Chapter 42

CHAPTER 42

C iara hesitated and leaned against the wall, trying to quell her trembling body and fluttering heart. The incident earlier with Magnus had left her shaken. The last thing she had ever expected was for him to confess his feelings for her, to tell her that he loved her. It had hit her hard and had been so unexpected that she hadn’t been able to do anything but stare at him silently and stupidly.

She knew he had been trying to make things right with her since the fight in the hall a few days before. She also knew he’d been giving her space to let her come to terms with everything that happened. And after having plenty of talks with Enya and Katherine, Ciara thought she was really starting to understand Magnus better and in ways she hadn’t before. She was learning the weight of his duty and the toll it had taken on him.

He never complained about the burden he carried, never whined about it being too much for him. He simply did his duty and did everything he could to protect his family and his clan. Of course he could have been honest with her about his gift and what he needed from her, but she was beginning to understand why he hadn’t. It didn’t completely diminish the sting of broken trust, but it made it less painful.

A pair of guards passed her in the corridor, and she looked away, her cheeks flushing when one of them turned back with a knowing gleam in his eye. It was late and most of the castle was asleep already. But unable to sleep as memories of the afternoon kept replaying through her mind, Ciara stood outside the door to Magnus’ bedchamber. She turned to the door then hesitated and turned away again.

“Get it taegether,” she muttered.

If she didn’t say what she’d come to say, Ciara wasn’t sure she’d be able to again. Gritting her teeth, she opened the door and stepped in, her heart skipping a beat as she belatedly remembered that Magnus liked to sleep naked. Thankfully though, he was still awake, clothed, and sitting at a table in the corner reading through pages of parchment by candlelight. Magnus raised his head, a startled expression on his face.

“Ciara,” he said. “What are ye doin’ here?”

“I just… I wanted tae talk tae ye about earlier.”

He put the parchment down and turned to her. “All right.”

“Ye said… ye said ye loved me. Dae ye mean it?”

Magnus paused and looked down at his hands for a moment before nodding. “Aye. I dae.”

Ciara felt herself flush as her heart stuttered in her chest. A lump formed in her throat she had to swallow hard to force down. Magnus stood up and walked to her, stopping before her. She tilted her head up to look at him, her heart swelling as tears formed in her eyes. He reached out and brushed them away with his thumb as they spilled down her cheek. She leaned into his hand, relishing the feel of his hand on her skin.

“What’s the matter?” he asked.

She looked up again and put her hand to his cheek, her eyes locked onto his. The moment between them crackled with anticipation. Standing on her tiptoes, Ciara pulled him down to her, meeting him halfway as their mouths crashed together. He slipped his tongue between her teeth, his kiss so passionate, it stole Ciara’s breath away. As he slid his hands down to her waist, she melted into him, the feel of his body pressed to hers igniting the fire between her thighs that sent sparks of desire flitting through her veins.

Without breaking their kiss, Ciara took Magnus’ hand and pulled him back toward the bed. She fumbled with her gown, but he was able to slip it off her shoulders then let it fall into a pool around her feet. He pulled back and admired her body, sending waves of heat through her cheeks.

“Ye’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” he said, his voice soft.

Ciara bit her bottom lip as she smiled. Without a word, she grabbed him by the front of his breeches and pulled him toward her. He kicked off his boots then slipped his breeches off as Ciara tugged his tunic over his head and threw it to the floor. Naked, their bodies twined around one another, they tumbled onto the bed, mouths locked together, tongues rolling in each other’s mouths, hands sliding across their skin.

Ciara shuddered as Magnus planted a trail of kisses down her neck to her breasts. A low moan passed her lips as he flicked her pert nipples with the tip of his tongue and when his hand trailed lower, slipping between her thighs, and strummed her button, a gasp burst from her lips. She pressed her head back against the pillows and squeezed her eyes shut, relishing the sensations coursing through her as Magnus’ fingers danced across her sex while he licked and sucked on her breasts at the same time.

“Me God, that feels amazin’,” she whispered.

He looked up at her and grinned as he pulled his fingers out of her opening. They glistened with her juices in the candlelight and when he slipped them into his mouth, he closed his eyes and made a sound like it was the sweetest thing he’d ever tasted. The sight of him tasting her off his fingers sent her head spinning and nearly drowned her in desire. The insides of her thighs were slick with her nectar and her entire body quivered.

“I need ye inside of me,” she croaked.

A rakish grin curling his lips, she parted her thighs as Magnus climbed on top of her. He braced himself above her on his arms, his lips lightly brushing hers, the anticipation of his kiss stoking the flames of desire burning in her belly even higher. Magnus kissed her deeply, filling her mouth with his tongue as he thrust his hips, piercing her sex with his engorged manhood. He swallowed her gasp, as she was washed away by a tide of ecstasy.

Ciara locked her ankles behind his waist as Magnus began to move, thrusting himself deeply inside of her. A trembling smile touched her lips as she gazed into his icy blue eyes, her heart swelling with emotions she had never expected to feel when they met. His thick staff slid along her slippery inner walls, touching off explosions of pleasure with his every movement. He was large, thick, and having him so deep within her was still somewhat uncomfortable, but the flood of rapture she felt overwhelmed it almost instantly.

As he drove himself into her again and again, faster and with more force, Magnus kissed her mouth, his lips leaving furrows of fire upon her skin as his lips trailed down her neck, to her breasts. Her vision wavered and she felt lightheaded as he moved within her. Their bodies moved in a slow, sensual rhythm that heightened the pleasure racing through Ciara’s veins.

As she rolled her hips, moving to meet his every thrust, Magnus groaned. He clenched his jaw and Ciara felt him swelling within her. The veins on his neck stood out and he gritted his teeth, seeming to be trying to hold back. A sly smile quirked Ciara’s lips as she thrust her hips upward, taking him deep into her center. A long, feral growl burst from his mouth as he erupted within her.

“Ciara,” he moaned.

Magnus throbbed and pulsed, filling her with his warm, sticky seed. All at once though, Ciara felt weightless again and a feeling like lightning shot through her veins. She pressed her head back against the pillows and cried out as she writhed and trembled, her voice shaking as she called out his name. She pulled Magnus into a kiss, riding the current of pleasure that they were both floating upon.

Slowly, their orgasms began to ebb, but they clung to each other, their bodies intertwined, and their gazes locked. The air in the small space between them felt charged with currents of passion and of something… more. Ciara looked into his eyes with a small, trembling smile upon her lips.

“I love ye,” she said. “That’s what I came here tae tell ye tonight.”

The corner of his mouth quirked upward. “Message received, lass.”