees tremble.

He took his time, as if every inch of her deserved its own moment of worship.

His mouth followed the trail of his hands, leaving a heated path across her ribs, her hips, the tender skin of her inner thigh, until she was trembling, aching, her skin flushed and desperate for more.

Thalia couldn’t think. Could barely breathe.

Her fingers clenched around his shoulders, nails raking over his skin as she writhed beneath him, lost to the heat of his mouth, the sharp tease of his teeth, the rasp of stubble against her hypersensitive skin, each touch pulling another gasp from her lips

He made a sound against her thigh, low, rough, hungry, she whimpered at the vibration of it. “You’re so responsive,” he rasped, his voice husky with need. “Every sound you make is... intoxicating.”

His mouth moved higher up the inside of her thigh, trailing kisses that made her arch beneath him. She bit her lip as a moan escaped, her legs parting slightly, as if her body already knew what it wanted before her mind could catch up.

When he glanced up at her, his pale blue eyes were dark with heat, his lips glistening.

“Thalia,” he whispered, reverent and aching all at once. “Let me show you what you need.”

She could only nod, breathless.

He moved lower, dragging his mouth over her skin with deliberate hunger.

His kisses grew rougher, more demanding, until he was between her thighs, feasting on her with raw, unrestrained need.

His tongue flicked and circled her clit with wicked precision, each stroke sending sharp jolts of pleasure through her.

A broken cry escaped her lips, her body trembling, hips arching helplessly into his mouth, so close to shattering she could barely breathe.

Her thighs shook, her hips bucking uncontrollably, but he only gripped her harder, pinning her in place, holding her open for his mouth.

He worked her with ruthless precision, tongue and lips finding every spot that made her gasp and moan, every quiver and helpless shudder.

And when he locked onto that sensitive bundle of nerves, he attacked it with devastating intent, licking, sucking, fucking her with his mouth until she was gasping his name, teetering on the edge of release.

Thalia’s head fell back, hair tangling in the moss, her fingers fisting in his hair, her body strung taut on the edge of a pleasure so fierce it threatened to consume her.

He groaned against her, and the sound of it, the feel of it, sent her spiralling.

Pressure built like a storm behind her ribs, heat coiling in her belly, her whole-body trembling beneath him.

“Caelum,” she gasped, barely recognizing her own voice.

He didn’t stop. Not until she broke apart beneath him, waves of pleasure crashing over her, her body arching, her cry lost to the wind that whispered through the forest.

He kissed her through it, holding her hips, easing her back from the edge until she collapsed into the moss, boneless and panting, her skin flushed and humming with lingering pleasure

Above her, Caelum rose slowly, his expression somewhere between awe and fierce pride, as if the very act of bringing her to pleasure had been a holy offering.

“You are,” he said softly, brushing a kiss to her temple, “the most exquisite thing I’ve ever tasted.”

Thalia laughed breathlessly, still half-dazed. “You… you can’t just say things like that.”

His smile turned devilish. “Why not? Every word is true.”

She could barely breathe. Her hands reached for him instinctively, pulling him to her, needing to feel all of him, to be wrapped in him.

He kissed her again, slow, deep, lingering, still slick with her arousal. The taste of herself on his tongue sent a fresh wave of need coursing through her

“Let me have you,” he whispered against her mouth.

“Yes,” she breathed, the word slipping out, soft and aching with need.

He positioned himself over her, his chest grazing hers, the heat of his body searing against her skin.

She felt the thick, heavy press of his cock at her entrance, the blunt head nudging against her soaked and ready.

Her breath caught at the sensation. He was so much, almost too much, yet the ache to have him inside her burned hotter than want.

She needed him, as desperately as breath.

Caelum entered her slowly, inch by glorious inch, filling her until she was stretched and full, her body singing with the sensation. Her eyes fluttered closed.

“You feel…” he growled, barely able to speak, “gods, Thalia, you feel like home.”

She moaned, her legs wrapping around his waist, anchoring him to her.

He moved, slow and deep, every thrust deliberate.

Her body met him eagerly, rolling her hips to match his rhythm.

Her nails scraped lightly down his muscular back; over the powerful shoulders she’d only dreamed of touching.

She explored him like he had her hands roaming over the hard ridges of his chest, his arms, everywhere she could reach.

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered, his voice trembling with emotion. “I could spend a thousand years learning every inch of you.”

The rhythm built again, pleasure burning through her veins. Caelum’s hand slid between them, fingers stroking her with ruthless precision, each touch sending sharp jolts of ecstasy through her, driving her higher with every thrust.

Her breath hitched, hips jerking beneath him, the pleasure spiralling fast, sharp, unstoppable.

“Caelum,” she gasped, voice breaking on his name.

“Let go,” he whispered, his thumb circling, his thrusts growing deeper, more insistent. “I want to feel you fall apart around me.”

She shattered again, a cry ripping from her throat, her body clenching around him, pulsing with release as he held her through it, his mouth at her temple, murmuring praise Still, he didn’t stop.

He drove into her harder now, his restraint unravelling, each rough thrust matched by the low, desperate groans in her ear that made her body quake with renewed need.

Her name fell from his lips like a mantra, like a prayer.

His hand found her again, fingers stroking with wicked precision, driving her higher, closer, until her legs trembled around him

“Look at me,” he rasped, voice dark with hunger. “I need to see you fall apart for me.”

Thalia’s eyes fluttered open, glassy and wild, locking on his as he drove deeper.

Her breath hitched, her head falling back with a broken moan, eyes rolling as white-hot pleasure tore through her.

Blinding white light burst behind her eyes, her vision splintering as release crashed over her, her body convulsing around him.

“Gods! Caelum!”

He groaned at the feel of her, deep and rough. “That’s it, my heart. That’s it.”

He didn’t relent, chasing his own end now. Her body was wrapped around him, trembling and slick with sweat, and his mouth found her throat, kissing, groaning, breathing her in like he couldn’t get close enough.

“You were made for me,” he growled against her skin, hips snapping harder, deeper. “Every part of you. Mine.”

Thalia cried out, helpless against the flood of sensation. The way he moved, commanding and focused, like her pleasure was his purpose, broke her all over again.

Her muscles clenched around him, another wave building fast. He reached between them again, fingers gliding over her slick, throbbing clit, teasing her closer to the edge.

“That’s it,” he whispered, dark and ragged with need. “Give it to me again. I want to feel you.”

She came hard, the pleasure blinding, almost painful.

Her body seized beneath him, vision gone white, back arching as the climax ripped through her, fierce and unrelenting.

Her cries sent him over the edge. With a deep, animalistic roar, Caelum thrust into her one final time, his entire body tensing as he came hard, burying himself deep as his breath broke against her neck, his fingers digging into her hips like he couldn’t bare to let her go.

They lay tangled together in the hush of the forest clearing, their bodies still joined, the air warm with magic and musk and moonlight.

Thalia’s breath came in soft, uneven puffs against Caelum’s neck, her cheek resting over the frantic thrum of his heartbeat.

His arms were wrapped tightly around her, as if anchoring her there, holding her through the storm they’d just weathered.

He shifted only enough to cradle her face between his hands, brushing back the damp hair clinging to her temple.

His gaze searched hers, pale blue and blazing even in the dark, a slow smile of male satisfaction curving his lips.

“Are you alright?” he asked softly, his voice thick with tenderness, lips brushing her temple.

She nodded, breathless, still stunned by the ferocity of what had just passed between them. Her fingers trailed lazily across his chest, over the hard lines of muscle still trembling beneath her touch.

“I don’t have words,” she finally murmured, her voice small and thick with feeling.

Caelum leaned in, pressing his forehead to hers, eyes closing. “Then let me give you mine,” he said. “You are everything I dreamed of. And more. Stronger. Softer. Brighter.”

Thalia swallowed against the lump in her throat, blinking back unexpected tears.

“You make me feel like I was never truly alive before now,” he said, his thumb tracing the curve of her cheek. “Like I’ve spent centuries just waiting for this. For you.”

A tear slipped from the corner of her eye.

Caelum caught it with his lips; a kiss so tender it made her breath catch.

She buried her face in his shoulder, breathing him in, the scent of forest and storm, uniquely his.

Her hand drifted over his side, feeling the steady rise and fall of his chest, the smoothness of his skin, the strength beneath it.

“I didn’t know…” she began, then faltered. “I didn’t know it could feel like this. Like… more than just my body. Like you touched something inside me.”

Caelum pulled her closer, rolling slightly so she was half-curled on top of him, her body moulded against his.

“I know,” he whispered. “Because you touched the same place in me.”

They lay like that for what felt like a stolen eternity, no words needed as fingers brushed and lingered, as hearts calmed and breathing evened. Every touch grew languid, tender, an intimate exploration of what had just bloomed between them.

Thalia lifted her head at last, gazing down at him, her fingertips brushing along the line of his jaw. “Caelum,” she whispered. He looked up at her, eyes glowing with something ancient and infinite.

But before she could speak the question pressing at her lips, the world around them began to shift. The edges of the forest flickered, like a flame in wind. The air grew colder. Thalia's heart lurched.

“No,” she shook her head, panic rising. “Not yet…”

“No,” Thalia whispered again, her voice trembling. “Please—please not yet.”

The forest around them began to flicker, dimming at the edges like twilight seeping through paper. The light between the trees thinned, curling like smoke. Caelum’s arms tightened around her as if he could hold her here by sheer will alone.

“I have to tell you—” she blurted, her voice rising in panic. “I found something. A passage in the old texts. About a place, about Kek . The temple.”

Caelum’s expression turned grave. “What did it say?”

“It said his temple was buried, destroyed—but not lost,” she said, breathless. “That it once housed relics and knowledge of things that predated even the gods. I think it’s connected to you, to how I can help you.”

He nodded slowly, his pale blue eyes burning into her. “Then listen closely, Thalia. If you truly wish to find the answers, if you truly wish to find me, you must go to the Forgotten Forest.”

“The Forgotten Forest?” she repeated, committing the name to memory.

“There is something waiting for you there,” he said. “Something the world was never meant to forget. But you must be careful—”

His words broke, his face suddenly twisting in alarm.

Thalia felt it, too. The temperature around them plummeted.

The flickering edges of her vision turned black .

And then she saw it, just behind Caelum.

A shadow in the trees. Tall. Broad. Familiar.

A silhouette of white hair and molten gold eyes.

Vaelith.

Her heart stopped.

Caelum turned, his entire body emanating with rage. The blue of his eyes flared white-hot as he stepped forward, shielding her behind him.

“ No, ” he snarled, voice guttural, feral. “ Get away from her! ”

Thalia reached for him, “Caelum!”

But the shadows surged.

The forest splintered.

Caelum’s roar echoed through her soul as he twisted toward her, “ Thalia, beware—! ”

He was gone.

The dream ripped away.