Page 24

Chapter Twenty-four

Asteria

He loved me.

Me .

Soren had said he loved me once, as we said our goodbyes. I was well aware even then that he didn’t truly love me. He might have thought he did, but he’d never really known me. How could he, when I had never opened myself up to him? To anyone?

Calix was the first.

He’d come into my life like a cataclysm, destroying everything that was there before… but making room for something new in the process.

He was a dragon, after all. Destruction was his forte.

My new life was shaped around him in many ways, but he was careful to ensure it wasn’t only centered on him. I had friends who were practically family, a purpose, freedom, and so much more.

But through it all was Calix.

He was the moon of my life, in the center of my sky, lighting it up any time he was around.

I’d been fighting to not feel for so long, that opening myself to the wild torrent of emotions I felt for him was more frightening than anything else I’d faced. But I couldn’t live my life in chains anymore. Not now, when I was finally free. And what was life without fully experiencing everything it had to offer?

Holding myself back from him was just another chain, keeping me in the slave mentality that nothing was truly mine.

But he was mine.

And I was tired of fighting it.

So what if I was scared? I’d been scared before and pushed forward anyway. It was time to face my fears. To embrace the future I knew I wanted. I would let no one and nothing stand in my way.

Even if I honestly did fear what the future holds for us. The war terrified me. How we’d manage the future of two kingdoms frightened me.

But we’d figure all of that out later.

For now, I let my walls crumble, and let Calix feel the breadth of love I felt for him. A wave of it releasing from where I’d kept it locked up deep inside.

I watched him sway, his eyes wide as he watched me wildly.

“I’m not sure I even really knew what love was before,” I told him, laughing slightly. “But what you feel for me? It lights up my entire chest. You may be the darkness, Calix, but you’re what makes me truly shine.”

I tried to say the words, to vocalize what I felt, but they caught in my throat. Fear didn’t disappear all at once, I supposed. I’d let my walls down and let him feel the truth. Maybe that was as much exposure as I could take today. Because no matter what I did, I feared letting the words pass my lips. As if he’d be torn away from me immediately should I dare.

But he could feel that too.

So when he reached for me once more, I threw myself into his arms. My lips finding his and latching on. I kissed him with everything I had. All the passion within me pouring out into him. He reached down and grabbed the back of my legs, and I jumped up to help him, wrapping my legs around his waist as his tongue swept confidently into my mouth.

Fuck, I’d missed this.

I’d tried not to dwell on my lack of sex, what with all the insane changes in my life. But being around Calix, day after day, with no relief but my hand under the covers at night, had been agony.

I desperately grasped for him, my hands finding purchase in that long, silvery-white hair I loved so much. His hands palmed my ass as I ground myself against him. I felt suddenly frantic, like the universe was conspiring to rip him away from me, and I had to hold on tighter to prevent him from going.

I’d never had anything good in my life. The life of a slave was meant to be shit by design, and nothing and no one was ever truly yours. Getting to have something that was, was more frightening than I’d anticipated.

So I threw myself toward my fate, daring the world to try to take it from me.

I growled as Calix’s lips left mine, but moaned as he began kissing down my neck. I clutched him to me with one hand, while the other went to his shoulder, my nails digging in.

“My dorchadas…” I panted, my need for him was rising ever higher while my blood felt like it was on literal fire.

He nipped my neck then, and I could practically feel his smirk against my skin. I yelped when I was suddenly flat on the massive bed, my legs still locked around his waist. Calix began kissing down my chest before he gripped the neckline of my gown and pulled it down. The slight lace keeping my breasts covered was easily ripped away, and the growl Calix let out at the sight of them had me bucking into him.

He leaned down and captured a nipple in his mouth, while his other hand gripped my unoccupied breast.

“Fuck,” I hissed as he scraped my nipple with his teeth, just as he pinched the other. The dual sensations went right to my clit, and I ground against him to get some friction. His chuckle was dark as his hips suddenly forced my lower body down to the bed. I could feel his cock straining against his pants, making me more desperate, but he made it clear this was his show as he held me down.

My whine of frustration got him moving, but I whimpered when he abandoned my breasts. I quickly got on board when he pulled my dress down, lowering it as he moved down my body, lifting off me only to finish ripping it down my legs until it pooled on the floor.

I was left in nothing but a tiny bit of lace covering my cunt that was already soaked through while he stood there fully clothed.

I couldn’t bring myself to care much about that once Calix fell to his knees, wrenching my legs apart and throwing them over his shoulders. His mouth quickly found that patch of lace that covered me and licked a line up it, wetting it further until it was basically see-through.

His eyes locked with mine, and the Aurora within seemed more chaotic than usual as he ripped the lace away, leaving me bare to him should he look down. And look, he did. His eyes drank me in like he’d been parched in the desert for days, and he’d finally found water.

He dove down, his mouth finding my cunt with unerring accuracy. I moaned at the touch of his tongue on my clit and reached out to grab his hair as I bucked my hips up into his mouth.

He ate me like a man possessed. I’d only had two men ever do this before, and he blew Soren and Vissy both out of the water. He knew exactly what drove me insane, and he went about proving it.

His tongue traced the seam of my cunt, up and down, before circling my clit once more. He ramped me up, let me cool a bit, then ramped me up once more. Finally, his tongue entered me fully, and I cried out his name when his thumb found my clit, driving me over the edge as starlight exploded out of me, lighting up the room.

“Perfection,” Calix growled as he stood, wiping his mouth of my arousal before sucking it off his fingers. I nearly blushed at the sight, but I was too consumed by the view as his shirt fell to the floor, exposing tattoos I wanted to be more intimately familiar with.

His pants dropped, and I licked my lips as his cock bobbed upward proudly. I pushed up off the bed with Fae speed, meeting his mouth in a messy kiss as we crashed together. Hands were flying all over the place, trying to frantically feel every inch of each other.

One moment, I was on my knees at the edge of the bed with Calix standing before me, and the next, he was seated on the bed with my legs straddling him. I could feel his claws emerging where they now gripped my hip, and the tiny pinpricks only added to the intensity of the moment. I decided to experiment, letting my own claws extend and scraping lightly down his shoulder. His groan let me know how much he appreciated it as he devoured my mouth.

His length pressed against my cunt, and I shifted my hips to get more friction, and gasped into his mouth when I managed to notch the head of his thick cock at my entrance. His claws gripped me as his mouth left mine, and I pulled back to look at him. I blinked, surprised by the expanse of starlight and darkness surrounding us. It looked like we existed outside of reality. As if we were back in my dream space, the darkness billowing around the room, highlighted by my sparkling starlight.

His forehead fell against mine as he groaned, “My réalta.”

I giggled, lifting myself off him slightly. His claws stopped me from moving further away, and I smirked as I sank back down a few inches on his cock, only to pull back up quickly in a deliberate tease.

“You’re killing me, grá,” he panted, his eyes completely swamped with color. His sharp canines had lengthened into full fangs, and he scraped them against my neck, drawing a bead of blood to the surface.

I found myself jealous, and I moved to attack his neck. Not quite positive what I was doing, I let instinct take over. Sure enough, fangs broke the pale column of his throat the tiniest bit, and I licked away the blood that beaded up.

I moaned at the taste, sure that blood wasn’t supposed to taste this good, but I had apparently driven Calix far enough with my teasing, and he gripped my hips hard before pulling me down on his cock— completely down.

I screamed out in a mix of pleasure and pain. He was so big, and there was no way the fast intrusion would be completely painless. But I still enjoyed every second of it as I stretched out around him, adjusting to the length and girth I’d only experienced once before. Absolutely loving the feel of him as he made room for himself inside me, claiming me for his own.

I found myself laying flat on my back suddenly, with a feral beast looming above me. Calix looked wild, silvery-white hair mussed, eyes darkened, and fangs lengthened as he snarled and drove himself deep inside me.

His restraint had snapped, and I felt a flush of pleasure that I had been the one to make it happen.

His hands gripped my thighs and pulled them out to the side, watching as his cock split me open. I gave myself over to him, and the pleasure consumed my senses as he filled me again and again. My moans were uncontrollable as I clenched down on his cock, trying to keep him inside when he pulled back.

Every time he thrust inside, I could hear the lewd noise from my arousal, but I couldn’t bring myself to be embarrassed by how insanely wet he’d made me. He was mine, after all. And who could blame a girl when Calix was the one between their thighs?

My hands reached up for his shoulders as he thrust in, and I swore I saw my stomach bulge with the impression of his cock for a moment before he pulled back. I let my claws dig into his shoulders, and he growled down at me—so I dug in harder.

He gave a punishing thrust, and I screamed out as he hit that spot inside that made stars explode behind my closed eyes. His own claws scraped over the sensitive skin of my inner thighs but never punctured. He was careful to never hurt me, only taking me as far as he knew I was comfortable with.

In a flurry of movement, I found myself positioned before the wall with the bed now firmly behind me. Calix pushed both of my hands to the wall before pressing down on my back. “Arch your back for me, Asteria.”

I shivered as his voice rumbled in my ear, and then arched my back, my ass sticking out.

“Like this, my dorchadas?” I whispered, biting my lip and looking back at him. A hard slap landed on my ass, making me jump slightly.

“Just like that,” he purred, before palming both of my asscheeks.

He lined himself back up at my entrance and pushed in slowly, letting me feel every inch stretching me back out. I groaned, my head falling forward between my arms.

“Calix…” I whined, only for another smack to shake my ass.

“Patience,” he growled. “Do you have any idea how hard it’s been to keep my hands to myself? To be with you day after day, knowing I can’t touch you?”

“Yes,” I hissed back, having fought that same battle despite it being my choice. The hypocrisy wasn’t lost on me.

He chuckled darkly. “Torture of your own design.”

I groaned and refusing to admit defeat, I pushed myself back on him, sinking down further on his cock, earning myself another slap on the ass paired with a warning hiss.

“I have waited so long for you,” he murmured, an undercurrent of wonder in his tone that made me pause. Finding out I was Fae and had a mate all at once meant I never really stopped to appreciate how incredible such a thing was for the Fae. Mates were so rare in our world. Calix had been the only Fae I’d ever met who had a soulmark before my transformation.

To have waited over four hundred years for a mark… I could only imagine how getting one must feel after all that time. Let alone finally having your mate in the flesh.

“Twenty-one years hidden away from me,” he growled, caressing my spine and making me shiver, his cock slowly inching further into me, making me feel every centimeter of him claiming me. “Years of dreams where I was buried in darkness and dreaming of starlight. A light in my darkness that kept hope alive. That you were out there. That I would break through that barrier one day and finally touch you.”

I suddenly understood, in a way I hadn’t comprehended before. After all those years before his mark appeared, he finally received his soulmark only to then spend years being tortured by dreams. While I’d remained ignorant until I was closer to him physically, likely a result of the spell that buried my magic, Calix had always known I was there. He’d spent those years reaching across the vast distance for me. Reaching for the light and finding only more darkness.

So I ceased my teasing, and let him take control once more. He sensed my surrender, and the soft kiss to my neck was reward enough, but the sudden thrust of his cock, filling me up completely, was a wonderful surprise.

“Calix,” I moaned as he ground against me, circling his hips until I was sure I was going to break apart from the sheer size of him. But then I felt something caress my clit, making me twitch in pleasure.

His hands were both occupied; one was currently gripping my hip, while the other had drifted to the back of my neck, holding me in place.

His shadows had come out to play.

“Do you like that, my réalta?” Calix asked, his voice deep and thick from arousal, practically a growl, but not quite. He was trying to suppress the dragon inside him. That wouldn’t do. I quite liked that side of him.

“I love it, my dorchadas,” I told him honestly, but I also wanted to push him further. He might be dominant at the moment, but I still had all the true control, and I knew it. I could push his restraint and make the wild dragon lurking inside let loose completely.

“Good girl.” He gave a sharp thrust, making me moan his name. My reward this time was his shadows multiplying. One still caressed my clit in a constant tease, while the others slithered up to my breasts, fully encasing them as I felt my nipples get tugged delightfully.

“Tell me, Asteria.” Calix began, groaning as I clenched down around his cock, my arousal dripping down my thighs from where we were joined. “What do you want?”

I groaned pitifully. “You know what I want.”

A sharp slap left my asscheek stinging, and I pushed into him.

“No.” He tutted. “I’m not talking about this .” He thrust in hard, and I couldn’t contain the scream that left my mouth. “What do you want ? Your mother wants you to rule Day. I want you to join me on Night’s throne.”

My breath caught in my throat. It was the first time he’d explicitly said that, and the knowledge that he wanted me to share his throne… it had more arousal gushing from me as I struggled to control my wild need for him.

“But what do you want , my réalta?” Calix asked heavily. He paused, ceasing any movement, leaving his thick cock in place and stretching me lewdly. But I could feel how much my answer meant to him, so I forced myself to think through the veil of arousal and need so I could truly contemplate my answer.

It was easier than I expected it to be.

“I want it all,” I told him confidently. “I will take Day’s throne, and I will join you on Night’s, just as you will join me on Day’s.”

“Such a thing has never been done,” Calix responded softly, hesitantly. “The balance…”

“There’s never been a queen with starlight magic either.” I insisted. “I’m something new, Calix. If the gods set all of this up, if they made us mates and me the heir, then I have to believe there’s a reason for it. The old system is broken and corrupt. Maybe it’s time we forge a new one.”

“My réalta.” His head fell onto my back, and his arms came around me, squeezing me tightly for a moment. I reached a hand down to squeeze his arm.

“Don’t worry, my dorchadas, I’ll guide you to the light,” I told him, partially playful, partially sincere.

I felt his pleasure at my response, and then I felt my own pleasure as his shadows suddenly snuck up inside me, joining his cock as he began thrusting fiercely in and out.

I thrust back into him as he rode me at incredible speed. Faster than I thought possible. Fae strength gave me the ability to take it where my human body would have crumbled.

He brought me to the edge, and I prepared for the ecstasy to come, only to scream in frustration instead of pleasure as he swiftly pulled his cock out, and his shadows ceased any movement.

I opened my mouth to complain when he dragged me up and turned me around, his mouth taking mine and preventing any words from forming.

He grabbed my thighs and lifted me before I knew what happened, and I found my legs back around his waist. His mouth dragged away from mine with a growl, and I saw how long his fangs had grown. Not to mention how wild his eyes had become.

He thrust into me again without warning, and I somehow managed to scream and moan at the same time. The feel of him filling me felt brand new, even just from changing position. I loved that I could now see him in action, watching as his cock split me open, seeing instead of just hearing his skin slapping against mine.

I anchored my arms around his shoulders, my claws coming out unconsciously. When they pricked his skin, he snarled, and I giggled in response, lifting my head up to lick his fang, swirling my tongue around it.

He slammed me bodily against the wall. The moan that ripped out of me was uncontrollable as he slammed into my cunt with so much force that his entire body rocked against me. He gripped my hair, yanking my head to the side, and his mouth immediately found my neck.

He licked down the column of my throat as his cock slid in and out of me. Following his tongue, his fangs scraped down the delicate skin, but he still managed to surprise me with his next move.

His sharp fangs penetrated my throat, sinking into my flesh as my blood spilled. I growled, the noise slowly turning into a moan, the pleasure so intense in a way I barely understood.

I only knew I needed to reciprocate.

I bent my head to his neck and sank my fangs into him. Pure sex filled my mouth. Decadent chocolate, fruity cherry, and citrusy lime. He tasted like all my favorite flavors combined, but also just so purely Calix , like night and fire incarnate. I wanted to drown in it forever.

Calix’s head lifted from my neck, his tongue licking the blood away from the quickly healing fang marks.

“ Starlight, ” he murmured, wonder wrapping around each syllable. I retracted my fangs from his neck, licking away the blood so as not to waste a precious drop.

I looked up to his bloody mouth, and found his own eyes, so full of color in this moment, were just as focused on mine. We met in a clash of lips and teeth and tongues, my legs squeezing to bring him closer as his hands gripped me and did the same.

We couldn’t get close enough. I wanted to crawl inside him and never leave. Or have him never leave from inside me. Any inch of space between us was too much.

This was my mate .

He was mine, and I was his. Forever .

“No one will ever tear us apart,” I promised him when our mouths finally parted to gulp down a breath.

“ Never ,” he growled viciously, making me shiver in delight. “I will kill any who try. I will rip them apart, put them back together, and rip them apart again. I will torture their minds and bodies with the pain of Tartarus until they become nothing more than a drooling, mindless shell. There will be no mercy. We will destroy any who come for us.”

He thrust into me, and his shadows tweaked my clit in a way that had me spiraling immediately. I somehow maintained just enough presence of mind to finish my thought.

“We will.” I agreed, nodding frantically. “We will bring the kingdoms to their knees. And we will build our new world in their ashes.”

His mouth slammed back into mine, and my cunt clenched down on his cock hard, fluttering wildly as my orgasm rapidly approached.

“My réalta,” he panted, “You will light this whole world on fire. Cleanse it of the sins of its past and bathe it in a new light. Yours .”

I came at that moment, an explosion of pleasure and magic and rapid, violent feeling. Calix followed along right behind me, the sensation of him spilling into me and extending my orgasm out further. I bellowed into the night, letting the whole world know exactly who had driven me to the point of insanity as starlight and darkness kept us cocooned in a cloud of magic.

Perfectly balanced.