Page 50 of Off with Her Head
Surprise and delight flash across her features, quickly replaced by desire as I begin my own exploration of her body. I follow the path she established, trailing kisses down her throat, across her collarbone, to the swell of her breasts. They're smallerthan mine but exquisitely sensitive, as evidenced by the way she whimpers when I take a nipple between my lips.
"Scarlett," she sighs, her hand coming to rest at the back of my neck, neither pushing nor pulling—simply connecting.
I lavish attention on her breasts until she's squirming beneath me, soft sounds of pleasure escaping her usually composed demeanor. The power of reducing the formidable Queen of Darkmore to such a state is intoxicating, spurring me to continue my downward journey.
I press open-mouthed kisses across the plane of her stomach, feeling muscles flex beneath my lips. Her scent grows stronger as I move lower—a heady mixture that makes my mouth water in anticipation. I glance up, seeking permission just as she had.
"Please," she whispers, echoing my earlier plea, her fingers threading through my hair.
I settle between her thighs, taking a moment to simply look at her—glistening and swollen with desire, so openly vulnerable in a way I suspect few have ever seen. The trust implicit in this moment strikes me deeply, filling my chest.
The first broad stroke of my tongue draws a sharp gasp from her, hips rising to meet me. I grip her thighs, holding her steady as I feast, drawing out those precious moans from deep in her throat.
I'm less practiced than the confidence she presents, but what I lack in experience I make up for in enthusiasm and attentiveness. I canfeelwhich touches bring the most pleasure, adjusting my approach accordingly until I find a rhythm that has her hands fisting my hair.
When I carefully press a finger inside her, I'm rewarded with perhaps the most beautiful sound I've ever heard—my name on her lips, half-gasped and reverent. I add a second finger, pumping slowly at first, and then I increase speed to be in tandem with each breath she takes. Faster and faster untilthere’s a string of words in the ancient language of Darkmore spilling from her lips. The foreign syllables sound like music, like magic itself—perhaps they are, as tiny sparks of power dance across her skin, blue and purple light that crackles harmlessly against my skin.
"More," she demands, her voice hoarse with need. "Scarlett, please..."
I redouble my efforts, tongue moving in time with my fingers, driving her higher. Her thighs begin to tremble against my shoulders, her breathing growing erratic. I’m quickly approaching the edge, tension building to a breaking point, and I know she’s feeling it too.
She comes with a cry that might have shattered glass in the old castle, magic pulsing visibly beneath her skin as pleasure overwhelms her. I stay with her through it, easing only when her body goes limp, her hand gently tugging me upward.
I move to lie beside her, both of us breathless and glowing. She turns to face me, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear with uncharacteristic tenderness.
"That was..." she begins, seemingly at a loss for words.
"Magical?" I suggest with a grin, referencing the sparks her release produced.
She laughs, the sound light and free. "Quite literally." Her expression softens as she traces my features with gentle fingertips. "Though I suspect that has more to do with you than with any magic I possess."
I catch her hand, pressing a kiss to her palm. "I think perhaps it's the combination. You and me—better together than apart."
"Hmm," she hums, drawing me closer until our limbs tangle comfortably.
We lie together in comfortable silence for several moments, her fingers tracing idle patterns across my back.
I lean forward to capture her lips once more. The kiss is gentle this time, unhurried, as if we have all the time in the world—and perhaps we do. When I pull back, I rest my forehead against hers.
"This is the beginning," I tell her softly. "Of us, of a new era for our kingdoms."
"The beginning," she repeats, as if testing the words. Her arms tighten around me. "I like that."
"Though if this is merely the beginning," I add, my hand sliding suggestively down her side to rest on her hip, "I'm very eager to discover what comes next."
Her laugh vibrates against my lips as she rolls us over, pinning me beneath her once more. "As am I, my Queen. As am I."
As night falls over the united kingdoms, the castle seems to settle around us, adapting to its new reality just as we adapt to ours. Tomorrow will bring new challenges—Ironwood, the corrupted pool, the rebuilding of both our lands. But tonight belongs to us alone—Scarlett and Ravenna.
The balance we sought for our kingdoms, we found first in ourselves.
And as Ravenna's lips find mine once more, I know with absolute certainty that whatever trials await us, we will face them as we are now—together, stronger than either of us could ever be alone.
Chapter
Eighteen
RAVENNA
