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His pupils flared. “Is that one of your fantasies, Arabella?” He lowered his voice. “Being wrestled to the floor and taken so hard you forget your name?”

My breath caught. “I?—”

Kazimir’s storm-gray eyes darkened. “I remember how wet you were in the library.” He shifted slightly, and the friction made me bite my lip to stifle a soft moan. “When I was in control. When I fucked your needy cunt against the bookshelf. You like being dominated.”

I paused a beat before confessing, “I’ve daydreamed about that afternoon more times than I care to admit.”

Dangerous. So dangerous.

I wanted him—gods help me, I wanted him so badly it hurt. My magic stirred with a crackling heat under my skin. The runes on his chest answered with dark energy, and I felt their pull.

He groaned and dropped his head. “If I’m not careful,” he said against the skin of my neck, “I’ll forget every reason why this is a bad idea.”

Instead of waiting for an answer, Kazimir rolled off me with a muttered curse, lying flat on his back beside me.

We lay there in silence, our chests rising and falling in tandem as we tried to regain control.

The magic in the air slowly dissipated, the connection between us fading to its usual background hum.

After what felt like an eternity, he sat up, extending a hand to help me do the same. I took it, letting him pull me upright. He held me with a smoldering stare, as though he was fighting every cell in his body not to drag me back to the floor.

I broke the trance first, moving to the side of the room where a pitcher of water waited. I grabbed cups and poured water for both of us, then eased down the wall to sit on the floor. Kaz followed, but remained at arm’s length.

“I can almost feel it,” I said after a while. “When we’re taking things too far. There’s this... pressure at the back of my mind.”

He nodded. “I’ve been experiencing something similar. A connection to the Heirloom. It makes sense—our magics are both tied to it now.”

I took a sip of water, using the moment to steady myself. “So... have we learned anything new about the Perris situation?”

Kazimir lowered his cup. “Yes and no. We confirmed Auremar likely wanted him gone, but precisely what Perris overheard is unclear.”

I shivered. “Auremar wants me for my bloodline, right? But he’s part of that lineage. The entire Solandris royal line descends from the same heroic bloodline as I do, albeit a different branch. So why would he need me if he has the same power?”

A shadow passed over Kazimir’s face. “He might not need your blood in the literal sense. Maybe he wants to bind your magic to his. Or perhaps your mother’s branch is stronger. Too many unknowns.” He swallowed, the lines around his mouth tightening. “But I won’t let him have you.”

Relief bloomed in my chest at his possessive tone.

Silence settled between us, broken only by our steady breathing. Though part of me dreaded whatever twisted scheme Auremar was plotting, my thoughts drifted to something we hadn’t discussed.

I scrubbed a hand across my face. “I barely felt anything when I let Perris die,” I admitted softly, glancing at Kazimir. He turned his head to look at me, and I pressed on. “And that bothers me more than the fact that I actually did it.”

He gave me the knowing look of a man who’d long ago made peace with the shadows inside himself. “He was your enemy, Arabella. Why would you feel sympathy for a man like that?”

I rubbed the back of my neck. “I don’t know... Old habits, maybe. The naive idea that a ‘noble heart’ should seek redemption for everyone. But I’m not naive anymore. And if that means letting worthless scum die, I can live with it. I just... wonder where I go from here.”

Kazimir’s gaze was still faintly tinted with desire. “I hate to say this,” he teased, voice dipping low, “but your ‘noble heart’ was always questionable. Especially since you started practicing dark magic.” His gaze pinned me meaningfully.

“So I should just embrace this title of ‘Dark Lady’?”

He said nothing for a beat, just holding my gaze. “I can think of worse things than having a lethal, gorgeous Dark Lady at my side.”

My cheeks warmed, though I wasn’t sure if it was embarrassment or simple hunger for him.

Kazimir shifted closer. “You’re uncertain about your future,” he said gently, “but you’re not uncertain about yourself. That’s why you’re dangerous, Arabella. You know exactly what you want. It’s just that your old illusions of heroism have fallen away.”

“I know exactly what I want,” I echoed. My eyes drifted lower, to where Kazimir’s arousal was still visible through his trousers. An idea formed, reckless and tempting.

“Are you hurt?” I asked softly, though a devilish grin curled my lips. “After I nailed you in the... well, you know.”

He made a tortured noise in his throat. “I’m tender,” he admitted. “Why?”

I reached out, tracing a finger along the waistband of his trousers. “I’ve been thinking...”

He stiffened.

I stroked lightly, letting my nails scrape across the taut muscles of his stomach. “If we can feel when we’re pushing things too far with the Heirloom,” I continued, my fingers dipping lower, “then maybe we can find ways to... work around it.”

Kazimir’s gaze was molten with caution and lust.

I pressed my palm against his erection. “If I feel the Heirloom stirring, I’ll stop.”

When he didn’t stop me, a lazy, thrilling confidence coursed through me. I slid my hand inside his trousers to wrap my hand around his cock. It was hot and hard in my palm.

Kazimir’s head fell back against the wall, his eyes half-closed. “This is a terrible idea.”

“Probably,” I agreed, slowly stroking him. “Do you want me to stop?”

“Fuck no,” he growled.

I smiled, watching his face as I continued my explorations. I varied my grip and pace, noting what made his breath catch or his hips thrust forward. He was magnificent like this—powerful but completely at my mercy.

Wanting better access, I freed him from his trousers. He was thick and long, the head already glistening with pre-cum. I ran my thumb over it, spreading the moisture, and was rewarded with a deep groan.

“Like that?” I asked, increasing my pace slightly.

“Yes,” he hissed through clenched teeth. “Tighter.”

I obliged, tightening my grip and stroking him with more purpose. His hands clenched at his sides.

“You can touch me,” I said, voice husky.

He shook his head. “If I touch you, I won’t stop there.”

The admission sent a thrill through me. The powerful Dark Lord, reduced to restraining himself because he wanted me so badly.

I watched his face, noting the flickers of pleasure.

He liked it when I twisted my wrist just so.

And if I squeezed lightly at the base, his hips jerked forward in response.

His breathing grew more ragged, his hips thrusting into my hand.

A surge of warmth soaked my undergarments as I watched him unravel.

“Gods,” he whispered, his hands clenched into fists now. “Arabella... that’s—shit?—”

I felt it then—a faint stirring at the back of my mind. A distant warning. The Heirloom was responding to the magic that hummed between us.

But I didn’t stop. We were close to the edge, but hadn’t crossed it yet. “Come for me, Kaz.”

His control snapped. With a guttural sound, he grabbed my face with both hands and surged forward to kiss me?—

The warning in my mind exploded. At the same moment, Kazimir jerked back, eyes wide as he felt it too.

“Fuck,” he gasped, even as he came in hot pulses against my fingers. A moan escaped him—quiet, low, and all the more delicious for it. Residual tension rippled through his body as I stroked him through the ebb of pleasure.

When he finally stilled, he tucked himself back into his trousers, and we sat in silence for a moment.

“Well,” I said finally, “I think we’ve learned something important.”

He pinned me with that dark, sated gaze. “That we’re playing with fire?”

“That there might be ways around our... limitation.” I gestured between us. “This worked, mostly. Until you tried to kiss me.”

“Yes.” His gaze then slipped down my body, towards the heat I felt between my thighs, and his eyes darkened with renewed lust. “Let me return the favor?”

The flutter in my stomach was immediate, but I hesitated. The Heirloom was still throwing off faint sparks in my awareness, as if glaring at us for our mischief. “We’ll push it too far.”

Kazimir let out a slow, frustrated exhale, forcing himself to nod. “Later, then,” he promised, voice rough. “I won’t forget.”

I almost whimpered from the raw intensity in his voice. Instead, I forced myself to my feet. “I think that’s enough training for today.”

He nodded but didn’t get up. I wondered if he’d take a nap there against the wall after I left.

“What’s on your schedule today?” he asked casually.

I brushed off my leathers. “More reading.” And maybe a bath and some self-love. “I have a new book to look through.”

Kazimir’s mouth quirked. “And you’ll be ready to spar again tomorrow, I assume?”

“Yes.” Though the next step in my training would be figuring out how to keep me improving without either of us ending up in bed. Or on the floor. Or pinned to a wall. “You know, so I don’t accidentally get rescued by Auremar’s knights in shining armor.”

He laughed. “Don’t worry. They’ll rue the day they try to save you, Lady Blackrose.”