Page 27

27

ERYSS

T he river rages. Wild and relentless. It carves through the land, just as he carves through me, unyielding, untamable, too much.

The storm of what just happened still pulses between us. The chaos. The near loss. The kiss. My head’s still reeling from the intensity of it.

His arms are locked around me like chains, his breath fierce against my ear. I don’t fight him. I should. I want to. But there’s something in the way he holds me, like he’s seconds from unraveling. Like if he lets go, he’ll lose something vital.

My chest rises and falls against his, too fast, too sharp. Water drips from my hair, clings to my skin. I should be shivering from the cold, but I’m burning. Inside. Out. Everywhere he touches.

I tilt my head up, meeting his gaze in the flickering silver moonlight. Molten gold eyes trap me, searing, demanding, furious. His grip tightens on my waist, talons scraping lightly, a reminder of what he is. What he could do.

I arch an eyebrow. “Are you going to kill me, then?” My voice is silk over steel.

His lips curl, not quite a smirk. Not quite anything soft. “You think I’d save you just to spill your blood a moment later?”

“You’re unpredictable.”

“And you’re reckless.”

A challenge. A warning. A mistake.

I should pull away. Instead, I press my palms to his chest, feeling the unsteady thrum beneath thick muscle. He’s still breathing hard. Not from the fight. Not from exhaustion.

From me.

His fingers flex on my waist, his restraint a living, trembling thing.

“This shouldn’t have happened.” I whisper the lie between us.

He leans in, the dangerous heat of him coiling around me like another kind of shackle. “Then why are you still here?”

My nails dig into him, daring him to close the distance. “I don’t have anywhere else to be.”

Lightning crackles through the sky. The water rushes over the rocks, roaring with its own untamed fury, mirroring the madness in my veins.

Then he does the one thing he shouldn’t. The one thing I never thought he would.

He kisses me. Again.

It isn’t gentle. It isn’t slow. It’s destruction wrapped in silk and teeth, a war fought between lips and tongues. He devours me, punishes me, lays claim to every single breath I have left.

I don’t fight him.

I kiss him back with everything I have.

A clash of need. A violent surrender.

My fingers grabs onto his almost stone back, sharp tugs that pull a growl from his throat. His hands, massive and rough, roam over my soaked dress, tearing fabric, seeking skin. My back presses against the slick rocks, the heat of his body pinning me there, the cool stone a sharp contrast to the fire he ignites inside me.

A gasp catches in my throat as his mouth trails down my jaw, my throat. His fangs scrape lightly, a warning. My pulse stutters beneath them. He lingers. A moment too long. A hesitation.

“Do it,” I whisper.

His body shudders, a beast warring with itself.

“Eryss—”

I dig my nails into his shoulders, eyes burning into his. “You want me? Then take me.”

Something snaps.

The air between us is electric, charged with a raw, primal energy that threatens to consume us both.

His molten gold eyes darken, the storm within them swirling with a hunger that matches my own. His breath hitches, and for a moment, I think he might pull away, might retreat into the shadows of his restraint.

But then his lips crash into mine again, harder, fiercer, as if he’s trying to erase every doubt, every boundary that stands between us.

His hands, rough and calloused, slide down my sides, gripping my hips with a possessiveness that sends a shiver down my spine. The thin fabric of my dress clings to my skin, soaked and nearly transparent, offering no barrier between us.

He tears at it with a growl, the sound vibrating through my chest, and I feel the cool night air kiss my exposed flesh. His mouth follows, hot and demanding, leaving a trail of lava in its wake.

“Oh, Naranus,” I moan as I cling to him, his skin warm.

I arch into him, my body betraying every rational thought, every ounce of resistance I should have. My hands roam over the hard planes of his back, feeling the tension coiled in his muscles, the power that lies just beneath his skin.

He’s a force of nature, untamed and wild, and I’m caught in his storm, unable, no, unwilling to escape.

His lips find the curve of my neck, and I gasp as his teeth graze my skin, sending a jolt of pleasure through me.

His tongue soothes the sting, and I can feel the rumble of his growl against my throat. “You’re playing with fire, Eryss,” he murmurs, his voice low and dangerous.

“Then burn me,” I breathe, my voice trembling with need.

His hands slide lower, gripping the back of my thighs, and he lifts me effortlessly, pressing me against the rough surface of the rocks. My legs wrap around his waist instinctively, pulling him closer, feeling the hard length of his cock pressing against me through the fabric that’s covering his privates.

The sensation is maddening, and I grind against him, desperate for more.

“Eryss,” he moans as if on reproach but his hold on my tightens, almost bruising in its intensity.

He groans, a deep, guttural sound that sends a thrill through me. “I might not die under you dagger, little bride but in between your legs,” he growls, his hands tightening on my hips.

“Then let me be your ruin,” I whisper, my voice a challenge, a plea.

His eyes lock onto mine, and for a moment, the world stands still. The river rages beside us, the storm rages above us, but all I can see is him. All I can feel is him. And then, with a growl that shakes me to my core, he claims me.

“Damn it all,” he curses before claiming me and I shudder.

His cock slides into me with a force that steals my breath, filling me completely, stretching me in ways I didn’t know I could be stretched.

I cry out, my nails digging into his shoulders as he begins to move, each thrust driving me closer to the edge. He’s relentless, his pace punishing, and I meet him thrust for thrust, my body writhing against his.

“Naranus!” I scream, my voice hoarse as I shake in need and ecstasy.

The pleasure builds, a coil tightening deep within me, and I can feel myself unraveling, piece by piece. His lips find mine again, swallowing my moans, his tongue tangling with mine in a dance as fierce and wild as the raging waters around us.

His hands grip my hips, guiding me, controlling me, and I let him, surrendering completely to the chaos he brings.

“Naranus, Naranus!” I jolt as my eyes roll back.

“Come with me,” he roars, holding onto the rock behind me and shattering it with force like how he shatters my mind into smitheereens with his final, brutal thrust.

My body convulses around him, waves of pleasure crashing over me, pulling me under. He follows me to the zenith, his roar muffled against my skin as he comes inside me, his body trembling with the force of his release.

There is no tenderness. Only need. Desperation.

A battle.

A surrender.

I don’t know where I end and he begins.

The river rages beside us, but its storm is nothing compared to this.

The world settles. The night hums with life, the rush of the river steady, grounding. His body is still half-draped over mine, heavy, solid, real. His breathing slows, but his hands stay on me, like he’s not quite willing to let go.

I stare up at the stars peeking through the canopy, trying to catch my breath, trying to pretend I don’t feel, everything.

Regret? No.

Fear? Maybe.

This changes everything.

I shift slightly, muscles protesting, the cool night air licking against my overheated skin. His grip tightens, and I glance at him. His eyes are half-lidded, unreadable, but there’s something dark in them, something possessive.

I hate that it thrills me.

I swallow hard. “This doesn’t mean anything.”

His golden gaze flickers, unreadable. “No. It doesn’t.”

Liar.

But I don’t call him on it.

Because I’m a liar, too.