He caught my earlobe between his teeth and nipped. A shaky moan escaped me, and I tensed from the sting of his bite. I melted against him as he swirled his tongue to ease the pain.
“I want to mark you,” he murmured, his voice huskier and deeper. “I want to leave my mark on you so fucking bad that I can’t think straight. It almost happened the other night when I lost control and bit your shoulder. Do you realize how torturous it’s been for me to see you without my mark?”
I shook my head.
“Of course you don’t. You’re the only woman I’ve ever wanted to be mine. And you’ll always be the only one. Do you understand? Do you realize what it means to have a demon like myself love you so much that I want to leave behind a mark showing the world that you’re mine?”
“No,” I whispered. I sucked in a sharp breath when he slipped his hand into my shorts to cup my pussy again. At first, I thought it was him being a tease, but as I tried to think past the fog of my lust, I realized he was being territorial and showing that he owned me. “Dimitri, please.”
“You want me to mark you? To make you mine?” he said, his lips right at my ear.
I couldn’t think straight and realized that I was eagerly nodding.
He kissed my neck and smiled. “I won’t until you confess that you love me.”
The words were right there on my tongue, but I couldn’t force them out. Something stopped me, and it drove me mad with wanting to tell this man that I loved him so much. I wanted to tell him I couldn’t stand a second apart from him and didn’t understand why.
“Hmm.” He pulled his hands away from me as he stepped back. I wanted to scream at the loss but ended up whimpering. “That’s too bad.”
I turned to face him and noticed he had a blank look, no longer smiling. My legs wobbled, and my desire for him still blazed through my veins. I wanted him to bend me over and fuck me. I wanted his mark on me. But I couldn’t force the words out.
Maybe it was because I was scared. Once I told this man I loved him, so that meant he had my devotion and there would never be anyone else. What would happen if he decided he didn’t want me anymore? He’d toss me aside, and I’d be in pieces, still deeply in love with him and unable to recover from the loss.
Dimitri stepped back, watching me struggle to say the words. Seconds passed before he turned his attention to the bottom of the Christmas tree. He picked up a gift in the same wrapping paper I used for his gifts and held it out for me.
I bunched my eyebrows together. “That one is for you.”
A smirk graced his face, and I swore I heard angels singing. “One thing about me is that I like to be sneaky. I wrapped your presents to look like mine. I assure you, this one is yours.”
The same surge of intense emotions filled me. I was so grateful that he’d gotten me a present. But two? I was astounded and so happy about it. “Thank you,” I whispered, my voice thick with emotion.
When I opened the present, my breath left my lungs in awhooshI was sure the entire city had heard.
“Dimitri,” I breathed as I unfolded the cream silk dress. The backless halter-style top would dip between my breasts, and the M slit running through the length would show off my thighs. This dress wasn’t meant for measly mortals like me. It was made for a goddess.
“Do you like it?”
I looked at him with parted lips, then smiled until my cheeks hurt. “I love it.”
He leaned forward, and pieces of his long hair fell past his shoulder as he closed the space between us until his lips brushed mine in a sweet kiss. “I intend for you to wear that at the Christmas party.”
My eyes widened. “I don’t know about that.”
Dimitri caught my chin between two fingers and held me still as he leaned past me, his lips to my ear. “I want you dressed in nothingbutthat. I ache for everyone to see what they can’t have. I want them to know that you’ll be coming home with me and will wear that dress while you’re on your knees sucking my cock.”
My heart beat quicker, and I couldn’t hear him past the blood roaring in my ears. “Dimitri,” I rasped and curled my fingers into the silky dress.
I felt him smile against my ear before he pulled away and smoothed his features into a stony look. Even though his face was set into his classic scowl, his eyes were full of fire, blazing in the honey-colored depths that showed what he truly felt. “Is my charm working on you, sunshine?”
I couldn’t stop the snort-laugh that escaped me. He wasn’t trying to be funny, but I was the worst when it came to reacting inappropriately to things. Dimitri didn’t seem upset about that. When I looked into his eyes, I saw the flicker of amusement in them. I knew then and there that I was head over heels for this man.
The morning passed, and we went to Emma’s mother’s house in the afternoon to celebrate. It’d been too long since Emma last visited her mom after the hospital discharged her. They often talked over the phone, and I wondered when her mother would tell Emma she was dating her father again.
I sat on the couch, holding the warm cup of spiked apple cider I’d been sipping. Emma’s laughter from the kitchen brought a little smile to my face. I briefly scanned the living room and sipped my drink. A Christmas tree sat in one corner, decorated with blinking rainbow lights. I dropped my gaze to the floor, noting no presents beneath it. I turned my head toward the entryway that led to the kitchen, where Emma giggled.
I’d never had a family—not one which cared about me the way Emma’s family cared for her. My mother passed after she gave birth to me, so I had no interaction with her. My father had been slain by demon hunters.
A light touch on my cheek brought me out of my thoughts. I blinked and looked at Emma as she sat beside me on the couch. She gave me a sweet smile that had my chest tightening. It was the kind of smile that showed her soul; deep down, Emma was the kindest human on this planet, and anyone who hurt her would face my wrath.
