The oppressive silence of the early morning gave me too much time to think.
Lirien needed me—didn’t it?
But how was I supposed to leave her here?
Her soul had been threaded with mine in a way I’d never known was possible. In a way that felt like obsession. I wanted her in every way—as a wife, a lover, a queen, a friend, a counselor. In ways I couldn’t think of or verbalize.
She thought she loved me. That she knew me. Would she love the king of her enemies? The prince who’d once been labeled the scourge of her people? And if I turned my back on that divinely appointed path—would she love the man who’d chosen her over honor?
As the darkness of my thoughts sprouted long claws that dug into my chest, my lips dropped to her jaw, my hand smoothing forward across the flat plane of her stomach.
She groaned softly, a light laugh leaving her lips as she woke. Her lips found mine immediately and she kissed me softly, then smiled. “You don’t intend on letting me sleep at all this morning, do you?”
“Sleep is a waste of time,” I growled possessively in her ear, my hand sliding down to stroke her swollen, slick clit. “Especially when you’re facing death.”
Gods, she’s so wet already.
“And if we survive tonight?” She moaned as I pushed her thighs apart with my knee, teasing her entrance with my cock.
“Then we’ll fuck in celebration all day tomorrow.” I flipped her onto her stomach. “Get on your hands and knees.”
She complied readily and I set my hands on her ass, admiring the view of her, splayed before me. The sight of that quivering, slick pussy made me somehow harden even more. I’d coated it with my cum so many times already tonight, claimed her, made her thoroughly mine and it wasn’t enough.
It would never be enough.
I thrust myself fully inside her, taking her so fast that she cried out in pain and pleasure, a groan ripping from her throat. “Did I hurt you?” I asked.
“Yes.” She reached between my legs and squeezed my balls. “But I liked it.”
This woman was going to drive me insane.
How could I satiate myself with fucking her? Nothing was enough.
This bond made sure of that.
Nothing would ever be enough—would it?
Or was it that lack of balance that had me this feral? I wanted to give her everything I had—but what if what I needed to give her was a literal piece of my soul, as she had given me?
A knock on the door made us both look back and I moved to pull away from her, but she clamped her hand harder against me. “Finish first,” she demanded.
I smiled and leaned down, my hand sliding around her waist to find her clit as I continued to thrust. “My pleasure, darling wife.”
Her moans began to grow louder and she reached for the pillow to bury her face against it.
I tugged it away from her with my free hand, thrusting harder.
As cries of ecstasy left her lips, I felt her tighten against my cock, her body shuddering and shaking against me. That undid me. I groaned and gave one final thrust as I released inside her, pulsing deep.
Gods almighty.
My fingers traced the curve of Seren’s spine. She was warm against me, soft despite the strength I knew lurked beneath. I’d spent a lifetime fighting battles, yet this was the first time I feared losing. Not a war, but her. Not the kingdom, but this.
A sharp knock shattered the thought. Seren tensed against me, and I cursed under my breath.
Heart hammering in my chest, I pulled away and lay back on the mattress. “I’m not sure I can walk.”
“Swiver. You’re going to make me answer the door?” Her cheeks were pink, her face flushed with pleasure. Combing her long hair over her shoulder, she shook her head at me, then stole the sheet off the bed and stood, wrapping it around her. “I’m dripping, you know,” she hissed.
