Page 37

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NARANUS

H er lips crash into mine as if she’s burning alive, and I’m the only thing that can quench the fire.

It’s not a slow kiss, not hesitant or questioning. It’s brutal. Desperate. Starved. Her hands grab onto my arm, pulling me down, closer, as if she needs to consume me to breathe. And damnation take me, I let her.

I wrap my arms around her, lifting her easily, pressing her against me so tightly it should be painful. Maybe it is. Maybe I want it to be. My claws dig into the soft curve of her waist, holding her in place, my fangs scraping over her bottom lip as I devour her, tasting everything she offers.

She shudders against me, her body trembling, whether from exhaustion, desire, or grief, I don’t care. I don’t stop. I refuse to. If she wants to kiss me like this, as if her very existence depends on it, then I’ll take every last shred of it. Because I need it, too.

Her small hands are restless, roaming over my chest, nails scraping over my battle-worn skin. I catch a scent that is unmistakably hers, dark, rich, intoxicating. My control is fraying at the edges, slipping through my claws, and I don’t fight to hold on.

Not this time.

I spin her, pressing her against the cold, unyielding surface of the war chamber’s stone table. Maps and battle plans scatter to the floor, parchment crumpling beneath us, but I don’t care. There is no battle plan that matters more than this. Than her . Than us .

She gasps, her fingers gripping my shoulders, nails biting into my flesh as I cage her there. Her violet eyes are wide, her lips parted, breath heaving. She’s trembling still, but I see something in her eyes, resolve. A decision made. A storm brewing.

She wants this. Wants me.

“Are you trying to distract me from killing you?” she breathes, her voice wrecked, her words laced with something sharp and broken.

I smirk, because I can. Because my body is on fire, because this moment is real and raw, and I’ll take every last drop of it before it slips through my fingers. “Is it working?”

She glares, but it’s ruined by the way her breath shudders as I press my lips against the sensitive spot just beneath her jaw. My fangs trace over her pulse, feeling it pound against my lips. I could take her throat between my teeth right now, claim her the way my instincts demand.

She should be fighting me. Should be pushing me away. She doesn’t.

“I hate you,” she whispers.

“Lie.” I bite down, just hard enough to make her gasp. Just hard enough to feel the way her body arches against mine. “If you hated me, you wouldn’t have kissed me first.”

She swears, tries to push me away, but I grab her wrists, pinning them against the cold surface beneath her.

“Why did you come here, Eryss?” I ask, voice rough, laced with heat and something deeper. Something more dangerous.

Her breath stutters, her chest rising and falling fast. “I—I had something to tell you?—”

She doesn’t finish. I don’t let her. Because the war is outside these walls, and she came here to me. And I’m selfish enough to take every last second with her. To make her feel everything I feel.

Her body is pliant beneath mine, her legs parting as I settle between them, grinding against her. I can feel every inch of her, her curves fitting against me as if she were made for this.

She shivers, her eyes slipping closed for half a heartbeat before snapping open. “Naranus…”

I kiss her again, swallowing her words, drinking in her sounds. My name on her lips is a curse, a plea, a battle cry.

I run my hands down her sides, feeling the shape of her beneath my palms, memorizing every shudder, every gasp.

This is mine. She is mine.

Yet, I am hers.

She has unraveled me from the inside out, turned my world to ruin, and I don’t even care .

If this is the last time I touch her, if this is the last time I breathe her in, I will make her feel it. Feel me.

I grip her thighs, hoisting her up onto the table, her back arching against the cool stone as my mouth traces a path lower. I need to taste every inch of her, to mark her, to ruin her for anyone else. Because there can be no one else.

Her fingers sink into my hair, her voice breathless. “Naranus?—”

“Say my name again,” I command against her skin.

She gasps, but she does .

I grin, dragging my fangs over her collarbone, watching the way she writhes beneath me.

The world outside these walls doesn’t exist. The war, the blood, the impossible choices waiting for us… none of it exists.

Only this. Only her.

Her breath is ragged, her body trembling against mine. I drag my mouth back up, capturing her lips again, kissing her until she breaks. Until she gives in.

Her breath hitches as my lips trail lower, leaving a searing path down her neck, over the swell of her breasts. My claws catch on the fabric of her tunic, tearing it away with a single, sharp motion.

The sound of ripping cloth is drowned out by her gasp, her nipples hardening under the cool air of the chamber. I don’t hesitate. My mouth closes over one taut peak, my tongue swirling around it, teasing, tasting. She arches into me, a low moan escaping her lips as her fingers tighten in my hair, pulling me closer.

“Naranus,” she breathes, her voice trembling, her body writhing beneath me. “You’re—ah—you’re impossible.”

I chuckle darkly against her skin, my fangs grazing her nipple before I move to the other, giving it the same attention. Her hips buck against mine, seeking friction, seeking more. I feel the heat of her pussy through the thin barrier of her clothes, and it drives me wild.

My cock throbs, straining against the confines of my own covering, demanding release. But not yet. Not until she’s begging for it.

I release her nipple with a final, lingering lick, my hands sliding down her body to grip her hips. My claws dig into her flesh, just enough to make her gasp, and I pull her closer, grinding against her. The friction is electric, her pussy pressing against my cock, and I growl low in my throat, the sound primal, possessive.

“Tell me what you want, Eryss,” I demand, my voice rough, my breath hot against her ear. “Tell me, or I’ll stop.”

Her eyes flash, a mix of defiance and desperation. “You wouldn’t dare.”

I smirk, pulling back slightly, my hands leaving her hips. “Try me.”

She glares at me, but it’s short-lived. Her hands reach for me, pulling me back, her nails scraping down my chest. “Don’t you dare stop,” she hisses, her voice trembling with need. “I want you. All of you.”

That’s all I need to hear. My hands are on her clothes, tearing them away with the same urgency as before. Her pussy is bare to me, glistening, inviting.

I groan at the sight, my cock twitching in anticipation. I lean down, my tongue tracing a slow, torturous path up her inner thigh, savoring the way she shudders beneath me.

“Naranus,” she moans, her hips lifting, seeking more. “Please. Take me.”

I don’t make her wait. My mouth finds her pussy, my tongue delving into her folds, tasting her, devouring her. She cries out, her hands fisting in my hair as I lick and suck, driving her closer to a protheka-shattering orgasm. Her thighs tremble around my head, her breath coming in ragged gasps, and I can feel her tightening, her body coiling like a spring.

But I pull back, ignoring her whimper of protest, and stand, shedding my own covering in quick, impatient movements.

“You’re beautiful, Eryss,” I moan, my head tilting back as I squeeze my balls.

My cock springs free, hard and aching, and her eyes widen as she takes me in. I can see the hunger in her gaze, the way her tongue darts out to wet her lips, and it’s almost enough to undo me.

I step between her legs, my hands gripping her hips as I position myself at her entrance. “Look at me,” I command, my voice low, rough. Her eyes meet mine, and I see the storm there, the desire, the need.

“This is mine,” I growl, thrusting into her in one swift, deep motion.

She cries out, her nails digging into my hard shoulders as I fill her, her pussy clenching around my cock like a vice. I groan, my head falling forward as I savor the feel of her, the heat, the tightness. She’s perfect, and she’s mine.

“Eryss, Eryss…” I moan her name repeatedly like a prayer and my salvation.

I pull back, then thrust again, setting a relentless pace. Her moans fill the room, her body arching to meet mine, and I can feel her unraveling beneath me. Her pussy grips me tighter, her nails leaving marks on my skin, and I know she’s close.

“Come for me, Eryss,” I growl, my voice rough, my hips slamming into hers. “Let go.”

She does, her body shuddering as she cries out, her pussy pulsing around my cock. “Naranus!”

I follow her over the precipice, my own release crashing over me as I bury myself deep inside her, claiming her, marking her as mine.

For a moment, there is nothing but the sound of our ragged breathing, the feel of her body beneath mine. Then, slowly, I pull back, my hands gentle as I brush the hair from her face. Her eyes meet mine, and I see the storm there, the emotions she can’t hide.

“I hate you,” she whispers again, but there’s no heat in her words. Only truth.

I smirk, leaning down to kiss her softly. “Lie,” I murmur against her lips.