SIX MONTHS LATER

I haven't seen my husband all day, and it's already past dusk. If he's going to be late, usually he drops by to tell me or at least sends a messenger. But today, it's been radio silence. Something must be going on. I hate to be that queen that's getting all in the business, but...he's made it clear I'm an equal partner, so I'm getting in the business.

Pulling on a pair of shorts and a zip-up hoodie over my tank top, I slide my feet into my Vans and make my way through the chilly hallways to Elias's office.

When I get there, it's quiet, but the light is on underneath the door, so I tap lightly on the doorframe. "Elias?" I call before turning the knob.

"Cordelia?" he says, sounding surprised. "Come in."

I push the door open and lean against the frame, cocking my head to the side and crossing my arms. "Elias, what's going on? You're working so late and you haven't checked in. I was getting worried."

He blows out a long breath and leans back in his leather chair, momentarily abandoning the stack of papers. "Nothing's wrong. I just lost track of the time."

He's lying. But why? Since when does he lie to me?

"Um, try again," I say, taking one step into his office and leaning on the back of one of the chairs in front of his desk. "Maybe tell me the truth this time."

"I am telling you the truth," he says, his eyes darkening. "Nothing's wrong that you need to worry about."

"Ah, see, that's not exactly the same thing, is it?" I reply, narrowing my eyes and stepping around the chair, closer to his desk.

The thing is a monstrosity covered in papers. Everything about his office makes me feel miniature—the shelves that reach the high ceiling, the overstuffed chairs that could fit a yeti, and the fireplace that I can stand inside. It is all so over the top, yet it is the type of decor made for a king.

"Really, Cordelia, I don't want you to worry about it. I'm working to get it taken care of. You've already taken on so much. I don't want this on your mind too."

I take in a breath and blow it out my nose, attempting to control my growing irritation. "What happened to 'I want you to have equal partnership' and 'I don't want you to just be arm candy; I want you to rule beside me.' This isn't ruling beside me, Elias. This is you keeping secrets from me."

I can tell this is some kind of chivalrous bullshit. I would normally appreciate the effort, but not when whatever is bothering him is taking up his time. Time that should belong to me.

"I lost track of Cane," he says, running his fingers through his hair.

My eyes widen and I try my best to keep my voice calm. "You—you lost track of him? What do you mean?"

He grips his hair at the roots and looks up at me, his whiskey eyes swimming with a mixture of emotions I can't even list, but when he speaks, his tone is annoyed. "See? This is why I didn't want to tell you."

I rear my head back. "Oh? I thought you just wanted to protect me? Now it's because you knew I'd, what...nag you?"

He licks his lips and his gaze hardens. "No. I didn't want you to worry that he was up to one of his old schemes or that he would do something to harm us. Your nagging is the last thing on my mind."

"Well, I'm sorry, but I think I've known you long enough to recognize annoyance in your voice when I hear it. And that was it. You are annoyed at me for coming in here and asking questions, you're annoyed because you think I'm interrogating you..." I move around to the other side of his desk and prop myself on the corner, sitting with my legs spread and my hands planted on the wood between them. "And to tell the truth, you're probably also annoyed because it's Thursday."

A smirk tips up the corner of my mouth as I remind him of what today is...Elias and I have always had a voracious appetite for one another, but the last six months have stretched us thin with settling into, ya know, leading an entire realm. So we've set aside at least two days a week for...well, private time.

Thursday is one of them. And it is almost over.

His gaze rakes over me until it travels to my eyes. He leans forward and in a deep, quiet voice says, "You are pushing me, Cordelia. I'm tempted to pull you over my knee and bring this ridiculous conversation to an end."

I lean forward, resting my elbows on my spread knees. "I'm sorry, your majesty. Is that supposed to frighten me?"

He moves in so close that his breath brushes my lips. My eyes flutter shut as I anticipate his kiss. Instead, he takes my hand and wraps my fingers around something familiar. I look down at my inhaler then back at him. "Run, dolce tentazione."

The familiar combined sense of fear and arousal lights up my insides and I hop off the desk, sliding the inhaler into the pocket of my cardigan.

"Anywhere off limits?" I ask as I back away from him toward the door, grasping the doorknob, ready to take off as soon as he gives me parameters.

"Are there rules that pertain to a queen?" he says, countering my question.

"Not the last time I checked," I say, swinging the door open.

He cocks a brow that says you have your answer. My heart pounds as he slides his hands in his pockets and takes his first step. I either run, or the chase will end right here. Not that I mind, but I want the thrill of knowing he's hunting me.

I bite my bottom lip before blowing him a kiss and take off down the hallway, my steps echoing off the walls.

I didn't come to his office with the intent to provoke him to anger, but he ticked me off. And then, somehow, in the next breath turned me on. He has a funny way of doing that sometimes. Not to mention, I did sort of jump to conclusions when I assumed he was annoyed with me.

But now, he's giving me the thing I told him I wanted so many months ago, back at Wicked Encounters when we first talked about me having a primal kink.

And he is still carrying an inhaler around for me.

When I finally reach the grand staircase, I run down the steps and out the front door, into the courtyard. It's pitch dark outside now, and it's gotten a little chilly. I look over my shoulder and he's nowhere to be found, so I take off toward the back of the house, where the stables are. There haven't been horses there for years, but I know it's still open, and it backs up to the woods.

When I come to the stables, I slip inside and find a wooden closet door open. Slipping into it, I sit down on an overturned bucket and pull my inhaler out of my pocket. I take a puff of the medicine just in case—sometimes cooler weather is tough for me, and I want to be safe rather than sorry.

Plus, this seems like a decent place to rest for a moment. I sit for just a few seconds and rise to my feet when I hear a twig crack outside.

Fuck.

"Cordelia...belle rêveur...come on out. I know you must have gone in here. I can read you like a book by now," he says, his voice a little haughty but I can tell it's for show. "I may have not gotten to properly hunt you yet, but I can predict your every move."

Oh, shit! The bond! I hadn't even considered that he'd know where I am because of it. Damnit. Maybe I can at least outrun him.

I wait until I hear his footsteps receding and creep out of the closet toward the rear door of the stables. I don't wait a second before taking off into the forest without looking back.

The bounding of my steps is joined by a brisk stride behind me. He isn't even running to catch up. I can only imagine that he is cutting through trees and anticipating my next move. Closing the gap between us is too simple for him.

I zigzag left then right, trying to randomly change up my direction. It doesn't seem to work because the crunch of the second set of steps only seems to get louder. Is Elias that capable of finding me so quickly? What if it isn't him chasing me? He has always said there are groups of supes that don't believe in the way we've chosen to rule. Maybe someone who means us harm was waiting for a moment just like this to make their move. The shadows of the trees feel more menacing, and the spine-chilling feeling of being watched comes over me. My heart picks up speed as do my feet.

Perhaps I should look over my shoulder, see if it's him. Give up the chase.

But as much as I hate to admit it, the fear is too thrilling. The buzz it's sending through my body is too addictive, my veins crackling with energy, my thighs getting slicker with my arousal by the second.

It's got to be Elias. If he thought there was any way there were strangers on our property, he would have told me to keep the chase indoors. So I keep running.

I see an overturned tree ahead, and I dive behind it, crouching on my knees. The trunk is so big that I can peek over it without showing the rest of my body. Elias is nowhere in sight. But neither is the cause of the footsteps.

Maybe the steps were a figment of my imagination. Maybe I did outrun a vampire. I prepare to get back to my feet. A hand claps over my mouth and the front of my body is pressed into the log. Pure panic rises in me as steady fingers caress the back of my thigh and slip into the leg of my shorts.

"So fucking wet for me. My pretty little prey's pussy loves the fear found in the chase," Elias whispers as he slips his finger through my slit.

I exhale with relief when I realize I'm safe, but I still have freedom to play.

Nodding against his hand, I clench my walls around nothing, begging him to push further inside me. All I can do is move my ass, and I push it back so I can feel him, to see if he's just as into this as I am, and of course...he is. He's hard, and I know chasing me turned him on. He loves this just like I do. Hunting me. Terrifying me in the best ways.

He lets go of my mouth, gathers my hands, and secures them at my lower back with his fingers wrapped around them tightly. "Do you know all the things I could do to you like this, Cordelia? All the ways I can praise and violate this sexy body?"

As if to show me, he slides two fingers inside of me. His thumb finds my clit and together they set a punishing pace.

As Elias knows, for me, the best part of the chase is the fear. The uncertainty of what comes next. Usually, Elias is slow, sensual with his hands, makes me anticipate his every move. The version of Elias I get when he's using fear to turn me on is different.

It's the more demanding Elias. Right away, there's no easing into it. He knows that even once he's caught me, I'm going to want that fear swirling in my belly.

So even though I love what he's doing to me, I'm going to fight him.

"Fuck, Elias," I squeal, wriggling against his hold in an attempt to break loose from him.

I thrust my hips back, slamming my ass into his hard cock. It isn't quite a kick in the balls, but it is enough to knock the air out of him. He releases me and I spring to my feet and run again.

"Cordelia," he growls, and I know he is pissed.

I don't make it far before he tackles me to the ground and pins my hands above my head. "You know what you must say if you don't want this," he says through quick breaths.

"I won't tell you to stop, but I won't make it easy for you either, herra."

A wicked smile splits his face. "That's my good girl."

I bite the corner of my lip and in one quick motion, wrap my legs around his waist and flip him over before he realizes what's happening. For a moment I'm tempted to pin him, to be in charge, but I don't want the chase to be done yet. And I don't want to be in charge tonight.

The next time he catches me, I'm submitting.

But he'll have to catch me first. A laugh escapes me as I get to my feet and dart away, my heart beating faster and my stomach lurching with nerves. Before I get too far, I hear him say, "You better run, belle rêveur. I'm about to become your worst nightmare."

I hold back a smirk as I keep running, only stopping behind a tree when I take two puffs from my inhaler and rest for a moment. But I don't hear him. Hmm. Maybe he "gave up" and went back inside. And he'll be waiting for me when I come back in.

That's doubtful though. It seems like he wanted this to go down outside...After I catch my breath, I peek around both sides of the tree, but see nothing. The only light now is the tiny sliver of moon peeking out from between the branches that kiss the sky, and the owls hooting are starting to freak me out.

Even better.

I take off running in the direction I'd been heading, refusing to give in to his tricks. My feet move with the speed of my growing strength. Every day I spend in Aevum my human limitations disappear and give way to supernatural norms. The only thing that hasn't completely changed is my lungs' capacity to take in air when I'm overexerted.

When Elias doesn't make himself known again, I slow down and take in my surroundings. We've gone on many walks through the woods together, but nothing looks familiar to me. I spin in a circle and realize I don't know the way home.

"Elias!" My call is met with silence.

I push through the branches in the direction I just came from and yell for my mate again. The fear that something is hunting me is no longer a problem for me. What terrifies me is that I'm lost and will end up spending the night holding a tree for warmth. And with every second that passes, my trepidation grows. This is bad.

Tears well in my eyes and my voice cracks as I yell, "Elias, this isn't funny anymore!"

Several more minutes pass and I can't stop the tears. I swear I've passed this tree twice. How could Elias lose track of me?

I hiccup a sob and slap my hands to my thighs in defeat. No sooner does the sound echo off the trees and I'm backed against a tree trunk with a warm body pressed to mine

"Did you truly believe I would leave you, Cordelia?"

I gasp and wrap my arms around him, clinging to the hair at the nape of his neck. "No, but I thought you may have lost me somehow..."

He pulls away from me just enough so he can look down into my face, wiping away the tear that's rolling down my cheek. But his expression is anything but kind right now. Dark and wild desire burns in his eyes as he wraps his hand around my neck. "My queen, when will you get it through this stubborn, beautiful head of yours that I will never, ever lose you again? That you are forever tethered to me, body, heart, and soul?"

I can't stop the smile that spreads over my face at his words. "Right now, I think."

"I'm going to make sure of that." He holds me in place as his other hand tugs down my shorts. "I will chase you to the ends of the realms. This body is mine, dolce tentazione. And I will not be denied it." His fingers circle my clit, sending shockwaves of pleasure through me. "I should have you on your knees for thinking I would abandon you."

I arch against his hand, suddenly so desperate to come. "Please don't stop," I beg. "Please. I want you so bad. I'll be good, I promise."

His fingers dig into the sides of my throat, restricting my air flow. "Will you? Get on your knees and prove it to me."

I slide down between him and the tree, the bark snagging on my top. When my knees hit the soft ground, I glance up at him and bat my lashes.

He runs his fingers over my lips, parting them before gliding one over my tongue. "I don't just want words from this pretty mouth, let it show me just how good you can be, Cordelia."

I close my lips around his finger and suck it all the way into my mouth, swirling my tongue around it as I reach up to unbuckle his belt. He moans and slips his middle finger inside and I give it the same treatment as I make quick work of his button and zipper, tugging them down along with his boxers. His cock is hard, precum already leaking from the tip, and my arousal soaks my thighs as I take him in my hand, stroking him from tip to base, every piercing bumping my palm on the way down.

"Fuck, Cordelia," Elias groans, gathering my hair into a ponytail at the nape of my neck. "Need your mouth, baby."

I hum and lean forward, flicking the tip with my tongue, getting my first taste. I don't wait, sliding my mouth all the way down and taking him to the back of my throat. Swirling my tongue around his shaft, I reach the tip and take the piercing at the top and tug on it with my teeth, my eyes darting up to get his reaction.

He wraps my hair around his hand and grits through his teeth, "Naughty girl." He tugs my hair and my head arches back with my mouth open. With his cock in his hand, he slowly slides it between my lips. "That's it. Suck me hard."

I do just that, taking him deep into my throat. He holds my head still, controlling the pace with his hips. He makes sure I feel every barbell along his shaft enter my mouth before pulling out again.

"I dream about this sight all the time. When we are apart during the day, I go to my office, lock the door, and jerk off imagining this fucking mouth on me."

My eyes widen and lock with his. I had no idea he did that. The idea that he thinks of me during the day and gets so turned on that he has to jerk off before he can get to me, then still has the energy to fuck me...the image is so fucking hot, I can't resist the urge to take my free hand and slide it between my legs.

Rubbing quick circles over my clit, I moan around his cock as he drives it down my throat, and I wonder if he'll get all dominant on me if he notices I'm touching myself.

I hope he does.

"Why are your hands on your body? That wet pussy belongs to me."

I hover my lips over the head of his cock and say, "Do you want both my hands on you, herra?"

"Yes," he hisses.

I cup his balls for a moment and then slide my finger further back, searching for that soft landing of skin just behind them. With my knuckle, I press down on his perineum. His eyes grow wide and his words get stuck in his throat. He may be shocked about the little move I learned from a magazine, but he is far from complaining. His cock becomes rock hard as I suck on him again.

I raise an eyebrow. He likes that. Noted for next time. I can tell he's close by the way his body begins to shudder and when I slip my hand back up to his balls and squeeze, the groan he releases is so loud, it could wake whatever creatures may be out here hibernating.

"Fuck, Cordelia, I'm going to come. I'm going to paint this gorgeous throat."

He isn't giving me a choice. But he knows I don't want one. He knows I want this. All of him.

With no warning besides the tug on my ponytail, he comes hard, hot spurts of his release landing on my tongue and sliding down my throat. I take every single drop, and when he pulls out of my mouth, I lick the corners of my lips and smile at him.

I start to get off my knees. "You taste better and better every time, my king. If that's all you require from me, I guess I'll be..."

"Fuck that!"

Using my hair like a leash he moves me around until I'm on my hands and knees with my shorts around my thighs. He moves behind me and places his hand on the center of my back. With my ass exposed to the chilled air, he spanks it hard before I feel his tongue lick me from bottom to top. The sounds his lips make against my wet pussy are obscene. At the same time, they only turn me on more. He hums as he laps up every drop of my desire.

"Elias, fuck," I gasp, clawing at the dirt below me.

It's as though he's gone feral, like the chase turned him into an animal that can't control the impulses running through him. He's gripping my hips hard, so hard it'll probably leave bruises, but I don't care. I want that. I want him to mark me, I want—

"Elias, please."

"What is it, dolce tentazione? Why are you interrupting me while I give you what you just wanted so badly that you couldn't keep your fingers out of your cunt?"

Fuck, he's something else tonight. "Feed on me. Please."

He pushes my legs farther apart, my knees scraping against the ground. I don't have time to register the pain because bliss takes its place. Elias's fangs pierce the inside of my thigh, and he takes a deep draw of my blood. A high like nothing I've ever felt before courses through me. Maybe it's the fear mixed with his venom, or maybe it's just him. Whatever it is my body immediately reacts with an earth-shattering orgasm.

He pulls away when I'm nothing but a panting mess. "Is that what you wanted, belle rêveur? Or should I try again?" he asks, his tongue lapping the mixture of blood and my release from my thigh.

I don't know what's wrong with me, what kind of depraved spirit was awakened in me the night we solidified our Zenith bond, but all I've thought about since then is the way he fed from my pussy, and how I'd do just about anything to have him do that again.

And I want to drink from him.

We haven't done either of those things since that night, and I want it. I want it now, even though he just made me come so hard I can barely see straight.

"Yes, my king. It's exactly what I wanted," I say truthfully. Because it is.

But I want this too.

"But?" he says, and when he locks eyes with me, my blood dripping from his lips, I can't help but pull his face to mine and kiss him.

And my blood mixed with my cum is too much. I can barely control myself as I claw at his shirt, trying to rip it open. "Before you fuck me, vampíru, I need you to feed again...from my pussy this time," I say, finally wrenching the shirt from his shoulders and running my palms over his skin.

"Fuck, Cordelia," he says, his voice full of need. He lifts my shirt over my head and throws it into the dirt. Kissing down my torso, he guides me onto my back. The mixture of soft soil and dew-covered grass sooth my over-heated body. It is an amazing contrast to the fire Elias ignites in me as he sucks my nipples and licks my stomach. When he reaches the apex of my legs, his eyes meet mine across the valley of my body. He holds my stare as he opens his mouth and consumes my center within his bite.

The scream I let loose is inhuman, and if I didn't know better I'd swear he was changing me in that moment. To what, I don't actually know—perhaps a banshee? This bite is even more intense than the last one, making the pleasure that's washing over me even more overwhelming.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," I chant, reaching down and digging both hands into his hair, scratching his scalp. "Oh, god, Elias, please, please don't stop." I lift my hips and press them harder against his mouth, as another orgasm slams into me.

He sucks and flicks the tip of his tongue over my clit. The sensation is unreal. My body remains suspended in bliss until every muscle is aching, and I have no choice but to relax into a content space.

My mate is anything but satisfied. He crawls up me, his cock hard with need.

"Fuck me," I say, mesmerized by my blood staining his lips.

He lines his body up with mine and slams into me. The pain and pleasure make my back bow off the ground as I welcome him into my body. He lifts my leg and brings it over his shoulder. Each thrust hits deep, drawing joyful whimpers from me.

"Elias," I groan, "Please, can I taste you?"

He grins against my mouth before thrusting his tongue inside, and I taste my blood for the second time that night. Nothing about it turns me off, and this time, nothing about it concerns me. It feels right to taste the blood that gives him life, even if it's mine.

"You are so filthy," he says after showering my face and neck with kisses, no doubt leaving behind bloody streaks all over my skin.

"You made me this way," I counter, all but snapping my teeth at him.

"Then use that wild drive to bite me. I want to feel you break my skin."

The thought of me biting into him and taking his blood has my pussy clenching around him. It is everything I was taught not to do as a child. It's taboo and I want to do it.

Elias brings my leg on his shoulder to the crook of his arm, allowing him to move closer to me. I think about biting into the cord bulging from his neck, but the soft spot connecting to his shoulder captures my attention. I kiss him there, showering my target with care before I clamp my teeth down on it and bite. His skin gives way under the pressure and the sweet, coppery taste of his blood fills my mouth.

A roar rips from his throat and I clench around him as I drink down gulp after gulp of his blood. If you told me two years ago that I'd be drinking vampire blood and getting off on it, I'd have told you that you were out of your goddamn mind.

But this is a high unlike any I could ever imagine. I can't stop. It's like his blood is fueling my pleasure in a way that is giving me life, like his blood is mine now, and nothing else will satisfy me for the rest of my life.

He fucks me harder, like a man who has lost all control. Every thrust is untamed, every sound feral. "Take it all like a good fucking girl. Drink me down as I fill you up, Cordelia."

His blood, unhinged fucking, and words send me over the edge. My body pulsates around him making him roar my name as he comes inside me. Gods, I love the feeling of him pouring into me, thick and warm. I release his flesh and call his name to the night sky. The pure ecstasy of this moment goes on and on, yet it ends too soon.

Elias cradles the back of my head in his palm, protecting me from the ground as he rests on top of me. I love the weight of him. I never feel smothered or crushed. His body makes me feel loved and cherished.

"You will be the cause of my early death, dolce tentazione. And what a beautiful death it will be," he whispers, kissing the valley between my breasts.

I stretch my neck back as I run my fingers through his messy hair. "But I'll go when you do, remember? So if there's a life after this one, we can just keep this up through that one too," I murmur, shivering at his kiss.

He rests his chin on my chest and smiles. "I love the way your mind works. Thankfully we have a long life in Aevum ahead of us."

I don't think I'll ever get used to this life with him. Something tells me we will be centuries old and he will still make butterflies flutter in my stomach. I'll never tire of his kisses or the sweet words he showers me with. It's hard to believe that all it took was one summer, a vampire who entertained my most secret desires, a handful of missteps, and a love that knows no bounds to find my soulmate, best friend, and guardian of my heart. Our wicked encounter became the ultimate happily ever after.