Page 120 of His Darkest Desire

Find her.

Rut her.

The artificial moonlight vanished, leaving only darkness outside the window.

No more waiting.

Vex thrust himself up, nearly tearing the blanket off the bed, and darted for the door.

She is mine tonight and every night hereafter.

Mine for eternity.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Kinsley’s heart raced, urging her feet to match its pace as she ran through the woods. She’d hiked many trails in her life, had explored many forests and camped in the wilderness more times than she could count, but she’d never once exposed herself to the elements like this.

And it was thrilling.

Though night had long since fallen, the woods weren’t dark and foreboding. The light of moon and stars streamed through the canopy, and crystals she’d never noticed during the day glowed everywhere, morphing the land into the enchanted forest it had felt like from the beginning.

Kinsley slowed to a stop. Her chest rose and fell with her ragged breaths as she studied her surroundings. She didn’t know where she was, hadn’t even bothered to pay attention. There’d been no need. No matter where she was, Vex would find her. And when he did…

She squeezed her thighs together as her core pulsed in arousal. Her pussy was already swollen and slick with need, and her nipples ached. It’d been torture sitting there as he’d painted her. The titillating strokes of the brush, the firm grip of his fingers, his teasing breath, his body heat, the tickle of his hair; it’d been maddening. All while he was positioned between her legs, his cock so hard it wept cum.

Her only comfort had come from the knowledge that he was just as tortured as her, and that the wait would be worth it in the end. More than worth it.

Combing her fingers through her hair, Kinsley tilted her head and listened for the sound of his approach.

She was greeted by the forest’s night song—the gentle chirruping of insects, the soft rustling of the wind through the foliage, the erratic pattering of twigs and leaves falling to the ground. But there was something else there, something felt rather than heard. A hum, faint and indistinct but no less real. A sense of…magic. Magic all around, in everything, everywhere. Magic to which she was connected. To which she’d always been connected, just like she’d imagined as a child.

Then a new sound joined the chorus, muted and yet impossible to ignore. The heavy flap of wings in the night sky.

Kinsley snapped her face in that direction. The small hairs on her arms and neck stood on end, and a shiver coursed up her spine.

She darted forward, her feet falling upon patches of fallen leaves, soft moss, and smooth stones. Anticipation thrummed through her. There was a hint of fear mixed with her lust, the fear of prey being hunted. It was primal, instinctual, and it only heightened her excitement.

Another beat of wings from somewhere above, just before a shadow crossed through the beams of moonlight ahead.

Kinsley’s eyes widened, and she sprinted to the right, slipping between the trees. But when that shadow crossed her path again, she skidded to a halt. Something crashed through the canopy a few dozen feet in front of her.

A dark form landed on the forest floor.

Breath catching in her throat and heart nearly pounding out of her chest, Kinsley sank low and retraced her steps as quickly and quietly as she could.

“You cannot hide,” Vex called from behind her, his voice echoing through the forest.

She ducked behind a boulder, willing her breathing to ease and her heart to slow so she could listen. Heavy footsteps drew near to her, disturbing the vegetation, and she knew she was caught, knew it was over.

But those footfalls darted past on the other side of the boulder, moving rapidly away from her.

When they’d fallen silent, she lifted her head, raking her gaze across the area. She spied no movement but that of the gently swaying boughs overhead. There was no sign of Vex. Releasing a slow, measured exhalation, she crept forward.

Vex’s voice came now from the direction in which he’d run. “You are mine, Kinsley. I feel you here. Smell you.”

Bracing a hand against a trunk, she peered around it. The ancient trees and mossy rocks were motionless in the ethereal night glow. She could make out every detail, tinted blue by the preternatural light, but she could not discern Vex’s shape amidst all of it.

Yet he’d gone in that direction. Where was he?

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