Page 23 of Of Storm and Emerald
“What the hell was that? How did we get here?” She tried to sound calm, but even she could hear the wary tone in her words.
His signature smirk appeared once more, his eyes glowing with desire as he prowled toward her, eating up the space that she had placed between them.
“Magic,” Daemon stated like it was the most obvious answer, his eyes twinkling in the light from the fire.
She crossed her arms, an incredulous look on her face. “You know what I mean, don’t be obtuse.”
Daemon chuckled, “Why don’t I just show you.”
Not waiting for her answer, he pulled the shadows from around the room. Gone were the fireplace and furnishings of the room and in their place were swirls of the deepest blues and darkest blacks, cocooning them in darkness. Her mouth hung open in awe as she took in her new surroundings, reaching out to brush her fingers against the shadows that swirled around her.
When she finally met his gaze again, her eyes were alight with wonder. “What is this? I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Daemon smiled. “They’re shadows. I have some of my own that I can use and manipulate at will. But I can also pull any shadow near me and bend it to my will. I also use them to get from one place to another, it’s calledshadow walking. Which, coincidentally, is how we got here.”
As she processed the new information, she continued to stroke the shadows surrounding her, causing a shiver to visibly course through Daemon’s body. Noticing the obvious reaction it had on him, she stopped and raised a questioning brow, then reached out to run her fingers along them again. As soon as her fingertips were a hairsbreadth away, Daemon winked and disappeared from view, only to reappear directly behind her. The sudden movements elicited a gasp from her lips.
Daemon wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her flush against his chest. He leaned down, his breath a warm caress that sent shivers through her body as he whispered in her ear.
“When I am controlling the shadows, my star, they are an extension of me. When you caress them like that, you might as well be stroking every nerve ending in my body.”
Chapter Nine
Daemon
Hetookhistimeas he trailed kisses down her neck, her head lolling to the side to give him better access. Her eyes fluttered closed as she melted into his touch, and a low moan sounded deep in her throat.
Pulling her waist flush against his own, he slid his hand up the bodice of her gown, and gently palmed her breast over the fabric. She arched into his touch as a cold wind blew through the room. Like a phantom touch, it caressed the shadows, causing them to shudder.
Daemon slid his hand higher, and lightly wrapped it around her throat. The new position tilted her head back onto his shoulder and gave him an unobstructed view down her body. From the swell of her breasts and the delicate gold chains that draped across them, to her narrow waist and the fullness of her hips.
The flush that he took pleasure in bringing to her face, now spread down her neck and colored her chest in a rosy-pink hue.
A groan rumbled deep within his chest as he nipped at her ear. “Oh, the things I want to do to you.”
Auraelia’s eyes fluttered open, and she tilted her head. Meeting her gaze, he saw the passion that swirled in their stormy depths.
“So do them,” her voice was low and breathy, and he felt it straight to his cock.
She smirked, and with that slight tilt at the corner of her mouth, he threw all pretense out the window. Dropping the shadows that still shrouded them in velvety darkness, he spun her around and pulled her flush against him.
He molded her body to his and captured her mouth again.
Sliding his hand from the front of her throat to the nape of her neck, he threaded his fingers into the hair at the base of her skull, and gently tilted her face to a better angle.
Auraelia sank into his touch, matching every stroke of his tongue with her own, and every sweet moan that escaped from her was a straight shot to his groin.
“Auraelia, my star, you’re wearing far too many layers,” he muttered between kisses.
She chuckled and placed her hands on his chest, giving him a gentle shove as she slowly backed away. The memory of her leaving the night before crashed into his mind, and he grabbed her waist before she could take more than a step,
He nuzzled into her neck and nipped at the tender flesh there. “Where the fuck do you think you’re going?”
She wriggled in his arms and laughed.
When he pulled back, his brow furrowed in confusion as Auraelia shook her head, and once again stepped out of his grasp.
“You said that I was wearing too many layers. I wastryingto remedy that particular situation.” She placed a finger in the center of his chest and pushed him backward until his knees hit the edge of his bed. “Sit.”
