Page 29 of Fated In Forever (Nocturne Vampire Clan #4)

EVANGELINE

A we didn’t come close to describing what I felt at this moment.

Not as I watched Malachi, with his crown of horns and whipping tail, taloned hands raising the vaulted ceiling into place a hundred feet overhead, like some mythical creature of legend.

He was beautiful. A monster, yes, but perfectly sculpted for the darkness, for this place, and I could spend the rest of my life admiring him.

I had never felt this sense of overwhelming wonder as Malachi rebuilt the castle around us.

Not the entire castle, but a bedroom to rival a king’s, with smooth glassy walls and tall windows that outlined the storm-driven sky, a fireplace we could both stand in, red flames roaring, filling the room with toe-curling heat.

A flick of his fingers, and an enormous four poster bed stood in the center of the room, covered in silky black sheets.

One blink of his amber eyes, and long red drapes framed the view of the valley and the mountains beyond.

He wielded his magic so effortlessly I was jealous, and impressed and just a little bit breathless.

And Malachi sensed my emotions, because he turned to me, hands dropping, eyes taking me in from head to toe, a slow, lingering slide down my body that left me shivering .

There. Now you will be comfortable when you sleep.

I don’t know if I can ever sleep in this place. I gazed through the windows at the hellscape outside. But thank you. It’s a beautiful room.

His expression shuttered, the fire in his eyes went out. You should not be here, Vicious. This place…cannot be good for you. Get some rest, while I search for another way out.

Wait. I reached out and caught his hand.

Wait . I brushed my thumb over one of his long black talons, curiosity rippling through me. I’m sorry. I’m the one who followed you. This was my decision, and now I’m complaining about being here. That wasn’t fair.

Nothing that’s happened to you has been fair. You have every reason to complain.

Not to you. Not when you’ve been working tirelessly to keep me safe, and then I go and… I swallowed. Anyway. We’re both tired. I snuck a look at the bed. Which did look comfortable, and my very bones ached from exhaustion, my eyelids all of a sudden too heavy to stay open.

I just want…could we just lay down for a few minutes? If I could feel your arms around me, I could pretend everything is okay.

His whole body stiffened, and then his hand closed around mine and he guided me to the bed, waited while I climbed in, then slipped in beside me, more gracefully than a creature his size should be able to move.

Because much like this place, Malachi seemed to be made of smoke, effortlessly shifting between darkness and dusk, melding seamlessly with the shadows themselves.

Come here. Let me hold you, Evangeline.

I nestled against his strong chest, powerfully muscled arms folding around me like walls, his skin as warm as a summer day, strong enough to keep away the shadows, and all my fears.

And he would continue to protect me, like he always had.

Because Malachi had always been there, hadn’t he?

Watching over me with the same steadiness I saw from him now that he’d dropped his mask and let me see who he really was.

My eyes slipped closed before I could stop them, and the world disappeared.

When I woke, I didn’t know what time it was, or even what day, only that I was still safe and warm, still wrapped up in him, and my blood heated, panic bubbling to the surface, too fast for me to stop.

I’d left everything I knew behind.

Blake and Riordan, my life, my sister, my world.

But then I closed my eyes and filled my lungs with the spicy, musky scent of the male in bed beside me. The one who had always watched over me, and knew I’d made the right choice. Even if I hadn’t saved him…I was glad I was here.

I’m glad, too.

Malachi’s voice in my head was sleep-rough, his eyes lidded and heavy, a lazy smile tugging up one corner of his mouth. I thought you’d sleep forever, little slayer. But now that you’re awake…

He grew hard against my hip, that smirk growing wider as he rolled me beneath him, careful not to crush me, a haze of shadows slipping over me like cool air, the barest featherlight tickle of movement that left me…

Where are my clothes, Malachi?

Safe. I figured magic was safer than talons, since you didn’t seem to bring a change of clothing along. They stank of brimstone, anyway. That arrogant smirk turned wicked, his tongue flicking out to trace a lazy path up my throat .

Now…where was I?

That much needed contact—warm, wet, tracing along my pulsing vein with deadly precision—filled my body with roaring heat, stole all the air from my lungs, wiped away all rational thought, all my worries.

All I wanted was him, all I wanted was this .

All my darkest fantasies tangled around inside my head, turning into a pounding, insatiable need.

He handled me so carefully, oversized hands sliding along my body, exploring and kneading, pausing to brush the underside of my breast before his mouth closed over my nipple, tongue lashing back and forth across the sensitive tip.

Yes, this was what I’d been dreaming of, a total and complete claiming of my body and I arched up into his mouth, his hand sliding between us, fingers gently nudging my thighs apart.

Malachi groaned—a rumble in his chest that was almost a purr—when his fingers slid through my wet pussy, slick from anticipation as he explored every secret part of me with expert thoroughness.

Pleasure radiated through me in thumping, lazy waves, every brush of his fingers sending a fresh flush of heat through my veins, more wetness gushing over his fingers. Shadows skimmed softly over my heated skin, leaving a chill behind, my head spinning from overload.

Too many sensations, too much need, all this fire arcing between us.

You are so fucking wet. You are all I can smell. I want to eat you alive . His chest expanded, that purr deepening. But I have this insatiable need to be inside you, though I’m not sure I’ll fit, Vicious.

God yes. I angled my hips, so fucking empty all of a sudden, aching to be filled. By his finger, his tongue, his cock… something .

I’ve got you, Vicious. Hang on, I’ll give you everything you need.

His lips found my throat again, those long fangs dragging down my thumping vein, my body melting to liquid.

One finger plunged inside, so careful and slow I held my breath.

I couldn’t feel anything sharp, only that big, blunt finger, pushing in deeper, thumb brushing over my clit in tandem with every inch he gained.

Retractable talons. Come in handy.

I’ll say they do. I wrapped my hands around the back of his neck and pulled him down over me, until I felt the weight of his powerful body against mine, the sinuous curve of muscle and bone that was so foreign, yet so familiar.

My hips bucked as he worked his finger in and out, plunging in so fucking deep I whined. More. More, Malachi, faster.

I wanted Malachi—Orcus—to consume me, to devour me so completely, I didn’t know where I ended and he began. I already felt that fragile chain connecting us, but I wanted to feel that everywhere, down to the very deepest part of me.

I want you inside me. I moved against him in a wave, trying to touch every part of him at the same time. I want you to fill me up, Malachi. Please.

You’re too tight for me. He pushed his finger in deeper, his frustration palpable, but his slow invasion of my body never ceasing. I’ll never fit. But my tongue…I can do the most wicked things with my tongue.

I growled, low and mean, a sound of need that was nothing short of animalistic.

I need more than your tongue, Malachi, I need you. I thrashed beneath him, whipping my head from side to side.

Something was happening to me, that fire was consuming me like a storm, eating away logic and reason and leaving me bare—a writhing pile of need.

I clenched around his finger, and he plunged in deeper, fucking me as I mewled for more, begged him for things he couldn’t give me.

I didn’t know what changed, but I felt like I was transforming from the inside out, and this inferno could only be quelled by…

Malachi disappeared, then his head was between my legs and his tongue plunged into my core so deep I screamed, hands clawing at the sheets as he devoured me like a starving male having his last meal. I swore he licked up into my womb, possessing the deepest part of me.

This is what I wanted.

You taste like a warm wind blowing off the desert, heated by the sun and sweet as honey.

That clever tongue swiped up through my folds and flicked across my clit as one big hand pinned me down flat to the bed, tight enough I couldn’t move.

He groaned against me as he drove his tongue in again, wilder this time, like his control was fraying.

So fucking sweet, the deeper I go. I swear, I could eat your pussy all day and all night and never get enough. His thumb found my clit and started to rub, need coiling low in my belly, my body tensing as pressure built and built, unable to move, to do anything but take what he was giving me.

Not enough. I’m almost there…but not enough. Please.

I didn’t even know what I was begging for, but Malachi did. Hands sliding under my ass, lifting my hips off the mattress as something slipped beneath me. Something hard and demanding circled my tight back entrance, then slowly began to press against that tender hole.

You’re so fucking tight. I need to stretch you out, Vicious, before we play like this. But trust me, we will play.

“Oh God, oh God, oh God.” I writhed, mindless, as he mercilessly invaded my body with his tongue and his tail, tension ratcheting down so tight I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think, could only tremble as something powerful built to a crescendo.

Look at you, taking me so well. Pride flushed through me as Malachi drove his tongue in harder, deeper, the tip of his tail teasing and prodding, until I thought I might burst apart from the anticipation of having him inside.

Every piece of you belongs to me. You are mine, Vicious. My queen, my love, my mate.

I plummeted, a brutal free fall that never stopped, until I finally shattered into a million brilliant pieces, a shattering of mind and soul and body that lasted forever. Darkness slowly filtered back in. Warmth, a hard, muscled body gathering me close.

Ragged, desperate breathing.

I was lighter than air, the only thing holding me down was Malachi’s arms and his thudding heart, beating against my cheek.