Page 77 of In the Blood

This time, he didn’t pull away when I began to climb. And climb. I looked down at his bronze head between my thighs and lost my gods damned mind. Muscles clenched as he sent me orbiting around the sun.

I went slack against the door and Galen gathered me into his arms. He deposited me on the bed with a gentlethud. We stripped frantically, needing to be skin to skin. He laid me on the shabby comforter of the creaking bed and climbed on top of me.

“I’m going to drink from you while I fuck you.” His devilish smile made my stomach dip.

It wasn’t exactly a question, but I nodded in consent.

He slid in, hard and deep, not giving me anytime to adjust—making me take all of him. I sucked in a breath as my body was forced to accommodate him. The line of pain and pleasure blurred until I forgot my name. I moved my hips to meet his, until his body was flush with mine. As he plunged in and out, my breathing became short and frenzied.

A hand came up and brushed the hair out of my face, caressing me. I opened my eyes and met his starry-eyed gaze. Cupping his cheek, I acknowledged the magnitude of this,ofus.

I’d lived a grey existence, but now every moment was exploding with color. I was living in the here and now because ofhim. I’d been numb for so long and now I was feeling every emotion at once. It was an overwhelming experience—relentless in its pursuit to humble me and splay me open as I let my weaknesses show. Neither of us knew what we were doing, but that hadn’t stopped us fromtrying.

Releasing a moan of ecstasy, I exhaled the feelings that were too much to fully process. Every moment with him was a blind leap of faith.

I watched, enthralled, as he moved over me with tireless thrusts. His stomach muscles stretched and tightened as we rocked together. I wanted him to go faster.Harder. Growing impatient, I tried to set the pace. Delirious with need, I dug my nails into his back and bit at his shoulder.

“Easy, love. I want to savor you,” he whispered, quieting me with a kiss.

I went supine, letting him take full control as tears pricked the corners of my eyes. I was overwhelmed with realization of how much I cared. I’d been driven mad with jealousy over almost nothing.

He lingered at my neck, scraping his canines along the sensitive skin. Wherever his tongue went, goosebumps followed, spreading like flame over kindling. I was gasping for air, feeling more desperate by the second.

“Are you ready?” His smooth voice was the most seductive sound I’d ever heard.

“Yes…” I panted.

His muscles hardened beneath my touch as he leaned over me. He brushed velvet lips along my throat with open-mouthed kisses and paused. I held my breath as he sunk his teeth into the pulsing flesh at the side of my neck. I cried out at the rush of pleasure. It intensified with each beat of my heart—spreading to my limbs, my fingers, my toes. His thrusts were slow and luxurious as he unhurriedly took and took… and took.

I was going to combust.

The combination of his canines inside me, whilehewas inside me… I was in an opium-laced fever dream. The magic that flowed between us erased all pain, all doubt. All I knew washim. Euphoria swallowed me whole—a tsunami devouring everything in its path.

I became dizzy as he began to slam into me, no longer holding anything back. I wasn’t sure if I was speaking coherently, as I repeated his name over and over. My heart fluttered as he pulled back and peered down at me with blood-rimmed lips. His eyes darkened as he watched me buck and twist beneath him. We climaxed together and magic exploded around us. The fire in the hearth lit up the room in a raging blaze, before everything went dark.

I lifted my sleepy head off of Galen’s chest, smelling the distinct acrid scent of something burning. I sat up, glancing at the fireplace, disoriented.Had I blacked out?Everything felt fuzzy. A small fire burned; nothing out of the ordinary. Then I found the source—charred handprints had been branded into the bedding, on either side of me. Frost covered the dark marks, spreading across the bedspread and onto the walls.

“Are you alright?” Galen asked, stroking my cheek with a gentle touch.

“I think so. I’m… just… dizzy.”

Galen sat up. “Do you need water? Did I take too much blood?”

I took a few deep breaths. I felt fine now. By the time I’d nodded, he’d left the bed and was back with a glass of water. He brushed my hair back as he held a glass up to my mouth.

“That was…” He grinned.

“There are no words,” I agreed with a matching grin. “Actually, there are…” I paused, building up courage. “I love you.”

His radiant smile nearly made my heart crack in half. I’d never said those three words to any man. I blinked back tears and he kissed me, clutching my cheeks in his palms.

Before I could overanalyze or panic, he responded, “I love you too. In one-hundred and fifty years, I’ve never felt anything like this. I want to consume every inch of you. I want to live inside of you. I want to make love to you until our souls are one.” And then he claimed me until morning.

thirty-two

Ididn’t know we’d gottenanysleep, but we must’ve, because I startled when I woke in an unfamiliar room. The gentle breathing beside me anchored me back to space and time. I’d barely registered the dingy room last night. I’d seen nothing but my fiery-haired Prince.

I looked to the peeling green argyle wallpaper and then to the window that sat above the bed. Dawn was upon us and the soft light from the eastern sunrise trickled through sheer curtains. As flashbacks of last night played in my head, I began to take stock of where I still felt sore. I touched my neck and felt raised puncture marks. The bite was still tender. I felt like a bruised apple that had fallen from a tree.

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