Page 44 of To Break a Demon Curse

My hands curled around his horns as his tongue lashed against me, his mouth buried as deeply in me as he could get while holding me upright. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before, even with him, and I gripped his horns tightly to prevent myself from collapsing under his ministrations.

I moaned, feeling the rhythmic stroke of his tongue as if it lashed through my whole body, his mouth working me into a frenzy as I swayed above him.

“Gods,” I cried, throwing my head back as pleasure crashed through me. Carnon grasped my hips, easing me down to the floor as I writhed. I made a little moan of protest at the loss of his tongue, and he chuckled, kissing me deeply as he rolled himself under me.

“Praying again, Red?” he teased, sliding me down until he was positioned just beneath my entrance. “I thought we talked about that.”

“We did,” I gasped, lowering myself onto his hard length and moaning with pleasure. “You’re supposed to be the one worshiping.”

Carnon sat up suddenly, the movement thrusting him to the hilt as he took my breast in his mouth and swirled his tongue against my peaked nipple.

“I could worship you like this every moment of every day,” he growled, trailing kisses up my neck.

“Because I’m your mate?” I breathed, voice hitching on a little gasp as he stilled at my throat.

The confession had slipped out of me, the words stringing themselves together unbidden. For a moment neither of us moved, and I swallowed thickly, panic rising in my chest.

“Who told you?” Carnon asked, pulling back so he could meet my eyes. He was breathing heavily, and something smoldered in his gaze. Not anger really, but a kind of furious incendiaryneed.

“It doesn’t matter,” I whispered, my own chest heaving as I held his stare. “Don’t stop.” He didn’t move, just continued staring at me. I licked my lips and lifted my head, brushing a gentle kiss against his pursed lips. “Please.”

He moved again with an aching slowness, one hand sliding back to cup my rear.

“How long?” he rumbled, his lips skating across my collarbone and over the necklace that meant so much more than our betrothal.

“Since the ball,” I gasped, twisting my fingers into his hair as he began to move faster beneath me. I tugged, eliciting a hiss and drawing his face away until his serpentine eyes met mine again.

“Yes, Red,” he said, thrusting harder now, a frenzied rhythm growing between us. “I could fuck you all day every day because you are my mate. And because you are strong. And perfect. And wild.” Each word was punctuated by a thrust that sent pleasure spinning and coiling through me. Something intangible built between us, something warm and wrapped in my magic that blossomed between my ribs. “And because the only thing I have wanted since stumbling upon you in the Bloodwoods is to have you, just like this. To make youmine.”

I shattered, the release making me claw at him as he followed, his groan of pleasure swallowed by my lips as he spilled into me.

He fell back, pulling me with him, and we laid there for some time, breathing heavily in the wake of our passion.

I expected to feel cold as the sensations abated and the realization of what we both knew crashed into us. I had told Cerridwen I wasn’t going to tell him. Had vowed to myself that he shouldn’t know. And the secret had come barreling out of me with my release like a Goddess-damned reflex.

A knock at the door made me look up. Carnon cursed soundly.

“It’s dinner,” he said, pulling me down for a last searing kiss before rolling me off him. I had just enough time to scramble to wrap a blanket around myself before he opened the door, fully naked, and picked up the tray that had been left by a very smart or very fearful servant.

He closed the door, turning with the tray in his hands and giving me a wry smirk. “I suppose it’s time for another round of truth for truth.”

Chapter 18

It was a strange sensation to be sitting cross-legged on the big wooden bed that had in fact been in the room the whole time we were naked on the floor, eating stew from a bowl across from Carnon, wearing nothing but a blanket.

He was cross legged too, eating with an intensity that belied his nerves. He kept his eyes on me the whole time, not speaking until he had polished off the bowl and a chunk of bread and replaced the empty dish on the tray.

“Truth then,” he said, watching me as I ate more slowly, anxiety making me poke at the carrots with my spoon. “Who told you?”

“Cerridwen,” I replied. “And Brigid. But it was an accident.”

Carnon raised an inquisitive brow and I sighed, lowering the bowl to my lap. “Brigid said how lucky I was to have found my mate,” I explained. “When we were at the ball. Cerridwen was there, and I made her tell me everything.”

“Ah,” Carnon said, brow still raised. “And the chalk was you swearing them to secrecy?”

“You saw that?” I gaped, sure I had hidden it before he had seen.

He gave me a wry half smile. “You’re not as good at lying as I am, Red.” I scowled, and his smile grew wider. “Your turn. Ask me anything. At this point, there’s nothing left to hide from you.”

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