I ground against his erection, wishing there were no barriers between us, but I was too impatient. Pleasure coiled tightly inside me. I stopped swallowing, and my movements became almost frantic. The tension building between my thighsratcheted up to a level that was almost painful. The friction wasn’t enough.
“I’ve got you,” he said, gripping my hip, but he made no move to remove the clothing between us.
I let go of his arm and reached down.
His fingers quickly wrapped around my wrist to stop me. “No.”
A whimper of frustration escaped.
“I want nothing more than to be inside you, to feel your heat when you come.” He pulled my hand as I groaned. “But that’s not going to happen right now,” he said, his voice thin and pained. “We don’t need to do that right now.”
ButIneeded that right now.
Ineeded.
“Trust me,” he bit out as he shifted, dragging me down just enough for his hard ridge to press firmly against that sensitive nub of nerves. “Take what you need.”
I cried out against his throat as a wave of shivery pleasure erupted from deep within me.
“There you go.” His hand tightened, digging into the gown, into my flesh, urging me to take what I wanted.
And I did.
He trembled as I moved against him, his cock hitting that spot with each roll of my hips. He was breathing heavily, his entire body tense and hard against mine as a quaking inferno built within me, ready to burst. And when it did, the release was intense and overwhelming, crashing over me in pounding waves of ecstasy as I took what I needed. And kept taking.
I knew he would give me everything until his body grew limp—until there was no seed or blood left in him to give. And I would take it all. Pleasure spun itself up once more.
“Poppy,” he rasped.
That name.
Poppy.
Penellaphe.
That…was me. And his name…I knew it, didn’t I? They meant something together. They meant…
No.
My brows furrowed as I slowed against him. Yes. I was Poppy. Penellaphe. Queen. The fog in my mind started to dissipate, allowing bits of coherent thought to surface.
My body locked. I didn’t want to take it all because I…I loved him.
I lovedCasteel.
All at once and without warning, I remembered myself.
I jerked back so fast I fell onto my rear. He moved to snag me around the waist. Pressure swelled in my head as I panted for breath. I looked at him, unable to ignore the thick ridge of his arousal straining against his breeches. I forced my gaze upward as I hung half-suspended over the edge of the bed. The skin of his throat was bruised around two puncture wounds that still seeped blood.
My gaze crawled over his features, noting the sharper angles of his cheeks and the tension gathered at his mouth. Shame and still-lingering lust scalded my skin as my gaze fixed on the wound I’d created.
“You haven’t taken nearly enough,” Casteel said, pulling me back against his chest. His hand went to my cheek, and then he was guiding me toward his throat once more. “You need to feed.”
I wanted to tell him that I remembered him. That I rememberedus, but all I could force out was, “Cas.”
He froze for a heartbeat and then leaned back. His chest rose sharply, and his eyes widened, his voice coming out as a hoarse whisper when he said, “Poppy.”
My lips parted, and a cold chill slithered through me as the pain ramped up in my head. I wanted to tell him there wassomething wrong with me, but the coldness invading me was spreading. The crimson haze returned, clouding my thoughts and edging out reason.
