Page 39 of Vicious Princess (The Trials of Death and Honor #1)
With a growl, Daegel pulls out. The emptiness in me makes me whimper; I crave the sensation of him buried deep inside. He groans, and a heartbeat later, he laces my back with his hot cum. I lick my lips, savoring the sounds, sensations, and scents in that moment.
“Stay here. Don’t move.”
Daegel leaves me for a couple of minutes. I rest my head on the back of my hand while I wait. I’m exhausted and, finally, at peace. My mind is quiet.
When he returns, Daegel has a wet cloth in hand.
It’s warm and pleasant on my skin while he wipes my back.
I gasp and then giggle once he turns me over, holding me by the hips, and then spreads my legs.
I rest my feet on his shoulders. He gently kisses the insides of both my ankles and then cleans me up between my thighs, too.
Once he’s done cleaning up, he lies down next to me and pulls me closer to his chest. “Still remember your name?”
I tap my chin, pretending to think. “Mmmm… Unfortunately for you, yes.”
He buries his face in the crook of my neck and chuckles. “I enjoy a good challenge more than anything.”
Of course he does. It’s hard to miss how successful he is for a fae his age. Most with achievements like his have ambition that reaches beyond the sky.
I bite my bottom lip and then turn over to lie on my stomach. He lies down next to me on his back. With my finger, I trace the line of his jaw.
He’s stunning.
“That’s hot, I have to be honest,” I say quietly. “Your ambition and your drive.”
“I admire your ambition and drive, too, princess. You’re truly one of a kind.”
I snort a laugh.
“No, seriously,” he says. “How many humans would dare to even move to Ekios, let alone attempt to join the Order? It requires a special kind of person.”
“Yeah,” I say with a chuckle. “I must say, I greatly underestimated what I was getting myself into.”
He flashes me a smile. “Great ambition comes with pitfalls, too. One of them being overestimating our chances or underestimating our challenges. But I guess we need the delusion. It’s the only reason we attempt unreasonable feats in the first place.”
“True,” I say and rest my cheek on the back of my palms.
This, having him lie next to me, while both of us are naked and satisfied…it feels too good. All good things in life tend to end too soon.
I don’t want this to end.
For a moment, I’m overwhelmed with emotions so strong, I have a hard time controlling them.
“You’re distraught. Why’s that?” Daegel plants a soft kiss on my forehead. “That’s not how I want you to feel after having sex with me. Not when it’s this fucking good.”
I rest my palm in the middle of his chest. His heart beats steadily underneath.
“I know the first time we had sex, I told you I was only looking for fun, a way to blow off some steam. It probably gave you the wrong impression of who I am. I can’t do this whole casual-fuck thing.
It’s not who I am, even if I wish I were.
Not only is this dangerous because we’re breaking rules, it’s dangerous for my heart, too. ”
I try to pull away, but Daegel doesn’t let me.
“Who says this is a casual fuck?” His words make me pause. “I told you before, this is not something I do. Ever. Even back at that bar, I had every intention of seeing you again, and again. I don’t want this to be a casual thing, Phoenix.”
My chest is flooded with warmth.
“But… We can’t, can we? You’re my instructor and mentor. If we continue like this, they’ll find out. Kata already knows. I have no clue who else she told about the kiss! I can’t risk my future, my goals. Your whole career and reputation.”
“I don’t want to stay away from you or pretend I don’t want you. You can say whatever you want, but I can tell you don’t want that either. We’ll be careful until you graduate and join the Order,” he says. “Once you’re an Ezkai, there won’t be anything standing in our way.”
I still have doubts and fears. Yet I allow his assured words to soothe and convince me it’s true. If only for one night.
Daegel pushes a strand of wild hair away from my face. “Tell me, honestly, truly , how are you after the solitary confinement?”
I purse my lips. “It wasn’t fun. I felt like I was stripped of my personhood. Like I was just a shadow of who I truly am.”
The last words come out as a whisper.
“I’m sorry, Phoenix. Why did you get into a fight with Nightingale? Was it because she threatened you again?”
I shake my head. “She said something about my father that completely made me lose control.” I sigh and close my eyes.
“But I guess this confrontation will make things worse now. I was trying to convince her we’re more similar than we’re different, and look how it ended.
” My eyes snap open. “What if she already went to the administration?”
Daegel runs his fingers up and down my back in a calming way. “She hasn’t. I’d know about it.”
I frown. “Why are you so calm about this situation?”
He smirks, eyes focused on my back where he now draws a number of different shapes. “That’s because I know she won’t talk. I told you I’d take care of it. Don’t worry your pretty head about it, princess.”
My stomach is in knots. I don’t like that he doesn’t tell me how he’s handling this. I don’t like that he keeps me in the dark. That he doesn’t involve me in whatever it is he’s doing about our situation. Does he have friends in high places who can protect us?
“How will you take care of it?”
“I’ll tell you all about it when the time is right,” he says.
Before I can ask any more questions, he rolls me over onto my back and pins me to the floor. All thoughts scatter the moment his lips are over mine, and his hips settle between my thighs.