Page 59 of Drown Me Gently

The kiss exploded between them. Ulric kissed him back like he’d been starving for it. He gripped Auren’s hips possessively, anchoring their bodies.

Their tongues danced, tasting, teasing, testing. And when Auren broke away to suck at the hollow of Ulric’s throat, the Kraken groaned low in his chest—a sound so deep it vibrated the bones in his ribs.

He couldn’t help it.

His hips rolled upward, grinding against Auren’s. Auren gasped and did the same, and suddenly they were moving together, hungry, bodies aligned in perfect rhythm.

Their arousals strained against fabric, barely contained. Ulric’s head dropped back as Auren’s hips rocked again, and a tremor ran through him.

He was seconds from losing control.

His hands slid lower, dipping beneath the hem of Auren’s trousers, cupping the prince’s ass—firm and sculpted, like it had been made to fit in his palms.

But just as his fingers flexed, ready to take more, a bolt of clarity hit him, like the cold spray of water.

No.

He tore his hands away, gasping.

“Auren,” he panted. “We can’t. You’re still healing. I won’t take advantage of you like this.”

Auren blinked, lips swollen from kissing, chest heaving. A trace of sadness touched his face as he sat back.

“This body is new to me,” he whispered.

He touched his upper arm, below the shoulder, where Elias had once split his skin open to poke and prod at the muscle beneath. The mark was faint now, but still there. Still a scar that no magic could fully erase.

“All I’ve ever known in this form is pain,” Auren whispered. “I want to forget it. And… and when I’m with you, like this, it feels… good.” Auren looked away as he said it, cheeks flushed. “I want to forget the pain. I want to erase it and replace it with… you.”

Ulric couldn’t bear it.

He surged forward and pulled Auren into a fierce embrace, pressing his lips to his temple.

“If that is what you want,” he said, voice shaking, “then I will banish those memories. I will carve away every scar with pleasure. I’ll replace them with something you won’t want to forget. And it will all belong to you.” He cupped Auren’s cheek and pulled back, eyes searching. “Is that what you want of me, my prince?”

Auren nodded.

And then the fire roared hotter.

They kissed again, hungrier this time. Messier. Ulric lifted him easily, carrying him to the bed without breaking contact. He lay Auren on the pillows, worshiping him with every brush of his lips.

Ulric undid the laces of his pants, sliding them from his smooth legs, until Auren lay beneath him in nothing but firelight. And gods… he was breathtaking. His manhood was long, thick, flushed, and perfect. Ulric had never seen anything so divine. So powerful. So tender all at once. He knelt between Auren’s legs and wrapped a hand around him—marveling at the way Auren cried out, head tipping back, body arching into the touch.

“Does that feel good, my prince?”

Auren’s mouth remained open, gasping at the new sensation.

“It-it’s very sensitive. I… it looks different now,” he said, struggling to find words as Ulric continued to touch him.

“Yes, an interesting part of the human body. It hardens when aroused, and by the looks of it, you’re very aroused, spriteling. Are you not?”

Auren nodded.

“Would you like me to continue? I know a great deal about the human body.”

“Please,” Auren begged, fists clenching and unclenching.

“You’re stunning like this,” Ulric whispered, holding back the words he could not say.