Page 50 of Queen of Ever

‘Yes.And no,’ I said.Tarian remained very still, clearly not wanting to reveal any of the thoughts running through his head.‘He made me realise I’m tired of putting what I want on hold because of other people.’I stepped forward, closing the distance between us, butterflies in my stomach.My tongue darted across my lips, wetting them, and his eyes followed the movement, making my blush deepen.

He took my chin between his fingers, leaning in close.I could feel his breath on my lips and my breath quickened as my chest tightened with anticipation, with wanting.But he didn’t move any further, didn’t give me what I wanted, a hint of mischief in his eyes as they held mine.‘And what is it that you want, Imogen?’he asked, his voice a low rumble that vibrated through me, tempting me ever closer to the edge I was dangerously close to leaping off.

‘Isn’t it obvious?’I asked, embarrassment warring with the need growing inside me at the nearness of him, the scent of him enveloping me, making the world fade away around us.

A whisper of a smirk brushed his lips.‘Say it.’

I swallowed hard, my cheeks growing warm again.I wanted to look away, it would make it easier to say the words that way, but he held my chin firm making escape impossible.‘You’re enjoying this way too much,’ I complained.

‘Say it.’

My body begged me to say the words, to give in to his demand and claim my prize, but my mouth refused to work as that blush deepened in my cheeks.I could refuse.If I did, would he turn me away?Somehow, I doubted it.Perhaps he’d find a more creative way to punish me, perhaps I’d like it.But as his smirk widened, I realised he was expecting that, expecting me to be unable to say the words he’d asked of me.Defiance rose up to join the emotions warring in me, quashing any embarrassment I’d been feeling.

‘I want you.’

His eyes widened in surprise for a second, but I didn’t have time to enjoy it because his lips claimed mine, hungry and urgent, as if he’d been holding himself back for too long.His tongue swept my mouth, brushing along mine, as one hand began tugging at the laces on my dress, my heart pounding with every new inch of skin he exposed to the air.My hands moved from his neck, sliding down his chest, down to where his shirt was tucked into his pants.I gripped the fabric, tugging it out, desperate to feel the heat of his skin.It seemed to spur him on, he pulled my sleeves down, forcing me to remove my arms if I wanted to finish my task.When my hands were freed, they went back to his loose shirt, sliding beneath the fabric, tracing the muscles there as if it was a reward.

Tarian pushed my dress down, over my hips, exposing even more skin, sending goosebumps scattering across my flesh and my nipples hardening as the cool air hit them.The cold was soon chased away as his warm hand cupped my breast, kneading, thumb flicking across the nipple, coaxing an unexpected moan from me that vibrated along our lips.There was far too much fabric between us.With my body exposed, it only made me crave him more, and I was in no position to deny it.

I didn’t want to.

I broke the kiss, pulling away as he chased my lips, pulled his shirt over his head.With his torso revealed, my hands moved back to his body as if drawn by a magnet, goosebumps chasing my fingers across his skin.I could feel him watching me, feel the heat of his gaze like a physical touch.My hand drifted lower, dipping towards his pants, his breath becoming shallower the closer I got, as if he was afraid to breathe too hard and startle me from my path.I slid below the fabric, taking him in hand, enjoying the way he pulsed in my grip as I moved my hand along his length.

All too soon, his hand snapped around my wrist and he pulled my hand back.I looked up at him then, wondering why he’d stopped me, and what I saw took my breath away, sending lust through me like a drug.The look in his eyes was almost feral.I drew a shaky breath, taking a step back from him.It was as if something in me knew moving away would only intensify his hunger.He stalked forward, matching me step for step across the room, as if we were in some kind of dance.

The back of my legs hit the bed and he pushed me onto it.I’d barely hit the mattress before he was running his hands down my thighs.He stood up, and I was drawn to his hands as he removed his pants, slowly, as if he enjoyed watching me watch him.But the moment they were off, all slowness was gone, replaced with that grasping urgency.He pushed my thighs apart, kneeling between them, the head of his cock teasingly brushing against me as his hands slid up my thighs, gripping my hips.

‘Tell me what you want.’

I could barely think, pleasure and anticipation coiling together in my core.His lips brushed my collarbone, my chest, my breast.‘Tell me,’ he repeated before taking a taut nipple into his mouth.I cried out as he sucked sharply, a reminder, a warning, to answer him.

‘I want you,’ I said, my voice breathy, distracted.My hips moved as if of their own accord but he held me fast, digging his fingers into my flesh and my teeth sank into my lower lip as I tried to hold back the moan that threatened to burst from me.‘Please.’

He released my nipple, the air feeling colder on the now wet skin, and a light shiver ran through my body.His lips pulled into a devilish smile and just when I thought he was going to tease me until I lost my mind, he pulled me to him by my hips, plunging himself inside me.

I cried out, fingers digging into his biceps as he thrust his hips against me, moving himself inside me, sending my mind blank as my body was flooded with an all-consuming pleasure.His lips captured mine, our panting breaths tangled together as our tongues danced.My teeth sank into his lip and he thrust harder, his fingers digging in harder, my legs tightened around him, holding him to me as my body demanded more, a tightness building in my core, coiling tighter with every stroke of his cock until it snapped, shattering me.I cried out as the climax rocked through me, as he rode the waves of my pleasure, seeking his own until he joined me, a guttural groan leaving his throat as he pulsed inside me, his movements slowing until we collapsed together, limbs tangled together, the only sound filling the room that of our laboured breathing.

My body felt limp and I wasn’t sure I would be able to move.Didn’t care if I couldn’t.I let myself float in the gentle bliss that encased me body and soul as I lay in his arms.

Chapter 20

Tarian

Firelightflickeredonthewalls and the sheets, chasing the glossy damp of Imogen’s skin, clinging to her shoulders, her cheeks, the flutter of her eyelashes.I loved lying with her like this, talking, curled around each other.Loved the casual, easy touches and open vulnerability.Hated the idea of having to leave.Even if we lay here all day and night, I would still hate having to leave.

‘I was getting better, but it doesn’t feel natural.It’s not like I’m using it every day,’ she said.

I ran my fingers through her hair, brushing it away from her face.‘I was afraid of magic at first too.Still am, sometimes.But it gets easier the more you practice controlling it.’

She’d been telling me of how she’d spent her time in the Summer Palace, of the lessons in magic, among other things.Magic seemed to be on her mind since Haddock’s clumsy attempt at a star reading.He still hadn’t untangled what he’d seen there.I still had no idea if whatever he would say was going to be any help at all, and time was ticking away as the conclave drew to an end, filled with stolen moments like this one.It had only been a few days, but I was tired of sneaking around, and I think she was, too.I was giving this plan of another reading into that cursed prophecy only until the amendment was signed to pay dividends.

Then we’d do things my way.

My way involved throwing caution to the wind and seeing where we got.As it currently stood, I couldn’t take Imogen back to the Unseelie Kingdom unless I wanted her to be Moriana’s plaything, and I didn’t see how anything Haddock revealed was going to change that even if I understood Imogen’s desire to know her fate.But that didn’t mean I couldn’t take her somewhere else, into a state of exile maybe, but at least we’d be together.And then we’d have time to figure out a way forward.

‘It felt so… uncontrolled, that day when it woke.When I struck you.’She drew her fingertips down my forearm and found my hand.She spread her fingers against mine, lifting them between us as though to measure their difference in size.‘I don’t like that.Being able to control myself has been really important for a long time.It’s what’s kept me out of the psych wards in the Human Realm.’

I marked how she referred to it asthe human realminstead ofhome.I hoped whatever we could build together would be worth the trade of one home for another.‘I’ll admit, most of the time it feels like a war to contain magic rather than to release it.So you’ll be wrestling with that for a while.’

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