Page 104 of Tower of Ash and Darkness (Tower of Ash #1)

A soft sound slips from my throat, unbidden, as I roll my hips against him, the friction setting fire to something deep and low in my belly.

My fingers thread into his hair, pulling him closer, grounding myself in the way his mouth devours mine—hot and unrelenting, like I’m the only thing keeping him tethered to the earth.

His name tumbles from my lips again as I wrap my arms tighter around his neck.

There’s no space between us now, no air, no thought. Only heat. Only want.

He doesn’t speak. He doesn’t have to. One hand slides down with maddening control, unfastening his trousers and freeing himself with a shuddering breath.

His cock presses against me—hard, hot, pulsing with restraint—and I slide from his lap without a word, my body already aching to please him. To consume him.

I sink to my knees between his thighs, my breath brushing over the length of him before I take him in.

The taste of him is salt and sin, heady and intoxicating, and when I hollow my cheeks around him, he groans—a deep, guttural sound torn from his core.

His head falls back, his fingers twisting into my hair as he fights for control he no longer has.

“Fuck…” he growls.

I take him deeper, dragging my tongue along every inch, and he twitches against it, hips jerking as his pleasure coils tight.

He pulls me up roughly, mouth colliding with mine, savoring the taste of himself on my lips.

I moan into his mouth, needing him, needing more , and he gives it without question.

Casper lifts me easily, settling me back into his lap, guiding me with a reverence that borders on worship. I hover just above him, the swollen head of his cock brushing my entrance, and for a moment, we both pause—our eyes locked, our breath trembling between us.

Then, I lower myself onto him.

The stretch is slow, devastatingly full, and it rips a moan from my throat that barely sounds human. He fills me completely, until there's no space left for anything else. Just him. Only him.

“Gods…” I gasp, my head falling forward against his shoulder, my nails biting into his skin.

“You feel like fucking heaven,” he breathes, his voice cracked, like I’m breaking him apart from the inside. “Like home. Like every fucking thing I’ve ever wanted.”

His hands rise to cradle my face, his thumbs brushing my cheeks as he forces me to look at him.

“I want you to fuck yourself on me,” he says, deep and pleading, every word shaking with the weight of need. “Let me watch you fall apart.”

I brush my lips across his, teasing, tasting, before pulling back with a breathless smirk. Then I begin to move—slow, rolling thrusts that drag every inch of him through me. His hands grip my waist, but he lets me lead, lets me take what I want.

“Please,” he whispers, voice wavering as he watches me ride him.

My pace quickens, the rhythm becoming more forceful. My hands slide up his chest, over the frantic beat of his undead heart, before curling around his shoulders for balance. He meets my rhythm with his own, thrusting up into me with every movement, each one rougher, more desperate.

“That’s it, Princess,” he growls, one hand rising to grip the back of my neck, the other splayed over my hip. “Look at me. Fuck yourself on me.”

I moan loudly, my body shuddering, my thighs trembling with every stroke. His mouth finds mine again, all tongue and teeth and heat, and when he pulls back, his eyes are wild—glowing with something that borders on madness.

“Do you want me to stop?” he asks, a dangerous edge in his voice.

I shake my head, panting, wordless with the sheer pleasure of it. He leans back, laying beneath me, but he doesn’t stop. His thrusts grow deeper, more punishing, and I ride him harder, chasing the pressure that’s building inside me.

“I’m close,” I breathe.

“Not yet,” he growls, and he drives into me faster, sending me hurtling toward the edge.

“Casper…” I gasp, “Gods, please…”

“Tell me you’re mine,” he demands, his voice like a rope dragging me back into my body.

“I’m yours.” I moan, falling apart again.

“Say it again.”

“I’m yours , Casper.”

“Fuck—come for me,” he chokes out, his body jerking beneath me as he finds his release, spilling inside me with a broken growl. And I break, shattering around him with an echoing cry.

He doesn’t stop. Even as the tremors fade, he lifts me gently, only to slide his fingers into me as if marking me from the inside. The overstimulation sends another wave through me, my body twitching as he brings his fingers to his lips, tasting what’s left of us.

His gaze never leaves mine.

“You’re mine,” he murmurs, his voice soft yet firm, like a vow.

I meet his gaze, my heart pounding as his words sink in.

“I’m yours.” I whisper back.

Casper lifts a hand, brushing a stray lock of hair behind my ear. Then he leans in, pressing a soft, lingering kiss to my lips—gentle, unhurried, like a secret meant only for me. When he finally pulls away, we sit up together, the spell between us dissipating into something quieter.

Our eyes drift to the mess surrounding us—the wine spilled across the floor, the forgotten remnants of our meal scattered in disarray.

It should feel jarring, like the aftermath of a storm.

But instead, a laugh rises from me, breaking the silence like sunlight slipping through clouds.

Somehow, the chaos only makes it all feel more real .

Casper smiles, then reaches for my hands and rises, guiding me up with him.

“Do you trust me?” he asks. His voice is calm, but there’s a flicker of mischief dancing in his eyes.

“Always.”

He lifts me into his arms as if I weigh nothing. My hands fly to his shoulders, gripping tight as I see his eyes are fixed ahead as he runs toward the pool, full of some quiet determination that instantly makes me suspicious.

“Casper, what are you?—?”

But I don’t get to finish. The shock of the cold water surrounds me, pulling me under before I can catch my breath. I break the surface, gasping, just as Casper bursts through the waves beside me—grinning like a boy who’s just stolen the sun and gotten away with it.

There’s something reckless and bright in him, something untouched, and for a breathless moment, I see the ghost of who he might’ve been had the world not asked him to bleed for it.

“You’re crazy !” I laugh, breathless, splashing water straight into his face.

He chuckles, his joy infectious. Then, he swims toward me, stretching out his arms to pull me close.

My legs instinctively wrap around his waist as he holds me steady, the water swirling around us.

I place my hands around his neck, drawing him into a kiss, deeper now, as if the rest of the world has disappeared.

Casper pulls us beneath the water, the coolness enveloping us, the kiss deepening as we move together.

Beneath the surface, I feel only the rush of water, the warmth of his body, and the safety of his arms. I could stay here forever, lost in the moment, in the silent promise he’s made to hold me, in the space between breaths, in the peace of being fully alive with him.

Only him.