“Are you sure about that?” She had no idea what he planned for her. Or how he meant to hurt her. Part of him wanted to tell her. The selfish side of him refused to allow it. He had one night with Nyx. He’d be damned if he’d allow it to slip through his fingers.
Nyx nodded, slipped under his arm, then took a couple of backward steps. “Yes. So where will we dance?”
Without looking at Nyx, Anton headed toward his tower. She’d follow. Their bond would draw them together. It was too strong. His fault. He should’ve sent her away the moment he’d realized what they were to each other. Instead, he’d kissed her. Touched her. Shared air with her. Freakin’ dreamed about what could be.
Balling his fists, Anton fought the anger. It’d do little good to rage about the injustice of their situation. He had no one to blame but himself. He’d chosen the Council long before Nyx had been born.
His bedroom door remained closed, exactly how he’d left it this morning. Inside, the sheets on the bed would be turned down. Wood would be stacked in the fireplace. Whiskey would be waiting in the decanter on the table. Wine would be chilling.
He’d prepped the room specifically for tonight. Anton walked by the door without entering. Nyx had demanded a dance. He’d give it to her. Hopefully, she’d remember it years from now, treasuring it as he would.
He quickened his pace, jogging up the stairs to the open room above his bedroom. The air cooled with each step. On windy days, you couldn’t stand in the open tower room without your hair being tossed or your clothes being plastered to your body. Tonight, calmness hung over the house. It wouldn’t last. The approaching storm would eradicate it. For now, peace reigned.
Anton strode to the middle of the room and faced the stairwell. Minutes passed. He didn’t move from his spot. Nyx was coming. He felt her in his bones, as if the mystical connection they shared had a physical force.
Nyx turned the corner. Barefoot, she carried her heels in one hand. Anton focused on her small feet. A dark polish covered her toes. A small silver moon dangled from a chain around her anklet. The details made Nyx appear real. The thought struck him as off. Of course she was real. He’d touched her. He didn’t understand why his mind drifted to such a meaningless point, but he knew how to get rid of those confusing thoughts.
“Come here.” Anton held out his hand.
Nyx set her heels on the floor near the wall, then approached him. Her slow steps offered him the perfect opportunity to admire her beauty. If her heavy-lidded expression was any indication, she was drinking in his image too.
She reached for him. He curled his finger around her delicate hand and drew her close. Her breasts pressed against his chest. Her scent wrapped around him. He settled one hand at Nyx’s lower back, the other between her shoulder blades, and rested his cheek on the top of her head. Then held her.
Peace slipped through him. He wanted to stay like this forever.
“There’s no music playing.” Nyx wrapped her arms around him. “We can’t dance without music.”
“We’ll make our own.” Anton slid his hand over Nyx’s back, then swayed with her, leading her in a slow dance that had nothing to do with music and everything to do with pleasure.
Nyx’s sigh spoke of contentment. She turned her head and rested her cheek over his heart.
They moved with each other, gliding across the floor as if they both heard the same music. Anton stroked his hands over Nyx’s back, pulling her closer. She did the same. Nyx’s nails scraped his back. Her hair brushed his arm. He fisted the strands and tipped her head back. Her brown eyes held a glint of victory. He didn’t know what she thought she won. He couldn’t allow himself to care.
He took her mouth in a brutal kiss, devouring her. He couldn’t get enough of Nyx. Would never get enough of Nyx. The anger he felt moments ago returned, stronger than ever. Nyx had done this to him. She’d come to his home, destroyed his perfect balance and the routine that had kept his sanity in check for centuries. The anger darkened. Rage replaced it. Or hatred. He couldn’t tell.
On a curse, he tore the front of her dress. She gasped. He heard the sound. Understood what it meant. He was losing control.
“Nyx.” Anton cupped her breast. The lacy bra cup covering her nipple irritated his palm. He scraped his nails over her full mound, dragging the material of her bra down. He wanted it off. “Do you remember how to speak?”
“Yes.”
The word came out as softly as it had the first night she’d come to his house. She’d meant it then. He had to assume she meant it now.
“Good.” Anton jerked his hand, exposing her flesh. Reddened marks showed the path of his fingers. No blood or scratches. Just the pressure mark of his fingers on her.
His chest expanded. He dragged the other bra cup down. More red lines decorated her breasts. He lifted one to his mouth and traced the path with his tongue. She tasted of spices and honey. His mouth watered. He latched on to her nipple and bit the hard tip, tearing another gasp from her throat. Not enough. He wanted her writhing.
Drawing her nipple into his mouth, he sucked on her flesh. Nyx groaned. She tangled her fingers in his hair and pulled him closer. Her unspoken demands beat at him, demanding he meet her needs. He couldn’t resist.
Anton swirled his tongue around the hard tip, then flicked it. Nyx’s restlessness grew. Her grip tightened on his hair. The scent of her desire intensified. She’d be wet for him. He knew it. Dripping wet, just as she’d been the last time he’d aroused her.
“Are you excited for me?” Anton raised his gaze but not his head. He peered at her from under his lashes, letting her see how close to the edge she’d gotten him.
Nyx skimmed her fingers along his jaw. “Touch me and see.”
The order excited him. He was tempted to find out. It’d happen on his terms only, though.
He flexed his hands on her ass. “Take off your underwear.”
Nyx bit her lip but not soon enough to hide her grin. His command pleased her. She thought she was getting exactly what she wanted. If she thought she was in for a hard fuck, she’d be right. Anything else? Only in her dreams.
Never breaking their stare, she reached under her skirt. Her panties fell to the floor. She kicked them away. “They’re off.”
“Good.” He pressed on her shoulders. “Now on your knees.”
Confusion clouded her eyes. What? Did she expect to be worshipped tonight? If so, she’d made a mistake.
“I said, on your knees.” Anton wrapped Nyx’s hair around his hand and tugged, bringing her into the position he wanted.
Lips parted slightly, Nyx watched him, waiting on his next words. The reddened path of his fingernails no longer showed on her chest. She was too powerful for them to last long. Nothing he would do to her tonight would leave his mark on her. She’d walk away from him as if he’d never touched her.
Never loved her.
The darkness eating away at his soul spread through him. He clenched his jaw and focused on the woman at his feet. With her breasts exposed and her bare feet tucked behind her, Nyx fit his perfect fantasy. He’d play it out, savoring every detail. Tomorrow morning, he’d turn the page and move on.
He covered her breast with his free hand and teased her nipple, rubbing the tip against his palm. All the while, Nyx watched him, waiting for him to tell her how to please him. He saw the anticipation in her eyes. “Free my cock, Nyx.”
A pleased smile graced her lips before she focused on his groin. With steady fingers, she undid the button on his pants and pulled the zipper. His dick stretched awkwardly to the side from the tight confines of his pants. He released Nyx’s breast and fisted his length. Slow strokes from base to head thickened his shaft and intensified the ache.
Exhaling, he caught her gaze. “Decades, Nyx. It’s been decades since I’ve so much as jerked off.”
Nyx searched his face, looking for something. He didn’t know what. Finally, she met his eyes. “Why?”
“I don’t know.” Truth or lie.
He couldn’t be certain. Didn’t know if his indifference to women or sex meant anything. Maybe he’d been waiting for Nyx. “But I know I’m hungry now.”
“So am I.”
Nyx wrapped her fingers around his shaft. She leaned closer and touched the tip of her tongue to the head of his dick. Liquid welled at the opening, slickening the skin. She rubbed her thumb through the precum.
His dick jerked. His breathing quickened. He could come right now. No stimulation. Nothing more than Nyx’s attention on him. Not happening. He’d waited too long for this.
Tightening his grip on Nyx’s hair, he tipped her head back, leaned over her, and kissed her. Hard. Brutally. He ate at her mouth and sucked on her tongue, exploring her as if he’d never kissed her before. He devoured every sound she made from the mewling groans to deep moans. Her passion enflamed him. His dick grew impossibly harder. Pain radiated through his shaft to his balls. Never before had he ever been this hard.
“Nyx.”
There was more than lust in his voice. He heard it. He didn’t know what it meant. He knew what he felt, though. He’d waited so long for heaven. Too long. Now he’d be cast out. He wasn’t worthy of it.
He didn’t deserve Nyx, not even for a night. He had her, though. Damn if he’d let her go.
Without breaking the wild melding of their mouths, Nyx fisted his erection, squeezing hard enough to tear a groan from him. He tilted his head and deepened the kiss, taking her air and replacing it with his. All the while, she stroked his rigid dick from base to head. She swiped her thumb over the slit, drawing precum forth. The opening tingled. His balls grew heavy. The shaft jerked in her grip.
He felt her smile against his mouth. She eased back, breaking the kiss. “You’re hard for me, Anton Alexander. Very hard.”
“I am.” He licked her lips, easing the sting from his bruising kiss while enjoying the teasing glint in her eyes. “It’s your fault.”
With his free hand, he covered hers. Together, they stroked, slowly at first before quickening the pace. Hard tugs tore grunts from him. The pressure in his balls grew. He’d never last until he got inside her.
He released the tight grip on her hair and settled his hands on her shoulders. His dick pointed in her face, inches from her lips.
“Now work my seed free.” He tipped up her chin. Those big brown eyes of hers opened to her soul. She was pure. Innocence for the taking. “You can do that, can’t you?” He tugged on her lower lip. “Or do you need help?”
The corners of her mouth lifted. She shook her head, then bent and massaged his balls with her free hand. They were hard. Painful. He needed to come. He hadn’t joked about that. He bit the edge of his tongue. The sting countered the pain. He watched Nyx, memorizing everything she was doing to him.
Hesitantly, she traced the ridge around the head of his cock before swiping her flattened tongue over the opening. Her eyelids lowered on a sigh. The knowledge that she enjoyed his taste pleased him. He needed more.
“Suck it.” He needed her lips wrapped around his dick. Now.
With a small smile on her face, she shook her head, then teased the base of his dick with small nips and gentle sucking. She lifted his balls with her free hand and kissed the sacs. Her lips on them left him uncomfortable.
He shifted his stance and angled his dick to her mouth. “Suck it. Now. I want to see my come dripping off your chin before I see it covering your ass.”
She parted her mouth on a sharp inhale. He held her head between his hands and pushed his cock past her lips. The wet slide of her mouth over his penis sent energy skipping through his shaft to his balls. His arms trembled from the force it took not to pump into Nyx’s mouth until he couldn’t hold back his release any longer. Bastard or not, he wouldn’t physically harm Nyx. He’d rather die.
With her hand wrapped around the base of his dick, Nyx curled her tongue around his erection. She eased back, then drew him into the warm, wet depths of her mouth. A low rumbling sound escaped him. It didn’t resemble anything a human would make. His cats were close, sharing in this moment.
His cats would love Nyx for eternity. Not in a physical way. They’d love her for the ecstasy she’d bring him, knowing when he was at peace, they would be too. They were linked. His moods affected them as much as theirs affected him.
Nyx would bridge them, making everything more potent, from sex to strength. She’d give them a reason to live as one entity.
It wouldn’t happen, though. He’d chosen the Council long before she’d been born. That was the reality. In this moment, his role didn’t matter. Only this night—what he and Nyx did together—mattered. He’d let his cats love Nyx while they could. Their rage could be dealt with tomorrow. Then ignored. The way Nyx sucked his dick couldn’t be ignored, however.
In and out, she worked him. She alternated between fast and slow, hard and soft. She left him on the brink, never taking him over. She was teasing him. Intentionally.
Anton held Nyx’s head between his hands and eased his dick from her mouth. He glared at her. “I’m not a man to tease. I warned you about that. How you shouldn’t play games with me.”
“Everyone should play sometimes.” Nyx stroked his erection. “Let me show you how good it can be.”
He dragged her to her feet and took her mouth. Nyx met the wild kiss, twining her tongue with his as if she could crawl inside him. She wiggled against him. He heard a zipper. Her skirt fell, landing on his feet. He kicked the material aside while she tore at his shirt, popping the buttons and clawing at his pants, trying to get them down. He grasped her hands and yanked them back.
“My terms.” He’d never survive otherwise. She’d be reborn someday, getting another chance at life and love. He’d have only this night. His work would warm his bed tomorrow. And for eternity. “Always my terms.”
He dropped to his knees and clasped her ankles. He urged her legs farther apart, then held her open and exposed. Her arousal dribbled down her inner thigh. He watched the droplets mark a path over her skin.
He groaned.
“You’re wet for me, Nyx Mercer. So very wet.” He mimicked her earlier words, then captured the droplet of Nyx’s arousal on his tongue. “And delicious. I could become addicted to you.” The words were out of his mouth before he thought better of them. Too late. He couldn’t take them back.
Anton traced the wet path over Nyx’s thigh with his tongue. The amount of arousal slickening her cleft tore another animalistic sound from him. He wanted to eat at her pussy the same way he took her mouth. This position didn’t allow for him to feast, however.
He stretched on the hard floor and held out a hand as he’d done minutes ago. “Come here.”
Nyx’s breasts rose and fell on her rough breaths. For a moment, he considered repeating his demand. The trembling of Nyx’s hand stopped him. For a virgin or a near virgin, this encounter was nothing close to being romantic. It was all about fucking. If Nyx couldn’t handle that, she needed to stop this.
“Have you forgotten how to speak, Nyx?”
“No.” Nyx closed the distance between them. She curled her fingers around his hand. “You should remember how to speak too. Words can be a powerful weapon.”
Nothing was truer. He shut down the thought before guilt consumed him. “And I wield them expertly.”
“So can I.”
There was a warning in her voice. Did she suspect something of him? A motive about what tonight really meant? In the end, it didn’t matter. There was only one way he’d greet the morning. Alone.
Anton directed Nyx to step over him but stopped her before she could sit on his cock. She’d end up there, but not yet. He hadn’t gotten his fill of her.
He took her hands and drew her down so she was perched over his face. Using his thumbs, he spread her lower lips, then dragged his tongue through her arousal.
“Goddesses.” Nyx whimpered.
Her shocked response would’ve made him smile had he not had the source of his favorite ambrosia before h
im. Anton prodded her opening with his tongue and lapped at the richness he found. She tasted spicy, sweet…addicting. He’d be hooked for eternity, always craving this and never feasting again. The thought wove through him, adding a sense of urgency to this moment. He needed to drug himself on Nyx, over and over, until he banished her from his life.
On a growl, he took from Nyx. Every lick and swallow met his needs. Every prodding drive of his tongue brought him more of the rich flavor he loved. Everything for him. Not Nyx. He had to focus on him. The tightening of her inner muscles warned him she would take from him, though. She’d find her pleasure first.
Not happening. They’d come together.
With his hands gripping Nyx’s hips, he picked her up and dropped her on his erect dick. She gasped. Her inner muscles locked around his cock, preventing him from filling her. No. He needed to be inside Nyx. Needed to reach heaven together.
Holding her in place, Anton lifted his hips. Each thrust allowed him to slip deeper into Nyx’s body. Her whimpers surrounded him. She gripped his wrists but didn’t try to pull them away. She clung to him as if he was the only thing grounding her. He liked that idea. Liked it more than he should.
Nyx rolled her hips as he drove into her. She was fucking him back. Taking her pleasure from him as he was taking from her. It was perfect. Heaven. On one last hard thrust, he filled her. Completely. Every inch of his cock was inside Nyx.
His eyes rolled back in his head. “You’re tight, Nyx. Damn tight. You feel untried.”
“I am.” Nyx flexed her hands. Sharpened nails pressed into his skin. “You’re the only man I’ve allowed inside me.”
Nyx’s words flipped a switch inside him. The possessiveness he’d been fighting seized him. He drew Nyx close and kissed her. She met him stroke for stroke, kiss for kiss. They moved in perfect synchronization. He never wanted the moment to end. The tightness in his balls was too much, though. The pain was unbearable.
He slid his hands to Nyx’s hips and held her in place. On a groan, he slammed his dick as far as it’d go in Nyx’s body and let go. His seed rushed down his shaft. Her body clamped around him. Waves massaged his cock, pulling more of his release free. On and on he orgasmed while Nyx came apart around him. Finally, her body slumped over his.
Forbidden Mate_Shifter World Page 18