Page 52 of Her Nightshade

His lips curved into a mischievous grin against my skin, his eyebrows raising in playful defiance. “Just stop me if it’s too much.”

In one swift motion, Charlie grabbed my hips and pulled me towards him as he knelt on the bed. The sight of his tattooed, muscular arms flexing as he positioned my body made my heart race. I couldn’t tear my gaze away as he took his hard cock in his hand, stroking it slowly.

“I’m going to pull out my knife again, Ana. Don’t be afraid.”

The darkness in his eyes and the low, gravelly tone of his voice sent a spark of fear through me. But I realized that I craved it. I wanted it all, everything he had to give, because it was fromhim.

He slid off the bed, retrieving his pocket knife and retracting the blade with ease. My heart furiously pounded as I watched him, the mix of thrill and fear blurring together.

He gripped my thighs, spreading me open as he slid down to bury his face between them. His tongue flicked over my clit, his movements overwhelming my already sensitive nerves. Two fingers slipped inside me while his hand with the blade rested firmly on my thigh. Just as my orgasm built to a breaking point, I felt the blade press into my skin. The sharp sting made me wince, but the pain bled into pleasure and I moaned his name loudly.

Charlie’s tongue didn’t falter. Even as the warm trickle of blood slipped down my thigh, he kept working me unrelentingly. I looked down to see his hand slick with my blood, gripping the blade as another orgasm shattered through me. My fingers tangled in his hair, pulling him closer as I rode the waves of pleasure, my body trembling with the aftershocks.

When he finally lifted his mouth from me, he proudly grinned. Without a word, he dragged the blade across my thigh again, this time deeper. I screamed, my cry a mix of pain andecstasy as I stared down at him. His grin deepened and he smeared the blood with his hand, painting a streak over his chest above his heart.

“I have so many dark thoughts,mi diosa,” he murmured, his voice soft and pained. “But I’m not afraid of them with you. You let me be myself. You love me, flaws and all. Maybe even because of them.” His hand returned to my thigh, squeezing firmly, sending another jolt through me.

I couldn’t explain why the sight of him marked with my blood sent a terrifying, dark desire within me.

“Yes, baby. I love you,” I whispered, leaning up on my elbows. “All of you.”

He leaned down, his fingers pressing hard against my thigh as the blood trickled down. “I want to take you in ways no one else ever has,” he said, brushing his lips over mine, his cock teasing at my entrance. “And I want you to take from me what no one else ever could.”

“Yes, Charlie,” I breathed, lifting my hips to meet him. “Take everything. Give me everything.”

He pushed into me slowly, his blood-slicked hand rising to his lips as he tasted it. Goosebumps flooded my skin, the thrill of his every move consuming me.

“Taste me,mi diosa,” he growled, lifting his body slightly. He brought the blade to the side of his forearm, slicing down in a clean line. Blood pooled and trickled as he pressed the wound to my lips. Without hesitation, I darted my tongue out, desperate to take him in.

“Fuck,” he groaned, his hips snapping forward, thrusting harder and faster as the metallic taste filled my mouth. “Ana, you’re so fucking beautiful,” he moaned into my neck, his tongue tracing my skin before his teeth grazed my shoulder. “I want to crawl inside you. I want to be a part of you.”

As his teeth sank into my shoulder, my orgasm tore through me and I cried out, my vision blurring with tears as pleasure overwhelmed me.

“Fuck!” Charlie’s pace quickened, his moans turning guttural as he pounded into me, his movements slowing only when he finally shuddered with release. His weight collapsed over me, his breath ragged and uneven.

The only sound in the room was our shaky breaths. As the pleasure faded, tears streamed down my cheeks as I grappled with so many overwhelming emotions. I loved him so deeply it scared me. His obsession, our shared obsession, burned too brightly, too dangerously. What lengths would he go to for me? What was he capable of? What wasIcapable of?

“Ana,” he whispered, lifting his head to meet my gaze.

I stared down at him, his lips still stained with my blood. “Charlie,” I said softly.

“Do you still love me?” he asked hesitantly, the vulnerability clear in his eyes.

I let the tears flow freely and nodded. “More than ever.”

22

Charlie

My desperation, my obsession with Ana seemed to grow stronger with each passing day.

I knew it was illogical to be jealous of everyone, ofanyone,who had her attention. But I couldn’t stop it. Miles, the new bodyguard, Sloane, Callan, even her fucking publicist calling her—it all drove me insane. This relentless need to consume her, to keep her entirely to myself, plagued my every thought.

Even when I was inside her, it wasn’t enough. Even when I tasted her blood and she tasted mine, it only dulled the edge momentarily. But the anxiety bubbling in my stomach refused to subside. The fear that she’d leave, that she’d finally see too much of my darkness, gnawed at me. My perverted fantasies. My need to be controlled. The extreme lengths I’d gone to keep her safe.

She may have been right—there wasn’t any actual danger. But knowing that didn’t ease the growing anxiety inside me.

We hadn’t left the apartment in days, still recovering from the intensity of that night together. I was waiting, restless, for her to fulfill her promise to fuck me the way she said she would. I was ready to beg for it, to drop to my knees if that’s what it took.

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