Page 8

CHAPTER 8

SERENNA

S erenna’s vision blurred as she stared up at Fenn, the steamy chamber dissolving. She reached up slowly, brushing the sharp line of his jaw and inhaling his scent of cedar and snow. Their breaths mingled in the humid air as she wove her fingers through his hair, drawing him closer.

The world fell away when she pressed her lips to Fenn’s, the heat of his body eclipsing the water’s warmth. The kiss began as a gentle spark but quickly ignited into a consuming flame as he gripped her waist, tugging her flush against him. Magic surged through her veins, the bond thrumming with shared longing.

Fenn’s mouth claimed hers with a ferocity that banished the fear of what she’d nearly lost. His arms wrapped around her, their skin sliding together under the gentle spray of water.

Serenna’s fingers mapped the planes of his chest and the ridges of his scars, tracing the silent stories they told. Fenn shuddered, his breath hitching as her touch drifted lower, curling around the hard proof of his desire.

“We shouldn’t,” he murmured. But his hips betrayed him, his rigid flesh pressing deeper into her palm.

Serenna stroked him slowly, freeing a rumbling groan from his chest. “Why not?” she challenged, her lips curving against his, daring him to protest as his body bent to her touch.

“I can sense that you’re still sore,” he rasped, claws digging into her hips like he couldn’t let go. Smug satisfaction smoldered beneath his hesitant restraint.

“And you’re entirely too pleased with yourself for being the reason for that,” she retorted.

Serenna’s breath abandoned her as Fenn’s lips swept a trail of fire along her throat, the scrape of his fangs nearly melting her spine. Not to be outdone, she slid her coiled fingers faster along his length.

Hips bucking, Fenn snarled, the sound tearing from his throat as his canines lengthened. “You don’t play very fair.” He nipped the sensitive skin under her ear, a feral light blazing in his eyes. “But who am I to deprive you of what you want?”

In one fluid motion, he swept Serenna off the ground, claws roving lower to cup her backside as she wrapped her legs around his waist. Muscles flexing, Fenn’s abdomen rippled against hers, his rigid length trapped between them.

Serenna hooked her arms around his neck and leaned back, breathless at the sight of him—wild and beautiful in the misty glow. Water glistened over the planes of his carved flesh, the veins of his arousal standing out like winding rivers.

Fenn’s mouth recaptured hers and Serenna snagged his lower lip between her teeth, tugging at one of his piercings. A guttural sound of approval reverberated through her chest as he pressed his length against her center. She gasped, nails digging into his shoulders. Her hips rolled to meet his, pressure mounting with every shift.

“She-elf,” Fenn panted as he slid her higher and lower against the rigid flesh pinned between them, each shift coiling a knot of pleasure deep in her core. A soft chuckle melted into a ragged groan as his head tipped back. “Stars, slay me…” His words dissolved like the steam coiling around them, his feral eyes drawn back to where their bodies merged.

The bond flared, a heady pull of emotions—hunger, desire, and a gentle current of warmth amidst blazing fire. Moving with him, Serenna let it consume her.

“Mark me as yours,” Fenn said, his voice quiet and unguarded. He angled his neck, baring himself fully.

Her gaze dropped to the faint punctures already etched into his skin. “But I don’t have fangs.”

“Then do your worst,” Fenn growled, his claws tightening on her hips as he dragged her against him, eyes flaming with challenge and want.

Serenna’s heart stuttered. It wasn’t an order, but a wave of surrender rolled off him, a need to belong to her, to be branded as hers.

Her lips hovered above his collarbone, not in hesitation, but under the weight of what this moment meant—what he was offering to her. Himself. A trust she wasn’t sure she deserved. Yet she burned to prove herself worthy, to honor the devotion he’d laid before her.

Serenna latched onto his neck, her mouth and tongue claiming him with desperate certainty. Every sweep of her lips a wordless answer, every scrape of her teeth an unspoken vow etched into his flesh, her promise to match his trust with her own.

Fenn snarled, a primal sound as his grip tightened on her hips. Chasing her pleasure, Serenna matched his rhythm, surrendering to the fire coursing through her veins. Her breaths quickened in time with his groans as he guided her movements along his length.

“Fenn,” Serenna gasped, her voice breaking on his name, needing more of him.

Fenn’s lips curved with wicked knowing. A squeeze to her backside drew a startled squeak from her, the sound morphing into a breathless laugh. He swept her from the shower and carried her to a counter.

Serenna squirmed, chilled marble meeting her bare skin when he set her down. Fenn slid the head of his arousal against her seam, teasing her center. Leaning forward, his warmth surrounded her, his lips claiming hers once more.

Locking her legs around his waist, Serenna dug her fingers into his biceps, tugging him closer. A low sound rumbled in Fenn’s throat when he sank into her a fraction, their ragged gasps tangling in the heated air. When she lifted her hips, Fenn surged forward, plunging deeper, her body taking in more.

Reality splintered, leaving behind only the tempest of shared desire. Serenna’s head fell back, a moan slipping free at the way he stretched her, at the way her body yielded to his girth.

Bracing a claw beside her hip, Fenn cradled her shoulders with the other, swearing softly into her neck. Leaning back on her hands, Serenna arched into his touch, moving with him, each slow thrust building a delicious ache.

As he moved to clutch the tops of her thighs, Serenna’s gaze swept over him, eyes lingering on the way he moved, how every muscle coiled and flexed. Water beaded along the ridges of his stomach, catching on the hard lines of his scars, his jewelry clinking faintly with every stroke.

Serenna rocked with him, every rolling movement reeling her closer to the edge. Fenn retreated, not quite letting her fall. The loss left her breathless, but he drove back into her, filling her completely.

Returning to her mouth, Fenn tugged her bottom lip between his teeth. His fangs grazed her skin, the scrape sending a shiver cascading down her spine. Serenna cupped his face, surrendering to the sounds he dragged from her, each noise breaking free from a place beyond control.

Brimming with smug satisfaction, Fenn smirked against her lips, triumph sparking as he seated himself fully. His hips rotated with slow precision, each deliberate motion a torment so exquisite it left her writhing. Serenna gasped as his claws drifted from her thighs, sliding upward to claim her breasts, rolling her sensitive peaks between his talons with reverent roughness.

“Touch yourself,” Fenn growled, his voice now a heated command. He froze, eyes glowing as they shackled her with the unspoken dare.

Primal heat ignited as Serenna nearly shivered with an inexplicable frenzy at his order. Even as warmth flushed her cheeks under his attention, her breath quickened. She held his gaze, embracing the challenge in his eyes, and let her fingers slip between them—eager to obey.

Tracking her movements with a lethal intensity, Fenn remained preternaturally still, his chest rising and falling faster than hers. He gave a low, satisfied rumble and sealed it with a kiss, his tongue sweeping past her teeth to dance with hers before drawing back.

Circling her fingers over her pulsing flesh, Serenna ground her hips into Fenn’s, tension twisting tighter with every motion. Her inner walls fluttered around his steel length—then she shattered. Stars burst behind her eyes as her body clenched around his, her cry piercing the air.

Fenn snarled and surged forward, driving deeper with relentless strokes. She sensed his pleasure erupting like oil catching flame, searing through her in blinding pleasure. The connection rippled with crashing waves, each one sharpening her awareness of him—of his fierce devotion, his undeniable need, his undying affection. Fenn shuddered against her as he spilled into her, each pulse of his release claiming her in ways that defied words.

Breathless and trembling, Serenna’s ears rang as her blood pounded, the echo of sensation leaving her half-dazed. She clung to Fenn, bracing herself as the world came back into focus one heartbeat at a time. The bond thrummed faintly now, a soft echo of their shared ecstasy, their hearts beating in perfect tandem—a harmony of belonging.

Fenn rested his forehead against hers as they caught their breath. “These magics…” He let out a rough chuckle. “I didn’t realize we’d feel each other’s pleasure like that.”

Unable even to form words, Serenna huffed a laugh, sweeping his hair out of his eyes.

“Let’s get you warmed back up,” Fenn said, wrapping his arms around her, his heat chasing away the cold. “And after that,” he added, “a few hours of sleep would be most welcome.”