“I . . . I am sorry, Zirah,” he starts, his voice barely above a whisper. “For everything that happened. I would take it back if I could,” he tells me as he gets to his feet.
The sincerity in his voice stirs something within me. I look at him, this man—this king—who is so complex, so filled with contradictions. Yet I feel a strange pull toward him, a desire to understand him, to see through his hard exterior and into the depths of his soul. As I watch him retreat, I wonder if that’s possible or if I’m just deluding myself.
“I’ll let you shower,” he murmurs, avoiding my gaze and opening the shower screen. “Or you can join me. You’re already in here,” I add with a shrug, glancing back at him.
Zeke freezes at my words, his eyebrow lifting in surprise. “I can stay?” he asks, sounding slightly taken aback.
I nod, turning to face the wall, waiting to see what he will do. After a few seconds, the shower door closes, and I turn back to see Zeke pulling off his wet shirt. My breath hitches as I see his chiseled torso, his muscles rippling with each movement.
Our gazes lock, and the air between us crackles with an unspoken desire. I reach out, my hand skimming over his chest. Zeke inhales sharply, his muscles tensing under my touch. My fingers trail lower over his abs, stopping at the waistband of his pants. The intensity of his gaze, the silent desire in his eyes, sends my heart racing.
“Zirah, don’t tease me,” he growls, his voice thick with barely restrained hunger.
“Who said I am teasing?” I challenge, tilting my head to meet his gaze. There’s an intensity in his eyes, a primal hunger that both scares and thrills me.
“I just told you I struggle most with control around you, and you want to test that?” he rasps, his grip on my waist tightening.
“You can’t break me, Zeke,” I say, my voice soft but firm. “You said it yourself. I’ve become your vice because you cannot have me. So why not get me out of your system?” His eyes widen, slightly taken aback by my suggestion. He’s silent for a moment, studying me intently. “After all, I am made for you,” I tell him, and his eyes flicker dangerously.
Without warning, he crushes his lips against mine, pulling me against him with an intensity that steals my breath. Our bodies collide, heat against heat. The thin barrier of his pants is barely enough to contain the electric charge between us. His hands grip my thighs, and he hoists me up, my legs wrapping instinctively around his waist. Zeke steps forward until I’m pressed against the cool tiles of the shower wall.
His lips are rough, demanding, and there’s an urgency to his touch that leaves me breathless. His hand explores my body, tracing my curves and igniting a fire under my skin wherever he touches.
Chapter Thirty
One hand cups my breast, his thumb rubbing across my nipple, while the other slips into my hair, his fingers curling around the wet strands. He tugs slightly, angling my head to deepen the kiss, his tongue exploring the depths of my mouth with enthusiasm that makes my heart race.
I can feel him, hard and insistent, against my thigh, the heat of him searing through me. His hand ventures lower, skimming over my pussy, and I gasp against his mouth. “Zeke,” I manage to whisper, my fingers clutching the broad expanse of his shoulders as my body comes alive with desire.
“I did warn you, Zirah,” he murmurs against my lips, his voice a husky whisper as he moves slightly, lifting me higher and shoving a finger inside, making me gasp at the sudden rough intrusion. His mouth finds my breast, his lips latching onto my nipple. I grip his hair, tugging his head back. His canines protrude, his face slightly twisted as he fights his more primal urges. “Don’t you dare shift,” I tell him. “I’m not into bestiality.”
“You’re tempting the beast in me, Zirah,” he purrs, nipping at my jaw. He runs his canines down the column of my neck, his teeth pricking the skin over Lyon’s mark.
“You’re playing with fire,” Zeke whispers as he pulls his finger out, adding another. Fire does not scare me when I know I will enjoy the burn.
As his fingers move inside me, I can feel Zeke teetering on the edge of control as I slip lower down the tiles. His breath comes faster now as he slides a third finger in to stretch out my walls and explore deeper. He cups my pussy with one hand as his fingers move expertly inside me, sending pulses of pleasure through my body that make every muscle clench around him until I’m panting and desperate for release.
My hand slips between us, and I undo the button on his pants, the weight from the water forces them down his thighs, and my fingertips graze his hardened cock. I spread my legs wider, crossing my feet behind his lower back, allowing him better access.
His fingers move inside me, probing deep. His movements become even more urgent as he teases sensitive places I never knew could be so aroused. The sensations pull a moan from within me, and Zeke growls, shoving me harder into the tiled wall before devouring my mouth again. Waves of pleasure surge through every nerve in my body, intensifying when he suddenly pulls his fingers out.
“We can’t do this here. I may hurt you or lose control and drop you,” he mumbles against my lips. I nod, leaning over to twist the taps off. I have barely turned them off before he’s trudging back to the room with me in his arms.
His entire body ripples, and his aura explodes out of him like a raging inferno. Zeke is barely keeping himself from shifting. Bringing someone like this immovable mountain to the brink of his control makes me feel powerful.
My back hits the mattress, and not gently, as his weight crashes down on me. I barely have time to suck in a breath before he rams inside me. Zeke groans, the sound guttural as his teeth sink into my collarbone. I barely bite back a scream at the pain, knowing it’s not his fault. He did warn me, yet the pain is forgotten when he pulls out and slams back into me. Each thrust becomes harder, faster, walking the fine line between pain and bliss.
Dark pleasure floods my senses as I press into him, grinding my hips against his, matching his rhythm. He is no longer in control as he slams back and forth like a man possessed. He runs his hands over my body, tracing every line as if trying to memorize it by touch. My nails sink into his back, anchoring myself in this moment, pushing away any sense of reality and surrendering to hell and heavenly euphoria.
The heat of the moment ignites an inferno inside me as my body trembles around him. My muscles tighten, and Zeke growls as if sensing my oncoming orgasm. He presses down harder as wave after wave surges through me.
My cries echo off the walls of his bedroom. I feel like I’m soaring among the stars before crashing back to earth with him still inside me. My thighs quake as tiny shocks send vibrations throughout every limb of my body, catapulting wave after wave of pleasure over me until I am too lost for words or coherent thoughts.
Zeke brings his mouth to mine again and claims it with hard, wet kisses that shatter what is left of whatever control we had before sinking deeper inside, releasing himself within the depths of my burning core.
We’re panting from exhaustion, yet neither of us is willing to admit defeat just yet, as Zeke gently kisses my neck before recapturing my lips. His canines scrape against my lips, and the coppery taste of blood teases my taste buds. I groan when he pulls out of me, my body feeling boneless. His lips tease and caress my skin as he moves lower, his stubble grazing my ribs, making me shiver. I grip his hair, tugging his head back to see pitch-black eyes peering back at me.
His breathing is harsh as his claws slip out, piercing the bed near my hips. Looking lower, I see his cock is once again rock-hard and standing at attention. I groan, staring up at the canopy above the bed. “Glutton,” I huff.
