Page 15

If last night was filled with magic and delirious pleasure, the morning came with regret and vengeful self-hatred. For a second morning in a row, I woke up wrapped in Dahr’s arms, only this time, instead of feeling affection and fondness towards the man, I felt emotionally ruined.

And I knew, I only had myself to blame for it.

What had started like a simple artist-muse relationship, where I wanted nothing but to enjoy Dahr’s body and every single pleasurable sensation it brought against my own, turned into a sinful experience where I felt like I had touched the deepest circle of hell. And not only did I not feel remorse for it, but I had enjoyed every single moment.

I had let myself drift away into the realms of sexual bliss and forgot about my situation and my plans. I let myself forget that, even though he was fighting his own battles, this man was my captor. These people, even though respectful when I walked by Dahr’s side, were the enemy. And one word from him was enough to change my status once again and lose that kindness I had suddenly merited.

I couldn’t do this.

I couldn’t stay here and lie in this bed, I couldn’t let myself fall prey to my own desires again and above all, I couldn’t let that growing erection Dahr was sporting against my ass get near me ever again.

Fine, it was the best sex I ever had. And I would always cherish the memory. The way this man had played with my body, how he’d entwined sensation and drilled ecstasy into my core and how, every single time he found his release, he let himself fall into my embrace and trailed long kisses on my skin.

It was amazing.

But it was one night.

And that night had to end.

Pushing determination into my spirit and not letting myself lose the bravado I had woken up with, I pushed Dahr’s hand away and shimmied out of the bed.

“Don’t touch me!”

I snapped and jumped out, then grabbed the silk bedsheet he was covered with and pulled it over my naked body. I couldn’t start a battle with my breasts on display, could I?

Dahr’s head snapped to the side, and he moved groggily for a few seconds, probably as caught in the after-sex haze as I had been. The man frowned, his charcoal-stained eyes blinking confusion away.

“What happened, little flame? Did I ignite you too many times last night?”

Dahr tilted his head to me in challenge.

“Or did I not ignite you enough?”

“You will not touch me ever again, so you can say goodbye to that,”

I retorted and moved towards the table, where my clothes from the other day waited for me, discarded on the floor.

“Are you alright, Nora?”

Dahr frowned, his ebony eyebrows shining with the light of the new day, making the still-sleepy look on his face too delicious to resist. But I was determined. Determined not to fall into temptation ever again.

“NO! I am not alright,”

I fumbled around inside the bed sheet I had stolen, trying to put my clothes back on without letting him see my naked body. Not that it mattered, since Dahr’s tongue had licked every single curve and opening, and he wouldn’t be any more of a stranger to my own body than the clothes I was trying to put back on were.

My hands shook as I pulled the skirt on and tried to tie the knot around my hips, leaving my naked back on display. It must have been a few seconds of struggle, barely enough for a full breath, but somehow, the warrior moved across the tent during that time and grabbed my waist to pull me back into him.

He was naked, of course, so I felt every single lingering caress and the new pumps of desire that spread onto his midsection, which he did not shy away from letting me feel. His other hand climbed up to my neck to wrap around my jaw and keep my head steady in place. A deep breath followed, dropping down to my earlobe to raise sprinkles of temptation.

“What happened, little flame?”

he murmured into my ear, and I had to hold on for dear life not to melt into his embrace.

My god, this man would be the death of me.

Wave after wave of need pushed into my body, raising all kinds of sensation. I throbbed for him; I needed him with a passion that obsession itself would be scared of. I wanted to devour him. And be devoured by him.

I needed to melt away and extinguish into his arms.

I had enough strength left to send a command of clarity towards my mind, that acted more on impulse than will, at this point, forcing my body to shimmy away from his embrace. As soon as I did so, strength pushed into me and made me take a step forward, to put more distance in between him and my scorching need.

As soon as I did so, I felt relief. Loss, but also relief.

So I took another step back.

And one more. Before I forced myself to turn to Dahr, not caring that I was still half naked and fully displaying my pebbled nipples.

“Stop calling me that,”

I demanded, my bouncy breasts wiggling in the air. I did not actually feel ashamed to position myself in front of him like this, but rather empowered. After all, why should the man have all the strength? Why should his body demand respect while mine should be hidden?

And seeing how Dahr’s erection did not falter one bit and continued to pole up from between his legs, I doubted my medium-sized breasts would be the showstopper in this particular painting.

I drew fresh air into my lungs and urged the words to come out, using my teacher’s voice. I had to be calm and collected, explain the situation in a clear manner, while keeping firm enough to be taken seriously. I had performed this exact speech too many times to lose its effectiveness. Well, not to the man I had just had sex with for the entire day and most of the night, but still. The tone was the same.

“Waking up, I realised that last night was a big mistake. I let myself be caught in the poetry of your body rather than realise the situation I am in and allowed one or two kind gestures to persuade me to participate in sexual acts with yourself. Which, I will not deny, were pleasant, but they must stop now. Same as this supposed connection and the way you are addressing me. I do not believe you and I have much in common, so I would like to suggest that we continue to keep it that way.”

There. I said it.

While I uttered my stance, Dahr’s brows performed a dance of emotions, going from a sharp arch, into a frown, into a lift of a single brow, going back into a deeper frown, which had remained long after I had finished. The warrior kept quiet for a second, his night-sky black eyes taking me in with dilated pupils, as though trying to discern if the description of our activities and my request were worthy of consideration.

“Participate in sexual acts with me…”

he repeated, visibly bothered by my description.

“Is that what I am to you, Nora? Last night’s fuck?”

Fury pierced the room, which started to get hotter, the air becoming steam in contact with my skin.

“I would like to ask you to calm down, first of all,”

I dipped my chin slowly to him and let an audible breath in to urge him to do the same. Of course, Dahr did not listen.

“Is that what last night meant to you, little flame? You had your way, you came on my dick and now you want to be what…”

he halted to finally take that breath in, his lungs not having enough air to continue.

“Friends? You want to enjoy being part of the camp after fucking Grannicus? Are you one of them too?”

Hurt bloomed in his voice, but Dahr immediately cleared his throat to hide the feeling.

“One of whom, Dahr?”

I snapped back, not letting myself feel anything but rage for this man.

“May I remind you that you are the one who started all this? You are the one who started being kind to me, who called me in your bed for cuddling sessions, who took me to the beach and spent the day with me. So don’t be surprised when your plan works, and I fall prey to your charms. You obviously know you are the most attractive man in camp. You are the most attractive man in a thousand-mile radius, probably. So don’t blame it on me, since you are the one wandering around camp calling me your ‘woman’.”

Dahr clenched his jaw so hard that, for a moment, I was afraid his teeth might snap off. His lips were so pressed together that they formed a thin white line where his mouth used to be.

“What do you want, Nora?”

he threw the words at me, making them fall like a sharp cut across my being.

“I want to be treated like any other woman in this camp,”

I had my reply ready.

“Any of those you already fucked,”

I added, reiterating my stance.

I didn’t expect Dahr’s pleased smirk when he dignified his reply with both a dip of his chin and some words.

“Very well.”

I didn’t have time to react before Dahr closed the distance between us and grabbed my hand, locking me into a tight grip. When I started struggling to get myself free, he circled around me and pressed himself into my back, then used his body to push me forward. Luckily, we were close enough to my bed that the mattress reduced the fall, making me bounce into softness. But just when I thought I escaped, Dahr’s body pressed on top of me.

I thrashed against his weight, struggling in vain to escape from under the pressure of his huge body pushing over mine and locking me in. Furthermore, Dahr pushed himself into the mattress and pressed his still hard cock into my ass, his hips weighing heavily over mine, while his hand wrapped around my midsection to crush any hope at freedom I might have had.

“Why are you fighting me, little ember?”

the man groaned into my ear as his muscles tensed over my body, pressing me deeper into the mattress.

“Aren’t I giving you exactly what you want?”

Sounds I wasn’t proud of escaped from my throat alongside a line of curses that released themselves from under my breath. I wasn’t proud of this moment, nor the violent reaction I had. The more I fought against him, the more I needed to claim my own strength and prove to myself that I could last this fight.

At least a little longer.

I channelled all my remaining energy into wiggling around and fighting for every inch, each space and each crevice that I could gain under his body. Every bit of movement I didn’t have before became a win, and I would not settle until I remained free from his hold.

I didn’t know if Dahr enjoyed this. The feeling of his erection pushing into my ass told me that the excitement he had woken up with did not falter. He continued to play with me like a cat does with a young mouse, knowing he had the upper hand but letting me claim one or two small victories before he took the conquered territory away. We must have been at it for minutes, if my heavily panting breaths were any indication of my struggles, until Dahr lost his patience.

With a simple shift of his hips, he pushed me further onto the mattress and moved in between my legs to split them open, leaving me bare to him under that skirt that had risen to my midsection during our fight. He pressed his knee against the inner part of my thigh and pushed me to the side, before he sheathed his length in between my legs to perfectly position himself at my entrance.

“Don’t you fucking dare!”

I shouted when I felt the tip of his cock poking at my entrance. He only needed a slow push, and he would be in, yet the bastard was probably waiting for me to move against him and impale myself into his dick by inertia alone.

I wasn’t stupid. Of course I wouldn’t play along.

I forced my adrenaline to stop flowing and my body to still, muscles relaxing onto the bed underneath Dahr. He must not have been prepared for such an abrupt response, because the force with which he gripped both of my hands to lock them in pressed in on me to the point of snapping my wrists. Fortunately, he adjusted accordingly and let himself relax as well, planting his body carefully over mine.

“See, little flame. All you needed was to feel me inside you,”

he whispered proudly into my ear, and I didn’t have to look to guess that he must have been smirking, pleased with this reaction from me, which looked extremely similar to surrender. Little did he know that I was not going to play this game.

If he wanted to be treated like a child, then I had no choice but to follow suit. And the best punishment for someone who wanted attention was not getting it.

“But you are not inside me,”

I stilled, forcing even breaths that, I hoped, would calm my spirit and lower my heart rate.

“I don’t know what you are trying to prove, but if you are struggling this much to fuck other women in the camp, your technique must be truly disappointing,”

I followed, challenging him to move again and lose the game of his own making.

“Is that what you call last night, Nora? Di-ssa-ppoin-ting?”

He articulated the word with a breath for each syllable, which he sent shimming down my neck, spreading hot tickles against my body in a tempting approach.

His pride must have hurt if he had to resort to such trickery and I barely contained a smile at the realisation that my plan was working. It seemed that Dahr wanted to use his body against me and let me fall into his lure once more, but I saw right through him. And all my decisions were final.

“I would call it a great night, that I am so over with,”

I snapped back at him and turned my head trying to find his gaze. I saw with the corner of my eyes the glint in his gaze, the challenge he seemed to enjoy and that flirtatious grin he displayed when he found himself on the cusp of victory. Unfortunately for him, the great warrior did not anticipate my refusal to play this game.

“Excuse me if I am not one of your sycophants, oh mighty Grannicus,”

I followed through with my last shot and fully relaxed underneath him, turning my head and allowing it to fall onto the pillow. Displaying with my body that I was fully giving up. Fully done with playing this game.

“You may not want to be, my lovely March flower, but your body says otherwise. You can try and convince yourself that you do not want me, but that’s not what your steaming pussy is telling me,”

Dahr grunted and pushed only slightly in between my legs, enough to make me feel his tip brushing my entrance.

An audible sharp moan ripped through my spirit, and I was unable to control it.

That was it.

It was all Dahr needed to claim his victory, to know that he’d won. It was all that mattered against my brave words and my challenges. I could say anything I wanted, but one poke of his manhood into me and my brain turned into fog, my entire body responding to his claim.

“You are wrong,”

I spoke the words, even though they proved untrue. I knew that. And he knew it. Still, he offered me one last battle.

“You are dripping for me, little flame. Your pussy is begging to be ignited,”

he said as he pressed slowly into me, opening me up and I couldn't help but release another moan in response.

“Ready to be devoured,”

another push, this one, fully opening me for him.

“Ready to be claimed.” With this final word, Dahr sheathed himself into me, letting his cock glide through my wetness and making my inner walls expand to make space for him. My core stretched to receive him, welcoming the joining of our bodies and the way Dahr continued to poke into me, sliding right in as though I had paved the way for him.

“You are so fucking wet for me,”

he grabbed my throat and lifted my head slowly, arching my back as he started to fuck me from behind.

“You are such a fucking good girl, Nora. Such a good girl,”

he grunted as he pushed into me up to the hilt, his pelvis slapping against my ass with a sharp and wet pounding sound.

“You take it so good, Nora,”

he slid out of me this time, leaving only the tip to keep me open, before he placed his free hand under my hip bone and lifted me up just an inch or two, enough to make more space for himself before he savagely pushed into me again, claiming his victory.

A wave of pleasure released from between my legs, and I screamed his name, unashamed of the deep need I felt for this man. Not when he was taking me like this. Not when my entire body became the temple I was being worshipped in.

“Just with you,”

I moaned, needing his name on my lips.

“Just with you Dahr,”

I replied between panting breaths, enjoying how my body bent at his will and how my core clenched around his length with a desperation I hadn’t felt before. He was everything. Dahr was the perfect lover. He fitted so well, he moved so deliciously and he—

“See? Told you they were fucking,”

I heard a distinctive female voice which instantly tensed my muscles and stopped Dahr’s cock midway into me.

Fortunately, the hand that kept my throat locked relaxed and I could turn towards the entrance, to see Karisha and Markos looking at us, one with a playful grin while the other carried boiling rage. I jumped away from Dahr and released his unmoving length from my core as I shifted in bed. My hands desperately felt around to find something to cover myself with. It was only when Dahr moved that I could pull the bed sheet I had stolen, which had remained wrapped around his knees and placed it over my body to cover both my throbbing wetness and my pebbled nipples.

“Cousin,”

Dahr replied with an annoyed voice and stood from bed to display himself to the couple. Fully erect and glinting with my desire.

“Ewww,”

Karisha jumped and covered her face with her hands as well as turning to the side to nestle herself into her mate’s shoulder for extra protection.

“Get dressed,”

Markos removed his jacket and threw it at Dahr who, reluctantly, wrapped himself in the tunic that barely covered his midsection. Only when the warrior was decent enough and his desire started to relax underneath the cover of the tunic, did Markos place a slow caress on his mate’s hair to let her know it was now safe to look again.

Karisha preferred to wait another ten seconds to make sure, before she unpegged herself from her mate and turned her attention to me, as if avoiding Dahr’s half naked body. I thought the tribe lady would be as upset as her mate, but she smiled at me as one does to an accomplice before she stepped closer to me, stopping just by the bed. Her earlier reaction told me that there was no way she would take a seat.

“Cousin, I do not think this is the appropriate—”

“You were recovering from an unexpected injury,”

Markos cut Dahr off with obvious annoyance and no small amount of anger.

“You will be training throughout the day and long into the night to make up for the time lost, and I will be there to guide your steps towards full recovery. Is that understood?”

the tribe lord asked in an almost dictatorial tone that left little room for contradiction. To which Dahr lowered his head in agreement.

If I thought Karisha and I would be spared from this sudden wrath, we were sorely mistaken.

“Your March prisoner will spend the night in our tent, guarded by my mate in order to prevent her escape,”

he ordered, those blue eyes burning into me to leave me no choice but to follow Dahr and nod in agreement.

“It is settled then,”

Markos dipped his chin and waited until Dahr got dressed and had a drink of water before he moved to escort him out.

My heart almost leaped out of my chest at the possibility that Dahr wouldn’t even look at me before leaving the tent but fortunately, the warrior vanished the distance in between us and bent at the waist to level with me and cup my chin in between his fingers. I smiled slowly as he lifted my head up and pressed a slow and deep kiss on my lips, before he turned on his heels and followed his cousin out of the tent. To leave me with an excited Karisha, who started clapping her hands.

“Get dressed and let’s go to mine,”

she pressed a hand on my leg, squeezing me softly.

“You need to tell me all about it.”