Page 10

Chapter nine

D imitri opened the faucets to the oversized soaking tub designed to accommodate his wings.

The rooms they’d occupied in Clorea had been cramped.

He would’ve had to cocoon himself in his wings to fit into their shower stalls, rendering bathing ineffective.

Thankfully, they had no intention of spending the night.

His wings, even folded, would have hung off their beds.

He grinned to himself. His little ground-born neva would look like she was in a small pool. Dimitri reached for his newest acquisition, and she pulled away from him.

“I can bathe myself. Get out,” Astrid snapped, with all the entitlement of her station.

Dimitri gripped her throat and dragged her closer. “No,” he whispered, before inspecting the intricate scrollwork making up her pauldron. Their clothing was pretty to look at but completely impractical. Bits of decorative armor to hold silk to their bodies.

He unfastened a hinge, and the gold fell from her shoulders. It crashed against the tiles, denting upon impact. Astrid whirled to gape at her ill-designed armor.

“Untie me if you’re too stupid to remove my garments without breaking them!” she screamed.

Her silk slipped to her waist, but she didn’t shrink away or try to give him her back. Dimitri pulled her toward him by her lotus belt and she tensed. Her back arched to lean her shoulders away.

She was brave… until she was within reach.

He allowed her insolence and shifted his attention to the ornate combs and jeweled sticks in her black hair. Curls were meticulously pinned and arranged while the length of it tumbled down her back. He wanted to tangle his fingers through her silken waves and thrust his cock down her throat.

Dimitri smiled. He would have to ease her into that.

His gaze lowered to her belt. The locking mechanism had to be in the front.

He’d studied the solid bands that laid across her hips when he bound her hands.

He traced his fingers along the inside of her belt.

Dimitri lifted his gaze when it pulled tighter.

Prideful anger smoldered behind her midnight eyes, and it gave him a sense of satisfaction.

She was his belonging; it was only right she would be fierce.

“Afraid I’ll drop your belt?” he asked before continuing his exploration.

“When I’m free, I’m going to repurpose the top you ruined and use it to skewer your organs,” Astrid said dryly.

“By the blood, I’m going to enjoy fucking that attitude out of you, my sweet, vicious neva,” he purred.

He found the locking mechanism disguised as a petal and unfastened it. The belt fell open on hinges at her waist, but she continued to hold the golden contraption to her back with straight arms.

She seemed unbothered, standing before him in nothing but an embroidered lace thong.

His princess backed into his counter and stood on her toes.

She twisted to look over her shoulder and carefully placed her belt on the marble edge.

Once satisfied it wouldn’t fall, she moved to her discarded pauldron next and kneeled.

Dimitri was already hard, but his cock pulsed at the sight of her on her knees before him.

Astrid placed her gold ensemble beside her belt then stepped carefully into the bath. Dimitri waited as she bent forward to toss her hair over one shoulder. She managed to lower herself into the steaming water and toss her dark waves over the edge of the oversized tub.

She closed her eyes and sighed, seemingly content to ignore him.

Dimitri stripped and arranged his clothing in a neatly folded pile beside her things, before bundling the yards of silk she’d abandoned on the floor.

He gathered a collection of soaps and oils from the shower enclosure and stepped into the bath.

Astrid’s eyes shot open. “What do you think you’re doing?”

She lurched away from him, but Dimitri caught her before she could put any meaningful distance between them. He positioned her legs around his waist and took his usual seat.

“I need you clean before you touch my bed.”

The leading edge of his wing stroked her waist. Astrid recoiled, futilely struggling against his hold. He brushed her hair behind her shoulder.

“Why are you so perturbed by my wings?” he asked as he sliced her thong off her body with the talon on his wingtip.

Dimitri yanked her forward until the warmth of her spread pussy pressed against the base of his cock. A flush spread over her cheeks and bloomed down her throat before settling between her high breasts. He shifted his hips, wanting nothing more than to bury himself in the warmth of her cunt.

“Did one of our ambassadors catch your eye and leave you jilted?”

“Your animal deformities should never grace a Fae back.” Vicious anger gleamed in her midnight gaze. “Fuck me and get it over with.”

“Impatient neva,” Dimitri murmured. He leaned back and reached for the vile of cleansing oil, pleased she remained still. He poured it over her breasts and rubbed it into her skin. “You can have my cock once you’re cleaned and fed.”

She said nothing as he leisurely traced her nipples, smiling at the little jumps of breath she was so desperate to hide. Her apathy vanished when his fingers met the junction of her thighs. He toyed with her clit, and she squirmed against him.

“You said after I was cleaned and fed,” she said, glaring down at him accusingly.

“This is foreplay.” He drove a finger into her.

Astrid’s lashes lowered and he pressed deeper, swearing when she rolled her hips.

“And I need to wash your hair,” he groaned, reaching for the black curl plastered against her wet body.

“No,” Astrid snapped, the spell between them broken.

Dimitri peered up at her curiously and asked, “I can finger your little cunt, pinch your nipples, but your hair is where you draw the line?”

She looked away. “Leave me this.”

“A bargain?” he asked.

Her midnight stare met his and contempt swirled in their depths. “What do you want that you haven’t already taken?”

A feral grin curled his lips. “A kiss.”

She regarded him skeptically.

As she should, he mused.

Her eyes narrowed. “Define your terms.”

“Kiss me, like you mean it, until I come,” he purred the last.