Page 26 of Witch’s Ruin

He snorted.

I removed my robe, letting it fall to the ground. Rixon’s eyes darkened. Then I undid the buttons and slipped into the gown, pulling it up over my shoulders. It slid over my skin like a memory, reminding me of a different time, a different world. I shivered at the soft feel of it.

Growing up, the country dances I had attended were a highlight, especially as I’d approached my teenage years. Now, I had a male to enjoy me, dressed like this. Pulling my hair to the side, I turned my back to him, facing the mirror. He set his glass down and strode over.

The space between us heated.

His fingers brushed against my bare back, sending a shiver down my spine. He didn’t fuss with the buttons. Instead, he laid his lips on the base of my neck, right where it met my spine. My abdominal muscles tightened. “My, my, Lady Witch.” The warmth of his tongue followed his lips. He licked up the column of my neck to my hairline, the action possessive. I groaned, watching him do it in the reflection. “I’m afraid I won’t get all these buttons done before I’m ready to pull this thing off you.”

I captured my bottom lip between my teeth. “You could always fuck me with it on.” He looked up then, eyes catching mine in the reflection. His pupils darkened. He liked the sound of that.

His fingers made quick work of the buttons, then. He was doing the last as the dinner bell began to ring. I groaned—denied. All this fussing had wetness pooling between my thighs.

Rixon pulled me against him. He ground his hips against me, letting me feel the length of his erection. “This will be waiting for later,” he said against my ear, his voice a low warning. “I’m going to fuck you in this dress, Mina, with your skirts hiked around your waist.”

A desperate gasp fell from my lips. I squeezed my thighs together. He glanced down at my reflection, then grabbed fistfuls of my skirt, began hiking it up, revealing my bare legs. I watched my reflection as he slipped a finger into my folds.

My breaths turned shallow.

Seeing his hand work me was almost too much. My knees weakened. He didn’t let me fall, held fast to my waist, keeping me pressed against him.

Heat built, sending tingles up through the base of my spine. “Oh, gods!” I cried, voice warping, head falling against his shoulder, eyes fixed on our bodies. It was so, so erotic.

“You’re dripping, little witch. So desperate for what only I can give you.”

“Yes,” I managed. “Yes!”

My eyes turned completely black, the sight sending shivers over my arms. The thing that looked back at me—it wasn’t me. A slow, feral grin spread across my lips in greeting.

Rixon began working me harder, until my hips met his thrusts. “That’s it, little demon. Claim your pleasure. I love when you fuck my hand.” The demonic power in me surged. My body tightened around him, clenching, as my pleasure built and then—

He ripped his hand away. “No…no no no,” I screeched, trying to grab it, to capture it in mine, trying to put it back where it belonged. The promise of my orgasm fragmented and disappeared.

He brought his slick fingers to his lips and licked them clean. A bell tolled again—the final warning.

“We need to leave. Now.”

“No,” I gasped, breathless. “Please.”

He released me. I stumbled forward, catching myself with a palm slapped against the mirror, leaving my fingerprints behind. Rixon was already grabbing my arm, pulling me across the room. I barely saw our surroundings, head still spinning, body still screaming.

“I want you hungry for me, Aramina. Hungry and desperate. Behave yourself and I’ll reward you.”

I gaped, mouth working like a starved fish.

When I next blinked, we were striding through the door. The palace swam back into view. I had minutes to control myself, to regain composure. I would need every bit of it, for what was to come.

Chapter 10

Rixon

Rixon adjusted his pants before leading Mina into the palace dining room. It was all wood and gilded pillars, rich tapestries, and beautiful statues. Servants in livery flanked every door, lined the walls, and waited to pull out chairs. His father kept a large table, seating nearly one hundred. There were always seat markers, with elegantly scrawled names on card stock; he remembered from his childhood. The king sat at the head, and no one at the foot. That was his mother’s place before she’d died, and presumably, it was never filled. A quick glance confirmed this. There was still a card with her name. Queen Leone Kozma.

His chest seized. Thirty years. For thirty years his father had kept that damn card in place. He swallowed against the building ache in his throat.

He hated the male, yet, he couldn’t deny the strange emotion, knowing his father refused to replace his mother. That King Maddox Kozma loved Leone, would never love another the same way. Sure, he’d taken bedmates, but they were just a means to an end.

He led Mina towards the head and exhaled. He found cards with both their names, but he’d half expected to only find his. The games his father played were unpredictable.