Page 78 of The Curse of a Kingdom
He shook his head, as if trying to clear it. “I can’t think straight. Please tell me to stop if this is not what you want.”
“You are all that I want.” She caressed the side of his jaw and down the side of his neck. Why was she fighting this? “But I don’t want it here where someone can find us. You aren’t forgettable, and I’m not dressed to run.”
Arkimedes kissed her again, sucking on her bottom lip, and her toes curled and her mind faltered at the last thought. To heck with caution. She was going to have him now, and she didn’t care if anyone got a peep show.
His arms snaked around her body, and soon his wings were flapping and his lips abandoned hers. He lifted her in the air and carried her off toward the castle.
CHAPTERTWENTY-SIX
ORION
The flight back to his room’s balcony didn’t take long. Nava trailed kisses down Orion’s neck, and goose bumps raised over his skin.
“Stop that.” Orion tightened his hold on her as his wings moved to slow down their descent and stabilize them for landing. She had been right—the wide skirt of this dress was the least convenient garment he had ever encountered. If only for this, he should pay a visit to Marin when he was back in town.
She didn’t stop, however, her tongue tasting his skin instead, and the groan that left his mouth was not a noise he remembered ever making before. His booted feet hadn’t finished touching the floor before her lips met his, and he lost track of all thoughts as his blood raced.
He wished he could blame magic for making him this painfully hard and in a constant state of hunger for this woman. But even though tonight his self-restraint had withered to nothing, he had been craving her for months.
His teeth captured her thick bottom lip, and she moved her hands from his chest to the back of his neck, her fingers digging through his hair. Her tongue was divine torture; he didn’t know where he wanted it most.
They kissed like rogue teenagers escaping the prying eyes of their caregivers. Enjoying the way her body responded under his touch, he brought his hands down the sheer fabric of the dress, over the naked planes of her back, and down her wide hips to the alluring globes of her backside. Tugging her closer to him, he smiled as she gasped against his lips.
It was not lost on him thatthis—them—was not new to her as it was to him. The pressure of not letting her down weighed in his chest more so than he had ever felt before. She was important to him. Whether he remembered why or when it happened, she had been the main source of his thoughts for months.
He knew deep in the marrow of his bones that what he was craving was more than her body, and that alone sobered his heated thoughts.
He broke the kiss and met her dazed gaze. “Did you drink some of the wine?”
“No, it’s not the wine.” Was that guilt flashing through her eyes? Did she feel this craze as well? A heat that didn’t subside and made his focus narrow on just this. Being close, having her in his bed at this moment.
She dropped her hands from his neck before inspecting her surroundings. She hesitated before she strolled into his room. The fireplace came alive in a soft roll as she made it past the billowy curtains that flowed with the night’s breeze.
With the tall ceilings and the dark furnishings, she stood out like a beacon of yellow light. Much like her magic had been that day in the forest. She fit in here, like she was meant to stay forever. In the dim light of the fireplace, she studied her surroundings, taking in all the details that made the room his.
The flames marked an orange highlight over the soft edges of her curves, and just like that, an intense need to protect her washed over him. She had come through a dark portal, losing something dear to save him from . . . his father.
There had been little time to get to know her, but he already admired her tenacity, strength, and stubbornness.
Nava walked toward the four-post bed in the middle of the room. Her fingers drifted over the black sheets, then she turned to him and air escaped him all at once.
Gone were the inner thoughts of someone falling in love, and back was the intense burning he was no longer able to hold back.
She walked toward a large mirror that leaned against the wall by the bed, at least eight feet tall and towering over her frame. In the dim light of the room, her dress, or what was left of it, was muted in the cool light of the night, and it reminded him of her bees.
Orion approached her, following each one of her movements through the reflection. He wrapped a hand across her stomach, steadying her after he brought her back to meet him. His lips came down over the supple skin of her neck, trailing toward her shoulder, where he lowered the strap of flimsy fabric that still held the bodice to her body.
It was too much and not enough. His body was ready, straining with desire and tension. She grasped the ends of his hair, trying but failing to keep his face locked in place. Her skin raised in goose bumps as his lips trailed down the skin of her back. He stored the memory aside for later.
If he closed his eyes and blocked their surroundings, just focused on her and the scent of berries and something wild and earthy around her, he sensed the talons of recognition clawing their way back to him, invigorated by the fire burning in his veins. His lips abandoned the ministrations as he pulled back, unwrapping the ribbons that secured the corset to her body. The fabric loosened and pooled over her chest and down her hips, falling to the ground with a thump.
Her breasts were still under the chemise that covered her, but he could see the clear silhouette. Orion stroke one, and she melted against him.
Nava met his gaze through the reflection with heavy lids, and he was struck by the weightlessness of his stomach and the flutter of his heart. His hand covered the entirety of her right breast and he massaged the supple flesh, bringing her against his straining erection. The rest of her clothing was off in an instant, the scent of magic wafting in the air. Naked in front of him, she stared at him, and they shared the same look. Clarity.
Orion needed her now. He dropped his hand from her breasts, down below her navel. She held her breath when his fingers reached her center, and her face morphed as pleasure overtook her. She was wet and ready, and he was going to burst.
She let her head fall against his shoulder. He slid his finger inside her, arching it to find the spot that would make her squirm. In and out, he let her sounds spur him on alongside her moans.
