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Sleeping with Ashor shouldn’t be a decision I took lightly. It was complicated. Giving myself to him would solidify our bond on a deeper level. To link our bodies would bring on a whole new level of closeness I wasn’t sure I was ready for.

But there was nothing I could do to stop myself from reaching for him.

While our gazes locked, my mind went through all the reasons this was wrong, and Ashor just waited, watching me with those smoldering eyes, letting me make the decision. He would never press me on the matter—a notion I found empowering, to be the one who decided our fate. I almost wished he would take the power out of my hands and choose for me.

His answer was so blatantly displayed in his features. Yes. Yes. A thousand times yes. His voice was a soft caress in my head, stroking my soul with a gentleness that undid me.

“Prick,” I murmured right before our lips met.

The entire world went still at the touch of his commanding mouth on mine. Like everything between us, the kiss was impatient, stuffed with months of wondering and imagining. I raked my fingers into his hair and moaned at the ache that began building inside me.

My rashness didn’t stop with a kiss. Pushing at his shoulders, I climbed on top of him, my legs straddling his hips as I deepened the kiss, slipping my tongue inside him. At the first caressing taste of him, something snapped inside of me—an insatiable hunger for this man. My nails ran up and down his chest, muscles rippling and jumping under my fingers.

He was hard underneath me, the fullness of him pressing against the softness between my legs. “Lexi,” he breathed. “If you keep doing that with your mouth, your body is going to be mine before the fun begins.”

Heat rushed over my skin, regardless of Ashor”s cooler body temperature. “Promise?” I murmured, marveling at how naturally my body responded to his. A small touch at my hips, the sweep of his tongue, the whisper of his breath along my skin all enticed something within me.

Deft hands slipped up my back, fumbling with the clasp of the bra. And now the only things separating us were his boxers and my barely there thong. Hungry lips cruised down the column of my throat, igniting little flames at each point he kissed. Some areas received more attention than others did as Ashor explored my body, discovering what made me purr, what made me moan, and what drove me wild.

I gasped when his lips found my nipple, my back arching. Need became a song in my blood. I’d craved this night with every pore in my body. What was the point in denying that this demon was my mate in every sense of the word? I couldn’t. Not any longer. Not when the demon inside me was screaming to claim him. Mine. My mate. Mine.

I didn’t want to think about him being taken away from me, not when I’d just got him back. Perhaps that was why I was rushing into this, desperate to deepen our connection for fear of losing him—a man I had only begun to acknowledge I cared for.

But not loved.

No. I refused to let myself fall in love with him. He could have my soul, my body, but not my heart. The heart was off-limits. Never again would I allow myself to be so vulnerable to such gut-wrenching pain. Never.

It was bad enough that I desired him, shared parts of myself that were outside of my control. This bond between us was forged by magic that went beyond both the mortal world and the underworld.

As dawn was breaking, all barriers between us were shed. My fingers ran down his neck, his skin like midnight silk, and our bodies molded together in a perfect match. Eyes locked on mine, he slipped inside of me with a single powerful stroke that threw any thoughts of love out of my mind. There was only feeling, and Ashor joining our bodies invoked a level of feeling I wasn’t prepared for.

It shouldn’t have surprised me when the words tumbled out of my mouth, but it was the sheer possessiveness in them that took me aback. “You are mine,” I vowed, running my teeth over the throbbing vein just under his ear. Mine, the demon within me echoed. His body shuddered underneath me, and my lips curved in female delight against his skin. I flicked my tongue over the vein, tasting him.

“Just wait,” he rasped, his breathing heavy, sweat glistening over his arms and chest as he fought for control, but I didn’t want his control. My hips rolled. “Goddammit, Lexi. I said wait,” he swore through clenched teeth, his fingers digging deeper into my hips.

The demon inside me was laughing. I took his ear into my mouth as I withdrew my hips, stopping just at the tip of him. “Let go, princeling.”

“Lexi,” he groaned.

“I want all of you. Do you understand? Man and demon.” And then I sank back onto him with one quick thrust.

A growl tore from his lips as his back bowed off the bed. The violet hue of his eyes was consumed by gold, bright and flaming with the power of a demon prince. He lifted us both up into a sitting position, our bodies still connected, and I watched in utter awe as his wings sprang from his back, fluttering around us like a feathery shield of darkness.

I drank in the sight of him, my eyes running from the tip of one wing to the other. “You are utterly gorgeous,” I murmured, eager fingers reaching to stroke a silky wing. I rubbed the feathers between the pads of my fingers.

His eyes drifted shut, the muscles on his chest quivering. “You are mine—my princess of darkness.” His canines sank into the space between my neck and shoulder, and I erupted in pleasure beyond any imagination.

The power of what he was declaring didn’t register, not really, not at the moment, but later, when he wasn’t inside me, moving in delicious languid strokes, the depth of his vow would hit me. But for now, I never wanted him to stop—never wanted him to let me go.

Mine,my demon purred.

Mine, his demon answered.

And together we surged over the edge, our bodies linked, our demons intertwined, and our souls one being.

Everything changed in that instant.

There was no turning back.

* * *

“Good morning, luv,” my mate whispered, his voice a cool breeze through a star-strewn night.

I closed my eyes again briefly to let it rush through me. He is really here. Beside me in bed. I could reach over and touch him. How many times since our separation had I dreamed about this moment, waking up beside him, his eyes sleepy, midnight hair disheveled? I looked at him now, and the image was so much better than any dream. “Hi,” I replied, my throat groggy with sleep.

His lips curved into a devilish smirk. Fingers traced up my back in a lazy pattern, leaving behind tingles of darkness that cooled my flushed skin. “It’s amazing how angelic you look in sleep. One would never know of the hellcat that lives inside you.”

I groaned, burying my cheek deeper into the pillow. “Please tell me you weren’t watching me sleep.” I was known to hog the covers and drool on occasion. The thought of Ashor staring at me while my mouth was hanging open filled me with horror.

“Who can resist the little moans and sighs that escape your lips? It makes me wonder what you were dreaming about.” His eyes drifted to my mouth.

Shit. The sun was barely cresting over the horizon, and he was already starting in on the sexual antics. I was doomed. What girl in her right mind could resist the temptation that was Ashor? I was finding it increasingly difficult to keep my hormones in check and was surprised how simple it had been for me to drop off into sleep last night. My exhaustion had been great, but I had to believe it was the peace I felt in my soul that contributed to the best sleep I’d had in months.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” I retorted, peeking up at him from behind a curtain of blonde hair.

The blinds were still drawn, keeping the room dim, regardless that beams of sunlight were doing their best to break through. He dipped his head and nipped at the sensitive spot below my ear. “I can guess,” he whispered, causing a shiver to tiptoe through me. “If it was anything like mine.” His tongue darted over my skin. “You taste sweeter than I remember.”

“And you’re still a wicked tease.”

“One of us has to keep our wits about us,” he murmured, sneaking an arm around my waist.

His cool fingers were a shock to my warm skin, causing my muscles to twitch. “You have more secrets than anyone I know,” I replied.

“That may be true, but it”s not without reason,” he said quietly.

I twisted my head to the side to look him in the eyes. Big mistake. He was so close now, our lips a breath away. My throat went dry as he smoothed strands of my hair away from my face. “Are you going to kiss me now?” I asked, unashamed and impatient. He had tucked me into the bed last night with only a brush of his lips over my forehead.

The edges of his mouth curled. “You might be the only female in existence who has the nerve to demand anything of me.”

My gaze drifted to his lips. It was obvious we weren’t even going to make it twenty-four hours without devouring each other. I didn’t see the point in pretending otherwise. I could delude myself all I wanted, convince myself that I had the strength to walk away from Ashor at any time—that he might have my soul, but I’d never give him my heart or body. Yet, it had only taken a single glance at him lounging against Hell’s Gate for me to see through every lie I’d told myself these last months.

I wanted this damn demon. And I wanted him now. Before the castle woke up and Verena summoned us.

I climbed on top of his chest, our hearts hammering in uniform harmony. “Again,” I murmured, my chin resting on him.

“You are going to kill me. Is that your plan?” His voice was lazy and low, like a tranquil cat in the sun.

“Would it be such a horrible way to die?” I teased, every pore in my body humming from sex with Ashor—with my mate. It was indescribable, the connection I felt with this demon, and there was only more to explore.

He chuckled, the sound causing his chest to rub against my already puckered nipples. “Inside you? It would be what I imagined Heaven to be.”

My face heated, and I bit my lip. I’d already been to “heaven,” but I was ready to go back. My nails traced over the patterns of his demon marks on his chest. My body buzzed and I never wanted to leave the bed, let alone face what waited for us outside this bedroom. “I thought you would be smug over the fact that I can’t get enough of you.”

“Don’t mistake my tiredness for anything but an extremely satisfied male.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’d heard stories about sleeping with demons,” I admitted, wrinkling my nose.

“And?” Ashor prompted, resting a hand behind his head.

I grinned, nipping at his lower lip. “The stories don’t even come close.”

Violet eyes fixated on my mouth, hunger lighting them up with specks of gold. “It’s because I’m a prince.”

A soft chuckle tickled the back of my throat. “You really are insufferable.”

Like lightning striking through a sky of darkness, Ashor flipped our positions, his wings fanning out behind him. The sight of those demon wings had me gasping. His head bent close to my ear. “And you are insatiable, luv.” He ran a finger down my neck, between my breasts.

“Can you blame me? Look at you. You’re like the perfect specimen of male…” My eyes lifted to the wings he tucked closer to his back. “And then some.”

Ashor smirked. “I’m so glad you approve.”

I rolled my eyes. “As if you don’t know how gorgeous you are.”

His breath was a cool chuckle on my skin seconds before his lips wrapped around my nipple, tongue flicking over the sensitive bud. Need slammed into my core, but it wasn’t just my need. Through our newly forged connection, his desire for me joined mine for him; however, it was more than. I could feel my own want for him through him. It was an endless circle of feelings created from just a single touch. “You are more beautiful than I ever imagined. I’ve never seen anyone, anything as beautiful as you.”

If he kept talking like that, he was going to embarrass the shit out of me. We’d done enough talking as it was. Before he could further put color into my cheeks, I sealed my lips against his and pulled him against me.

“Do you plan to keep me in bed all day?” he mumbled sometime later. He was lying on his side, face propped up on his hand, looking fairly smug after round two.

Lying flat on my back, I kept my eyes closed and smiled in the direction of his voice. “The idea has merit.”

“You are part succubus,” he so dutifully reminded me.

I scrunched my nose. “Ugh. Don’t keep bringing that up. Besides, I don’t think that has anything to do with it, and I doubt Verena would allow us to stay locked in this room all day.”

I’d had plenty of sex—although not necessarily tons of partners—because I wasn’t a nun, and none of the other guys came close to what I experienced with Ashor. The Prince of Darkness had his own category when it came to making love.

It made me think this was what it could be like between us. Incredible morning sex. Lazy days naked in bed. If only he didn’t have a whack job of a mother hellbent on ruling the underworld. Couldn’t she just be satisfied being a queen? She had her own kingdom. What the hell was she going to do with five?

Destroy the world, that’s what, a voice reminded me.

Fuck.

My dreams of staying in bed all day with my demon mate went out the window as the reality of our future settled on my shoulders like a thousand pounds.