19. Zarios

Chapter nineteen

I watch Sorcha saunter off towards the gray-haired woman. She was wearing another dress from Valcor, and it looked much different on her than it did on minotaur women.

Her thighs didn't stick out of the slits as far, so I only caught a glimpse every once and a while, which felt somehow more scandalous. The top also sat lower on her slimmer frame, and her breasts were larger compared to the rest of her body, making the plunging neckline much sultrier.

I thought it would be best not to follow her, since people would be less likely to talk if I was around. I scanned the hazy, smoke-filled room. This hadn't been my scene in a long time. I thought back to the days it was.

Naram, Damyr, and I used to be very close. We'd come to Mertis often for nights like these. We would train during the day and indulge at night. Though it seemed Naram still preferred this lifestyle, I gave it up long ago. It almost destroyed Damyr and made me realize I should quit too.

Speaking of Damyr, he was over with Naram now, in a booth surrounded by others. When I met his gaze, he waved me over, and everyone turned .

I let out an exhaustive huff. Great . I wandered over.

"Grand Clarak Zar," Naram said in a mocking tone. "Thank you for blessing us with your presence."

Damyr broke into a loud laugh, and I huffed my amusement. "Very funny." I sat next to them and was passed a drink quickly.

"So how are things?" Naram asked. "I heard you're having issues with group of thieves."

I grunted, taking a deep sip. "I would prefer not to discuss work." Normally, I wouldn't mind, but with so much at stake, I couldn't reveal what was really going on. The genuine way he asked, however, made me feel more confident that he wasn't involved. Knowing him for so long gave me the ability to tell when he was lying, and it seemed he wasn't.

"Fair enough," he said, raising his glass before taking a sip. He didn't press further, which made me internally sigh with relief. It didn't seem like he was prying for information for any particular reason. We weren't out of the woods yet, but it gave me hope.

Everyone went back to their conversations, and my eyes drifted to Sorcha, who was laughing loudly. Her smile made her look so carefree.

"She's very pretty. You're lucky," Naram commented over his glass.

"She is and I am," I said, trying to keep my jealousy at bay. This was all pretend, after all, and I wasn't the jealous type anyway.

"Zarios," I heard called from behind me.

I turned to see Naram's brother. "Kian," I greeted .

He jumped into small talk. He'd always been chatty, and this was no different. Damyr chimed in every once and a while, but he stayed relatively quiet.

I realized after a while that Naram had walked away. I didn't think much of it until I turned my eyes back to Sorcha. The minotaur woman was gone, and Naram took her place.

Even from here, I could tell he was turning on the charm. He'd always been good with what he called ‘conquests'. Men, women, didn't matter—when he set his eyes on a target, I'd never seen him miss. He'd never been one for stealing someone who was already spoken for, but it seemed he'd had a change of heart since we last met.

I watched as he pushed his hair from his eyes and said something with a wink. My body boiled. I tried to be rational. While, to the world, we were intended, she wasn't really mine—even though every instinct inside told me that was a lie. When she smiled back at him, I couldn't ignore it any longer.

I excused myself from Kian and marched straight to the table.

"I like taking chances," I heard him say. He leaned in closer than I liked before I reached them in this crowded space.

"What are you doing?" I asked, my voice low and rumbling.

Sorcha jumped back, her deep brown eyes wide.

Naram made no such move, his eyes cutting casually to me. "We're just chatting," he said with a smile.

My eyes narrowed. I didn't understand. I knew we didn't talk as much, and as a Clarak, he wasn't one to take risks, putting us on opposite sides of the table at times, but he'd never been the type to do something like this.

Sorcha's eyes were firmly on her drink. "If you'll excuse us, Naram," I said, "I'd like to have a word with my intended."

He raised his brows and didn't make any effort to move. "I hope I haven't upset you," he said. "I just wanted to have a little chat. Your intended is just so…intriguing."

Fuck it.

I didn't know what his problem was, but I didn't like it. I knew I wasn't being rational. I knew I would upset Sorcha, but something in my brain wasn't working right when I decided to pick Sorcha up like I did on that first day and move to leave. Whatever I'd told myself yesterday about keeping my distance had been thrown out the window.

As I lifted her, she gasped then started yelling and flailing. "Put me down!" she yelled over the loud music. "Zarios!"

I didn't listen. Even angry, my name from her lips soothed me. I held her as we exited the dark, loud space into the empty quiet hall. I continued walking, heading back to our rooms. She quieted when we entered the foyer, probably more aware of our surroundings, but I had no such thoughts. I wanted nothing but to get her alone.

After what felt like the longest walk of my life, we were in front of our door. Once I shut it behind me, I set her down. Her round cheeks were flushed, her eyes narrowed. She was pissed, and I couldn't help but find that cute.

"What was that?" she asked, all but yelling her displeasure. "You can't just carry me off like that. I didn't even do anything. He came to talk to me! I was focused on the mission, unlike you, who—"

Her words halted as I leaned in, pressing her to the wall. She looked as if she wanted to say something but was lost for words. My gaze dropped to her full lips, replaying last night in my head.

I pressed my hand to the wall next to her head and used the other to tilt her chin up. I leaned in and brought my lips to hers. She stayed frozen at first. I almost pulled away, thinking I'd made a mistake, but after a moment, her lips met mine.

She tasted of mead and something spicy that was all her own. I deepened the kiss with my tongue, needing to taste more of her. She melted beneath me, making me want her even more.

Her hands snaked up my shoulders, and I reached for her thighs, lifting her up and pinning her to the wall behind us. Her legs came around me, but they couldn't reach to hook together.

My touch moved up until I could feel the swell of her ass, fingers digging into the meaty flesh. I could feel my cock rub against her cunt, only a few thin strips of cotton separating us.

I kissed her once more before lowering, mouthing over her jaw back to bite her ear. I chomped down a bit hard, testing her. She released a sharp gasp and pressed her body into mine, trying to find her own friction.

Interesting .

I worked down further, kissing down her neck over her shoulder as she shuddered beneath me. I pulled away and shifted to hold her with one hand. We sat there for a moment, the only sound between us our labored breathing as I just…stared, from her deep, obsidian hair that had gotten a slight bit longer since we started this journey to her slightly round cheeks and pointed chin. Her eyes were dark but alive in a way I couldn't explain. I could get lost in their depths and would happily meet my end there.

My hand moved up and traced the small strap of her dress. It followed all the way down to the swell of her breasts. Unable to help myself, I lowered the garment until her breasts popped free. She gasped as I did, but I couldn't tear my gaze away. They were round and fell a bit to the sides, with dusky pink points for nipples.

When I ran my thumb over one of them, she let out the smallest moan, one I desperately craved more of. I brought my tongue down and lapped over it as she leaned into my touch, rewarding me with her moans.

I continued to lick at her nipple and gripped the other, plucking it with my fingers.

"Zarios," she moaned. She gripped my fur hard, pulling enough to sting, but I relished the feeling. I switched, tonguing her other nipple. When I looked up, she had her eyes down on me, twinkling in the moonlight. I bit down hard again, and I watched as her flush deepened and her mouth opened on a sharp inhale.

I needed more. Dropping to my knees, I hiked her legs up to my shoulders. She grabbed onto my horns for support, and the touch made my cock weep. I used one of my hands to move the slit of her skirt over and tossed it to the side. She wore a thin, pink pair of panties, and I could see a touch of dampness from her arousal. I leaned in and dragged my long, flat tongue across the fabric.

Her taste was sweet like honey and a bit musky. It drove me mad. I ran my tongue over the fabric a few more times, teasing around the top before moving lower.

"Moons," she cursed. "Please."

"Please what?" I asked.

She didn't answer, so I continued.

When she finally couldn't stand it anymore, she stuttered out, "P-please. I want to feel you."

I growled, low and deep. "Of course, Princess."

I pulled her underwear down, revealing her to me. Her cunt was as mesmerizing as I remembered, glistening with her juices. I licked up the middle, and without the fabric to dull her taste, my head spun. This was something I could become addicted to quickly .

I continued my exploration, tasting her freely, stealing her beautiful moans. I remembered how she felt about having her clit played with and dove for it, wanting her to be a writhing mess beneath me.

Soon, I worked down to her opening, shoving my tongue inside her. She was so tight and hot. Imagining my cock inside her almost made me come then and there.

"Just like that," she ground out. I continued fucking her as her walls squeezed my tongue, throwing her towards the edge.

Her fingers snaked down to touch her clit, but my hand flew up and caught it. I didn't need any help to wring her of pleasure.

I brought my tongue back and started working it again. I nipped her here lightly, and she screamed.

"Do you like pain with your pleasure, Princess?" I asked.

She didn't answer, so I brought my hand down sharply on her ass. The cracking sound rang through the space, and her resulting cry was tinged with pleasure. "I asked if you liked it. Don't make me repeat myself."

"Or what?"

My laugh was dark. "Would you like to find out?"