“You look mighty fine yourself,” she said breathlessly, suddenly unable to take her eyes off his gleaming white teeth. A wave of fear threatened to rise and she forced it back down. The claiming bite would hurt, she knew, but it would be worth it. And she trusted Arius to make it as easy for her to take as possible.
“Breathe through your nose,” he whispered, leaning down to give her a lingering kiss.
It worked. His scent had the desired effect, settling her anxiety, igniting her need for him to touch her.
Taking her hand, Arius turned to face the crowd and began to speak in a strong, clear voice. “I would like to thank you all for coming today to bear witness to the claiming. This stunning Omega is the woman I have chosen to claim as my mate. With her, I intend to further the Sandorus bloodline and work hard to be a good, fair ruler to you all. Her name is Saskia, and she will be a wonderful queen. I am proud to call her mine.”
There was a roaring in her ears and she realized the sound was applause, people clapping in rhythmic waves that rippled around the great hall and echoed off the walls.
Her gown had been especially designed for a claiming; it was sleeveless and left her neck and shoulders bare. As if in slow motion, Arius turned her to face him. “I love you, little Omega,” he said so quietly that only she could hear him. Before she could respond, her mind reeling at his confession, he began to growl and spun her around so she had her back to him. Tugging her against his huge, muscular, hot body, still growling, he slid her hair away from her left shoulder.
Saskia’s reaction to his growl was as quick as it was familiar. A slow, insistent pulse began in her clit, almost as if she could feel the vibrations of his voice directly against the sensitive nub. Closing her eyes, she focused on the sensations as he slid a palm down her belly, cupping her sex through the gown. A gush of slick was her body’s automatic response and it was torture to feel his thick, hard length pressing against the small of her back instead of between her thighs, where she wanted it the most.
The constant clapping had receded to some faraway place, and she moaned as he increased the pressure on her groin, fighting the urge to grind herself against his palm.
“Concentrate on this,” he whispered in her ear, “focus on me and this feeling. We have our backs to them, nobody can see.”
Another spurt of slick trickled down her thigh as he began to move his hand… up and down… up and down…
Then she felt his teeth settle on the curve where her neck met her shoulder. His growl grew louder and she was vaguely aware that her thighs were trembling.
His scent, his touch, that possessive, alpha growl all combined to push her to the very edge, her body responding as if electrified.
Time felt suspended as she stood in his arms, her pussy swollen and aching for him, her clit engorged and leaping as he ground his palm over it through the layers of silk, his teeth hard and threatening as they began to sink slowly into her flesh.
She was on the brink and felt herself contract once, more slick seeping from her throbbing core.
Only when she thought she wouldn’t be able to take one more second did he claim her; biting down hard as she lost control.
The fierce, agonizing pain as his teeth sank into the soft, sensitive flesh of her neck only served to increase the strength of her orgasm, and she was unable to prevent the guttural moan which escaped her lips as she climaxed, wave after wave of pleasure rolling through her core, her liquid desire seeping into the material of her skirt where he was rubbing her pounding clit.
Overwhelmed by the sensations, Saskia felt her knees soften, and then everything went dark.
The taste of her blood on his tongue had driven Arius into a frenzy, his erection straining against the confines of his suit pants, the heat of her body and scent of her slick almost enough to make him explode even without being touched.
When his little Omega stopped shuddering and went limp in his arms, he picked her up and turned to Evander, who was standing nearby. “I have to see to her,” he said, his voice hoarse. “This is why I’ve always believed this ceremony should be done in private. Tell everybody she has been claimed and they’re welcome to help themselves to food and drink. We’ll be back down in a bit.”
Evander’s eyes were wide as he glanced down at Saskia, the blood from Arius’s bite scarlet against her milky skin. “Is she all right?”
“She’s fine. She just fainted. I’ve heard it can happen when things get too… intense.” He gave his friend a wry smile. “I’m trusting you to take charge of the proceedings. And thank you.” Without waiting for a reply, Arius turned and headed for the back exit.
Once in his bedroom, he laid her down on the bed. Her long eyelashes were fluttering, her cheeks were flushed, and blood was still trickling from the place where he’d bitten her.
Slick stained the front of her gown and Arius felt his erection pulse.
She was so beautiful… and all his.
“My little darling,” he said, stroking her cheek.
She opened her eyes and blinked, staring at him, obviously trying to focus. “Oh,” she said, startled, and tried to sit up.
His hands on her shoulders, he held her down. “Hush, pet, it’s all right. You’re in our bed.”
“What?” She looked around and the movement must have made her wound hurt because she let out a small, “Ow,” and stilled. “We were at the ceremony… what happened?”
He gave her a wry smile. “You fainted when I bit you. I’m sorry.”
She had such an expressive face, he noted, watching the color creep up into her cheeks as she relived the moments leading up to her passing out. “Oh, gods,” she whispered. “I… You made me… Gods, with my parents there. With everybody there!”
It was curious, how she could be so wanton with him, so willing to surrender herself completely to her desire when they were mating, and yet she still had the most endearing prudish streak. “It’s fine,” he said, amused, “I made sure we had our backs to the crowd. They never noticed.”
“And then I just fainted?”
He nodded.
“What happened after that?”
“I took you up here. Evander’s holding the fort.”
“Isn’t it a bit rude to just disappear during your own claiming ceremony?”
“Perhaps, but to be honest, my little darling, I don’t give a fuck. They can be glad we even did it in public. What happened just now is merely proof of what I’ve been saying all along—that a claiming is one of the most intimate things which can happen between an Alpha and an Omega and there shouldn’t be spectators.”
She looked at him, gazing at him head-on, her aquamarine eyes wide and tender. “It’s done now,” she said at length, her hand moving to touch her neck.
He caught it mid-way. “Don’t,” he said. “We need to dress it soon. You shouldn’t touch it before then.”
Her thumb slipped out of his grasp and gently stroked the back of his hand. “We’re mated. For life,” she whispered.
Arius couldn’t stop the grin from spreading as he bent to kiss her finger. “We are.”
A little line formed between her eyebrows. “Before it happened. You…” She seemed to think better of it. “Never mind.”
“I what?”
The blush on her cheeks deepened. “You said you love me.”
“Oh, so you did hear that.” He chuckled. “I wasn’t sure.”
“But how can you be so sure? After so little time together?”
She looked so earnest, so puzzled, that it was all he could do not to kiss her. Instead, he shrugged. “When you know, you know.” Settling himself beside her, he continued, “My darling Saskia, I may only have known you for a short time, but it’s been long enough for me to realize that you have my heart. You’re sweet, kind, funny, and beautiful. You have a good heart and a quick mind. I’d be insane not to fall for you.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “Really? You really mean all that?”
“Of course.”
&nbs
p; “Oh, Arius.” She said it in such a breathy voice, with such an expression of adoration on her features that his cock pulsed again, reminding him again how much he wanted her.
Leaning down, he pressed his lips to hers, relishing the way she granted his tongue access to hers, inhaling her sweet breath as he kissed her for so long and so hard that he felt he was drinking her all in.
His hand wandered down over her silky gown, cupping one of her firm, full breasts, allowing his fingertip to rasp over the taut bud of her nipple through the silver material.
She let out a little moan and he took that as a green light to continue. Moving his hand lower still, he caressed her belly, then her thigh before sliding his palm over her sex.
“Want more?” he said, his voice thick with need for her.
“Yes, oh, yes. Always.”
He helped her sit up and together they unzipped her dress, tugging it from her body until she was beautifully, gloriously naked. Arius was certain he would never tire of the sight of her curved thighs, her slender ankles, her flat belly and her milky skin. With a growl, he divested himself of his own clothing; the shoes, suit jacket, pants, shirt, socks and tie being tossed to the floor in short order. Now free, his cock jutted out, straining almost painfully, the tip already seeping with proof of his arousal. Gods, but he couldn’t wait to fuck her.
About to position himself between her thighs, he was halted by her small hand on his chest. “Wait,” she said. “I want to try something.”
The next moment, she had bent down and wrapped her lips around his throbbing cock.
Arius threw his head back and groaned as her hot, wet mouth slid slowly up and down his swollen shaft, her tongue teasing the tip. In this position, he had a perfect view of her back; the way her little waist curved out to her delectable, heart-shaped ass. One day, he vowed, he would take her there too, make her his in all ways. But for now it was all he could do not to shoot down her throat as she licked and sucked his member with apparent greed.
“Gods, you’re killing me,” he rasped, threading his fingers through her hair and guiding her movements.
When he was unable to take it for a moment longer, he tugged her off him and his cock slid out from her mouth with a wet pop. She looked up at him and licked her lips, and it was nearly his undoing.
The scent of her slick was heavy in the air and when he sat back on his heels, pulled her into his lap and thrust himself deep inside her tight, sodden little cunt, the way she cried out sent volts of electric pleasure zinging through his entire body.
Determined not to climax until he’d pleasured her again, he thrust slow and deep, gripping her hips, rocking her against him. Her fingernails dug into his back and her eyes were closed, her hard nipples sliding against his chest. Shifting her so that he could feel the hard little nub of her clit grinding against his groin, he slid her soft hair aside and put his lips to the mark on her neck.
Then Arius began to growl.
There was a strange, unusual tenderness to their mating, but when Arius began to slide his tongue over the throbbing, aching bite in her neck, the deep, primal growl rumbling from deep within his chest, Saskia felt the bolts of lust all the way to her core. The combination of pleasure and pain did something to her, and she closed her eyes, surrendering herself to the sensation.
Her pussy was stretched around his slowly thrusting shaft, her clit being inexorably rubbed against the coarse hair of his groin, and the sharp ache where he’d bitten her only served to heighten her arousal. When he sucked her wound, she gushed and cried out, her muscles clenching around him as the pleasure reached a peak.
Then Arius gripped the back of her head and took her mouth, his tongue expertly seeking hers, thrusting faster inside her, and the combination of his scent, his sounds, the sensations, and the taste of her own blood on his tongue pushed her over the edge.
Saskia lost control as she came, her pussy fluttering around him, every spasm sending another wave of ecstasy through her core as she felt the knot grow inside her, locking their bodies together.
Rearing up on his knees, taking her with him, Arius slammed her down on the mattress and came with an almighty thrust, shuddering with the force of his release as he spurted inside her still contracting sex.
It was her favorite part, better even than climax, she realized, as she wrapped her arms and legs around his muscular back and narrow hips—hearing and feeling him come inside her. It was the only time he ever completely lost control.
They rested there for a while, rolling over onto their sides as soon as their breathing had calmed somewhat.
“My mate,” Arius murmured tenderly, kissing the tip of her nose. “I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of you.”
Saskia took a deep breath. “I love you,” she whispered.
His piercing silver eyes met hers; probing, questioning. “Are you saying that because I did? Because you’re under no obligation. In fact, I don’t want you to ever say it unless you really—”
“I do really mean it,” she interrupted him. “I love you, Arius.”
Pulling her to him, he kissed her with such ferocity that she forgot how to breathe. She melted against him, her raw sex once again beginning to ache even though the knot hadn’t fully softened and he was still inside her.
“You have no idea how happy that makes me,” he said hoarsely as soon as they came up for air. “Or how much I want to take you all over again. But if you’re feeling up to it, we should go back downstairs—after I’ve dressed your wound, of course.”
“Of course.” She was smiling so hard her cheeks hurt.
“I really think I must be the luckiest Alpha in the world.”
A short while later, dressed in a different gown and still beaming, Saskia allowed Arius to take her by the hand and lead her back into the great hall. The wound on her neck still throbbed, and probably would do so for a while, he had warned, but with the proper care, it would heal. The scar would forever be a reminder of their bond, a mark to show the world that she belonged to him.
He had washed it out and taped a bandage to it with deft, gentle fingers, and she still couldn’t get used to the fact that this huge, powerful, dangerous man could also be so solicitous and careful when he wanted to. My mate. It still all felt so surreal.
The guests were milling about, availing themselves of the abundance of food and drink. Evander spotted them first and sauntered over. Saskia greeted him shyly; she had only ever seen him once before, at the Facility. It seemed like such a long time ago.
“Allow me to be the first to congratulate the happy couple,” he said, clapping Arius on the back before taking her hand and pressing a soft kiss to her knuckles. “My queen. It’s a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance properly.”
“And mine,” Saskia murmured, reeling at being addressed that way. “Please, call me Saskia.”
“As you wish.”
“But not in public,” Arius said good-naturedly.
Evander smoothed back his thick, russet hair and rolled his eyes. “Not where people can hear us, you mean,” he said with an easy grin.
Saskia found herself liking him immediately. Then she spotted Natalia on the other side of the room, looking adorable but decidedly uncomfortable in her emerald green dress. “There’s my sister,” she said.
“Go and mingle, pet,” Arius said, patting her behind.
She needed no further encouragement. Taking a full glass of wine from a nearby tray, she threaded her way through the crowd until she reached Nat.
“Where have you been?” Natalia asked with an arched brow.
Saskia felt herself blush. “I… fainted, and…”
Nat grinned. “Couldn’t wait until after the party to consummate the union, huh?”
Saskia’s face grew hotter. “Was it that obvious?”
Her sister eyed the stark white bandage on her neck. “Did it hurt?”
“It did.”
“It looked like it. Made me glad not to be an Omega. Although,�
�� she leaned forward conspiratorially and Saskia caught the whiff of wine on her breath, wondering how much she’d already imbibed, “there are a couple of very tasty young men milling about here. Too bad they’re all Alphas.”
Saskia was saved from having to reply by the arrival of her parents, who were also decidedly pink-cheeked. Her father was clutching a half-empty bottle of beer, and her mother was drinking wine for a change. They both embraced and congratulated her.
“Are you all right?” Her mother’s pretty face was wrinkled with concern. “That red-haired guy in the nice suit said you’d fainted but we were so worried! Did Arius bite you that hard?”
“I’m fine, Mama,” Saskia said. “I’m sorry I frightened you.”
“Barbaric custom,” her father said, indicating the bandage. “I really don’t see why it’s necessary. What’s wrong with saying vows, like the rest of us? It was enough for your mother and me.”
Saskia blew out a breath and took a long swallow of her own wine. “It wasn’t so bad. Really.” She couldn’t possibly expect him to understand what the claiming mark represented, let alone even begin to explain what receiving it had felt like.
He sniffed. “Well, what’s done is done, I suppose.”
They talked a little more and Saskia promised to go visit them regularly. Then she caught someone waving to her. It was Tavos. “I have to go and speak to someone,” she told her parents. “But first, I just wanted to say, it meant the world to me to have you here today. And I know it’s hard to imagine, to process that so much could happen in such a short space of time, but please believe me when I say that I truly am blissfully happy.”
“You love him,” her mother said suddenly. It was a statement, not a question.
“I do.” Saskia glanced at her father, who had gone very still.
Then his face softened and he pulled her to him, enveloping her in a hug. “I only ever wanted you to be happy, sweetie,” he said gruffly. “And if he’s the one who can do that, you have my blessing.”
Tears pricked her eyes and Saskia blinked them back, swallowing past the sudden lump in her throat. “That means more to me than you’ll ever know,” she said. “Thank you. I love you.”
Primal Possession: A dark Omegaverse Romance (Alphas of Sandor Book 1) Page 14