I didn't mean for us to end up like this: Raelle pressed between me and a ladder, and me taking all my rage out on her in a brutal kiss. We were supposed to have a civilized conversation, work out our differences, and come to a compromise. I'd spent all evening compiling my thoughts and sorting through the intense emotions to find reason. I was prepared for the battle ahead, but I felt my composure slip the second I laid eyes on the nightgown clinging to her curves. Every carefully crafted argument became jumbled in my head. My words were louder than intended, and I demolished the space we needed to talk things through. Frustration mixed with lust fueled my every move, and it was a volatile combination. And now, I can't stop.

My fingers release her hair and glide down the smooth skin along her neck. I angle her head back further and my tongue slides against hers. The way she tastes... fuck, I love sweet mint. I want to crawl inside her body, to consume her space, to feel her everywhere. Her hips press forward, and the satin of her nightgown has her sliding across my cock.

My palm moves to the front of her throat, holding her in place. She sucks in a breath, breaking our kiss. I watch my thumb stroke the front of her neck, marveling at her soft skin and say, "You come in here acting as if you can stand the thought of my hands on someone else, Raelle."

"I'll do whatever it takes to be with you," she says, her chest heaving as she tries to catch her breath.

I've memorized her body—the freckle under her right breast, the scar under her chin. I can find her pulse without thought, and I know the spot to kiss that makes the sweetest whimpers leave her lips. How can she want me to learn the secrets of someone else's body, to place my hands and mouth on them? The thought sickens me.

I tear my gaze from my hand and meet her eyes. "You will do anything?" I ask, cocking an eyebrow.

"Yes."

The hum of indifference that comes from me is a mask to hide my disappointment. That's not what I want from her. I'm not after her reckless, blind love. We need hard lines, boundaries we will not cross, rules that keep what we share sacred.

I run two fingers over her bottom lip, enthralled by the way the plump, pink skin gives under my touch. "And what will you do during those nights that I'm with my wife?"

"It will be hard. I won't like it, but—" My fingers dip into her mouth, pressing on her tongue to hold in her lie. I don't want to hear how she will deal for the sake of the kingdom, how she will not put up a fight for me when someone else stakes a claim.

"Suck." She follows my order, hollowing her cheeks.

I lean in, pressing my body to hers while working my fingers in and out of her mouth. My lips graze her ear, and my voice drops to a deep rumble as I say, "This is what I'm going to ask her to do to my cock. I will fuck my wife's mouth with my eyes closed, pretending it is you. That's what I'll need if I'm to create an heir with someone besides you."

Raelle groans in disapproval, and my body responds, grinding my pelvis against her soft stomach. I pull my fingers from her mouth and drag them up the inside of her exposed leg. The tops of her thighs are wet with her arousal. She is so responsive to my touch, so easy to please. My fingertip slides along the seam of her, teasing her until her hips rock against my hand.

"What if my wife doesn't get turned on by pleasing me? It's only fair that I try to meet that need for her, too. I am nothing but a gentleman after all," I say, pressing against her clit. "Will it bother you knowing I'm touching her like this, working her close to her release so she can take me deep?" Emphasizing my point, I sink a finger into her slick, warm center.

"You're not playing fair, Kyron. I can't think straight when you're touching me like this," she says with a moan, as my thumb draws circles over her sensitive nerves.

"You set the rules, princess. I'm simply out to beat you at your own game. Stop deflecting and answer the question. Will it bother you to know I'm touching someone else like this?"

"Yes."

I ease a second finger inside of her. My anger slips from my control and I pick up the pace. "Why? Why does the thought of me with someone else get to you?"

Her cheeks burn red, and her teeth gnash together as she says, "Because you're mine."

I fuck her harder, wishing it was my cock moving in and out of her. The sound of us connecting over and over again fills the room with lewd noises. I can't get enough of it. The way her body accepts me and enjoys my invasion is my one addiction.

"I'm yours?" I question with a growl. "Then why are you willing to settle for fractions of me? Why are you allowing an uncontrollable force to dictate your future with me? Why are you giving up so fucking easily?"

Raelle's hips move in sync with my hand, pressing down, searching for the pressure she needs to find release. I deny her. I will not give in. She will not come until I have answers, and she discovers how wrong she is.

She groans in frustration and says, "I'm scared."

"Of what?" I ask.

"Of making things worse. Of gambling with lives. Of having you completely ripped away from me. Of severing our bond. I don't want to be too selfish and ruin all the good I still have."

I take a step back, withdrawing my fingers from her. I hold up the glistening digits and watch her essence slide down my skin. "I need you to be selfish when it comes to me, Raelle. Those outside of this room can have the king, the general, the friend, but they don't get all of me. The lover, the husband, my demons. There is not a part of me that isn't yours. I've given them to you freely and that you are willing to ration them out guts me." I slide my fingers in my mouth and let her taste consume me. All of her. I selfishly take every single piece of her. And my heart fractured the moment she settled for less of me.

"I don't understand," she says, pushing away from the ladder and straightening her nightgown. "You would have shared those parts of me with Leif."

I chuckle and shake my head. "No, I wouldn't have. I was strategizing from the moment we kissed. You would have never slept with him. If you carried a child, it would be mine. Leif could claim them as his to the kingdom, but your heir would be ours. That plan doesn't work so well in reverse. Another person can't claim your child. As far as the wife thing goes, a marriage bond is not as strong as a parah bond. I was content with that notion until I learned I could have more. I want it all, and I'm begging you not to give away the parts of me that I trusted to only you."

"Shit," she says. The tears welling in her brown eyes tell me that my words have hit their mark.

She paces the room while running her fingers through the hair flowing over her shoulders. I stand back and give her some space to gather her thoughts.

"I didn't take any of that into account. I just saw the problem and ran to find a way to fix it," she says, shaking her head like she is trying to rattle it into functioning properly.

I cross my arms and lean against my desk. "I know. I've been in that position before."

She stops moving and faces me with concern written all over her beautiful face. "I'm so sorry I hurt you. Tell me what I can do to make this right."

I hold my arms out to my sides, opening myself to her. "Come, take what's yours. Be selfish with me and trust me when I say I'll be selfish with you, too."

Raelle's eyes darken with desire and her slender fingers move to her robe's sash. The satin slips from her shoulders and drifts to her feet, leaving her wrapped in fine lace and form-hugging satin. Her eyes dart to the chair behind my desk and she says, "Sit."

As I follow her order, I reach behind my neck and grab my shirt, pulling it over my head. Lowering to my chair, I keep my gaze on her as she steps closer. She stops between my legs and brushes her palm down the side of my face. The innocent touch is enough to have my cock straining in my pants again.

"I'm really sorry," she says, her voice soft with sincerity.

I don't fight the cocky smirk that tilts one side of my mouth up. "Prove it."

She bends to her knees and places her palms on my thighs. They glide over the smooth leather of my breeches until her fingertips tease the tie in the front. She tugs the bow loose and looks up at me as she frees my cock. Her hand wraps around me, and my eyes flutter shut. Weeks. I've gone weeks without her touch. It could have been years by the way my body responds to her.

I grow so hard in her hold that a groan of pleasure and pain slips from my mouth. Plenty of nights have been spent with my cock in my hand, but nothing compares to this—her soft palm, her hold on me. I grip the arms of my chair as her hand moves in long, fluid strokes. The urge to lose myself is so intense that I stop breathing, battling to keep it at bay. I'm not ready for this to end, not when it just started.

"Do you feel how remorseful I am?" she asks, her breath flowing over the tip of my shaft.

I slide my fingers through her hair and gather it at the back of her head. Pressing down, I move her face closer. "Open for me," I demand.

Her tongue darts out and sweeps up the underside of my cock.

"More," I say, low and raspy.

The gentle suction, her tongue lapping over me, the wet warmth of her mouth. I didn't realize how much I needed it until she fell to her knees. My world has been smudges of murky gray without her. The air was too heavy to breathe, and everything was dreary. I was functioning in a catatonic state until she brought my world to life, painting it in vivid colors.

Warmth spreads through my stomach. Chasing the sensation, I thrust into her mouth. With each stroke, the pressure builds. I'm on the verge of giving into the need she ignites in me. Statera help me, I want to release in the warmth of her mouth.

I tug Raelle's hair, pulling her away from me. "Come here," I say.

She lifts her nightgown's skirt, exposing her toned legs. I grip the back of her thighs and pull her on top of me. I slide her nightgown over her head, leaving her beautifully naked.

"Do I need to—"

"No," she says with a sly smile. "I started the elixir the day after I came home. We won't create an heir today, my king."

She presents her body like an offering laid upon my altar. Her thighs tremble against mine and the pink tips of her breasts harden. My parah is at my mercy, and I've never felt more like a king.

I tangle my fingers in the hair at her nape and hold her waist. "Show me just how selfish you can be with me, princess."

Raelle holds my stare and reaches between us. Her fingers circle my cock, guiding it to her slick, warm center. The muscles in my arms flex as I fight not to pull her down on me fast and hard. I crave to feel her tightening around me, to thrust into her until she is screaming my name for the entire palace to hear. But it's been too long since her body accepted mine, and the last thing I want is for her to feel anything but bliss. I rest my head back and exhale as she sinks down, taking me in inch by painfully slow inch.

When the apex of her legs reaches me, she threads her fingers in my hair and caresses my lips with hers. I drag my palm over her breast, loving how the hard peak presses into my skin. Her lips part with a sigh, and she rolls her hips over mine. The teasing rhythm she sets is like a wave lapping upon the shore. And I want nothing more than to drown in her.

My skin grows tight over my bones, and the pressure builds low in my stomach. I run my hand up her spin and thrust into her. "You're being such a good girl, taking what you need."

She smiles at my praise, and her tender strokes grow more urgent.

"You like that, knowing you please me?" I ask.

"Yes," she breathlessly answers.

"You know what would please me most? If you came for me. I want to feel your body gripping me as it takes what it needs." I kiss her neck and bite into the place that drives her wild.

Her body clenches around me as her breathing speeds up. The purest sounds of ecstasy fall from her mouth, and I catch them all with mine. I swallow them down, storing each one inside of me as if it is precious. She rides me until her body goes slack, and her head falls to my shoulder.

Wrapping her in my arms, I stand and place her on the edge of my desk. Everything on top crashes to the floor with a single sweep of my arm. I guide Raelle back until her hair is a halo around her head, and her body is laid out before me. A thin sheen of sweat covers her curves, making them glitter as they catch the light of the fire. She is pure and ethereal like this. And I plan on corrupting her in the best way.

I hook her legs around my hips and hold her hands above her head. "It's my turn to be selfish, and I won't be gentle taking what I want."

The rise and fall of her chest quickens, and her legs squeeze around me. "I can handle it. Don't hold back."

"Good girl," I say, just to see the flash of lust in her eyes again.

The thought of her aching in the morning and remembering what we did here drives me to fuck her hard and fast. I reveal in the sound of skin meeting skin and the pleasure laced whimpers she makes. But the thing I love the most is how her body clings to me like I'm a vital piece of her that she doesn't want to let go.

I drive my cock into her. The rage, fear, and loneliness that has consumed me for weeks fuels each hard stroke. I violently bury myself in my parah, and she digs her nails into my back. The pain morphs into pleasure, and I'm determined to take Raelle over the edge with me.

"Come on, princess. I need to feel you come one more time." I say, lowering my mouth to her nipple.

Her back bows, and my name fills the room with a hoarse cry. She pulsates around me, and the tension in me bursts. It flows through me like hot liquid, rushing through every inch of my body. A continuous string of praise for Raelle spilling from my mouth. I shudder once... twice... three times, unable to control the pleasure rattling through me.

With my last ounce of energy, I place Raelle's arms around my neck and rest my head on her chest. She sweeps her nails from the base of my neck to the top of my head, causing deep hum to rumble through my chest. She chuckles and continues the calming motion.

"I'm sorry I didn't bring my concerns to you first," she says.

I lift my head, and she pushes my hair back from my face. "I forgive you. I forgave you as I was walking out of the sanctuary," I say.

She cups my face and runs her thumb over my cheek. "I'm also sorry my actions hurt you."

"You already apologized for that."

"I know but let me do it again."

"You're forgiven," I say, and she presses her lips to mine.

We take our time, pouring ourselves into the kiss. It speaks louder than anything we said tonight. This kiss is her apology and my forgiveness. It is a promise to always keep the other at the forefront of our minds. It encompasses very I love you we've ever spoken to each other. I've never felt anything as powerful as this.

I press a final kiss between her breasts and stand. She holds on to my fingers until I'm out of her reach and pushes her bottom lip out in a pout. I laugh as I grab my tunic and her robe from the floor.

Using my shirt, I clean her before doing the same to myself. "The palace staff is used to finding me passed out with a bottle of whiskey. They would have quite the shock, seeing you spread out over my desk in the morning."

"I know. They're expecting me to be mopping the floors at dawn."

I shoot her an unamused glare and hold her robe open.

She slides her arms in and glances at me over her shoulder as she ties the sash. "You're not the only one who gets to make jokes in this relationship."

"Haven't you heard? I'm king. I get to do whatever I want. And right now, I'm ready to take my parah to our bed."

"Our bed?"

"Anything that is mine is now ours, and I need you in our bed."

"You can't mean to... Not after what we just—"

"That's exactly what I intend." I grab her by the waist and fling her over my shoulder. "I've been a deprived man for too long. I plan on making up for lost time."

"Kyron!" she yells, squirming against my hold.

I slap her on the ass and receive a yelp. "I've clearly not exhausted you enough. Let's go remedy that, princess."