A Ruin of Roses (Deliciously Dark Fairytales Book 1), page 16
“Sounds like a real treat, this guy. And your mother married him why?”
“Arranged marriage. You must know that nobles don’t have much choice in such things. We consolidate money and power, both socially and magically. Our parents make careful choices in our alliances.”
“Did your parents choose someone for you before all this?”
“Yes. It wasn’t a choice I would’ve made for myself.”
“What happened?”
“In the end? The curse happened.”
He didn’t elaborate as we reached the steps to the patio. Then again, he didn’t really have to. He was the only noble left. Clearly his intended hadn’t made it.
He slowed, looking at the door. Several glass panels were embedded in the wood, and a bare ass was pressed against one of them. As we watched, the back of what looked like a woman pushed against the glass pane above. Just beyond, two legs faced it, the knees bending before the flesh against the window shifted. Two palms flattened against the glass. They were fucking against the back door.
“Let’s go around,” I said quickly, knowing he’d probably want to force that door open and ruin their time. He clearly wasn’t ignoring these shenanigans like he had the furry situation earlier.
His fingers dug into my hip angrily. A nerve jumped in the side of his clenched jaw. He did turn, though, heading around the side of the castle toward another entrance. Nearly there, he halted. His arm constricted around me, smashing me to his side before he swore softly and abruptly turned.
“What’s hap—”
“Say nothing,” he whispered furiously, moving his hand to my shoulder and pushing me toward the trees.
I hit a rock with my toe and tried to correct, but he caught me first, dragging me upright.
Once in the trees, he whispered, “They’re looking for us. It either means they are suspicious or they want to taunt me. We need to ensure it’s the latter.”
“What do they want to taunt you about?”
He ducked behind a tree and dragged me with him, pushing me against the bark. He stood close, caging me in with his body. Showering me with his heat.
“I take my honor very seriously, and I’ve been celibate since the curse came into effect. There are a few reasons why, but one of them is that I will not allow them to twist me sexually like they have twisted everyone else in that castle. Now you’re here, and they will think I am starting to break. That I have seen my true fate—failure and death—and decided to forgo my duty and let go of my honor. They think I have captured you for stealing and intend to use you sexually until I’ve had my fill. I want to propagate that illusion. They will taunt me to play on my supposed guilt. They want to twist the knife and, in so doing, twist my mind. Once they see that they are having an effect, they will go after you to incite my animal.”
“Why would that incite your animal?”
“Because I do not share, Finley. If I lay a claim on my chosen, there will be no other. Not for me, and not for her. My animal will not stand for it, even if I could. Through me, they will aim to ruin you. But I will not let them hurt you, do you understand? I will not let them touch you. You are here under my protection, and I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe and whole. Whatever it takes.”
“But you need them to think you’re defiling me, and I need to play along. Otherwise the cover is blown and you’ll get me killed or worse.”
He lifted his hand slowly and ran his thumb along the edge of my jaw. My heart fluttered at that delicate touch.
“The plan was to keep you to your room at night. But your nulling elixir could save lives, and so the plan has changed. I told you I was not a nice man, princess,” he murmured with a bite of gravel in his voice.
He tensed and turned his head to the right just a little.
“They’ve caught our scent,” he whispered. “They’re winding closer.”
My animal prowled in my chest. I chanced tugging on her a little, needing her access to scents. She stepped forward in a hurry, the familiar fire washing through me and a musty sort of funk immediately accosting my senses. I crinkled my nose.
“Yes. That’s the scent of a powerful demon,” he said. “The higher they are on the power scale, the mustier they are to our senses. This might be hard for you to understand, but I need you to act like this isn’t your choice. That I’m forcing the issue.”
“To make them think you’re losing your morals and degrading yourself, thus convincing them they are finally having an effect on you?”
“Okay, maybe it won’t be hard for you to understand.”
“It wouldn’t be hard for anyone to understand. You literally just spelled it out a second ago.”
“You haven’t been in this castle long enough, clearly.”
He grabbed my hands and pushed them above my head, trapping both wrists in one of his large hands. He pushed closer until every inch of that hard body was pressed firmly against mine. He settled his free hand on my hip and dipped his head, running his lips along the side of my throat.
“Make a show of resisting,” he murmured, bending a little and rocking his hips forward. His hard bulge rubbed against my pelvis, not where I needed it. I ran a leg up the outside of his thigh and over his hip. He caught my knee and rocked his hips forward again.
“No, please,” I said in a husky voice and moaned as he sucked in the fevered flesh on my neck. His lips skimmed up to my jaw and ended at the outside of my mouth. He gyrated again, rubbing against my leather-clad pussy.
He chuckled darkly. “You’re not a good actress.”
He moved slightly, adjusting so his lips were right in front of mine but not touching. Our breath mingled. He thrust forward again, his bulge rubbing just right.
My eyelids fluttered shut. I was so turned on I couldn’t help myself. Damn me, but I wanted more of the sensations he elicited in me. Of his delicious body rubbing against mine. More friction. More heat. More, more…
I rocked my hips. My body tightened up.
He ran his free hand up my side and in, over the hard peak of my breast. He rubbed through my clothing with his thumb, sending shocks of pleasure straight down to my sodden core. I groaned, delirious with desire.
“It’s too bad things are as they are,” he murmured, trailing his lips along the outside of mine, holding my wrists firmly, grinding his cock into me. “I’d love to fuck you so hard you beg for mercy.”
“Yes.” I pulled my other leg up, wrapping it around him. My hips jerked frantically into him.
He pushed his hand up under my shirt and ripped at my binding. Fabric tore. It yanked down under my breast. He stroked my flesh with his rough hand.
I didn’t know if it was my animal coming out in me or the desperation to end this terrible ache throbbing in my core, but I went full-tilt filthy.
“Fuck me, Nyfain,” I begged. “Destroy my needy cunt with that hard cock.”
He growled and crushed his lips to mine.
The world spun then dropped away entirely. In this moment I didn’t give a shit about our problems and my current prison. That was a chore for tomorrow. Right now, I just needed that big cock pounding the stress and worry out of me. I needed an escape from my life, and his big-dick energy would provide it.
He twisted my nipple between his fingers. The bite of pain made me suck in a breath, but in a moment it turned to sweet, sweet pleasure, and I struggled to get my hands loose so I could feel his perfect body.
“I need you to fuck my wet pussy, Nyfain,” I said huskily. “I need you inside of me.”
“Fuck me,” he said, pain lancing his words. “You’re so fucking sexy.”
He gave me a dominant, bruising kiss. I opened my mouth in a moan, and he filled it in a rush, his tongue sweeping through. Oh, holy goddess, he tasted so good. Like liquid smoke and fresh spring mornings. Like the thrill of the hunt.
Lost to sensation, to the feeling of his hands on me and his body trapping mine to the tree, I pumped my hips wildly. He hooked his hand around the back of my knee and pushed his body closer. His cock rubbed hard against me, our clothes in the way. This consuming ache made me desperate.
“You’re supposed to be resisting,” he said against my lips, his breath coming fast now.
“No!” I called as I gyrated, struggling to get closer. “Stop!”
He kissed me again, ragged and desperate, then shoved against me harder and growled into my mouth. His tongue thrust in time with his hips.
“What were you dreaming about earlier?” he asked, pushing my legs away and going for my pants. “The demon made you have an erotic dream. What were you dreaming about?” He yanked the button away and pushed down the zipper. I spread my legs in desperation.
“Let me have my hands,” I begged. “I want to get at your cock.”
“What were you dreaming about?” he insisted.
He shoved one side of my pants down before the other, managing it with one hand.
I struggled to get my hands free. “Let me get at your cock. I want you to force that big dick all the way down my throat, then flip me over and ram it deep into my pussy.”
“I will not fuck you, Finley, no matter how much I want to. I will not be the ruin of you.”
It almost sounded like he was begging me to understand.
“The best I can do is pleasure you,” he said. He dug his hand into my pants and between my thighs.
My mouth dropped open as his fingers traced along my panty line. The world paused as he dipped a finger in. Hungry chills spread across my flesh.
“Yes,” I whispered, widening my legs for him. “I mean…” I raised my voice. “No, please, no. Not yet. Or ever.”
My eyes fluttered as one finger slowly ran along my slick folds.
“Fuck, you’re so wet,” he growled. He dipped his finger in before rubbing my wetness against my clit. “I’m going to make you come for me, princess.”
My movements were reduced to little jerks of pleasure as he returned to my pussy and threaded in two fingers.
“I’m going to make you come so hard you can’t think of any other name but mine.”
He kissed me, pushing his tongue inside. His thumb massaged my clit as he started finger-fucking me, hard and fast.
I groaned, gyrating with him, my senses on overload.
“Tell me what you were dreaming about,” he commanded, his power blistering through me. My hard, bared nipple rubbed against his chest. His fingers pumped in and out of my pussy, his thumb circling my clit.
“You,” I admitted with a cry of pleasure, my body impossibly wound up. His fingers slammed through my wetness. “I was dreaming about you fucking me. I want you to fuck me. So bad. So hard.”
He growled, and his whole arm was moving now with delicious roughness. I spread my legs and arched, giving him as much access as my pants would allow. His thumb massaged. I was right on the edge, just…about…
“Well, my goodness, what is this?” a voice said.
Nyfain’s animal surged aggressively, the feeling like a string yanking on my middle. Fire soaked my already heated body as my animal tried to push up as well. I forced her down lest she get me into trouble, and Nyfain ripped his hand from my pants. He yanked me away from the tree and crushed me to his side possessively.
I let out an anguished cry, and I was not acting.
11
“Tsk, tsk, Nyfain,” cooed the demon, the same guy that we’d seen at the bottom of the stairs. He had followed us out. “When you need to restrain your love interests, it means they aren’t having a very good time. Or maybe you think you can sex your way into her good graces? That is very demonic of you.”
Once again, I bit back a snarky response. But honestly, did he really think the sounds coming out of me as I barreled toward orgasm suggested I wasn’t having a good time? Did he never get women off?
Instead, I clutched Nyfain like the damsel I was trying to be, attempting an expression of uncertainty and fear. I probably looked like I’d smelled something sour. And with the stench of this demon hanging around, it wasn’t far off.
“What do you want?” Nyfain asked.
“Oh, nothing,” the demon replied with a grin. “I was just coming out to see if your lady wanted to sample another flavor. Like me, for instance. I can show her a good time without any need for restraints.”
Nyfain’s body tensed, and his fingers pressed into my flesh aggressively. He turned and yanked my pants up before fastening them gently and ensuring my shirt covered my exposed breast. His gaze roamed my face for a moment, and he smoothed my hair away from my cheek before wrapping his arm around my body.
“She touches no one but me,” he snarled, directing me from around the tree and starting toward the castle.
“For now,” the demon said silkily.
With my binding still askew and my swollen pussy throbbing from his deliciously rough treatment, I was staggering and walking askew. My core pounded, built up to impossible heights and then left wanting. I licked my tingling lips, remembering his kiss. Spank the goddess, he was a good time when he got going.
“What am I doing with you?” he growled softly—to himself, it sounded like—going to the back entrance where the couple was still pressed against the glass.
“Playing a dangerous game with my life, it seems like,” I retorted, my current situation making me a little saltier than usual.
He slammed the door forward. The couple flew into a heap of limbs on the floor. The man’s eyes were hooded and on fire, and the woman’s were soaked with arousal. Another flood of desire poured into me, sending my brain back to moments ago, when I’d been trapped against that tree with those tricky fingers deep in my pussy.
Goddess give me strength, I wanted more. Lots more. My body was not on the same page as my brain. Logic was completely absent where Nyfain was concerned. I needed to go sleep it off, preferably after a good self-love session.
Couples littered the hallway and my gaze skittered between them. A man with his face between a woman’s thighs. Two women writhing together in a corner. Another woman in the middle of five men, using every hole the goddess had given her and two hands to make up the difference. She was clearly excellent at multitasking dongs. Three men on the bench, one guy bent over sucking while a third took him from behind.
“Holy shit,” I groaned, staggering into Nyfain.
He glanced down at me, looked around, and then swept me up into his arms. He’d apparently been ignoring all of this. All the sex around us hadn’t made him flinch. I couldn’t even fathom that, because suddenly I was a wanton mess. Again.
“Let’s go finish what we started,” I purred, tracing my tongue along the shell of his ear.
“You’ll hate yourself for it in the morning.”
“Probably.” I ran my lips down his neck, delighting in his deliciously balmy smell, in the heat of his skin and the feeling of his strength wrapped around me. “I’ve hated myself for less.”
“I doubt that is true. We aren’t attracted to each other, princess. It’s our animals. We need to heed logic where they will not.”
“Are you sure? I didn’t feel your animal until the demon showed up.” I skimmed my lips against his jaw and lightly kissed the corner of his mouth.
He flinched away before hoisting me up and throwing me over his shoulder. “I always stay connected with my animal. I have to, or I might lose him. His desperation to hump you seeps through. Don’t let it go to your head.”
His words sounded hollow, as though he were willing himself to believe them.
He put me down roughly in front of the tower door and fit the key into the lock. The demon from earlier had been removed. I wondered if that was why the other demons had decided to go looking for us.
“I won’t always act like the damsel, you know,” I said defiantly, shoving away the residual desire.
“Good. It’s beneath you. But it’s important right now. It will stall the inevitable.”
“What’s the inevitable?”
“The demon king coming and the enemy closing in. You will need your grit by the end.”
Shivers arrested me. I breathed through the sudden uncertainty clutching at my chest.
“I need to learn to hand fight better,” I said. “I’m great with a dagger, and despite what the men will tell you, I’m the best hunter in my village. I’m good with a bow and a spear. I’m not so good with my fists, though. Also, I could use more strength.”
“You were just fine with that knife when you stabbed me.”
“That was my animal, I think. I don’t really remember doing it.”
“You have plenty of strength. You could use more conditioning with your animal.” He turned the key.
“And if you are going to lock me in this cursed tower every night, I need access to the library.”
He pushed the door open and shoved me inside.
“And if you don’t stop manhandling me,” I said as I stood in the room, “you’re going to be sorry.”
A grin pulled at his lips. “Is that a challenge, princess?”
His rough voice and the excitement I could see glittering in his eyes fired me up in ways I couldn’t really explain. Fear and arousal created a heady mix.
I didn’t have a reply, so I turned my back to him, waiting for him to leave.
“Strip out of your shirt, and I’ll help you out of your binding. Your lady’s maid will be…busy at present.”
I groaned in annoyance and pulled off my shirt. My face heated, and I made sure to stay still so he wouldn’t see the evidence of my embarrassment, my vulnerability. His presence moved up behind me, and a soft tug pulled at my middle as his heated breath washed over my exposed flesh.
“You didn’t get to come earlier,” he rumbled, his fingertips tracing lightly over my shoulders.
“Just another one of your torture devices, I assume.”
His touch traced down to the clasps of my binding. It tightened and then opened, falling down my chest. The breast that had still been tied up bounced down with the other. He didn’t move away. The electricity between us flowed over my skin.
I closed my eyes and felt his hands touch down on my shoulders again, kneading softly.
