Page 79 of Empire of Flame and Thorns

My forearms meet the smooth floorboards as Draven pins my hands to the ground above my head. I yank and struggle, but I’m thoroughly trapped underneath him now.

Grinding my teeth, I glare up at him.

Amusement dances in his eyes as he leans down over me until his face is right above mine. “Did you really think that would work?”

“It might have,” I growl while yanking at his grip.

He nonchalantly flexes his fingers around my wrists in response. A casual reminder that he doesn’t even need to use his full strength to keep me pinned.

I wiggle furiously underneath him.

And because of the way he’s leaning forward over me now, the move makes me grind myself against him.

A jolt shoots through me.

Since I’m still only wearing that short and thin nightgown, I can feel every ridge of his body as if I were naked. Lightning flickers through my veins as my pussy rubs against the harsh material of his armor. And the hard bulge between his legs.

My mind goes blank for a second as I try to remember if there is some kind of special protection on his armor in that spot. Some kind of material that is extra hard. I can’t remember.

But it doesn’t matter anyway. All that matters is getting out from underneath him.

Yanking against his grip, I squirm furiously again.

He draws in a sharp breath. Tightening his grip on my wrists, he levels a commanding stare on me. “You really need to stop moving.”

“You really need to get off me,” I retort while continuing to struggle.

His eyes shutter as my hips grind against his again.

The sight of it stuns me so much that I stop moving for a second. My mind spins. Apparently, I’m not the only one affected by this.

With my stunned eyes locked on his, I deliberately roll my hips against him once more. Emotions flash across his face, and his wings flare.

They spread out above me like a black ceiling, cutting us off from the rest of the world. I stare, completely transfixed at them. They’re imposing and beautiful and lethal all at the same time. My gaze shifts to his face, which is so close to mine that I can feel his every breath against my lips. Heat pools inside me and my pulse thrums.

I squirm again, deliberately grinding my pussy against him once more.

A violent ripple courses through his body.

“Fuck,” he presses out, his voice coming out strained and hoarse. “That’s it, I’m getting the handcuffs.”

My heart jerks. Because for a second there, as he holds my gaze with those intense eyes of his, I don’t know if he meant that as a threat or an offer.

But then he abruptly releases my wrists and climbs to his feet. I blink, trying to clear my head, while he strides across the room and towards his desk. Sitting up, I watch him pull a pair of handcuffs from one of the pouches on his belt.

Metal clanks as he straightens the short chain between the manacles and then bends down. I scramble to my feet right as he snaps one side of the handcuffs shut around the leg of his desk. Based on the color, the shackles look to be made of steel rather than iron. But I still don’t want them anywhere near me.

Draven straightens from the desk and turns to face me again. No traces of flustered pleasure remain on his features. Only ruthless authority.

“Since I apparently can’t trust you anywhere near my bed, I’m locking you to the desk instead,” he declares.

A pulse of embarrassment shoots through me when I think that he means that he can’t trust me near his bed because of what just happened on the floor. Because I rolled my hips against him like a horny teenager. But then I realize that he probably means because I tried to steal his bracers last night while he slept. The embarrassed heat in my cheeks fades a little but doubt still crawls into my chest. Did I imagine those hints of pleasure on his face? Maybe I misinterpreted the signs. Maybe he felt nothing after all.

With that expression of cold command still on his face, he raises the hand that isn’t currently holding the manacles, and twitches two fingers at me in a clear order to approach.

I take a step back instead.

He narrows his eyes at me. “Do not make me come over there and get you.”

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