Page 12 of Catastrophe

I frowned and peered up at him. “Tied up with what?”

Who’s busy after intimacy? There’s time for sex but not for cuddles?

His lips twitched, and his red eyes were bright with amusement. “Rope.”

I blinked, then coughed and looked away as heat rushed to my cheeks. “Oh. Well. Why didn’t they cuddle when they were freed from the rope?”

He raised an eyebrow. “I’ve never shared a bed with another. I didn’t have that kind of attachment.”

A smug smile overtook my face, and I ducked my head to hide it. Another first. Mine.

“I can see how much that pleases you, my sunlight.” He chuckled as he brushed the hair out of my face. “Who knew you were so possessive?”

“You seem to bring out that side of me.” I pursed my lips and narrowed my eyes as I stared at him. “You don’t seem the Fifty Shades of Gray type.”

But what did I know about him? He was my soul mate, the son of titan gods, and an akari prophet. Savior of titans. Leader of an army. How did he spend his days? Where? With whom? What was his favorite color? Did he have any interesting quirks? There was so much to learn about him.

“What?” His dark brows pulled down in a confused frown.

“I just didn’t know you liked …” I waved a hand. “That. Is it the … control you enjoy? Did I upset you just now by doing as I wanted?”

His lips slowly curved, and he caressed my hip so lightly, I shivered. “No, Sunlight. That was perfect. It’s not about control. It’s … the aesthetic.”

“You like women to look like a trussed-up piece of meat?” I asked skeptically.

He burst into laughter, his whole body shaking as he howled. I couldn’t help but laugh with him, my heart light to see him so free and happy, unguarded and unburdened. We had to take every opportunity to enjoy the moment.

“I suppose I do,” he finally responded.

“I dare not ask how you discovered this. I don’t think I’d recover,” I mumbled, which set him off laughing again.

I wasn’t thinking about the other women. Not really. I pictured myself bared to him, tied up and my breath caught. I bit my lip.

Baelen’s laughter quieted, and his red eyes darkened with desire. Just like in the myths of vampires, I felt hypnotized, like I was falling into him. My eyes followed the shape of his lips as they moved.

“If you don’t want to be a trussed-up piece of meat, my sunlight, you don’t need to be. But you might find the feeling of being restricted an … erotic one.”

I considered that and finally nodded. “Charlie held my hands one time while Zaide … licked me. Being caught between them was … something.”

“What I would have given to see that,” Baelen muttered, a fire in his eyes as he trailed a finger over the soft tissue of my breast.

“Next time,” I replied rather breathlessly. Licking my lips, I watched him stare at my skin as his touch made it pebble.

“This is what I like,” he told me in a low, seductive voice. “I like your reactions. I like when your skin pricks and blood rushes to the surface. Combined with the smell of lust that pours from you …”

He rolled me onto my back and ran his nose down my neck, breathing me in, before scraping his fangs over my breast. My chest heaved, and the moan I let out was involuntary when he kissed my nipple.

“Irresistible.” His smug smile was beastly. “If you let me, I’ll tie you in knots that restrain you.” He gripped my wrist. “I can tease you with knots that will make you squirm against them, desperate for relief.”

I shivered. “Why do I find the idea of that so … appealing?”

“Because you are perfect for me.” He kissed my other nipple, which was begging for attention. “But it’s not time to introduce you to all that.”

“What? Why?” I moaned.

He chuckled. “No rope.” I sighed. As his hair flopped forward into his face, it hid his crooked grin. “But it would be cruel not to reward you for such a fantastic job.”

And as his lips descended upon me, I forgot what was awaiting me. I forgot my stress and worry over Charlie’s disappearance and my fear for Zaide. I forgot we should plan how to deal with both problems.

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