Page 19 of A Vow of Wrath and Ruin

She nuzzled her face in the crook of his neck, letting the full weight of her body rest on him.

“You are too good to me.”

“It is easy to be good to you, my darling, my King Killer.”

“You forgot Traitor.” A smirk resonated in her voice.

Tharan stroked his long fingers through her thick hair.

“You are no longer a traitor, and I am no longer the Lord of Nothing.”

“I am glad to be rid of that title.”

“I will give you a title you are worthy of,” he said.

“How about Queen of the Damned? I still have an army bound to my blood.”

“We will find a way to remedy that. I am hoping my grandfather can help.”

“My mother has to know something about the Trinity Wells and the Army of the Dead,” she said. “Hopefully, she’ll give us some answers as well.

“Her sisters will be tricky. They will want your power, Aelia. They have been trying to find a way back into the public’s good graces for hundreds of years. Their greed cost them their acolytes.”

“Did you know her—my mother—before?” she murmured.

Her head bobbed with the rising and falling of his chest.

Tharan couldn’t remember the last time he felt so content. The love of his life resting her head on his chest, his wolvessleeping contently at his feet, a fire crackling while a winter storm raged outside. A bittersweet taste filled his mouth at the thought of having to part ways with them in such a short time. It wasn’t fair. They just found each other, and now they’d have to leave again.

“Yes, I met her once. When I was young, it was a tradition to have our fates read at the time we came of age. Around fifty in human years.”

“Oh?” She lifted her head, ebony hair falling over her freckled face.

“She was kind to me.”

“What did the Fates say? If you don’t mind me asking.”

He reached for his glass of brandy and took a swig. “They told me I would be a great general. That I would lead an army to victory, but that my heart would get the better of me if I weren’t careful.”

Her mouth straightened into a tight line.

“I guess she was right.”

“I was too young to understand what she meant then, too brash to think fate had any control over my life.” He ground his teeth at the memory. “And then, one hundred years later, I met Lyra, and my fate was sealed.”

“We are never ready to accept our fate, no matter what it is. We always think we can change what has been written into the fabric of time.” She kissed his cheek, bringing a heat to his chest.

He cupped her face in his hands and whispered, “I am glad fate brought us together.”

She smiled, bringing her lips to his for a kiss, their mouths said what words could not. His lips parted, and she slipped her tongue inside. A moan rose in his core. His fingers gripped her hips, and she instinctively began to grind her hips against his. The sensation sent lust running through his veins and hiserection pressed against the ties of his pants, needing to be released.

“Let me repay you for the other morning,” she whispered in his ear.

He arched his brow.

“What do you have in mind?”

“We can’t consummate our bond yet, but I can still make you come.” With a coy smile, she slid down his muscled torso. Her hazel eyes locked on his. She undid the laces of his trousers, pulling them to his knees, releasing his girthy cock.

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