Page 56 of Lord of Ruin (The Age of Blood #2)

Isaac slid behind him, dragging a too long tongue in the sensitive place where his shoulder met his neck. She could see the tip of it, almost insectoid in nature, made for sucking his victims dry. But Samuel just shuddered at the contact, his rhythm faltering.

“If you come first,” Isaac warned, words slurring around the press of his tongue and the creak of his jaw distending, “not only will you have disappointed Shan, but I’ll have to punish you.”

And because she was cruel, because even now, with the men she loved more than anything in the world above her, pleasuring her like she was a goddess, she still had to seize a little bit of control.

She clenched around Samuel, pulling him in deeper until he broke, spilling inside of her with a hot rush that almost— almost —was enough to push her over the edge.

But despite the steady kick of blood to her clit and the soft squelch of Samuel softening inside of her, her release escaped her.

She threw her head back on the pillow with a whine of frustration.

“Pathetic,” Isaac said, ripping Samuel back.

There was a shuffle of movement, and she forced herself up on her elbows to watch as Isaac shoved Samuel off the edge of the bed, positioning him to rest with his back against the frame, standing over him.

His own cunt pressed against Samuel’s plush lips, Isaac groaning as he fucked Samuel’s mouth like he owned it.

The soft sounds of sucking and licking filled the room, but Shan didn’t have a moment to enjoy the sight of it as Isaac grabbed her by the ankle, manhandling her into place as his monstrous tongue unfurled.

As the tip of it—thick and wet—dipped into her hole and swirled around, savoring her juices and Samuel’s spend like it was blood, worrying it like a wound and sucking it clean.

Her hand slammed on her clit, rubbing harsh circles around it as Isaac plundered her, forcing more of his tongue into her than she could stand, lapping at the sensitive point just inside her warmth, pushing her to finally come around him.

He hummed as she gushed around him, not letting her come down from her high. His hand slipped over hers, pressing into her aching clit as he forced her towards another peak, too powerful and too tremulous, and she shattered completely, tears streaming from her eyes as she whimpered.

Then, only then, did he release her, his heavy tongue sliding out of her and leaving her blissfully empty, the kind of aching satisfaction that she hadn’t realized she needed settling over her.

She lay there catching her breath as Isaac continued to rock against Samuel’s face.

He was so handsome like this, brow furrowed in concentration as he sought his pleasure.

Sweat beaded on his skin, dripped between his breasts and down the trail of hair that crawled down his stomach towards his mound.

His tits rocked with each thrust, the harsh buds drawn tight and dark, and Shan couldn’t help herself.

She forced herself forward, using what little energy she had left to drape herself over him as she tweaked his nipples between her fingers, hard and rough, just the way he liked.

He licked up her neck, sinking his fangs into her as he finally came.

They stood like that for a long minute, tangled together and dripping, before Isaac took a step back, the more inhuman elements of his form fading. He eased Shan back onto the bed before disappearing into the washroom, returning with a pair of damp washcloths.

She laid there, her wild heartbeat steadying as Isaac cleaned Samuel up, whispering soft words of kindness and affection before helping him into the bed next to Shan. She snuggled into Samuel, his arms going tight around her, before she started at the cold press of a wet cloth between her legs.

“Easy,” Isaac said pressing a gentle kiss to her hip. “Let me take care of you too.”

Shan considered resisting, just for the hell of it, but Samuel was so warm against her, and the bed was so, so soft. She let Isaac clean her, wiping way the mess they had made, and when he had returned with a couple of glasses, she quietly drank her water with Samuel.

It was nice, being taken care of in this way.

Loved and pampered, pleasured and adored.

And as Isaac slipped into the bed behind her, leaving her pressed between two warm bodies, she realized that she could very easily get used to this.

No. Addicted to it. To the comfort and safety of these men, who loved her unconditionally, who offered themselves so freely, body and soul.

Isaac’s hand slipped over her waist, pressing flat against the softness of her stomach.

There wasn’t heat in his touch, and lust didn’t flutter back to life in her core.

Instead, it was something far worse. The warmth that spread through her was the easy affection that she had never dreamed that she would find, burningly jealous of her brother and every happy, innocent face she passed in the street.

And here it was, offered to her on a silver platter.

All she had to do was admit that Samuel had been right, that there was a limit to what she should do in the King’s name.

All she had to do was admit that Isaac had a point, that the risks of the war he threatened to cast Aeravin into was worth the future that they could build.

All she had to do was give up all the power she had worked so hard for and start again.

But she remembered what had driven her to Isaac this very night, the damnation she earned from those she had let down. The distrust and hate that she had earned from the Matron, from all those who she claimed she was helping.

There was no place for her in the world that Isaac wanted to build.

Samuel had already drifted off, pressed warm against her back, peaceful in the innocence that she wished she had done a better job of protecting. Isaac, though, was looking down at her, and they didn’t need any words. No explanations, no excuses.

They both knew she would be gone in the morning, slipping away like a thief in the night, never to return.

“Sleep, darling,” Isaac said, pressing his lips to her forehead. “Let me hold you, just a little longer.”

She pressed into him, though she knew it would only make things harder. But she did it anyway, just because he had asked.

She could give him that much.