“I know you won’t tell me your true name.” I trailed my hands down his chest. His intense gaze tracked each of my movements. “But it feels a little odd, murmuring ‘Wrath’ at a time like this.”
I flicked my attention back up as he closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against mine. The mighty general of war was struggling with some inner battle. Perhaps he was worried this was another game of strategy, one he’d lose if he started playing by my rules.
I no longer knew if his fear was warranted. For once, we were on equal ground.
“So maybe we shouldn’t worry about talking anymore,” I continued. “At least not tonight.” I explored the ridges of his abdomen, and he did not move away or flinch from my touch. “Maybe we can both choose to communicate a different way. Without words.”
I thought about our last kiss, how savage and unrestrained it had turned. It was fueled by primal need and lust. I guided his face down to mine and brushed my lips across his. It was whisper soft, sweet. There was a question in it, one I wasn’t sure he’d answer.
This time I wanted things to be different. Even if it wasn’t meant to last. We could have tonight, this moment, and surrender to whatever magnetic force was pulling us together.
There was no past or future, simply the present.
This encounter did not have to mean more than what it was. We did not have to fall in love or forget our schemes. Tonight we could form a truce, one that lasted only until sunrise. For one night, we could stop pretending this wasn’t what we both desired. If I faced this unfamiliar part of me now, maybe the realm would stop tormenting me with so many sensual illusions.
I broke away from our embrace. “Unless you don’t want this.”
For one heart-pounding second, he didn’t react. I thought I’d misjudged the moment. Then Wrath answered with a tender kiss and it didn’t feel like he was my enemy. Or as if he was kissing me for any reason other than the fact he wanted to. Down in this chamber, far from the watchful eyes of his court and the roles we were supposed to play, we could simply be.
He chose this. Just as I did. And choice was power.
His strong hands slid down my sides as he stepped closer, bringing us flush together. I was suddenly surrounded by him, his scent, his massive body. All of his power and attention. He felt like living magic—maybe even more so than our last two encounters.
Something inside me came alive.
This time, when he swept his tongue into my mouth it was all I could do to not buckle from the sheer bliss. My hands drifted to his hips, and his inched down to mine, slipping under the warm water and gliding along my back as he anchored me against him.
I arched into his touch, forgetting any notion of going slowly. I needed pleasure. And I wanted him to give it to me as much as I would give in return.
He smiled against my neck before pressing a chaste kiss below my ear. I didn’t have to see his face to know he was amused by my response. “Your highness is quite demanding.”
If he was trying to distract me with that summoning Mark again, it wasn’t working. Each time he’d touched it before, it doused any elevated emotions. I wouldn’t allow it to distract either of us now. The part of me that had just awoken didn’t want to drift off and slumber again.
My hands dipped below the water and I slowly dragged them back up his legs before sliding them away again.
He cursed under his breath and I grinned. “No more talking, remember?”
“Keep doing that, and I’m going to damn all the deities.”
I drew small circles on his thigh, moving them higher and higher until his full attention zeroed in on precisely where he wished I’d explore next. Let him have a taste of how wild he’d driven me at dinner. “It’s terrible, isn’t it? Wanting something so badly only to be teased when it’s finally within reach.”
Apparently, he received my message loud and clear. His hand slid between my legs and he touched his tongue to mine the precise moment he stroked against that aching part of me. I gasped into his mouth, but it was cut off as he drew me tighter to him. His arousal pressed against my body. Hard and enticing. Just like him.
“Is this better, my lady?”
Oh, goddess, yes. Much better.
He slowly circled that wicked finger around my apex, all the while kissing me senseless. Heat exploded in my veins with each taunting stroke. I’d made a few poor choices in my life, but taking Wrath as a lover would not be one of them. He’d be just as unrestrained as I’d imagined, and that primal part of me welcomed this new battle of wills.
I lifted my hips, urging him to continue his exploration as I wound my arms around his neck, pulling him in for a deeper kiss. His finger partially plunged inside and I bit down on a moan. He withdrew it, his focus entirely on my body’s reaction to the motion; the slight, shuddering exhalation, the way I reflexively moved against him, and held on tighter. He was learning what gave me the most pleasure, varying it a little and repeating it.
Goddess help me. The demon of war was a strategist on all levels.
He gently rubbed against that throbbing part of me with a second finger before turning his attention back to his slow, drugging kisses. Fire. Through no magic except for the exquisite power of his touch, he was turning my body into a million tiny flames of desire.
And he knew it. All of the teasing was driving me wild.
“Will you take me to your bedchamber?” My voice was like smoke. “Now.”
“Is that what you want?”
“Yes.” More than anything. I managed to nod and his clever fingers rewarded me with another loving stroke. “Hurry.”
He nipped at my lower lip. “Does my queen command it?”
“Yes.” Oh, goddess yes.
“Am I your humble servant now?”