Page 134 of The Freedom You Seek

“Mine. Only mine.”

I had no chance to answer this repeated declaration of ownership as his lips immediately descended on mine again.

We kissed as if it were the first and the last time. Our tongues danced and fought, making love and war, and both of us would end up victorious and defeated at the same time. Our lips met each other greedily, forgetting we were in a sacred place—because it didn’t matter at all.

There wasn’t a sliver of distance between us anymore. Dion crushed me against the cool marble wall behind me, and I could feel his length nestling hard against my stomach.

For a second, the memory of another time with another man against me flashed through my mind, but Dion’s scent, his caressing magic, and his whole being pulled me back, keeping me grounded in the here and now. The past wasn’t significant. Dion wasn’t Jelric, and I was far from unwilling, instead, I was ready to be completely unraveled.

Liquid heat gathered between my legs in a way I’d never experienced before, neither when touching myself nor with any other partner. Dion’s hand found its way into the bodice of my robes, and he caressed every bit of skin he could find, making me shiver.

By lucky coincidence, I freed my right hand and splayed it on his chest. Before I could overthink it, I unfastened two more buttons on his coat, and the pads of my fingersbrushed over hard steel wrapped in velvety skin. I’d been right—he was wearing nothing but his own body underneath.

Oh, gods, and what a body that was.

I pressed my legs together, searching for friction, and moaned against his lips and tongue. My heart was beating so rapidly that I was afraid it’d simply give out very soon—but it wouldn’t matter if I died at this moment. Never before in my life had I been so aroused, and if I perished then and there, I’d depart with no regrets.

But suddenly—also like on Samhain—Dion broke the kiss that had already turned into so much more. If he hadn’t stopped kissing me, I wouldn’t have quit as well—I’d have allowed him to have me on the altar, to desecrate that sacred place just to teach me a divinity of a whole different kind.

His forehead touched mine gently, and there was a storm in his eyes, his expression as hungry and desperate as my own mirrored it. We were still tied together by at least a dozen dark tendrils, and they were just as reluctant to end what we’d started as we were. In the end, his magic withdrew at a more gradual pace, but soon, the darkness disappeared as well.

I was panting as my eyes met his. “What happened to your little Samhain speech, Dion? Do I…do I have to remind you of what you’ve said? And what I’ve promised you in return?” How I found the breath to speak, I couldn’t tell.

“Fuck that,” Dion growled, and the sound surged right into my core, making my knees buckle. Something hadchanged for him in the last ten minutes, I felt it deep in my soul. “Listen, Naya. We’re going to do this. We’ll calm down and do the ceremony as planned. You’re right, we have to go through with it, potential consequences be damned.” He took a deep breath as if he was debating with himself what to say next.

“Yes, Dion?”

“Let’s make a deal.”

He was still holding me close, and there was an almost desperate edge to his embrace. I could feel his breath on my face and his heart beating in sync with mine.

“What deal?”

“You and I both promise each other that we’ll have a serious conversation about this thing between us soon after the binding—whatever happens. This kind of bargain worked out well for us before. We should do it again.”

“Without walls, deflection, or running away?”

“Yes.”

“I want to add another rule. You can’t use one-word answers.”But I could.

Dion chuckled and gave me a peck on the nose. “But you know how much I like those.”

“They’re forbidden.”

“Then I guess I have no other choice. We’ll have a serious talk sometime soon after the Rite. With no one-word answers.”

“Deal,” I answered, and I did my best not to let any of the turmoil inside of me reflect in my voice. But something had to be off if he’d barter for such a deal—I was missing something. Why was it so importantfor him to make me promise him a conversation when he had to know that he could always talk to me?

“Deal it is.” Dion grinned and finally released me from the cage that was his body.

My state of mind was fragile, something I was definitely not used to. That could be the only explanation for what in the names of all the gods had happened. The Rite of Binding and what it would bring to light had weakened all my mental defenses, and I had to admit I was scared of losing her—not her physical presence, but her positive opinion and affection for me.

I couldn’t stand the thought of going through with the ceremony without one last kiss. Telling her she was mine hadn’t been the plan, and I blamed Carthain for that. He would pay, I swore it on my mother’s grave.

Stopping the downward spiral of my thoughts with impossible effort, I took Nayana’s hand and tugged her with me to the altar. It was time for the inevitable.

Her heart was beating fast, and I wasn’t surprised to find that mine mirrored hers. They were beating as one.