Arriving in his bedchamber, Grant lifted Auria’s face, then brushed her plump lips with a kiss. The blue mist around them dissolved, the vibrating slowed as he stopped shifting through space. His feet met the floor. Light from hanging torches flickered in her black eyes. The curves of her form melted to his body, awakening the monster inside, hungry to feed.
Even without him entering her psyche, her every thought, every feeling and action revealed her displeasure at their souls’ connection. He eased into her mind, and her golden cheeks flushed pink.
For far too many nights, he’d tried to quench the hunger for her with women who could never measure up. No more. She would be his.
The redness of her lips called to him, but he refused to surrender to his desire just yet. He dragged his hand along her rib cage, stopping at her breast, strummed her hard nipple with his thumb.
Her onyx eyes lowered, the plea in them unmistakable. She was unhappy with the longing swirling inside. The scent of her arousal rose, familiar and scintillating, teasing him. Smirking, he coiled his fingers around the neckline of her shimmering beige nightgown. How dare she lie with another man dressed this way? She belonged to him, yet Deimos’s musk soiled her once more.
In a swift motion, he ripped the fabric from her body, exposing her bronze flesh.
She gasped. Her abundant breasts bounced from the movement.
The lean cut of her body made her intentions clear. She’d been training to return to the battlefield to bring forth all her fury to bear. The corner of his mouth turned up. Oh, how he’d missed his warrior princess.
She covered the mounds of her breasts with one hand and forearm, the light dusting of hair between her legs with the other.
“Do not,” he scolded, shaking a finger at her.
She lifted her eyes to meet his. Their begging would elicit no reprieve from him. Not tonight, or for many to come. No mercy for his disobedient wife.
She lowered her hands to her sides. The look of a huntress gleamed in her eyes as she examined her surroundings.
He’d been fooled by her once. Never again. “When you’ve made retribution for your betrayal, you shall lead my army. I will tolerate no less than complete loyalty from you, lamb.”
This time he’d break her. She’d give him the complete surrender he sought. He cradled her rib cage, pulled her to his chest. “Understood?”
Pearly white teeth glimmered as she bit her lower lip and lifted her gaze. “Yes.”
Spooning her face, he stroked her mouth with his finger. “Kiss me.”
She pressed up on the tips of her toes, then blanketed his lips with hers. The thrill of her kiss rushed straight to his groin, making him hard, the hunger he met satisfied him. Her quick obedience only solidified his belief that she needed the right set of motivations to flip sides. And he’d give her exactly what she needed. Oh yes, she’d succumb to his will.
He grabbed a handful of her curls, forcing his lips to her mouth to deepen the embrace, then glided his other hand down between her folds, over her slick nub.
She stiffened, angry with her body for desiring him. Her gasps lingered in the room between their kisses.
The feel of her made something protective flutter in him. Unable to stop the effect she commanded over him, he chuckled, loosened his grip and wrenched his lips from hers. The yearning inside him protested, but he wouldn’t let physical need dominate him.
To draw her attention, Grant glanced upward. Iron shackles dangled by chains above her.
Fear weighed upon her chest. Jet and Onyx’s smiles flashed in her mind. Would he allow her to see their sons again this evening?
“No.”
She lowered her gaze.
A sharp pain shot to his heart, but he wouldn’t yield to the cunning Mrs. Grant.
He reached up for the first restraint above, lifted her small wrist into the iron shackle and tightly clasped the mechanism closed. Her body’s warmth reached out over his flesh, wreaking havoc on his will. Snatching her other wrist, he raised the limb above her head, rested the soft flesh against the metal, and secured her.
“This isn’t all my sweet.” Grant lowered to his left knee, pulled a shackle to her ankle and tightened it, then did the same with the other.
The chains rattled in the iron loops, reverberating in the hollow room.
Now at eye level with her labia, he leaned closer. He inhaled her scent, moved forward, and caressing her nub with his mouth, slipped his tongue back and forth. She thrust her hips, searching out his gentle laps, and he rested his cheek on her silky thigh, rolling her flavor around. Not yet.
His lamb was stretched out helpless, naked and wanton just for him. How magnificent.
He entered her psyche, searched through every event she’d experienced since her escape.
Many tears she’d shed over her beloved Etienne, and lived through many sleepless nights. Eventually, comfort for her was found in the mind of another. Deimos. Rage cycloned through every inch of him, warming the surface of his skin to a pulsating amber glow. He closed his eyes, inhaled, then exhaled a misty breath, purging the anger from his body.
“You do love to play games, don’t you?” He stood.
She shook her head. “You know, each time I did, I hated myself a little more.”
If only her guilt was enough to subdue the rage inside him. But another male had known the pleasure of her. “You will be mine.” He gestured to the wall. “By any means necessary.”
She followed with a look, examined the row of hanging instruments of discipline.
“I’ve had a long time to consider your punishment, lamb. It will be sweet agony.” He leaned in. “I’ll take my time, just like you’ve fantasized about.” In the early stages after her disappearing act, fury would have guided his hand. However, time had provided him reflection. The man who’d tamed his lioness gave him insight on how he too would break through her pain- encased heart.
He strolled over to the wall. How her presence weakened him. His desire to touch her tenderly arose from nowhere, even as he prepared to punish her. An easy choice, he lifted the leather crop, and moved his fingers up the smooth length of the handle as he walked back to her.
* * * *
Auria hated how Grant’s desires became her own. Why couldn’t this inner hunger cease?
Orange light from the torches sharpened the angles of his masculine face, made her yearn for the darkness she’d despised a few months ago. Her body ached for his touch. All she wanted was to satisfy his hunger, and the man before her wore his rage like armor, making her seek him even more. Her fingers tingled with an urge to disarm his protective layer. His almond-shaped, dark blue eyes were narrowed, yet his long lashes kept him beautiful.
She didn’t want to see him as anything more than a cruel monster. Definitely not as her beloved Etienne Grant. Though they shared the same body, these two men were very different faces of the same coin. One she loved. The other she loathed.
“You and I are more alike than different.” He slipped behind her, imposing with his towering frame. “Neither of us likes to be dominated or to need anyone. We both must be in complete control.”
The smooth leather loop of the crop moved down her spine, then stopped at the top of her ass.
As his need burned through her like a back draft, she gasped. The withdrawal of the sensation chilled her, forcing her to grip the chains holding her up. She exhaled softly, awaiting the sting of his wrath.
A subtle tap to her left, then her right buttock, and tenderness quivered in her heart.
Grant grabbed her chin with his large, rough hand and turned her face to meet his stare. “Expecting something else, lamb?” As he smirked a full, dark eyebrow arched.
With narrowed eyes, she issued a challenge. “Obviously, your bark is bigger than your bite.” His fury she could handle, but the restraint he displayed inched dangerously close to how her beloved disarmed her--capturing her heart.
He clenched his strong jaw, moved in and pressed his lips to her skin. “Into biting? Mmm, sounds delicious. Anywhere in particular you’d like me to start?”
Everything about this thrilled her. She wanted to hide from her own wishes. He perused her flesh with his lips, learning every detail beneath until he made contact with her hard nipple, and pressed the button back and forth with his tongue. To suppress her delight, she clutched the chains and squeezed. Damn him.
Grant chuckled. “Damned, I am indeed.” He pulled both chains and brought her down. As he bent on one knee, he looped her restraints into a hook in a metal plate in the floor.
Compelled to place her hands flat on the ground, she lifted her bottom, putting her rear in the air, on display.
Slowly he skimmed over her hip and down to her ass cheek with his silky lips.
He pulled back. “Oh, lamb, what a sight.”
The smooth tip of the crop slipped around the lushness of her bottom. All the while the light caress continued between her slick lips. She pressed her mouth tightly closed to hold in moans.
“You…like.” Grant adjusted his body to align himself with her.
The bulge in his pants told her he did too. As his breath blew between her legs, she lifted her face to try to slow the effect.
The end of the crop traveled up her inner folds, then down to her clit and rubbed.
She moaned.
“Good, lamb.” He scratched the flesh of her buttocks with his teeth. The heat of his breath burned her skin. Then he pierced her with them.
A shaky, “Ahhh,” escaped her throat despite her attempt to repress her enjoyment.
The pressure released, he suckled, then swallowed. The feel of his warm thumb brushing against her clit made the room spin and her arms shake.
Grant’s other hand scooped around her, providing support, a tender gesture that touched her. He licked the two puncture holes closed, and steadying her, lowered her to the floor.
Such a beautiful face. The blue of his eyes held a flame of desire. Knowing what this man was capable of, how could she want to extinguish his hunger?
“Your time with Etienne has taught me more sophisticated ways to bend you to my will. I’m more than the brawn of this operation.” He stood. “I show such patience and restraint when you think of him as I touch you.”
What nobility. He only had himself to blame for creating a persona to seduce her, infiltrate the aequitas, then turn on them.
“How right you are. And I will make up for my mistakes. Will you?”
He’d pretended to be someone else, had her stabbed in the back and left for dead. When she’d recovered from all that, he’d kidnapped her and injected her with something to inhibit her abilities. Did he really think she would just bury the hatchet?
“No, I don’t. When you became my wife your life was bound to mine until death parts us. Not you, deciding you disagree with my beliefs. Obviously we aren’t going to work this out tonight.”
“Not ever.”
“That is a very long time. I wouldn’t make statements soon to be untrue. You’re going to suffer sweet agony until you beg for me.” He curved an eyebrow upward. “That I promise you. Now rest.”
The damp smell of the room intruded on her senses. Caves, on some planet she couldn’t decipher, based on the odor. Maybe she’d never been there before. The door opened and light shone on her from behind.
“Reah will watch over you until you earn my trust.”
“Your lapdog isn’t needed. I’m not going anywhere without Jet or Onyx.” She lifted her chin.
“A hardened general to a devoted mother is going to take some proof for me to swallow. Until then, you won’t be left alone.” Grant crossed paths with Reah, whose lustful eyes stared at him as he exited.
The demon Reah, in human form, appeared ready to work a street corner, wearing a tight, blue leather minidress and matching thigh-high boots.
“The only corner I’m working is yours, hon.” She bent down. Turkish in bone structure, the beautiful fiend had olive toned skin and piercing hazel eyes. Black hair framed her face. Demons’ ability to read minds surpassed the capabilities of most to conceal their thoughts.
Reah rolled her eyes. “Don’t bother trying to figure out an angle to use on me.” She stepped back, sat on the edge of the bed. “Despite not wanting you here, I won’t help you escape. Grant has my complete loyalty.” Leaning back, she crossed her legs.
Amosdai had spent hours teaching her how to veil her mind, even from older demons. Now she moved deep into the meditative layers of her psyche and closed her eyes.
All her concentration was needed to reach her young through the stone walls to soothe them to sleep.