Page 25 of The Wild Hunt

"Look at me," I command, my voice low and dangerous. When she hesitates, I repeat more forcefully, "Look. At. Me."

Slowly, reluctantly, she opens her eyes. They're glistening with unshed tears, a mixture of fear, pain, and something else—a desperate need for... something. Comfort? Revenge? Or perhaps just the desire to forget.

“He was weak, someone who can only feel good about himself by making you feel like that, someone like that isn’t worthy of you. You have the power to forget him, to embrace pleasure as it is meant to be embraced. And you can embrace pain too, own it, let it enhance your pleasure until there is nothing anyone can do to hurt you.”

Lorcan shifts again, a dark smirk curling his lips as he watches her internal struggle. His eyes gleam with interest, his fingers flexing at his side as if he’s already imagining what he would do in my place.

McKenna’s eyes widen at my words, a flicker of understanding passing through them. I can feel her body responding to my touch, to the dark promise in my voice. She's trembling, but not entirely from fear now.

"I... I don't know how," she whispers, her voice barely audible.

I smile, a predatory grin that makes her shiver anew. "Then let me show you."

My fingers curl inside her again, more insistently this time, and she gasps. I lean down, my lips brushing against her neck as I speak.

"Pain and pleasure, they're two sides of the same coin," I murmur against her skin. "What he did was abuse. What I offer is something entirely different."

To demonstrate, I bite down on her neck, not hard enough to leave a bruise but hard enough to hurt. She gasps, her back arching, and I can feel her pulse racing beneath my lips as I soothe the bite with my tongue. Her breath comes in short, ragged gasps, her mind struggling to process the conflicting sensations. Lorcan’s lips part as he watches every touch, every lick, his fingers flexing now for an entirely different reason. I can feel his presence like a coiled storm in the room, his power simmering beneath the surface.

I trail my lips down her body as my fingers continue to thrust inside her. My tongue circles one of her nipples before sucking it into my mouth. Curling my fingers inside her, I bite down on her sensitive peak. Crying out, she arches into me, thrusting her breast harder into my mouth and I feel her flutter around my fingers, her body so close to the edge.

"Are you starting to understand now?" I whisper against her skin. "Pain can be a gateway to pleasure, if you let it."

She nods, her eyes wide and dilated, a mix of fear and arousal evident in her gaze. I can feel her body responding, tremblingbeneath me, caught between the memory of past trauma and the promise of a different kind of intensity.

"That's good, my pretty little songbird," I murmur, my voice a low growl.

I withdraw my fingers, eliciting a whimper from her lips. The vines around her wrists tighten, pulling her arms harder above her head as more tendrils snake across her body, wrapping around her thighs and spreading them wide.

With her attention diverted to the vines, it allows me the chance to look at Lorcan again. His eyes are hooded with desire and his tongue sweeps out to lick across his bottom lip. Keeping his eyes locked on mine, he slides a hand down to rub where I see him straining against the fabric of his pants. I close my eyes on a groan.

Forcing my attention back to McKenna, I trail my hand up her body, savoring the way she shivers under my touch. When I reach her throat, I wrap my fingers around it once more, applying just enough pressure to make her gasp.

"Remember," I say, my eyes locked on hers, "this is about control. Your control. You can stop this at any time. But I don't think you want to, do you?"

Her eyes widen at my words, a flicker of understanding passing through them. She swallows hard, her pulse racing beneath my palm. After a moment's hesitation, she shakes her head slightly.

"Good girl," I murmur, rewarding her with a gentle stroke of my thumb along her jawline.

I release her throat and move down her body, positioning myself between her spread legs. The vines around her thighs tighten, pulling them even wider apart. She gasps, a mixture of anticipation and nervousness evident in her eyes. A vine wraps around her throat, while another wraps around one of her breasts, squeezing and pulsing against her skin.

Without warning, I thrust two fingers inside her, hard and deep. She cries out, straining against the vines that bind her.

I glance at Lorcan again. His gaze burns into me, his hand resting over the strained fabric of his pants, fingers pressing harder as he watches. The hunger in his eyes matches the darkness swirling in my chest, and I close my eyes briefly, feeling the weight of it all.

But this moment belongs to her. Nothim. Notyet.

I set a punishing pace, curling my fingers to hit that spot inside her that makes her see stars. Her cries grow louder, a mix of pleasure and pain as I push her body to its limits. The vines all tighten further, holding her in place as she writhes beneath me.

"That's it," I growl, watching her face contort with conflicting sensations. "Let go of everything else. Focus only on what you're feeling right now."

Her eyes are squeezed shut, her breath coming in short, sharp gasps. I can feel her getting close, her inner walls clenching around my fingers. But I'm not ready to let her come just yet.

I slow my movements, drawing out each thrust until she's whimpering with need. Her eyes fly open, confusion and frustration evident in her gaze.

"Please," she whispers, her voice hoarse and desperate. "Please, I need..."

"What do you need?" I ask, my voice low and commanding. "Say it, admit it, little songbird."

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