Page 41 of Own to Obtain

She lifted her hand to the side of his face and stroked down his cheek. Then slowly reached to rub the pads of her fingers along his eyebrow, and then down his face to his beard where she stroked his chin.

Kardos’ eyes became lidded as he pushed his face further into his hand, and from that she knew—he liked it when she touched him.

They remained in that position for a few long moments, but in the back of her mind, Shaya couldn’t help but think of the Southern Lands.

“I thought we were going back to the Southern Lands?” she asked softly.

“We are,” Kardos responded. “I just want to… look at you.”

Shaya smiled, and Kardos made a sound in the back of his throat as his eyes flicked down to it.

His large finger traced her smile and trailed down her neck to her tunic, and then began to unbutton the row of large buttons down the front, his eyes never leaving her face.

Shaya’s breath came heavily as his large hand slipped into the front of her tunic and cupped her breast. She almost squirmed, pleading silently for him to hurry up. She suddenly realized she’d been waiting for this moment since her last dream of him, but the Southern Lands was still on her mind. “They can’t wait, Kardos.”

“The Talent-crafter is looking at creating a portal,” he murmured as he lowered to brush her lips with his. “It will take some time for him to find somewhere safe that we can go back to. Plus, the Emperor does not allow magic in his palace unless it is performed by his own Talent-crafters. So there is some negotiation to do.”

Shaya squirmed as he squeezed her nipple, pressing his lips to hers for a deep kiss. He kissed her slow and thoroughly, as though savoring every touch of her skin against his, dragging his tongue through her mouth and sucking on her lips with a low groan, reminiscent of a man suckling on a rare delicacy. By the time his hand was inching up her thigh, she was slippery for him. Every inch of her body wanted him to claim her, touch her the way that she loved. And the anticipation of it made her heart flutter as he pulled off her panties.

She was vaguely aware that there were other people in the room, but once again, just like every other time he had touched her intimately in front of other people, she couldn’t concentrate while he was so present, dominating her with every feel of him. She wasn’t sure what it was, why the thought typically mortified her, yet when he was with her, nothing else mattered—the energy between them was too powerful.

Pushing her legs up, he widened them so he could lower his head between them and he pressed his nose into her wetness. She moaned as he growled, his tongue taking long leisurely licks of her nub, making her twitch in anticipation of what was to come. Thankfully, he did not waste any more time, flicking his tongue against her, he opened her tunic and grabbed her breasts, squeezing her nipples until the crescendo was almost at its peak, and then suddenly stopped to flip her upright.

Shaya moaned in frustration, only to have him swallow her groans as his mouth closed over hers, giving her a taste of herself as his tongue grazed hers.

When he pulled away, she caught a glimpse of one of his warriors standing behind him. She glanced around and saw that her sister, the emperor, and empress had left the room, only his warriors remained. “We are always doing this in front of others,” she whispered to Kardos.

“We start in front of other people,” he corrected.

“Yes,” she said as his lips pressed onto her neck. “They are always gone by the end.”

“I make them go,” Kardos growled.

“You do?”

“Of course.”

Shaya craned her neck to look at the warriors, but Kardos pulled her eyes back to him, his fingers cradling her jaw.

“Even paired mates share their bodies openly and freely in front of others,” Kardos said. “And I am proud for everyone to see how deeply you succumbed to my attentions, and I enjoy every part of you. But no one should see you fly. That pleasure is for me only.”

Shaya was unable to hold his gaze, lowering her eyes, but he lifted her chin, bringing them back to her. “These warriors risked their lives to help me come and get you, depriving the Southern Lands of their skills. They would see it as an honor to witness our coupling, but they will be gone partway through.”

With an arm around her waist, he sank her down onto his length. Shaya cried out, but before she could even register the intrusion, he was lifting her up and dropping her down onto him, pushing up from underneath to slam in and out of her.

The friction was delicious. It sent a carnal rush up through her stomach. Every part of her rejoiced at the feeling of him inside her. She cried out as his lips found her shoulder, licking her as though she was the most delicious thing world, his arms around her, protecting her from everything other than his own brutal attentions.

His slams from underneath became wilder, and he gripped her harder as he yanked her down. She widened her legs as much as she could, her knees bent as she sought to give him everything, every single part of her; her toes pressed into the wooden floor. The erotic, rough, and wild energy that swept through her was so overwhelming that she lost all sense of where she was and who she was. All she knew was who she was with, and that was her Alpha.

Grabbing her head wrap, Kardos pulled her backward, causing her body to arch, her breasts jutting up to the ceiling, and the growl that came from him, hardened her nipples until they hurt. He held her hips as he slammed up into her, the fluids that gushed out of her and onto him making him grunt and groan.

When his warm mouth closed over her nipple, his rough tongue harassing the sensitive nipple, her orgasm took over. It battered her from every angle, brutal and overwhelming as it tore into her, seizing every muscle until they were limp. By the time her peak subsided, she was panting heavily on her Alpha’s chest as he slammed into her erratically, gripping her ass cheeks as he pushed into her, the base of his cock growing until finally, he knotted her.

His arms tightened around her as they breathed heavily, his palm stroking her back as he looked down at her, and when she glanced up, she saw that look in his eyes again—the look she had seen many times before that she didn’t understand.

“What are you thinking?” she said between breaths. “You look at me like that sometimes… what are you thinking?”

“I’m thinking…Assh rosoyen Omega-essh.”

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