Page 49 of The Jester

He is standing by the window, facing away from me. One arm is braced on the wall, his wings spread wide and trembling. I creep into the room and slip into the shadows, moving until I can see past his wings.

Catching full view of his body, I swallow a murmur of surprise.

He is completely naked. And while he punches the wall with one fist, his other arm is moving in fast, jerky motions, his fingers curled tightly around a large, throbbing erection.

He groans louder, letting out a shaky breath. Then he calls my name again, and treacherous wetness floods my core.

How can I want him so badly when I fear him so much? When I fear his power, his control over me, and the darkness that lurks in his soul.

“He is evil,” Briony said. “He has done unspeakable things.”

And yet this evil, dark, all-powerful creature is using my name to bring him to climax.

My fingers find the hem of my dress and slide it up my thighs, my gaze fixed on the twisted shapes that his wings cast on the wall.

Eldrion’s muscles ripple as his hips thrust forward, the sound of his laboured breathing mingling with the soft whisper of the wind outside the window.

As the room swirls with shadow and light, I lose myself in the rhythm of my name on his lips, aching to touch the damp heat between my legs.

A low growl escapes his lips, and he turns his head.

For a moment, I cannot breathe because I am certain he has seen me, but then he closes his eyes, releases another loud moan, and tightens his grip on his cock.

Moving my underwear to one side, I slip my fingers past the lace and begin to circle my clit. My nipples are hard, straining against the silk fabric of the corset I wear beneath my dress. My breath quickens, but I do not close my eyes. I keep them on him.

I watch his shoulders ripple, and his stomach tense. I see the veins in his arms, and the way his breath hitches as pleasure builds inside him.

“Fuck, Alana...” He turns around, away from the window, and the hand that was braced against the wall throws a bundle of light into the centre of the room.

My fingers slow. I cannot breathe.

For there, suspended in the middle of the room, is a shimmering vision of a body I recognise.

My body.

I am naked, tied to a wall with chains around my wrists. And Eldrion is in front of me. As he stalks towards me, his silver hair moves softly over his shoulders. He roughly takes my chin in his hand, then kisses me.

And it is at that moment I realise I am not a prisoner in his vision but a lover.

He kisses me deeply, then drags his lips down my throat to my naked breasts. He sucks one nipple playfully into his mouth, kneading it with his expert tongue.

As I watch, my fingers return to my clit and Eldrion – the real one, the one who is standing just feet away from me watching the same thing I am – starts jerking his cock once more.

He stands, stock-still, watching the vision play out.

Is he doing this? Is this what he was picturing when he was standing by the window?

The version of me that is chained up wraps her legs around Eldrion and cries out as he enters her. I stifle a moan, biting the back of my hand so hard I draw blood.

Then the vision disappears. Eldrion drops to his knees and comes hard onto the floor, hot come drenching the stone beneath him.

He stays there a moment, breathing hard, then sits back on his knees and scrapes his hand through his hair.

It is when he smiles that my orgasm takes over.

Because it is the first time I have seen him look anything other than deadly.

He smiles, and shakes his head. “Fuck, that woman. She will end me,” he mutters.

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