Page 131 of A Vow of Blood and Tears

I am, I signed smugly, and sank back onto him a little.

Bane snarled, hips jerking to drive him deeper—there was another jolt of pain. The shine of his eyes vanished when he closed them, his entire body going still. He took deep, even breaths, a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead.

I loved him, that he would make this effort for me.

But it wasn’t possible to take him fully. He was larger than a human male, with those barbs, and there was no way that more than a few inches would make it inside.

Bane. I stroked his chest.

He opened his eyes to mere slits, gleaming yellow.

Bite me. Give me a drop of venom.

“Are you in pain?” he asked, a low rumble in his voice.

I debated downplaying it, trying to brute-force my way through, but if he guessed… he would never try again. It would be horribly disrespectful to lie after he’d pushed his own worries aside and granted me this wish.A little, yes. You’re too big.

His eyes opened wider. “I can’t…”

I have an idea. Flip us over. Lay me down under you, but don’t push further.

His breath grew faster as he gripped me around the waist, carefully maneuvering our locked-together bodies around until I laid under him, nestled in the bedding heated by his skin.

He remained arched over me on his hands and knees, and I wriggled, adjusting myself until his cock was angled to push in just a little more.

Bane groaned, his hips pulsing forward—he slid forward until he came to an abrupt halt, half of his shaft still outside me.

That’s as far as you can go for now, I said, swallowing any feelings of shame. It had been worth it.I’ll do the rest.

He nodded jerkily, his chest heaving, and slid out slowly only to thrust again.

I wrapped my hand around him, stroking as he pumped into me. The pressure eased, the rasp of barbs and ridges becoming more pleasure than pain.

The low growls he exhaled on every breath drove me mad, the glow of his eyes matching the heat burning in my core. The desperate urge to take more filled me, even knowing it was impossible.

He braced himself on one hand, splaying the other over my belly. His thumb slipped down, the pad covering my clit, stroking smooth circles with every thrust.

I pushed against him, both of us sweating and panting, our eyes locked where our bodies met. The sight of his massive cock driving in hit me like a meteor, the liquid thrill of climax ripping through me.

I fell back, unable to hold myself together as my muscles shook, my pussy clamping around him, stars shattering behind my eyes.

Bane snarled, giving another deep thrust, his thumb still driving against my clit. His cock pulsed, hot and heavy—with a ragged groan he pushed as far as he could, spilling himself inside me.

I felt the heat of it, the intensity. He gasped for breath, arched over me, eyes shining bright.

“A moment,” he whispered, his voice cracking.

It was several minutes before he softened, barbs retracting, before he could pull himself free. We collapsed together, sheened with sweat.

“I thought it would help to devour you first.” He spoke in nearly a whisper. “The wetness helped. I knew it couldn’t be… all of it.”

I sat up, and Bane reached for me, his fingertips trailing over my breast, circling a nipple and moving to my waist.

That was just the first time. A year and a day, yes? We have time to figure it out.

“I can live without it, if it means keeping you whole.” He shook his head. “Nothing would be worse than…”

He trailed off.

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