Total pages in book: 119
Estimated words: 116396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 582(@200wpm)___ 466(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Bastian didn’t flinch.
“I’ve defended this Kingdom as much as Ivory has. Just because she rolled in here with a couple of dragons doesn’t mean I haven’t killed hundreds of Necrosis with weapons made by my bare hands.” I grabbed another glass and filled it.
Bastian stayed quiet.
I took a drink and stared at him over my glass, seeing the patience in his eyes. When the glass was empty, I returned it to the counter. There were no tears in my dry eyes, but there were cracks in my broken heart. “Whatever… Fuck her.”
“As difficult as this is, you mustn’t take it personally. You were born out of trauma, and every time she looks at you, she must relive that trauma. She could have aborted you but she didn’t, and you should be grateful that she gave you the chance to live.”
I lowered the glass and stared at him incredulously. “You’re really going to say that to me?”
He held his silence for a while. “You don’t strike me as the kind of woman that wants to be told only what she wants to hear. And I’m not the kind of man that doesn’t mean what he says. I hate seeing your pain. I hate seeing you abandoned. But if my sister bore Haldir’s child from rape…it would be hard for me to love them unconditionally. And I know she would struggle as well.”
I took another drink and felt the burn all the way down.
“If she can let Ivory into her heart, perhaps she can let you in as well.”
“That’s never happened before. I doubt it’ll ever happen.”
“But she has embraced the daughter of her rapist. People change, Elora.”
Not Queen Rolfe. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” I set the glass on the counter.
“I’ll leave for Necrosis at first light—”
I waved off his words. “I don’t want to talk about that either.”
“Alright.” His hand rested on top of his glass on the counter. “Do you want me to leave?”
I gave him a stony look, like that was the very last thing I wanted.
His eyes shifted back and forth as he stared me down. His head tilted slightly, his eyes glancing to the lips that yearned for his kiss. The pause lasted only a few seconds. After that, he stepped closer to me, his hand sliding into my hair, his lips catching mine in a soft embrace.
The second I had his kiss, a soft bubble formed around us, blocking out the bullshit that existed outside the house. I wasn’t despised by my mother. HeartHolme wasn’t vulnerable to Necrosis. Ian wasn’t pissed off at me.
My arm hooked around his neck, and I rose on my tiptoes so our mouths could move together in fluid motion. It was one of those slow and passionate kisses, where the heat rose slowly from a couple small flames to a full inferno. My other hand cupped his face, slid into his short strands of hair, felt their softness as I kissed him like my favorite lover.
His thick arm encircled the small of my back, and he tugged me against his chest before his fingers spread out across my ass. He squeezed one of my cheeks with a man’s grip, just the way I liked to be touched. I wanted to be gripped and tugged, not handled with the fragility of thin glass.
He backed me up into the counter, his big dick pressing against my lower stomach. His hand fisted my hair, and he tugged it back so my neck would be open to him. His hungry lips kissed me, his tongue tasted me, his teeth even gave me a playful bite.
My eyes closed as I felt him kiss me everywhere, tug down the front of my shirt so he could kiss my collarbone, the base of my throat, my jawline.
I got his trousers loose, and then I yanked his shirt over his head.
He broke away to let the clothes leave his body, and that was when I took him in.
His eyes had darkened with hunger, and the black splotches sprinkled his large shoulders and thick arms. The marks were on his chest and stomach. Like ash had fallen from the sky and stained his skin, he was marked by soot.
In a very sick way, I liked it.
I liked that he was dangerous.
I liked that the only reason I lived was because he allowed it.
He pulled my shirt over my head and removed my chemise before his lips devoured my tits. His hands were on me again, squeezing me tightly as his tongue delved into the valley between my breasts.
He didn’t pause to restrain himself like last time. He powered through, letting his skin darken more and more as the urge to feed deepened in his veins. I never once thought I was in danger. I fell into the moment, my only discomfort the wetness in my panties.