“Do you?” he asked, his words a breath against my ear. “It won’t be sweet or romantic, but hard and fast. It might hurt.”
“Will you bite me?” I asked him.
“If you want me to.”
“I do.” I hadn’t been aware the first two times he’d bitten me, and I really wanted to feel him, to make this moment just about us and our unique connection to one another.
“It’ll finalize our mating bond,” he warned.
“I know.” I wasn’t afraid of it. We were already on a wild ride together, so we might as well finalize it and see where it went. That he wanted to do it here, in the middle of my element, only made it that much more powerful and intense.
His lips drew an enticing path along my jaw, leading his mouth to feather over mine. “Be sure, Aflora.”
“I am,” I promised him, my nails dragging along his shoulder to his neck and then into his hair to hold his head where I wanted it. “I want you inside me, Zeph.” I meant the phrase in every way it could be interpreted but decided to seal the deal with the two words I knew he truly wanted to hear. Because Zeph was all about communication and trust. “Fuck me.”
He shuddered against me, any restraint he had in place dissolving in a second.
And his mouth took mine.
It wasn’t a gentle kiss but a claim, his tongue dominating mine. But I held my own, refusing to bow completely, meeting him as a match, and challenging him at every turn.
If he wanted to own me, he’d have to win me.
And I wouldn’t bow easily.
Not tonight.
Not while surrounded by power that fueled the energy source inside me.
This was my domain, not his. And queens did not kneel unless they wanted to.
He smiled against my mouth, his amusement palpable. “Oh, Aflora, you just made this that much better.” His fingers dug into my hips as he captured my lips once more, his kiss savage and violent in the best way.
A warrior.
My warrior.
There were moments when I hated him, but he more than made up for it during the times when I adored him.
Times like now.
He’d brought me to this place, wooed me unintentionally with the familiarity of the earth, and now I intended to let him claim his reward.
My sweater disappeared again, followed by his own. I hissed as his bare chest met mine, my bra seeming to have vanished beneath his touch. He cupped my cheek, his tongue enchanting mine into a sensual duel I never wanted to end. I ran my palms over his bare back, loving the way his muscles flexed and moved.
He was all strength and man.
Experienced and knowing.
Velvety smooth and hard as a rock.
“Zeph,” I moaned, arching into him as he unbuttoned my jeans. My zipper slid down, the sound echoing in the night, accompanied by the shuffle of fabric and boots as he fully undressed me, leaving me naked against the tree. He took a step back to admire the view, his Midnight Fae eyes allowing him to see what a human wouldn’t be able to.
It made him predatory.
Cruel.
A sleek panther in the dark.