Page 62 of Eryx

“Ery, we cannot—”

“The only words that need to be leaving your lips are the ones that tell me what is the matter with you,” I spoke, running a hand through my hair as irritation pricked at my skin. “And do not even think to lie to me. I know you too damned well.”

Axios stared at me and didn’t answer. The night creatures sang their songs and insects buzzed in the tall grass. Men from another group passed by, their voices echoing through the courtyard. Once they passed, he still hadn’t said a word.

My patience was at its end.

Grabbing him by the tunic, I pushed him against the pillar and rested my arms on each side of his head. My body pressed to his, holding him in place. He would not leave that spot until he talked to me. “Answer me, Axios.”

The glow from the moon lit his face, but it couldn’t touch the darkness in his eyes. Something troubled him greatly. He lifted a shaking hand and touched my cheek.

“I visited with Leanna today,” he said.

Not the response I expected, but at least he was speaking.

“Oh?” My stare was unwavering to his. “How does she fare?”

“She is well,” he answered before swallowing. I watched the bump move in his throat and fought the urge to bite it. “She… she informed me that my mother wishes you two to be wed.”

His response shocked me. Not because his mother wished for me to marry Leanna—I had suspected long ago that was what Amara intended. What shocked me was we’d both been worrying our minds over the possibility of marriage.

We truly had a connection unlike any other.

“I’m fond of your sister, but I am yours, now and always. You are all I yearn for,” I said, as all traces of my earlier frustration lifted off me. “Is this what has made you distant?” I leaned forward and brushed my lips across his ear. “Every part of me belongs to you. Shall I remind you of this?”

Axios trembled slightly and met my lustful gaze with one of his own. His quickening breaths and hardening body told me he wished for the reminder.

He shook his head. “That was only a part of what ailed my mind.”

Any other worry would have to wait. I needed him, and I sensed he needed me too. I kissed his ear before gliding my lips down his neck. When I slid my hands to his hips, he moaned and tilted his head back to expose his throat. A part of him remained in his head—probably fretting over marriage and problems we might one day face.

Which was exactly why we needed to make the most of the time we had.

He shuddered as I licked down his neck and to his collarbone. Finally, he left his mind and joined me in this moment. He clung onto me and heavily exhaled. At his submission, I growled deep in my throat and tugged at his tunic before removing mine.

Axios grazed his fingertips over my bare chest, following the indention in my collarbone before traveling lower. He then leaned forward and sucked my nipple into his warm mouth. I gasped and tangled my hand in his hair as he stroked the bud with his tongue.

My cock filled and my heart hammered in my chest like the beat of a thousand marching soldiers. When his teeth clamped down on the bud, I groaned, finding the combination of pain and pleasure too enticing. I yanked his head up and kissed him, pressing my body against his.

“More, Ery,” he whimpered, breaking our kiss.

I led him away from the pillar and gently tossed him to the grass before lying on top of him. He wanted more and that’s precisely what I’d give him. The tall shrub beside us provided cover from anyone who might walk past, but sounds carried easily in the courtyard.

“Shall I cover your mouth as I take you, or do you think you can control your screams?”

Axios playfully snarled before biting my bottom lip. “Stop talking and kiss me, you ass.”

I obeyed his command, joining our lips. My hands roamed his body, and he groaned against my mouth when I reached that special place between his legs. Touches became more adventurous until we both needed more. Always more. When our bodies joined, I took him hard and kissed him deep.

And it was then I knew the answer to my earlier question: no, I could give myself to no one but him. He was the moon in my sky and the blood in my veins.

I belonged to him.

***

“Have I ever told you the story of Apollo and Hyacinthus?”

Axios tilted his head as curiosity blazed in his eyes. “You have not.”