Seventy-Three Dianna

Samkiel stood near the portal he’d opened, speaking to Orym, the small office waiting on the other side.

“Do you see this?” Miska asked, picking up a yellow-stemmed flower. “Humberry. I can make this into a salve that will heal my sore feet.”

I snorted and tore my eyes away from Samkiel to look at her. “Well, I’m sure that will be effective sometimes.”

She nodded before collecting more little flowers and petals to stuff into a small brown satchel.

“She is quite peculiar, yes?” Reggie asked, coming to my side.

“Indeed,” I said. “But she may be right. Foot cream may come in handy depending on what is to come.”

“She is important for what’s to come.” Reggie smiled. “And there are more like her you haven’t found yet.”

My brows furrowed. “Are you back to creepy messages again?”

Reggie shook his head, his hand going to his temple. “Did I say something?”

“Do you not remember?” I took a step forward, but Samkiel’s voice had me turning away.

“Roccurem.” Samkiel nodded toward the portal, where Miska showed Orym what she found as they stepped through.

Reggie placed his hand on my shoulder. “It was a lovely service.”

I watched him walk away, concern niggling at me. I knew I’d heard him correctly, but I had no idea what he’d meant. His eyes didn’t go white as they usually did when he saw the future, but he didn’t seem to remember what he said. The portal closed behind them, worry coiling in my gut. Something was wrong.

Samkiel took the steps two at a time, his light touch on my arm bringing me back to reality. “Are you okay?”

I shook my head and smiled up at him. “Yes.” I would figure out what was going on with Reggie another day. Today belonged to Samkiel and me.

“Can you believe it?” I said, leaning against him and holding my hand out, wiggling the finger with my wedding ring. “We’re married.”

He held his hand out next to mine, the thick silver band he wore gleaming back at me. I pulled his hand to me, looking closer at the stripe of crushed stone that ran down the middle of the ring, circling his whole finger. A shiver ran through me, my whole body reacting as his ring touched mine.

“Woah, what was that?” I asked.

He nodded to our hands and our rings resting side by side. “It’s the magic settling into them now that mine is on. It’s pretty potent but should stabilize in a few weeks.”

I turned my hand, placing my palm against his so our rings connected. Another shiver rippled through my body. It was involuntary and quick, making my belly clench.

He smiled down at me, his eyes flaring with silver light. “Intense, right?”

“Very,” I said breathlessly.

Intense wasn’t the right word. It was more so a pressure that enveloped me like a warm blanket, encompassing me in safety and security as if I had been freezing before, and now he was wrapped around me. He was my missing piece, and he was finally where he belonged, utterly and completely with me. I finally understood why mates went insane, why they raged, and why they broke when they lost it. If it felt like this, then absence was beyond pain, beyond agony. I thought I was a rage-filled, damned beast before, but if someone took this from me, I’d make the leader of evil look like a saint. My eyes locked on to his as if I finally learned to breathe once more, and I wondered if it would feel even better during sex.

“It might.”

My face went slack, and I pulled my hand back. “No fucking way. Did you just read my mind?”

“Another perk of the magic.”

My eyes went wide, not with fear, but with a pulse of excitement. “How?”

Samkiel shrugged and glanced at his ring. “It’s a spell crafted into the stone. Jaski, Killium’s wife, can imbue objects with power. She was one of several pupils under Kryella, and she was able to wield arcane magic. It was quite a feat. I was very lucky she survived these years, but also why I smelled as I did when I returned. She and Killium have been hiding in some very unsafe places to stay out of Nismera’s reach. Their magic makes them both valuable targets. My evil sister would love nothing more than to claim them, so they are in hiding.”

My smile did not falter. They had done so much for me . . . for us. “You had her make them to mimic the mark?”

“As close as I could, yes.” He nodded. “We still cannot share powers, unfortunately. That will forever be out of our reach without the true marks, but there are a few perks.”

I stepped closer and took his hand in mine again, that shiver forming once more. He hadn’t left because I’d hurt him. No, he left because, without the mark in this vast world, he’d never be able to truly keep me safe if we got separated again. He wanted the next best thing.

“I am sorry for lying to you. Truly, I am.” I held his gaze. “You can feel that, right? With these?”

His eyes searched my face before he nodded slowly. “I feel your sadness, but I did not need the rings to know that.” His thumb passed over my ring. “I did not mean what I said back then. I do trust you more than anyone. I was just hurt. My entire family has lied and kept things from me. I . . . you . . . I just wanted you to be different.”

My hand cupped his face. “I swear that was the last epic secret I have. The only one. I just didn’t want to hurt you again. In the end, I hurt you the most. I was just scared of what you’d say, of what it would mean. I wanted to pretend we were still this epic destined love, even if I’d ruined it.”

His face softened as he placed a kiss on my palm. “You didn’t ruin anything. Mark or not, you are all I see, all I want. Destiny be damned, right?”

“Destiny be damned.”

I grasped his hands and wrapped them around me, placing them on my lower back. I twined my arms around his neck and pressed my breasts against his chest.

“You still want me?”

He bit at his bottom lip and lifted one brow. “Yes, why else would I marry you?”

My laugh turned to a squeal as he lifted me into his arms and strode toward the stairs.

SAMKIEL PLACED ME ON MY FEET OUTSIDE OUR BEDROOM DOOR AND stepped in front of me. His grin was mischievous as he took my hand and opened the door.

“Why are you being so cryptic? I’ve already seen the . . .”

My words died as he led me in. Flickering lights and flowers were arranged on every surface, and a spicy floral scent hung heavy in the air. The thick curtains were pulled away from the large windows, moonlight illuminating the gorgeous landscape outside. The bed had been made up with fresh linens and blankets, both pulled back invitingly.

“Wow,” I gasped, taking it all in. “When did you do this?”

“During the ceremony.”

My brows shot up. Not only was Samkiel there, but he was also decorating the room above. I knew he could multitask, but that was . . . impressive.

He tossed me an impish grin over his shoulder. “I’ve been told I’m pretty impressive before.”

My mouth formed into a pinched smile as I turned to him, still so unused to him being in my head. “What about arrogant?”

He laughed. “Maybe once or twice by a dark-haired beauty.”

My brow rose. “I hope she keeps you humble.”

“She does.”

“It’s beautiful,” I said. “Beyond beautiful.”

Samkiel smiled and walked to the fireplace on the far wall. “I wished to do more, but I have used so much power I’m starting to burn out.”

“Sami.” I shook my head. “This is beyond my wildest dreams, but you don’t have to impress me, especially when the cost is that. Trust me. I am already impressed.”

“I’m fine, and I’ll sleep later.” The way he said later had another shiver running across my body, and I wondered if it was my emotions or his I was feeling. He crouched and placed a couple of logs before snapping his fingers. A flame shimmered silver before catching and then burning a deep orange. A comfortable warmth slowly replaced the chill in the room. “Just wait until we have another ceremony when I’m fully restored, and everyone can be there. It will be even more extravagant than this.”

I smiled, knowing he meant it, but this had been so much more than I could ever wish for. Today made me whole. “You know, on Onuna, usually the bride would have something scandalous underneath her dress to torment her husband with.”

“Oh?” Samkiel said, wiping his hands as he stood and turned to look at me. He sauntered over, unbuttoning his jacket. He stopped right in front of me and ran his fingers along the strap of my dress. “You don’t need that to torment me. All you have to do is look at me, and I get hard. Your mere existence does things to me.”

“Does it?” I ran my hands up his chest to his thick, broad shoulders.

“But,” Samkiel said, “I do quite enjoy the devilishly wicked things you find.”

“Oh, yeah?” My smile was downright devious as I glanced up at him through my eyelashes. “I find certain things you wear rather enticing, too.”

Samkiel chuckled. “You do? Like what?”

I stepped around him, dragging my hand down his arm as I headed toward the foot of the bed. I threw him a heated glance over my shoulder. My nipples tightened as I slipped the straps down my arms and turned to face him. I swore my breasts swelled beneath the touch of his hungry gaze.

He took a determined step toward me, but I raised my hand, stopping him. “We are married now, yes?”

Confusion flooded his eyes. “Yes.”

“That means I am your queen, yes?”

The corners of his mouth lifted in satisfaction. “Yes.”

“Therefore, you obey your queen, right?”

Heat flared in his eyes, and I was mesmerized as silver flooded his irises. “Yes.”

“Good,” I said, my hands going to the back of my dress, the movement lifting my breasts toward him. I slowly released the buttons at the small of my back. “Stay there until I tell you otherwise.”

His hands flexed before turning into fists, and he clamped them behind his back. “What are you doing?”

“I told you I had fantasies, right?” My dress slid down my body in a soft susurration of sound to pool around my feet, leaving me completely bared to him. “Well, this fantasy occurred back on the remains of Rashearim when you wore your council garbs.”

His adyin burst to life with silver light as he slowly lowered his hands. I saw the hard ridge of his cock thicken between his legs.

“Fantasy?” His throat bobbed. “Of me?”

I nodded and sat on the edge of the bed, scooting back just a fraction. I didn’t need to see his arms to know the muscles beneath his clothes were strained as he watched me. Setting my heels on the edge of the mattress, I spread my legs wide for him. He took a shuddering breath, his eyes falling straight to my already slick sex.

“Do you want to see what I did one night while you were away? I couldn’t sleep, and I’d grown frustrated with the on-again-off-again tension between us. So I slipped my hand like this.”

Samkiel went rigid as my hand swept a pass over my sex. My fingers drew smooth, slow circles around my clit. Pleasure speared through me, and a moan parted my lips. I loved seeing the way he watched every stroke with feral, wild need.

“Dianna.” His voice was a warning. “I am not this strong.”

My smile turned devious. “You move, I stop.”

He whimpered. Samkiel actually whimpered as his mouth formed into a thin line. I loved how much power I had over him, how absolutely wild I drove him without even touching him. I leaned further back, my free hand curving around to stroke and tug at my nipple.

“Fuck,” Samkiel breathed as he watched me. Between his desperation and what I was doing, my need tore at me, and I moaned a fraction louder.

“You’d been gone for a few days.” I shuddered. “I was in my room late at night, and all I could think about was you. All I pictured was you.” My fingers dipped down and slipped inside. Tight, wet heat welcomed the intrusion as I watched him. “I wondered what would happen if you came back and saw me utterly drenched at the thought of you?”

I withdrew my fingers and lifted them to my mouth, licking them clean. I swore lightning skittered across the ceiling in our room.

“Do you want to know?” His voice was husky, deep, and pissed. “What I would have done?”

I nodded. “Show me.”

Before the words were completely out of my mouth, the crackling heat of his power wrapped around my wrists, forcing my arms wide.

“First, I would make sure you could no longer touch what is mine.” Samkiel stalked, bearing down on me with that turbulent silver gaze. “Then I’d ask what you were thinking about that made you do something so wicked by yourself.” His fingers curved under my chin, and he tilted my head up. His mouth lowered to mine, his tongue sliding across my lips before he claimed my mouth. He growled as I shared the lingering taste of my pleasure, stroking my tongue along his. He broke the kiss and said, “And you’d say?”

“You.” The word left my lips breathlessly. “Always you.”

“And then I’d get on my knees, lapping at every drenched bit of you, making you come over and over until you couldn’t take it any longer and begged me to stop.” He pushed my legs further apart before kneeling between them, and my heart skittered. “And after you thought you couldn’t take anymore, I’d fuck you so hard that the next time you even thought of touching yourself without me, all you’d feel was the aching flesh of where I’d been.”

His hand gripped my thighs, spreading me achingly wide, the cool air tickling my sensitive flesh. He watched me as he slowly and deliberately licked from my center to my clit.

The moan that escaped at the feel of his hot, wet tongue on my most sensitive flesh was loud and exhilarating all at once. My nerve endings pulsed, and my belly clenched as he did it again. I whimpered when he abandoned my pussy and licked and nipped at my inner thighs. I pulled against the power holding me in place, determined to put his mouth back where I needed it, but there was no give, and his hands held my hips right where he wanted them. His breath was teasing and hot, his tongue lapping along the crease of my thigh, driving me fucking wild.

Samkiel was following through on his promise, cleaning up anywhere I may have dripped from fingering myself. His mouth moved closer to my core, and I lifted my hips. His tongue made another pass, but this time, he started at the sensitive skin just below my entrance.

“Samkiel!” I cried out, my body trembling, needing him back at my clit. He didn’t respond, but I felt a deep vibration against my flesh as he laughed. “Fuck,” I whined, my hips writhing in his grip. I couldn’t move anything else, his power holding me tight. “Sami, please suck me.”

He gave another long, agonizing lick before his tongue speared into me. I groaned, my pussy clenching around him, the sensation so good, but at the same time I needed more. My hips rocked, riding his face, his nose pressing against my clit as he tongue fucked me, and gods above, I lost it. I didn’t even feel the orgasm build before it ripped through me. Samkiel greedily drank my pleasure, savoring every shiver and tremble as I screamed his name.

I tried to move, trying to ride another wave of pleasure, but Samkiel held me tight. He moved his head from side to side, stimulating my already overly sensitive clit. My body shook as he worked it like a master, bringing me to the edge again and again but not letting me slip over. Then, I did the one thing he said I would.

I begged.

I begged as he continued to lick and tease me, begged as he finally sent me over, and then I begged as he released my hands. I needed more, his mouth and lips and tongue everywhere on me, and then I needed him to fill me.

Samkiel’s eyes flicked toward me as if he’d heard my thoughts, and a slow, seductive smile spread across his face. His hands grasped my ass, his fingers damn near bruising as he pulled me closer.

“I need you,” I whimpered, but he ignored me.

I watched as he tasted me again, his tongue pressing deep in a long, slow lick before he sucked my clit into his mouth. I saw stars, pure, blinding white stars.

“Fuck!” I screamed, throwing my head back. He was relentless, sucking and flicking my clit before his fingers dove deep, stretching me. My back lifted off the bed as he curled them inside me.

I couldn’t watch anymore. I could barely breathe as rapture licked at my core, building into an inferno. Another pulsing need built with it, one unfamiliar as he tossed me into another orgasm. I screamed as he drew it out, drawing one whimpering pant after another from me.

“Sami.” My words were breathless demands as I jerked and twisted in his hold. His fingers pressed on that spot deep inside me, massaging it greedily, and all I could do was whimper and squirm. “Baby, please, please, please.”

Tears welled in my eyes from the complete rapture he sent me through. My body demanded more from his skillful mouth, even if it killed me.

“Oh, gods. Oh, gods.” His fingers curved again, and my body bent. Heat ripped through me as another orgasm followed. I was going to die, here and now. I couldn’t tell if the noises I was making were even words.

“That’s my girl.” I felt him smile against my soaked flesh. “Give me one more, okay?”

I moaned and shook my head, words escaping me. All I could manage were whimpers or screams with every flick or lash of his tongue, every thrust of his fingers. He hit that spot deep inside me, working it, and my body curved and bent, following his lead.

My hands reached, grabbing at the sides of his head, threading my fingers through his hair as I slammed myself down on his fingers and tongue. I clenched and quivered and broke. My head fell back, my mouth agape, and all I could do was hope I didn’t crush him as my orgasm ripped through me. I released my grip on his head, my hand slapping on the sheets above me as my legs closed around his head. My body twisted as my fists balled into the sheets, riding through wave after wave of pleasure.

I was a panting mess as my body shook, no longer riding the waves of pleasure but drowning in them. Samkiel’s grip on my hips eased, and my eyes snapped open. My quivering thighs tensed, loathe to let him move away.

Samkiel pressed a kiss to my swollen clit and smiled up at me, his mouth glistening with my release. “That was for leaving you.”

My heart squeezed, and then my lower belly clenched as he dragged a finger to his lips, licking the remnants of my orgasm from his face.

“Multiple orgasms for leaving me?” My laugh was hoarse and weak. “Leave me more often.”

I didn’t even realize I was crying until he leaned over me and wiped my cheeks. The tears that stained my face were not from pain but pure, poignant euphoria.

“And for also making you cry.”

A choked sob left me. “I’m okay with it now.”

His eyes darkened with lust mixed with . . . pain? “The only time I want to be responsible for your tears is when you’re a sobbing, aching mess. When I’ve made you come so many times that you weep from bliss.”

I grasped his jaw and pulled him to me. His lips slanted over mine before I heard him reach for his lapels. I sat up and grabbed his hands, shifting to my knees as he stood. My legs felt like jelly, but I needed him more. His smile faded as I grabbed his collar and pulled him to me once more, crushing his lips back to mine.

I may have initiated the kiss, but he was ravenous and quickly took control again. My hands slipped between us, and I ripped and tore at the fabric separating us. Buttons bounced against the floor, and his cape, jacket, and shirt followed. He groaned as my fingers pinched at his nipple. My hands slipped down over his abs and then lower to rip at his pants. I kissed him harder, and he sucked on my tongue but pulled back when I wrapped him in my hands. Samkiel threw his head back and gasped. I wasn’t light or gentle as I pumped his thick length. His stomach flexed, and he leaned forward to rest his forehead against mine. He moaned, our breaths mingling.

Samkiel angled his head to kiss me again, but I urged him back and slipped off the bed. I dropped to my knees and took him into my mouth. He shouted, and his fingers slid into my hair, gripping the long strands. I fisted my hand around his base and tightened my lips around him. My tongue moved from side to side as I bobbed my head, moistening the length of him. I leaned in and grabbed his ass with my free hand, forcing more of him into my mouth until I felt the broad tip hit my throat.

“Fuck,” he groaned, thrusting forward. “Yes, please, just like that, akrai.”

I sank deeper onto my knees, adjusting to the thrust as he pushed into my throat. I glanced up at him through the veil of thick lashes and swallowed around him. His mouth fell open, and he used his grip on my hair to angle my head. He threw his head back in ecstasy, exposing the thick column of his throat.

“I love you. I love you. I love you.”

I released him with a pop, continuing to stroke him as I looked up at him, drawing in deep gulps of air. He watched me, his eyes barely open, just a sliver of silver glowing behind his lashes. I thought he had said those words out loud, but his teeth were clenched tight, and I realized he hadn’t said them. He had thought them. I traced the tip of my tongue along the adyin that glowed over his shaft before taking him back into my mouth. He pulsed against my tongue, his thighs trembling. Heat flared in me, and I felt my need dripping down my thighs as I took him deep and swallowed him once more. I gagged on him, my throat constricting around his cock. His head dropped back, the muscles in his forearms bunched as his grip tightened in my hair. His abs coiled and flexed, his hips thrusting instinctively, aching to get as deep as possible.

“Mine, mine, mine. MINE!”

Desperate need ripped at me, and I twisted my fist around the base of his shaft. I lovingly cupped and squeezed his balls. He moaned, and a shudder wracked his powerful body. Feeling the effect I had on him, tasting the precum spilling onto my tongue, and hearing his declarations through our rings sent me close to the edge. I knew one touch, and I would come again. I sucked and twirled my tongue against the sensitive underside of the head and felt him swell. Very lightly, I scraped my nails over his balls, and his groans echoed loudly in the room as his hips thrust forward.

“Akrai.” He pulled my head back so his cock slipped out with a pop. “I’m going to come.”

“Good.” I panted, stroking up and down his glowing length and pulling against his hold, trying to take him back into my mouth.

“Not like this, not tonight,” he groaned. “I need to be inside you. Now.”

Samkiel lifted me and fell with me onto the bed. His lips slanted over mine, and he shifted us higher on the mattress before lowering his weight onto me. He ground his cock against me, rocking against the slickness between my thighs as if he couldn’t help himself. My knees bent, and I slid them up his sides, opening further to him as he continued to kiss me, slow and passionate. He fisted the hair at the nape of my neck, pulling my head back so he could look at me. I licked my lips and waited, thinking he was about to say something filthy, but his eyes were soft and warm, filled with not only lust but—“I love you,” he whispered.

I smiled up at him, sliding my thumb along his lower lip as if I might touch those words as well as hear them.

“I love you,” I said, and even to my own ears, they sounded like a vow.

It was not just three little words for us. It never was. Whatever missing fractured pieces we’d lost so long ago seemed to come slamming back into place.

Samkiel’s lips met mine in a slow, rhythmic dance. He shifted his hips and settled the head of his cock at my entrance. He pushed into me slowly, my body stretching tightly around him. I gasped and broke the kiss, locking my eyes with his as he rocked into me. His enormous body glowed, his godly adyin marks pulsing with each beat of his heart. His breath washed over my lips as he seated himself balls deep inside me. Fire erupted through my veins, and I clenched around him in sweet welcome.

He claimed my mouth again and began to move with slow, passionate strokes. Oh gods, I felt him everywhere, every move inside me, his hands on my thighs, his tongue in my mouth. If I had a soul, it would be screaming and melding into him with how deeply he seemed to touch me like this.

I had never felt this kind of intimacy, and I knew he felt it too. I could taste it in his kiss, feel it in how he worshiped my body with every stroke. The proof was in the litany of thoughts he didn’t know how to say out loud.

Samkiel pressed his forehead to mine, our mouths only inches apart. Something felt like it was shifting between us again. No words were spoken, just this hungry, aching bond that for a moment felt sealed, felt complete. His hands cupped my ass, and he dragged his length in and out of me slowly, deliberately, as if this moment was so precious he didn’t want it to end.

I loved this, but I needed more. I raked my nails down his back and bit his lower lip. “Sami, please.”

His next thrust made me gasp. He pulled my leg higher on his hip and ground against me before pulling all the way out and slamming deep. I screamed and arched beneath him, forcing him deeper. His grip tightened on my ass, holding me still.

“Who do you belong to?” he growled, pulling out and thrusting deep again.

“You.”

Another deep, powerful thrust that had me crying out and my body rippling around his cock.

“Again,” he demanded. “Tell me again.”

His hips snapped again, the brutal thrust hitting that spot inside me that had me damn near crying in pleasure.

“I’m yours! I’m yours! I’m yours! I’m yours!”

Only moans left my mouth, but I knew he heard the words by the way he pounded into me a fraction harder. His hand moved between us, his thumb pressing on my swollen clit, circling it. The noises leaving my throat weren’t mortal or from any known language. My skin prickled with heat, and pleasure shot from my core to my toes. He dipped his head and bit down on my nipple hard enough to send jolts of electricity to my very center. I screamed and clenched around him as he slammed into me, his thumb pressing down on my clit. My body shuddered, and I came apart.

“Samkiel!”

He gripped my hips in both hands, holding tight, making sure I stayed on him as I shattered around him. He growled and pulled out, fighting my body’s hold on him. Without pausing, he thrust back into me, so deep this time my belly clenched. Another orgasm washed over me, my body clamping down so hard on him he groaned. My name tore from his lips as I felt his cock twitch inside of me, but it was what I heard in my head that melted my heart.

“My akrai. My Dianna. My love.”