My forehead falls to hers, our breaths mingling and bodies molding.
“I will love you until the sun implodes and the stars no longer shine,” I whisper. A pledge. A promise. My lips hover over hers, and when she closes the gap, all I can think is:Finally. I’ve been craving her sweetness on my tongue all night. Forever. This woman is everything I’ve ever dreamed of and more. Our tongues tangle together in a slow, luxurious dance as I tell my girl how much I love her without uttering a word.
We come together with the ferocity of a hurricane. Skirts yanked up. Trousers tugged down. Hands roaming, taking and giving. With the ecstasy of her body enveloping mine, I know I’m not going to last, but I will have eternity to make it up to her. Next time, we’ll be in our own bed. Next time, I’ll take it slow. Next time, we’ll make love. This joining is about claiming.
Allette’s head falls back, and my teeth drag along her throat. When I reach the place where her neck meets her shoulder, I have this uncontrollable urge to clamp down a little harder.
“Did you justbiteme?” she gasps.
Shit. I did. I just bit her. What sort of madness has come over me? I didn’t mean to hurt her. I never want to cause her pain. “I’m sorry, I?—”
Her hand slides down to cup the back of my neck and pull my head to the side. Her teeth sink into the same spot on my neck. The flash of pain is nothing compared to the pleasure of her marking me as hers.
When she does it again, what little grip I still have on my control slips, and I find my end with a final thrust. Our panting breaths fall in time, our chests heaving against each other.
I press a soft kiss to her temple, my cheeks warming. “Well, that is embarrassing.”
Her hair falls into her face when she shakes her head. “No. I love that I can make you lose yourself.”
“You don’t make me feel lost, Allette. You make me feel found.”
Her answering smile is like watching a beautiful sunrise.
But then her smile slips, and she darts a glance out the empty window. “Eason.”
Feral possessiveness grips my chest, burning like a fever beneath my skin. “Tell me you didn’t just say another man’s name while my cock is still inside you.” I nip at her swollen lips. This woman is mine, and if another man even thinks of looking at her, I’ll spill his entrails before he can blink.
Allette’s hands press against my chest, taming my raging heart. “Calm down. I’m only worried he won’t bring Wynn home.”
“He will.” The fool will wrongly assume that I returned to Kumulus and carry Allette’s friend back to our kingdom. By the time he realizes I’m not there, it will be too late.
Allette and I will be long gone by the next Samhain festival.
We’ll both be free.
I withdraw from her body and adjust my trousers before helping with her undergarments and skirts. Seeing my cum glistening between her thighs makes me want to claim her again.
Once we’re put to rights, Allette folds her arms around herself and tucks her hands beneath her armpits. I’m still overheated from our coupling, but that will soon fade. If we’re to stay here for what remains of the night, we need to find a different way to warm up.
When I step away, her lips purse into the most edible pout. “Don’t make that face. I’m just going to start a fire.”
“Look at you being chivalrous.”
“What can I say? I love your fingers and toes too much to let them fall off.”
With a light laugh, Allette runs her finger along the window frame. “This place could use some curtains. Blue ones.”
I kneel next to the fireplace, craning my neck to check if the chimney is blocked. Seems clear. I suppose we’ll find out soon enough. “It needs windows first. And a new floor.” And a new kitchen and door. Not that we’re going to stay in this place. I’m sure squatting is as illegal here as it is up in Kumulus.
Allette sinks next to me, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “Are we really doing this?”
It’s too late to turn back now. Once the bond is in place, it can never be removed. She is mine, and I’m hers, betrothals and princesses be damned. “We’re really doing this.”
Allette nods toward the lone log sitting on the grate. “Do you even know how to start a fire?”
“I’m a fire elemental, of course I know how to start a fire.” I’ve been calling flames to my palm since I learned to wield my element at ten years old. “Your lack of faith wounds me.”
“You shouldn’t use your element. What if your glamour fails? Better safe than sorry.”