Page 199 of Of Masks and Fury

I crushed my mouth against hers, pouring everything into the kiss. The terror of almost losing her. My fury about Lord Alfred. The desperate need to claim and protect and possess. She met me with equal ferocity, her nails digging into my sides as she pulled me closer.

Our magic sparked where we touched. The four-poster bed’s gauzy curtains created an intimate cocoon around us, blocking out everything except this moment, this woman and this need.

My gaze swept over her, and a fresh wave of possessiveness crashed through me. The silver light worshipped the curves of her hips, the dip of her belly, and the pale skin of her thighs. A look wasn’t enough. I needed to taste her.

Every scar on her body told a story of battles won, of a woman who’d faced down empires and emerged unbreakable. My fierce moonlit warrior. Our magic responded, golden tendrils curling around hers like lovers reuniting after years, throbbing with heat that made her skin flush.

“Are you going to spend all night only devouring me with your eyes, or do you have something more to offer?” Her husky challenge echoed the times we’d sparred on the mat, now softened by desire. Her fingers trailed over my bare chest, mapping the fresh bandages with a tenderness that stole my breath.

I lowered my head, my lips tracing the line of her ribs down to the faint indentation of a long-healed scar on her side. I kissed it, a silent promise to protect her from any new ones.

“Beautiful,” I whispered against her skin, gliding my tongue lower.

She gasped, her fingers tangling in my hair, her hips tilting up to meet my mouth. My hands slid from her waist to her thighs, stroking the exquisitely sensitive skin on the inside. She was already slick for me, her scent filling my senses and shredding the last of my patience.

I was on the edge of losing myself completely, of just pushing her down and taking her right there. But I needed more. The image of her, waiting for me, offering herself to me, was a fantasy I’d held onto what felt like forever. I pulled back enough to look into her dazed eyes.

“Turn over,” I said. “On your hands and knees, Minx.”

She did as I asked. The sight of her like that, willing and wanting, made heat coil tight in my belly.

I positioned myself behind her, spanning her waist as I pulled her back against me. The soft curve of her rear pressed against my aching length, and I had to close my eyes to keep from exploding.

“Please,” she breathed, arching her back.

I entered her in one smooth thrust that pulled a gasp from both our throats. She fit against me like she’d been made for this, like I’d been unmade just to be remade around her.

For a moment I stayed still, buried deep, feeling her pulse around me. I tightened my hands on her waist as I fought against the primal urge to simply take.

“Move,” she growled, pushing back against me. “Trew. Move.”

I pulled back until I was nearly free, then drove forward again. Her cry echoed in the quiet room, spurring me on.

But she twisted enough to glance over her shoulder, eyes gleaming with mischief. “Is that all you’ve got, my king? I survived your enemies; I can handle you.” Her words were a challenge wrapped in affection, stoking the fire in my blood.

I grinned, feral, leaning forward to capture her lips in a messy, sideways kiss. “Careful what you wish for, love. I’ll ruin you for anyone else.”

She laughed, low and throaty, twisting further to nip at my jaw. “Darling, I’ve been ruined since the day I tried to hate you and failed spectacularly.”

Her words unraveled me. She was mine, body and soul.

I set a rhythm that was part desperation and part worship, each thrust deeper than the last, our magic flaring like auroras across our skin. Gold and silver sparks bloomed where we joined, heightening every slick glide to something divine, like fate itself knitting us tighter.

The angle let me reach places that made her whimper, made her fingers curl into the bedding. I watched my length disappear into her again and again, mesmerized by the sight of our joining.

“You feel amazing,” I growled, sliding one hand up her spine to fist in her hair. Not pulling hard enough to hurt. “Every perfect bit of you belongs to me.”

Our magic flared brighter. I could feel her through our bond, feel her building pleasure with each thrust.

But I needed more. Needed to see her face, needed to watch her come apart beneath me.

I pulled out despite her protest and rolled her onto her back. Before she could process the change, I hitched up her legs and entered her again in one quick thrust that made us both groan.

She tightened her legs around my waist, pulling me deeper. I braced my weight on my forearms, caging her beneath me, covering her completely.

Her hands came up to frame my face, her thumbs stroking across my cheekbones. “I love you,” she whispered, her eyes shining with tears. “Whatever happens next, whatever we face. I love you.”

I dropped my forehead to hers, our breath mingling as I moved inside her with long strokes.