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I was relieved Malek was dead, but instinct warned me the fight wasn’t over.

It might never be. I knew for certain I would never dare restrict her in any capacity.

But a more unhinged part of me wanted to grab Taya, lock her up, chain her to the bed and service her until she forgot the outside world ever existed.

Dissolved and turned into mist. That would be an ideal scenario.

Needing a moment to process, I abandoned the party for some quiet.

My bedroom became my refuge. The glass fireplace burned with scorching heat as I paced for several minutes, shedding half my clothing before finally settling down.

I stared into the flame long enough, the embers clouding my vision.

When the door opened and Taya walked in, I feared I needed more time to calm down.

She knew what occupied my mind and found me when I needed her most. Her presence calmed the murderous thoughts brewing inside me. I was seconds away from a bloody rampage I would have set into motion if she hadn’t come.

Not engaging at first was a decision to avoid dragging her back into my lap, where I could keep her close and let us forget the weight of the day.

Those who say opposites attract clearly haven’t experienced a truly fucked-up life. The kind you can only reveal details of to someone equally affected.

Perhaps it was just me, but all I wanted was to be seen. To be understood on a level even family can’t reach. Who better to see me than someone of a similar nature?

Someone who had lived and fought their way through the trenches of their own mind, breaking the barriers they’d tried to trap them in.

Taya. The answer to questions I hadn’t bothered to ask.

My parents were right, God forbid. There was more to living than just surviving. If only to live for her.

I hadn’t feared for my life. My sibling’s safety had always been my biggest concern. But the dread settling deep in my stomach upon seeing her was the strongest I’d ever felt. The closest I’d come to losing my sanity. Or what was left of it.

I felt the weight of a lifetime in that one image.

Though it had been obvious to me before, the understanding that she was all I ever needed finally slid into place in that instant. A heart-stopping moment, yet the organ occupying my rib cage beat stronger than ever.

In the truest sense, she became the reason for my excuse of an existence.

So much of her reflected in me: a soul too damaged, a mind too deranged.

I towered over this beautiful creature on my bed, channeling every thought into action. Someone above sent her my way, and I thanked whoever chose me as the receiver .

The left side of the bed peaked from behind Taya’s exposed shoulder.

Oh, how it mocked me. It laughed at my idiocy for thinking I would be the only one occupying this bed.

I’d never brought a woman home. Never fucked anyone in this bed. A hard pass, always. A topic out of the question. Now, it was all I could think about: making her scream my name until her voice gave out. Time it. Test the limits.

The thought of this woman being the first and perhaps the only made me hard.

Devouring her with my eyes, she blushed a crimson red under my attention. Very unlike her, considering I’d seen her in far more revealing states. Somehow, we both felt the extra layer of intimacy between us.

With deliberate slowness, her foot traced the outline of my bulge.

The straps of her dress slipped down her shoulders, hanging loosely, and I grabbed the hem. The fabric tore loudly as I pulled, discarding it on the floor.

“What do we have here?” I took in the sight of Taya, bare. “You sat through Christmas dinner with my family and all those men, naked underneath?”

“Right under your nose.”

A smile tugged at my lips, impressed by her boldness.

Her legs spread wide, offering me a clear view of her arousal, the open invitation to my undoing.

I was aching for another taste.

With a quick motion, I undressed to match her state, feeling her eyes hungrily follow my every movement. She leaned on her elbows, devouring my form before pushing up and meeting me at the edge of the bed. A sharp exhale escaped her as my cock sprung free, the sound echoing in my ears.

Taya’s hands trailed down my stomach, as if to memorize every inch of me, but she didn’t delay, and soon, that beautiful mouth took me in. Her tongue swirled around the tip, and I shivered in anticipation .

Instinctively, I gripped the back of her head, something I always found myself doing when she was close.

A molten wave of sensation settled in my stomach as her mouth enclosed around me, sucking hard, her cheeks hollowing. She took me in completely, not leaving an inch behind.

When I hit the depth of her mouth, a groan of approval slipped from me, while Taya added a few moans of her own. The erotic sounds filled the room, mixing with the crackling fire. As the flames spread, I, too, felt the burn on my skin.

I couldn’t look away, captivated by every breath, every movement.

When her eyes left the action and locked with mine, she nodded, giving me the go-ahead.

I gathered the silky strands of her hair at the nape, taking control.

She submitted, parting her lips wide, letting me use her mouth the way I wanted, the way it silently begged to be used.

My pace quickened, falling into a ruthless rhythm. Moisture gathered in her eyes, but she held my gaze firmly, never closing them. Not even for a second. She gave me exactly what I craved.

Taya was magnificent. Beyond perfect. Perfection was a concept she had long surpassed.

Her breaths spilled out in soft moans as I pushed the limits of human speed. Her voice hummed and vibrated around the shaft, every little sound fueling my pleasure.

Desire hit hard, and I thrust once, twice more, emptying myself down her throat.

She didn’t waste a drop, licking me clean, slow and thorough, making damn sure she got it all. When I pulled away, Taya sank to her knees, sitting back on her heels, mouth wide open. Her eyes were locked on mine, filled with the same hunger I felt.

Her tongue, slick with my release, stretched out as she rasped, “Yours.”

Then, right there, she swallowed it all .

Call it devotion, submission, whatever the hell you want, but seeing her like that, hearing those words, wrecked me.

I was a man obsessed. Possessed. Devoted and owned. I’d never have enough of her.

I leaned over and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

There were no words for what I felt, so I’d show her instead, eager to pledge her the same loyalty.

What I wanted to do in bed would take more time than we had, so I lifted her up and led us to the balcony.

Despite the cold, the floor was heated, so no snow or ice formed on the tiles. It covered the ground elsewhere, glittering in shards under the moon.

The balcony overlooked the surrounding property, hidden from prying eyes. It was often my haven. Many nights, I slept outside, the darkness inside me blending with the night, the stars my only company.

Now, I was ready to share it. Let her occupy this space the way she occupied my mind, my heart, my whole damn being, right down to the last bone.

Pushing her body against the French door, I held her arms above her head.

In that moment, I wished I could split like an atom and watch her ass pressed against the glass from the inside, while the other version of me pleased her drop-dead body from this spot. But here I was, still whole, ready to devour her.

Her nipples hardened, sharp against the cold air. The mix of heat and chill was a perfect combination, amplifying the pleasure.

When my hand wrapped around her neck, Taya arched her back, releasing a loud moan of approval.

Breath play?

She never stopped surprising me. I searched for her pulse; the frantic rhythm beat against my fingers. It was a rare occurrence for someone who’d trained themselves to stay calm, to always be in control .

A smirk tugged at my lips, as it always did when I thought about the effect I had on her. Hell, whenever I thought about anything related to her.

I lowered myself to my knees and devoured her pussy like a man starved. The sweet, familiar taste coated my mouth, and I couldn’t shake the feeling, the deepest hunger to have her for every meal, every day, for as long as we existed.

When she twitched, her body trembling from the aftermath, I didn’t waste a moment and repositioned us on the opposite side.

With the railing pressing against her back, Taya spread her arms and grabbed the metal on both sides, steadying herself in place. I lifted her bottom torso and let my eyes roam over her body.

Without hesitation, she locked her feet behind my back, pulling me forward with greedy urgency.

The evidence of her earlier orgasm still was still evident, her body responsive. I remembered the sweet taste and didn’t resist the urge to hook a finger inside, smearing it over my lips like something I couldn’t get enough of.

Satisfaction crept through me. Before, I didn’t understand the appeal. I had a strict no face-to-face, no mouth-to-any-parts policy. With her? Losing all senses wouldn’t stop me from finding a way.

There was no time to play around. I needed her as desperately as she craved me.

In one smooth motion, I entered her. The tightness pulled me in, threatening to break me apart.

When Taya’s head leaned back, hanging beyond the balcony’s outline, I slid my hand under her lower back, gently lifting her in support.

A smile spread across her face, so… unrestricted. Truly carefree.

It turned into a deep O when my cock reached a perfect depth, hitting just the right spot, causing Taya to curl her toes behind my back.

The flexibility this woman, my woman, possessed was a gift I wasn’t about to let go to waste .

Wicked thoughts danced in the back of my mind, each one cataloged for later.

I picked up the pace, moving my hips in a steady rhythm. She matched me with a rotation of her own. We moved in perfect harmony.

When I brought my head closer, she shivered beneath me; the angle hitting a new depth. My tongue traced her neck, then grazed her ear, tugging on the lobe with my teeth.

“I wish Malek could see what it’s really like to own you,” I whispered.

The weight of my words wasn’t lost on her. Her expression darkened, her nails sinking deeper into my skin. Crescent moon-shaped marks formed over the ink, and I hoped they left a memory. It would be the most beautiful scar this body carried.

An extension of her, expanding the mark I already carried on the inside.

There wasn’t a free spot on my skin, but the inside had been empty until she came along.

The black swirled with the red in my blood, the darkness mixing in, and now a new color poured in: blue.

Together, we burned in the cold air of the night, two bodies, one soul. As we neared the edge, I whispered the words she had longed to hear.

“You were never one of them, but you will always be one of us.”

With the last thrust, her walls crumbled, and I followed her through the ruins, desperate to stay close. I gave her everything I had, down to the last drop, and she held it in.

When green met blue, I absorbed the longing, kissed her temple, and sought the familiar touch at the back of her neck.

“Best Christmas gift ever,” she called out, the sound bouncing off the tall trees, and I laughed like the idiot I was.