Total pages in book: 248
Estimated words: 236909 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1185(@200wpm)___ 948(@250wpm)___ 790(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 236909 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1185(@200wpm)___ 948(@250wpm)___ 790(@300wpm)
The graze of his fangs over my nipple was too much. I came hard, falling over the edge as he shuddered against me. My breast muffled his harsh groan. Pleasure continued unwinding and spinning throughout my body until I was left limp and utterly boneless in his arms.
I was still trembling as he eased my fingers from me. My eyes opened, and I watched him…watched him lift my hand to his lips. He closed his mouth over my glistening fingers and sucked deeply.
“Gods,” I moaned, my breath catching.
There couldn’t be a drop of me left on my fingers by the time he finished. Quicksilver eyes met mine, and then thick lashes lowered as he kept our joined hands near his lips. “How do you feel now?” he asked thickly.
I opened my mouth, at a loss for words as I became aware of dampness against the curve of my ass, where his semi-hard arousal rested. He…he had found release. “Better. Much better.”
“Good,” he said, and that was all he said for a time.
In the silence that followed, my heart slowed, but the heat of his touch remained, while that of his blood faded. I stared at his hand folded around my fingers, his skin several shades deeper than mine. I…I liked it when he held my hand, and a…
A want still remained.
One different than all those earlier desires. I didn’t want to leave this moment of him holding me to him, against his chest with my hand in his. This moment of his lowered lashes fanning his cheeks and the line of his relaxed jaw. I didn’t want to leave this moment of peace.
But we had to.
I had to.
Because these moments wouldn’t last. I knew that when those lashes lifted and he looked down upon the one who had planned to seduce and murder him, there would be regret in those silver eyes, no matter if he claimed that he was only annoyed by my betrayal. I didn’t want to see that.
I wanted to remember these moments because what happened tonight had revealed a painful truth that couldn’t be denied. There would be no more of this.
Because I knew what I had to do.
I slipped my hand free. His head lifted, and I quickly looked away as I gathered the bloodied halves of my robe. “Nektas will be returning soon?”
“He will.”
“Okay.” I swallowed, still tasting the lingering honey of his blood. I started to move.
“Careful,” Nyktos said, taking hold of the robe and closing the halves over me. “You may feel strong, but you could be a little dizzy.”
“I feel fine.” I sat up slowly. Nyktos’s arm tightened around my waist. “I need to clean up.”
A long moment passed, and then his arm loosened. “I’ll send water to your chambers.”
I nodded as I slid out of his lap. Holding the robe together, I hurried across the room. I grasped the door handle, feeling his stare on my back. My eyes closed briefly. “Thank you.”
There was no answer.
I opened the door and left, leaving Nyktos and those peaceful moments behind.
An hour later, I sat in the war room, the closed-off chamber located behind the thrones, tracking the numerous daggers and swords lining the walls. The last time I’d been in here, it was after I’d learned the truth about the Rot.
And Nyktos had learned the truth about me.
The chamber gave me bad vibes.
I decided it needed windows. Softer chairs. A table not so carved up by the gods only knew how many weapons. Less bloodstained armor of those in attendance.
My slippered foot began tapping off the stone floor as I twisted my hair between my fingers. Cleaning all the blood from my skin and hair without using the tub had been difficult. I’d tried to get inside. I’d even made it as far as standing in it, but as soon as I began to lower myself, I started feeling the sash digging into my throat. I’d scrambled out, nearly slipping on the tile in my haste. I’d felt foolish as I resorted to dunking my head in the water to wash my hair. I still felt silly. Weak. But I didn’t know how to get past it.
And it really didn’t matter at this point.
“There were at least three gods involved in the attack,” Theon was saying, drawing my attention to him and his twin sister. Their armor was stained with blood, and their deep brown faces looked somber and tired. It had to be getting close to morning. “Including the one Orphine killed. I didn’t recognize the two I saw as being from Attes’s Court.”
The twins were originally from Vathi, where Attes and his brother Kyn’s Court was located. Apparently, it was the closest Court to the Shadowlands, and it seemed fitting to me that War and Vengeance would be located near Death.