Page 3 of The Crimson Walls Of Algorath

It did not take long to find her release. It swept through her like an inferno, curling through her core to explode out through the rest of her. Her legs trembled as she stilled, her sex gripping him as she moaned his name and dropped her forehead against his shoulder.

“You’re so beautiful,” he breathed, taking advantage of her stillness to slowly rock his own hips up, riding out her undulating climax.

They were not done. He had yet to finish, and by the way his grip tightened on her, he was prepared to keep going. Ariadne would not complain. He often pushed her over the brink multiple times before they were done, and they had plenty of time to spare in the carriage alone.

Though the space was small, he shifted forward, arms supporting her back as he laid her out across the bench seat so their bodies never parted ways. He bent one knee beneath him, the other leg steadying him from the floor of the carriage, and pushed her skirts higher out of the way. When he spoke next, it was in a dark, gravelly tone. “Come for me again, my love.”

Ariadne had no time to respond—gods, she had no time to think—before he angled her hips up and thrust into her deep. Her cry of pleasure was sure to be heard from outside the carriage. She did not care. Let them hear the way he made her feel. Satisfied. Complete. Full—so very full.

He brought his mouth down on hers, silencing the next loud moan as he pumped his cock into her. Every stroke coaxed that inferno back to life and pushed her closer and closer to her breaking point. His free hand worked its way up her side to grasp her breast and tease her nipple through the tight fabric separating them.

“Do that again,” he growled against her throat, dragging his fangs over her artery. “Moan for me.”

She did as she was told. The sound, which usually spurred him into a frenzy, had him slowing his movements. The building tension in her core plateaued, and when she tried to thrust her hips up and gain more friction, he held her firm. “Azriel…”

He chuckled, low and dark. “Yes, my love?”

“I want more.”

“Mmm.” He nipped the shell of her ear, sliding his cock in and out slow and controlled. “Tell me how much more.”

His thumb rolled across her taut nipple just enough to send pleasure rippling through her body. She writhed under him, again trying to take more of him in her. “I want all of you.”

They had been the same words she said the morning of their wedding. He groaned in response and unleashed himself. Pounded into her, just as she had wanted, he drove her straight to the brink of release. She cried out again, taking every thick inch, and when he dug his fangs into her neck, she shattered—the feeling of him inside her in so many ways was more than she could handle.

He pulled the blood from her throat, his body tensing as he rode out her climax with his own. His low, throaty moan and tight grip on her hips punctuated the pinnacle of his pleasure. The final, urgent thrusts pushed deeper, nearly splitting her wide.

Azriel sat back, wiping his lips on the back of his hand, and looked down at her—taking in every exposed inch—with a curl of his mouth. He eased his cock from her and pulled his trousers back up to his hips to fasten them again. “I’m the luckiest man in the world.”

With a soft laugh, Ariadne savored the heat between her legs and pushed her skirts back down. “Never forget it.”

“Never,” he promised and helped her to sit up again so he could kiss her gently. “Until the very end, my love.”

She bit her lip as she leaned her head against the back of the carriage seat, eyes roving over him. Perhaps moving to Monsumbra, away from distractions, where she could indulge in him anytime she wished, would not be too bad after all.

They sat in contented silence for a long time after that. She closed her eyes and laid her head against his shoulder, and he curled a lock of her dark hair around his finger absently. The carriage jostled beneath them, keeping either from fully relaxing for a long time. Still, Ariadne somehow found sleep through the bumpy rhythm of the uneven highway. She drifted through a dreamless darkness until two knocks from the driver jolted her from the peace. Two knocks.

She knew what two knocks meant.

Her heart launched into her throat, eyes flying open, and she gripped Azriel’s arm. They had not heard of any dhemons near Laeton since the attack weeks ago. After Ehrun nearly died, he had left them alone. Why would he risk sending any of them back now? Revenge?

“Azriel, no,” she said and looked up at him with wide eyes.

But there were no screams as they trundled to a halt. Words in the common tongue were exchanged outside, and when Azriel peeked out the carriage window, his face paled. Not with anger. Not with hate. Not with disbelief.

With fear.

“What is it?” She leaned forward and glimpsed a crimson uniform just before the carriage door flew open and Azriel was dragged out.

Chapter 2

Ariadne watched in mute horror as the crimson-clad soldiers yanked Azriel’s arms behind his back. Shackles clinked, and they secured his wrists the moment his boots hit the ground. No offers of explanation. No more words exchanged. They flanked the Lord Governor, led by Captain Nikolai Jensen, with firm grips on both his arms.

They had not even reached the outer limits of Laeton before being stopped. The highway was still dotted with the farms that encircled the capital’s outskirts. They had been so close to escaping the prying eyes and gossiping tongues of the Society. So close to being free to live as they truly were. With him in chains, no one would forget. Not a second time.

Azriel lifted his head high, same as his arrest outside the Court House. “What’s the meaning of this?”

Though months had passed since the first incident, Ariadne could not assuage the rising tide of panic at the memory of Azriel disappearing into the prison. Of Azriel reappearing on the raised platform where he had been forced to reveal the scars littering his body. Of all the blood pooling at his feet.

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