He kissed her, rough and sudden. She leaned into him as his mouth explored hers. His pants tightened, and sparks of need blistered through him. He changed position, climbing on top of her and nudging her legs apart with his knees. He pressed her against the roof as one hand held her waist. With one powerful squeeze, he lifted her hips and set his leg between her thighs. She let out a little moan, her breathy voice betraying what she truly wanted.
He nibbled on her earlobe. “Don’t get impatient, now. We have all night.”
“Wait.” It came out more like a gasp, nothing more than a huff of air with the barest hint of a command hidden somewhere in the lust.
“Why?” He trailed kisses down her neck as his fingers tugged upward on her skirt.
“Let’s save it for the bedroom,” she said softly.
Inwardly, his dragon roared with equal parts victory and impatience, and a thin trail of smoke escaped Draven’s nose. His cock ached to be freed immediately, twitching against his zipper, and he gritted his teeth to rein in his own impulses.
Of course, he would prefer to take her right then. He wanted to take her right there on the temple roof, so every visitor could hear her moan his name. However, she was his goddess, and her word was law. He could wait another hour to take her in her bed.
“I apologize, boss,” he said with a kiss to the tender part of her neck.
With his hand around her waist, he pulled her upright. Her back arched as she stared off at the darkening horizon, the angle to her shoulders giving her chest an even more pronounced curve. She lifted a hand to her lips as though she couldn’t quite believe what had just happened.
While smoothing some of the wayward locks of hair by her ear, he set an arm over her shoulders. If she wanted to sit and watch the stars, he would sit and watch the stars.
20
Tina
Tina surprised herself and got up at eight in the morning on her day with Flynn, her body humming with energy and life after the time Draven had spent between her legs the day before. He’d left her bedroom at about three in the morning, and she could still imagine the overpowering ecstasy of his hard cock inside her.
Feeling alive and overjoyed, and with time to kill before she met up with Flynn, she found a stretch of grass in her gardens and laid out in the sun, the rays warming her skin and she breathed in the day. From her limited experience thus far, Bali was truly beautiful. She needed to explore more of it when she got the chance.
“Tina?”
She craned her neck to find Flynn standing on a nearby path. He smiled warmly, all the tense authority she’d seen in the throne room gone. In a loose button down, bare feet, and black slacks, he looked as at home in the garden as she was.
She patted the grass beside her and closed her eyes. Seconds later, the air beside her shifted, and his sleeve brushed her bare arm. A crackle of excitement shot through her at his proximity, and she drank in the crisp musk of his cologne. Cool and fresh, with a hint of the sea.
His elbow brushed hers again as he got comfortable on the grass beside her. “I’m surprised to see you awake before ten.”
“Being here gives me energy. I don’t really understand it.”
“I’d wager the energy boost is not really about where you are.”
“What do you mean?”
“Every day, you feel stronger. Right?”
She nodded.
“Every day, you feel more and more comfortable in your own skin, correct?” Flynn shifted, inching closer. His warm body was like a magnet, calling her to him. “You’re starting to enjoy the sexual impulses, rather than push them away?”
“How did you know that?” Her eyes snapped open, and she leaned on one elbow so she could better see him.
He was already watching her, as calm and relaxed as if they were merely talking about the weather. His massive chest rose and fell with each breath, drawing her eye to his torso and the pecs barely contained by the thin cotton shirt. She wanted to run her fingers along his abs, drink him in and savor the cool and crisp scent that drew her in.
He mimicked her position, leaning on one elbow until his head hovered near hers. His chocolate brown eyes drew her closer, commanding but gentle. As her gaze darted to his lips, another crackle of desire shot through her.
“Tina, you’re accepting her,” he said softly.
“Damara?”
Flynn nodded. “You’re allowing her to simply be. To feel. To ask for things. I’m sure you’ve heard that fusing with a goddess is a merging of two souls, but remember, you will always be in charge.”
He ran a finger along her arm, the sensation shooting crackles of desire through Tina’s core. “However, you will only access the full range of her powers when you trust her enough to let her exist within you. To not hate her for her impulses, but to accept that she knows more about this world and the nature of those who live here than you or I could ever dream of understanding.”
Tina’s gaze drifted to the grass as she considered what he had said. “That makes so much sense.” In a way, she had already been doing that, but to have it summed up so perfectly brought it into sharp relief in her mind.
He nodded and gently lifted her chin with his finger. “I’m not saying sleep with every guy you see because, to be honest, that would make me jealous. Just don’t hate yourself if you want to.”
She laughed, blushing a little with devilish glee at the memory of last night with Draven. “Not every guy. Just the special ones.” Her eyes swept over the demigod in front of her, and a fresh tsunami of desire crashed through her as she ached to explore what was beneath his shirt.
He grinned, and she reclined again on the grass in an effort to hide the smile creeping over her face. “You’re more relaxed than I thought you’d be.”
“What do you mean?” His finger traced up her arm again, his touch surprisingly light and gentle as he explored her bare skin.
She closed her eyes, savoring the tingling sensation of his caress as it calmed her and put her at ease. “You were so authoritative in the throne room, and you seemed pissed at dinner the other day.” She shrugged. “I don’t know. Stiff, needing to be in control.”
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. Tina opened her eyes to find him staring at the grass. His warm chocolate eyes met hers, and his lips curved ever so slightly in a charming little smile. “I slip into a role when decisions need to be made and people need to be protected, Tina,” he said softly. “The other princes are my competitors, and I must always appear infallible. Strong. Undefeatable.”
“It’s just an act?” she asked, a little confused.
He chuckled. “Well, no, not really. I prefer to be calm and at peace, like how I am right now, and I’m grateful I can just be myself with you.” He lifted her hand to his lips and briefly kissed her knuckles, shooting a flurry of desire into her core. “However, I’m going to be king someday, and that means I need to do what’s necessary, and I have killed to protect those I love.”
His eyes darted again to hers, and her heart melted at his intense gaze as he studied her face. “I would do anything to protect you, Tina. You’re a goddess. As a demigod, it’s my duty and privilege to give you everything you could ever dream of, and nothing less than the best. The other princes, they, well …” he sighed and rubbed his glorious beard, lost in thought. “Not to slander my competition, but they’re not gods. They just don’t get it. They may care about you, they may want you, but they won’t understand what you need. I’m worried for you.”
Grateful for the demigod’s concern, she smiled and leaned her forehead against his. Energy and desire crackled through her skin as they touched, and she inhaled his cologne. He sighed, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close. As she leaned into his hard chest, she felt completely and truly safe. Protected. Nurtured.
The other princes were incredible, powerful, and unique. But Flynn was a fellow god, had magic in his veins, and would understand her in ways others simply never could.
“Can you really teach me to control my magic?” she asked.
“Of course. I’ll teach you everything I know and find you mentors to teach you the rest.”
She smiled and let out a happy sigh. “Good. Let’s start now.”
He chuckled, toying with the ends of her hair. “Impatient, aren’t you?”
“Duh.”