Page 59 of Hysteria Rises
And so that I have something else to focus on, I turn her arm over and scan the mark I put on her skin.
I remember the thrill that’d flooded through me when I’d been informed that I’d be claiming her for us. With one finger, I trace around the number I’d inked there. Her skin is so fucking soft. It won’t be long before she’s all healed up, but it looks good so far. I scrape my teeth over my lip as I stare down at it.
When she makes a small whimpering sound, the steady drum of my heart picks up its pace. She’s close,hardly a few inches between us. As she glances up at me from under a thick fringe of lashes, the memories of what it’d been like to claim her curl through my brain, and a sharp stab of want buries itself inside my gut. I bend at the waist and lean in to let her shuddery breath feather past my lips. And fuck me, I can’t help but inhale deeply as she sways toward me. That mingling of air shouldn’t be so significant, but to me, it is. She’s not looking at me with anger in her eyes or hatred in her heart but with something very, very different.
My chest is tight, and suddenly, her free hand is there, fingers toying with one of the buttons. The fist I’d been making to stop myself from touching her unclenches. Longing fills me. Ever so slowly, I raise my arm, my gaze shifting from blue-as-the-sky irises to lips the same reddish pink as one of the apples in our orchard. And just like the fruit that grows there, her lips are tempting. They look so fucking juicy, I want nothing more than to have a taste. As she rocks forward on her feet, her hand fists my shirt in a desperate bid for balance.
My cock hardens uncomfortably, and my throat goes dry as my focus shifts back to her eyes. They’re pinned on me, curious, and her chest heaves on an unsteady exhale.
“Hayze.”
The sound of my name from her lips catches me off guard, and I grunt. It’s an agonized, low, ache-filled sound. At her swift intake of breath, I lookdown to find her chest rising and falling rapidly, pert nipples poking against the cotton shift she wears. The insistent throb of my dick reminds me what is beneath the fabric. I’ve had my hands on this body and sank my cock inside her warm, wet cunt. I’ve spilled my seed inside her body.
My eyes slam shut as need cascades through me. All logical thought flies free of the prison of my skull, and I can’t keep my gaze from straying back to her eyes. I could get lost in the pools of blue.
I can’t slow my breath, the frantic beat of my heart. And I sure as fuck can’t stop myself. I tug her sharply toward me until her body collides with mine. A gasp slips from her as I collar the back of her neck, and my attention refocuses on her lips. Feeling her against me, I want things I shouldn’t. I want my mouth on hers, want to explore her, learn the way she tastes. On a groan, I press my lips to hers. Her body trembles in my arms, and on instinct, I haul her closer, molding her curves to me. The way she feels. Fuuuck. A stuttered breath is wrenched from me. I need more, so I slant my mouth over hers. Taking. Devouring.
She’s not pulling away. She doesn’t fight me as I slide my hand down her back, exploring the contours of her frame. When I encounter the round curve of her ass, I moan against her lips as I squeeze her softness, familiarizing myself.
On a sigh, she presses closer, hands at my hips, and in response, my cock strains behind my zipper, rock hard. Our lips part, I’m in a fog, in a daze, lost. Desirespills through my veins, every touch, every sound she makes spurring me on. I’ve never felt an urge so powerful. I want?—
Our lips crash together again, needy. Demanding. And her tongue flicks at the seam of my lips, then strokes inside my mouth. I shudder as a wave of need threatens to overtake me. My pulse races as I groan, grinding my cock against her soft belly. I want it to go on and on. And as I delve deeper into her mouth, licking and sucking at her tongue in this wicked dance I’m only just learning, I bring a hand to her chest. Her nipple is a hard pebble against my palm as I cup her breast. A torrent of sensation has me in its grip, and I wrench away from her kiss to push her onto the bed and lower my mouth to her breast. Feeding off what can only be a raw animal urge, I draw her nipple into my mouth, sucking on her through the semi-sheer gown. The act sends a jolt of lust straight to my cock.
Twenty-three lets out a gasping breath, her back arching off the mattress, hands diving into my hair and holding me to her. Oh, fuck. This is so different from before. My hips rock, and I thrust against her body as I work my tongue over the bud, dampening the material.
I draw back, staring at the rosy-pink color visible through the wet fabric.Fuuuck. Crawling over her, I yank the top of her gown down, exposing her breast to my gaze. With every ragged breath I take, I know I need more. So much fucking more. I close my mouth over her, running my tongue over the pebbled skin. Shesquirms, releasing a desperate moan. Fuck me, she tastes… “So fucking sweet.”
Rearing up, I stare at her. She’s all flushed cheeks and heaving chest. Dazed, far-off eyes. In one swift move, I shift her farther onto the bed and then look down. Her gown is rucked up, bunched at the waist.
The sight of those bare legs already has my dick weeping, but then I focus on the apex of her thighs, her cunt on display for me. Inhaling, I drag in the scent of her arousal with every labored breath. The need to taste her here, too, slams into me.
Her legs quiver under my gaze, and her eyes are locked on my every move. “Spread your thighs for me, minx.”
She blinks at my rasped demand, drawing in an unsteady breath, then nods… and they drop open.
I can’t stop the wild need building within me. Her glistening cunt beckons, and I drag the flat of my tongue along her inner thigh, only stopping just shy of her sex, then slowly stroke a finger over her opening. Heat rushes down my spine, like lightning, and my hips thrust involuntarily into the mattress. It’s not enough. All I want is to let the carnal urge racing through me win. I want to fuck her.
But I can’t. My jaw tightens as I struggle for control. Iwon’t.The Hunting. It’sin two days.
THIRTY
DELILAH
I knowwhat I’m inviting by making myself vulnerable to this man. Giving in and letting him think he can have me is the only thing that will give me the control I want because there’s no denying it—they don’t care if I fight them. It only makes my misery while being trapped in this place a thousand times worse. And if using what they want from me—my body—as a weapon, is what I have to do? So fucking be it.
Dark Falls Hollow.
I finally know where I am. And like an idiot, I’d gotten excited. But then, it’d hit me like a ton of bricks that no such place is likely to be on any map. Even if I figure out a way to communicate with the outside world, the odds of anyone ever having heard of this place are slim. And I have no idea how far I wandered in those days spent lost in the wilderness. It doesn’thelp that I can’t quite decide whether I believe this is a nightmare or all too real.
I suck in a breath, my stomach dipping when I notice the sheer intensity on Hayze’s face. He’s desire incarnate, need rolling off him in fiercely ardent waves. I should be terrified to let him touch me again, but I can’t think of another way to get out of this mess.
As he grips the juncture of my thighs, a shiver rushes through me, pulling at my attention. His hands are big, rough from physical labor. My focus narrows to the man peering up at me with brilliant blue eyes. His face isn’t more than six inches from my pussy, and my heart clangs around in my chest as he cocks his head to the side. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but I keep getting a little confused when he stares like he’s doing right now.
Even worse have been the occasions when I get a glimpse of honesty from him—those moments make me forget what he’s done. And I can’t afford to do that.
I gasp as he runs the pads of his thumbs over sensitive skin. I’m wet, have been since we started kissing and he pressed close to me. In my head, I pretended I was somewhere else and let it happen. And now, I don’t know what the hell I’m doing and understand even less how I feel about it.
An unsteady breath rushes from me. My mind is twisted up, remembering every second of the last time we were in this room and the orgasm that he’d forced on me… and then what’d come after. My body jerks, but I don’t know if it’s from the memory or the way he’s touching me now. Whichever is the truth, the result is the same, and I can’t stop myself from crying out.
