Page 43 of Burning Star

His fangs sink into my neck, and I cry out—not in pain, but in pure, unfiltered pleasure. It floods me, dizzying and electric. My fingers tangle in his hair, nails scraping his scalp as I pull him closer, begging for more.

“I already belong to you,” I tell him, arching into his touch, challenging him. “Now tear me apart.”

His eyes darken further—black as the void, filled with hunger, devotion, and something feral that should terrify me.

“You’re staying in these chambers until you forget the outside world exists,” he vows. “Now, tell me again.”

“I love you,” I promise, gazing up into those midnight eyes that own my soul. “I love you, Aerix Nightborne, until the end of time. Because I’m yours. I’llalwaysbe yours.”

Then he’s on me, skin to skin, his body pressing me deep into the mattress. His hands map every inch of me, claiming, marking, and worshipping. Frost blooms across the headboard, the sheets, and my skin.

I surrender to the sensation, to the intoxicating feeling of being wanted by someone so otherworldly and perfect.

“You were made for me,” he growls, his wings folding tighter around us, sealing us in. “Every part of you—your body, your fire, and your soul. All of it belongs to me.”

“I’m yours,” I promise him, wrapping my legs around his waist, pulling him closer. “Only yours.”

“Good. Because I’m never letting you go,” he says, and as we move together in the candlelight, shadows dancing across our skin, I realize that this is what I’ve been searching for all along.

Not freedom. Not escape.

But surrender.

Complete, willing, ecstatic surrender.

ZOEY

I head backto the human wing at sunset, feeling the sting where Aerix carved his name into my hip with every step.

The pain is exquisite. It’s a reminder of what happened between us, and I love it so much I could drown in the dizzying high that makes the world around me feel inconsequential.

Because all that matters now ishim.

I enter the suite and find Victoria sitting on the edge of the couch. Sophia stands by the window, her eyes widening as I enter.

“Miss me?” I ask them, since I have to saysomething.

Victoria sneers.

“You’re not his equal, Zoey,” she says without bothering to greet me. “You’re hispet.Just like we are.”

The word should sting, but it doesn’t.

Instead, I just tilt my head, amused by her outburst. Because I’m so far beyond caring what Victoria thinks of me now.

Still, she keeps going.

“The moment he gets bored,” she says, standing up and walking toward me, “you’ll be joining the rest of us in the barns.”

I smile.

Not a nervous smile. Not an apologetic one. I smile like Victoria is pathetic for trying to touch me with her words.

“You don’t know anything about him. Aboutus.”I narrow my eyes at her, daring her to come closer.

“There is no ‘us.’” Victoria’s face flushes darker. “There’s you—his current obsession—and then there’s reality. Wake up, Zoey. He’s using you. Step back and see him for who he really is.”

I arch an eyebrow, biting back a smirk.

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