Page 41 of Heart of the Villain

She had to bite her lip hard enough to taste blood to keep herself from screaming. The moan rumbled in her chest, her whole body tightening as her body ruptured with pleasure.

Arlet let go of her nipple and kissed up her neck. Marlena’s quieted moans vibrated down her throat. “That’s the hottest thing I’ve ever seen. Fuck.” She kept her fingers moving in and out, letting Marlena ride out the rest of her orgasm.

Marlena’s chest rose in sharp inhales, and she felt like she was fluttering down from another world. Her whole body sang with release.

Arlet slipped her fingers out and immediately brought them to her lips, lapping up Marlena’s cum. “You taste better than I imagined you could.”

Finally able to form a coherent thought, Marlena smiled lazily and leaned in to lick what was left of herself off Arlet’s lips. “Next time I’ll teach you how to go down on me so you can really get a good taste.”

Marlena pulled herself off Arlet’s lap, and both of them collapsed beside each other. Their heavy breathing and the crackling fire were the only sounds in the room for a while, until Arlet broke their silence. “So, there’s gonna be a next time then, huh?”

Smiling devilishly, Marlena turned her head. “Give me three minutes to catch my breath, and I’ll make sure you’re a pro by the time you leave my room in the morning.”

Arlet didn’t wait, springing up to her knees to position herself over Marlena. “How about you lie there, and I’ll get started early?”

Without hesitation, Arlet sank between Marlena’s thighs and ran her tongue up the length of Marlena’s slit.

Her body shuddered from the sensitivity of her last orgasm. Marlena grabbed a handful of the comforter underneath them and, as Arlet effortlessly brought her to another climax, thought to herself, I’m fucked.

Twenty-One Years Old

The house was empty of everyone but Ivelle when Marlena finally rolled out of bed and freshened herself up for the day.

It had been a long night. One where neither Arlet nor Marlena got a wink of sleep before she snuck out and left with Khort.

When they’d heard him stir, his heavy steps echoing down the hall, Arlet slipped out with the lie that she’d fallen asleep on the couch in Marlena’s office after finding a book to read.

Arlet never read books…

Ivelle sat at the kitchen table with a danish and a cup of tea, watching the snow that had continued overnight.

“Good morning.” Marlena stood at the island, eyeing Ivelle as one of the maids poured her a cup of tea.

Ivelle didn’t turn around, ignoring her. And to no one’s surprise, that sent a fireball of anger roaring through Marlena.

Marlena’s wind shot out of her body like little tendrils, rushing around the room and pushing Ivelle’s chair back with a loud screech from the legs grinding against the floor. Ivelle’s eyes grew wide, searching the room for Marlena, but she was gone.

She dropped the cloak of her invisibility when she stood directly in front of Ivelle, bending at the waist to meet her eye level. “It’s insanely rude to ignore someone in their own home. In the home you now live in, mind you.” Marlena stared into Ivelle’s green eyes, watching her try to school her features into neutrality.

“What the fuck is your problem?” Ivelle asked, doing a good job at pretending she wasn’t flustered.

Marlena painted a pretty smile on her face, standing up straight. “You and your bad attitude. You’re acting like a child. No one would ever believe you’re, what? Four years older than I am? You should be grateful I’m willing to take you in.”

Ivelle barked a laugh laced with venom. “I should be grateful? No, more like you should be grateful.” Ivelle stood, not quite as tall as Marlena but tall enough to look her dead in the eye. “If it weren’t for this little deal, you wouldn’t be getting Amora this early.”

Marlena’s teeth ground together so hard they might shatter to bits. “If it weren’t for me taking you in like a lost fucking puppy, you’d have nowhere else to go. It’s clear your mother is at her wits’ end with you, and your father didn’t even show up to your own relegation.” Marlena raised a brow. “What’s that about?”

“You know nothing about me, Marlena. You know nothing of what I’ve been through.” Ivelle was beautiful, with wavy red hair that reached the small of her back and green eyes the color of a blooming garden in spring. All of her facial features were soft, her cheekbones round, her nose the perfect little slope. Everything about her was Amora-born. “While you and your sister got handed everything you ever wanted, some of us were left in the dark, being stripped of what was rightfully ours.” A fire burned behind her eyes, its embers built off years of resentment.

She sounds just like me. A languid, bubbling laugh erupted from Marlena’s stomach. If only someone could have laid witness to what she’d endured as a child—up until a few years ago, Marlena was still wearing daily bruises from her parents' love.

Ivelle stood still as can be, watching Marlena until she caught her breath.

“That’s a good one.” Marlena’s smile fell from her face without warning, and she stepped in close to Ivelle, crowding her space. “I want you to listen to me, loud and clear, you got it?” Of course Ivelle didn’t move, but that didn’t rattle Marlena. “You’re not going to assume anything about me. You’re not going to pretend you know how I was raised or what I had to do to get where I am now.”

Marlena had lost parts of herself. What would she have been like if her parents weren’t her parents… if she’d been born into another life?

If they had loved her like they loved Vega…