Her throat worked on a swallow as she nodded.
Holding her stare, I knew we should talk about this. Fuck, there wasa lotwe should be talking about. And I was sure Kieran would have some shit to say. But right now, I needed to prove to her that I spoke the truth. That learning about Sotoria hadn’t changed a damn thing.
I let go of her chin without breaking eye contact and leaned back. “Come here.”
It took a moment for her dazed look to fade. When she didn’t move, I repeated my command. “Come here, Poppy.”
Her eyebrow rose, and the gleam in her eyes shifted. Hardened. The essence inside me hummed as the Poppy she’d grown into resurfaced, replacing the uncertain girl from seconds earlier. The air between us thickened. I found myself anticipating whether she would continue to resist or give in. Either would delight me.
The water stirred as she leaned back, dipping to briefly reveal two hardened nipples. “Why?”
Her refusal caused my blood to thicken and the eather to hum. The need to…dominate was sharp, pounding through me so intensely that it quickened my breath. That urge wasn’t entirely unfamiliar. All Elementals craved control, but this was different. Animalistic. Primal. “Because.”
The flush spread down her throat. “And?”
I could feel the energy in her blood stirring, dancing across my flesh, echoing in my blood like a second pulse. “Poppy.”
She didn’t look away. Not for a second. Her chin jutted up, and fuck, her stubbornness made me so hard it was nearly painful. “Casteel.”
“You do not want me to ask you,” I said, my voice dropping, “a third time.”
I could see the shiver that swept through her as her chest rose with a shallow inhale. The flecks in her eyes began to churn, and her thick lashes lowered halfway. The next breath I took was full of the sweetness of her rising arousal, and I knew I had her.
She pushed away from the side of the tub, still fucking holding my stare, and I didn’t think anything could be more arousing than her defiance. But her submission nearly unmanned me. Under the water, her knees brushed my feet.
I bent forward and wrapped my fingers around her chin again. This time, I felt her shiver and heard her breath catch as I brought my mouth close to hers. “Good girl.”
Poppy stiffened at the exact moment her scent increased.
“You hate that.” I laughed as I slipped my other hand under the water to clasp her hip.
“What gave it away?” she demanded as I slid my fingers over her thigh.
“Because,” I said, my lips brushing hers as I sank my hand between her trembling thighs. “It also makes you…” I plunged my finger into her, jaw clenching when her back arched. A tremor ran through her, her lips pressing together. I thrust my finger in deeper. “Wet.”
She had nothing to say to that.
Grinning, I slipped my finger from her tight heat. Letting go of her chin, I gripped her hips and lifted her onto her feet. Her startled gasp got lost in the throbbing in my veins as my gaze tracked the beads of water sluicing down her skin, over her puckered nipples, and along the curve of her stomach to the wispy hair between her thighs that was now right in front of my face. I pulled her between my thighs and slid my hand down to lift her leg until her foot rested on the ledge beside me. It bared her to my eyes. Fuck. Her pussy wasn’t pretty; it was perfect. And it wasmine. I barely felt her hands land on my shoulders as I put my face right where I wanted to be, breathing in her scent until my chest vibrated with a growl.
“Cas,” she gasped, starting to pull back.
The snarl that came from me made the growl seconds ago sound like something a small creature would make. Poppy stilled, either hearing or sensing the warning. At that moment, I didn’t give a fuck which one. All that mattered was the decadent, wet flesh a breath away from my tongue.
“Cas,” she repeated in a whisper.
I closed my mouth over her clit.
Poppy’s entire body jerked, and I somehow had the presence of mind to wrap my arm around her waist to keep her steady.
“Gods,” she cried out, her knees buckling as I sucked on that bundle of nerves.
I held her up as I tilted my head, running my tongue over her lower lips and then inside her. There was no slow seduction, no teasing licks. I fucked her with my tongue as her nails scored the flesh of my shoulders. I didn’t let up until she spasmed around my tongue, and I felt drunk on her release. Until I was mindless with the need to be deep inside her.
Rising, I hooked her leg around my waist and lifted her. “Honeydew,” I murmured, my lips brushing hers before my mouth descended as I turned us. She moaned into the kiss that tasted of her, pressing her chest to mine. Water rolled against the sides of the tub and over the ledge as I lowered us, drawing her down on my cock until I was buried deep inside her.
“Fuck,” I rasped, every nerve ending stretched.
Poppy shook and dropped her forehead to mine, her body trembling. “We’re getting water everywhere.”
