Page 114

(A lot of y’all have emailed or DMd me asking for this, so here you go! This is Marius and Tahlia’s first love scene which happened after Bound by Dragons and before Kingdom of Spirits on the night of the feast)

Tahlia

Tahlia’s stomach flipped pleasantly as she and Marius hurried into the second tack room in the dragons’ cave system. Starlight poured from the three small windows at the top of the far wall. Rows of saddles, reins, and replacement pieces sat neatly labeled. A large cot had been pushed against the right side of the room, a spot for those too tired to return to their lodgings after a mission or for a rider or squire keeping watch on a sick or injured dragon. The coverlet was a thick white wool. Releasing Marius’s hand, she went to smooth the bedding, wondering if the structure was enough for what she was hoping was about to happen. They had both had some ale. And maybe a little wine. But they were perfectly capable of enjoying one another. Tahlia’s face flushed and her pulse skipped with excitement.

Marius had put his life on the line for her. For her. He’d stood up to the commander and that horrifying Green Terror because he believed in the dream she’d been dreaming as long as she could remember. Even though they were tipsy and being a little wild, a voice inside her heart said this was only their beginning.

Tahlia turned to face Marius, and she leaned backward on the cot. She knew she was staring, but anyone would be. Not only was he the bravest, most upstanding person she’d ever met, this Fae male was a study in sharp angles and cuts like he was carved of stone. His hair draped over his shoulders and she longed to run her fingers through the silky length of it. His scent of cloves and coming rain mingled with the leather and rock of the room. With a look that promised wicked pleasure, he took his whip from his belt and unfurled it as he stalked closer.

“Take off your clothes,” he said, his voice a growl. “Now.”

Sensual shivers carried across her chest and pebbled her nipples. For a second, his gaze softened and he tilted his head. She smiled, understanding the unspoken question. He was asking if this playacting was what she wanted. Tahlia felt safe with him; he’d proven his dedication to her well-being.

“Yes, I love it. Carry on, Captain.”

A quick grin stretched over his very kissable mouth and then his face resumed its commanding arrangement of narrowed eyes, furrowed brow, and a slightly bared set of Fae fangs.

She giggled, low and quiet, despite his ferocity, and crawled onto the cot. Up on her knees, she unbuckled her belt, slowly pulled off her tunic and the wrap she sometimes wore over her breasts for training, and then threw all of that onto the tack room floor.

“Faster,” he growled. He cracked the whip again.

A prickling sensation suffused every inch of her skin. She wanted those skilled and dangerous hands on her now, but her damned boots wouldn’t come untied. Probably because she was trembling with giddiness and a little tipsy from the celebration.

He dropped to his knees, tucked his whip into his belt, and began working on her laces. His brow bunched and he didn’t look up; his entire focus was on her boots. After jerking the boots free and tossing them over his shoulder, he rolled her woolen stockings down with gentle motions despite his rough act. With a few quick movements, he tugged her trousers off. She loved every second of the brusque treatment. It was tantalizing, having the stern captain so determined in his desire for her.

He rose and flicked his whip out, and the snap of leather over her head had her gasping with delight. Such a rush.

“Lie down,” he commanded. “Spread your legs.”

She bit her lip. “Yes, sir.”

Still fully dressed, he climbs onto the bed. Using the whip’s handle and his free hand, he spread her knees wider. Bending low, he purred against the tender crease where her right leg met her body.

“You smell divine,” he whispered.

Pleasure raced through Tahlia’s veins like some new magic. He reached his arms under her legs and encircled her thighs. His biceps pressed into her flesh, his muscles straining as he tugged her closer. He began licking his way from the crease of her leg to her hot center. His gaze flicked upward. His eyes were the steel of a sword.

“You must be still, Tahlia.”

Her name on his tongue was another spell newly born into the world. She would do almost anything to hear it again.

“Marius, I can’t possibly…”

He cocked his head. “It’s an order.”

Desire pulsed down her body in a slow rhythm of heartbeats. Her body wanted more. She wanted more.

A grin lifted the edge of his mouth and he lowered his head to resume the decadent torture. He licked—long, slow strokes, quick flashes of his tongue’s tip, and delving thrusts of the full length of his tongue inside her folds. She trembled from head to toe. The weight of a building climax hummed inside her, but he wouldn’t give her the pressure right where she needed it so badly.

“Please, Marius.”

She tried to buck her hips, but his arms were vices on her thighs.

“Be still, female. Not yet,” he whispered against the curls covering the warmth between her legs. “I will not be rushed. I’m taking my fill of you first. You cannot limit my feasting.”

The rising pleasure pressed on her, urging her to move, to find friction, but Marius only teased her again and again, his tongue brushing the secret places just next to the very spot that pulsed with need. Another warm intrusion found her slick entrance. He slid what felt like two of his large fingers into her and curled his knuckles. She turned to moan into the pillow, her body trying to crest over that nearing edge of completion. Finally, his tongue found her center and dragged wet heat over the top. Desire exploded in her core. She called out his name and gripped handfuls of his Fae-white hair. Her hips bucked uncontrollably as waves of pleasure shattered into a chaotic flurry of mind-bending sensation. He continued to stroke her with finger and tongue as she rode out the crescendo. The peak subsided finally and she blinked up to see him undressing. His molten gaze burned her in the best way.

Gods, he was just too lovely. Every inch of his body had been honed by training and battle. The scars along his pectorals only served to thrill her more because she knew he won the fights that gave them the marks. He was the Scourge of the Shrouded Mountains and he was between her legs. His black and gold inkings highlighted the musculature of his neck, shoulders, chest, and flat abdomen—all the way to his slim waist. He removed his trousers and his cock stood proud, the tip glistening and ready.

“Turn over. On your stomach. Now.”

Tahlia thought it would be impossible to feel even more aroused than she had been moments ago, but she was wrong. The moment he was behind her with his weight lightly pressed against her back, his cock rubbing between the sides of her arse like it was made to be there, and his hot breath dusting over the nape of her neck, she knew she’d been wrong. She swallowed, unable to utter a word as he poised himself to thrust into her properly.

“Tell me if you want me to stop,” he said, his voice low and quiet.

She shook her head and swallowed again as his hand raised her hip so he was better angled. “Don’t stop. Please, don’t stop.”

He pushed inside her body slowly, his movements careful despite his playacting at being completely domineering.

“Are you all right?” he whispered against her shoulder. He kissed her there, his lips sticking slightly to her damp skin.

“Yes. Take what is yours tonight, Captain Marius.”

He nipped her flesh lightly and drove hard inside. Pleasure jolted up her spine and reverberated through her entire body. With three more strong thrusts and insistent growls, he released within. Heat poured through her as her inner muscles quaked and squeezed his cock, her pleasure flying even higher than it had earlier.

“Fuck, Tahlia. You’re…”

He shuddered and pushed once more, his huge body quivering and his breath hot on her back and in her hair. The scent of him was everywhere and she was certain this was the best feeling in the world.

They collapsed together. Holding her tightly, he murmured sweet little phrases into her ear.

“This might be even better than riding a dragon,” she whispered, feeling like a dessert pudding melting on a plate.

He chuckled and kissed her gently. “Riding the captain, you mean?”

She huffed a laugh as he rolled her over and kissed her temple. “Yes, but I’d like to make sure I’m the only one permitted to do this job.”

He cradled her in his arms, and she took joy in the feel of his heart beating in time with hers.

“I’d like that too.”

She kissed him and he kissed her back. An exciting promise bloomed in that embrace. If she had to guess, they were going to be together like this for a long, long time.