“You’re glowing, and the Light’s starting to hurt.”
I tried to contain it, but the Dark pushing inside me bellowed for more. To feel the pain I craved but could never understand. And I knew Lexa saw it.
I reached out a hand, unable to control my hunger. “Come with me.” The voice was not my own, yet it was. The pitch seethed with need, a Dark echo lined with Light.
“Arim?” Darius looked concerned, as did the rest of my nephews.
“Is it more demons?” Cadmus asked with Ellie tucked under his arm.
“I don’t think so,” Aerolus said, studying me. “But —”
The hunger hurt. I tried to content myself with the Light Tanselm provided, but I couldn’t ignore my craving for something more. My confusing ache grew clearer as my gaze met and snared Lexa’s. The need, the want.
It was all for her, for the tempting Dark Lord who teased with every breath she took. Her full lips parted, her round breasts rose and fell, and the sultry scent of desire clung to her, a scent I wanted to absorb into myself.
“Mine. Now.” I pulled her to me with bands of Light that threaded through her Darkness. She squirmed but froze when she felt my erection against her, and the contact of her slight frame against me made me want to howl with lust. If I didn’t find us some privacy, now, I feared I’d take her regardless of our audience.
“Not a demon, though rumor has it our uncle is a devil in the bedroom,” Marcus murmured in an amused voice.
Unable to wait a moment more, I teleported with Lexa into the one place I’d never shared with anyone. Deep within Morn Mountain, in one of the Darkest places in Tanselm, sat a world none of the others knew about, not even Ravyn. My sister had once taken me to a place in the shallower section of the mountain, to an area of healing baths and mineral deposits full of gems and stones that accentuated my magic.
But here, in this place, I had created a private domain where I could soothe those instances of savage Darkness that raged inside me. In a cavern I had fashioned to suit as a private retreat, I arrived with Lexa wrapped in my embrace.
The spacious area was lit by candlelight spelled to illuminate whenever I entered. A large bed stood in one corner of the comfortably temperate space. On another side lay a dining area, a place where I worked on my magic. And on another wall, an area to surround myself with Tanselm’s abundance that flourished in the Dark, vibrant flowers and bushes that had use only for the Dark side of my powerful presence.
It was the massive bed to which I headed, a hedonistic confection littered with silken pillows and a firm yet luxurious mattress — one I’d never shared with another. I appeared right next to it. Standing together with the woman I loved, I shook with the violent need to release inside her. I squeezed her tighter.
The things I fantasized about with this woman. My life, my love, my children…
It was the last thought that prompted me to temper my waxing aggression.
“Arim, I can barely breathe —”
I stole her protest with a kiss, greedily devouring her Darkness with carnality. I’d never desired so much. The power within me writhed and seethed, wanting all she had to give me. To my surprise, Lexa matched my energy, my lust. She nipped at my mouth and pulled at my clothing while rubbing up against me.
“Yes, yes. More,” I panted as I yanked her clothes from her body. Too far gone to concentrate on a spell, I simply ripped until nothing stood between us. “I need you so damn much.”
“Yes,” she whispered and sucked hard on my neck. I growled and pressed harder against her belly, my cock sliding over her skin, gliding through the moisture seeping from my tip.
Dark’s Mother, but I was so close to coming.
“Do it now,” she urged and lay back on the bed, her eyes glittering like diamonds.
I wanted to but couldn’t, not like this.
Chapter 38
Arim
It was more than the physical, though I couldn’t identify what exactly I wanted. Giving myself over to instinct, I flipped Lexa onto her belly and nudged her thighs wide. Like a plaything for my own enjoyment. Mine.
The thought made me even harder, and I couldn’t help myself as I kneeled between her thighs.
Her scent was so sweet, her ass so firm and pale.
“Arim?”
“Stay down,” I commanded, my voice gruff and filled with power.
