Page 155 of A Tower of Half-Truths
In the dim light, his scars were barely visible, but their locations had long become ingrained in her memory. Her fingertips traced the one down the center of his torso, and he sighed as she placed a tender kiss to the one above his heart. A token of appreciation for the warmth of his skin, his quickening pulse.
His sigh deepened as she left a trail of light kisses along his collarbone, then up the side of his neck, until their lips reconvened at last. His erection nudged her hip. As she’d done before, she wrapped her fingers around his cock, rubbed her thumb against his tip. His soft moan gave rise to her own pleasure, now pooling between her thighs. But before she could make a second pass down his length, he placed his hand over hers, stilling her.
“Should you continue like that, I’m afraid I won’t last long at all.” He leaned closer, pressed his mouth to hers. “And I wantyouto come undone first.”
She smiled against his lips, and he guided her onto the bed, where she nestled herself against the pillows. Before joining her, he paused to take in her nude figure at this new angle. His eyes roved over her body from head to toe.
“You’re beautiful,” he said.
“So are you.” She extended a hand. “Now, get over here.”
He didn’t hesitate to take her hand and crawl on top of her. He lowered his body until it was merely inches above hers. Even that small gap was enough to render hers cold, yearning for his skin to slip against hers again.
She shuddered as his warm mouth caressed the crook of her neck, his hair tickled her collarbone. Deep beneath her wave of desire, she recognized the too-familiar sensation of arcana rearing its head. This time, it was in the form of electric chaos.
Gods, no. Not now…
Mavery needed to focus her thoughts, control her arcana before it rose to the surface. Better yet, tell Alain to wait until it was completely spent. But then his lips traveled down the valley between her breasts, and those thoughts faded to the back of her mind. He took one of her nipples in his mouth, teased it with his tongue, and she could no longer remember what she’d been concerned about in the first place.
He moved lower, leaving a trail of light kisses on her stomach, her navel, her hip. His hands grasped her thighs, and she sighed with delight as she watched his face vanish between them. He continued where the trail left off, placing a kiss to her inner left thigh, then her right. At a torturously slow pace, each kiss descended abit lower than the last, progressing a bit closer to the joining of her thighs.
And then—finally—his lips brushed against her clit, and she threw her head back with a moan. Her arcana roiled as his tongue encircled her, parted her, thrust inside her. She shuddered, then focused on her breath, trying to calm the electricity coursing through her veins. Yet, how could she focus on anything but his tongue when it was nothing short ofbliss? His languid strokes, followed by vigorous circles, were warm and slick against her already warm and slick skin. She envisioned him reciting an elaborate incantation composed specifically for her, to transmutate her into a breathless, unraveling mess.
He stopped and pulled back slightly. Though she knew he likely needed a brief respite, his absence was nonetheless agonizing.
“Should I continue?” His breath warmed her sensitive skin, causing her entire body to quaver.
“Gods, yes,” she sighed.
Her voice reverberated through the room when his tongue reunited with her clit. She was thankful he’d taken that moment to place the soundproofing ward.
She reached down, entwined her fingers in his hair. A gentle tug made him groan, the vibration of his lips made her writhe against his mouth. She pushed her hips forward, and each stroke of his tongue became hotter, more forceful than the one before it.
And then, there it was again. As another flick of his tongue brought her to the edge of her climax, arcana crackled beneath her skin. She looked to the ceiling, focused on the violet tendrils dancing across it as she tried to calm the oncoming surge. But arcana and pleasure had become one and the same; she could no longer differentiate the two. Her toes curled, her back arched.
Wait…!
She tried to shout a warning, but all she could manage was a drawn-out moan as her orgasm, alongside a swell of electric energy, rippled through her.
Alain yelped, and Mavery bolted upright. She grasped him by the arm a split-second before he pitched backward off the bed.Mercifully, her arcana had subsided as quickly as it had broken free, and she avoided shocking him a second time.
Both of them sat back on their heels, facing each other, as their hearts pounded and chests heaved in unison. Their eyes met, and they exchanged breathless laughter.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“I’m fine,” he said as he rubbed his lips. “I can only imagine that’s what kissing a lightning rod during a thunderstorm would feel like.”
Though she was relieved she hadn’t harmed him, her heart continued to hammer against her ribcage. Her stomach clenched with the guilt from easily losing control again.
“Gods, I’m so sorry. I can’t remember the last time I had a magic surge during sex.”
“Well!” he chuckled. “If I was responsible forall that, I ought to take it as a compliment.”
“You should.” She reached up to brush a lock of hair from his eyes. They closed as her fingertips lingered against his temple. “Once again, you prove to be incredible.”
“I’m glad you think so. I rather enjoyed that.” He opened his eyes again. “For clarity’s sake, I meant the amorous congress between your thighs, not the less-than-amorous brush with electrocution.”
She laughed.
