Page 100 of Song of the Dark Wood

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered between kisses.

“Don’t stop,” she begged. She couldn’t think straight. Her mind was shrouded in a pleasant lustful fogginess.

Her hand brushed the dagger, and her thoughts snapped into focus.Get him to take you so that you can take something from him, you idiot,she chided herself.

She held the dagger out to Conor. He sat up and took it from her before taking her left hand in his. He brought the tip of the blade to her pointer finger.

“Are you sure you want this?” he asked. “This is your last chance to back out. I won’t be upset?—”

“I want it,” she interrupted.

Still, he hesitated.

“What’s wrong?” Panic sharpened Rowan’s mind.

“I’m just worried that you wouldn’t want this if you hadn’t been told to make me happy. I don’t like feeling you’ve been pressured to want me,” he said.

She sat up so they were eye to eye. She brought her right hand to his cheek, and he leaned into her touch before kissing her palm. It was something lovers did, something so intimate, yet he did it as casually as if they’d done it a hundred times.

“Conor, I don’t want you because of that. I want you because everything I believed was wrong. Because of the greenhouse and the library. Because you saved me when no one else did. Because of that beautiful song. Because you speak to my fear withtenderness. I could worry that you only want me for the same reasons, or because I smell like dessert.”

He laughed, and it broke all the tension between them. “That you do. All right, if you’re sure. I’ll just take a drop, and then you have to say that you accept the bond.”

He pressed the dagger into the tip of her finger, and she winced at the tiny bite of pain. He drew the blade away and dropped it on the bed beside them. She tracked where it landed but was instantly distracted as he drew her finger into his mouth and sucked gently. His eyes closed, and he groaned. A flare of heat shot through her body.

“Fuck,” he murmured. His eyes glowed brightly, swirling blue and gray as he looked at her. “Say it.”

“I accept the bond,” she whispered. She waited for something to happen. “I feel the same.”

Conor closed his eyes and smiled. “Well, I don’t. I feel how turned on you are, so I suppose I should stop making you wait.”

He kissed her fingertip and released her hand so she could lay back. She glanced the dagger in her periphery, only an arm’s length away.

Conor stripped out of his pants and climbed between her legs. He was strong, beautiful, and ethereal. His entire body was toned—as if he did nothing with his time but heavy manual labor—with a smattering of vicious-looking scars. Her hands raked down his chest, the muscles rippling under her touch as he prowled over her. His eyes glowed with power as he drew her into another kiss. His hips rolled against her, and she groaned at the friction.

“Rowan, look at me.” She blinked her eyes open and met his gaze. “Are you certain this is what you want?”

“Yes,” she said breathlessly. Rowan was surprised at how utterly desperate she felt for it while at the same time dreading what she’d have to do.

“I’m afraid I’ll lose control,” he murmured. He looked so ashamed as he said it.

She brought a hand to his cheek. “You won’t. I trust you.”

Conor brushed a stray curl back from her face and kissed the tip of her nose. “It might hurt, but I promise I will make it feel good for you. You just have to try to relax, okay?”

She nodded as he started to press into her. It was slow going. Though her mind was fully on board, her body seemed unwilling to yield to him.

Above her, Conor clenched his jaw in concentration, studying her face as if waiting for any sign of pain. His hands wove through her hair. It felt so nice to be touched that way.

“Breathe, lass. Just try to relax,” he murmured, kissing her between words.

She hissed in a breath. Even though she was expecting some discomfort, she was startled by the ferocity of it.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, covering her face in kisses. “Just breathe. It will pass.”

She slowed her breathing, and he slid in deeper until he was fully seated inside her. He paused, allowing her to adjust.

“You’re okay?” he asked.

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