Page 62 of A Touch of Royalty

He didn’t have to do more than run a single touch over it before she flew again, crying her passion into the air of the room.

Cas went to hold her until she relaxed against him, breathing shaky and harsh. He wasn’t certain if he should continue, but she had other ideas.

Emryn turned to him, undoing the buttons on his shirt and laying her hands on his chest. “Will you show me what to do for you?”

He kissed her briefly, covering her hands with his and smiling. “Alright.”

They exchanged touch, slow and easy and where he touched her, she touched him and he very nearly lost control like a rank youth when she cupped him through his pants.

He managed not to, but couldn’t control the guttural sound, or the roll of his hips into her hand. “Emryn-” he moaned her name, pulling her back when she tried to pull away. “Please, more.”

She nodded, concentration in her eyes as she returned her hand, brushing him softly. Which he was intensely grateful for, he wouldn’t have been able to handle anything else.

“Cas?” She looked up at him. “Will you love me now?”

He didn’t wait for her to ask twice, rising to discard his clothing and going back to her, positioning himself between her legs and looking up at her.

She just nodded, pulling him up to kiss him.

Cas was nearly out of his mind, but not so far where he wouldn’t be careful not to harm her.

He entered her slowly, hissing as she covered him with her soft heat, and stilling as she adjusted to him. Mother, it was so hard, so hard to wait when his entire body was screaming at him to take her.

“Cas,” she kissed him again and it broke his will. Stroking deep, hilting himself in her. It was bliss, it was torment, it was everything, she was everything.

Her little gasps turned to moans, turned to little cries as he stroked into her, her body tensing as she got closer to her edge. And when she flew, when she cried his name and her entire body locked down on him, he let the heat of her flame burn him to ash.

They came down slowly, holding each other tightly. Cas moved to the side, sliding free slowly and folding her in his arms as she tried to get her breath back.

“Are you alright?” He asked. “Can I get you anything?”

She nodded, smiling at him. “We should clean up, and I could use some water.”

They curled up in bed afterwards, slowly falling asleep, and Cas knew one thing was irrevocably true.

He was utterly in love with Emryn.

41

RASH

Emryn didn’t want to wake up. She was warm, held, safe, and she knew that waking up would put an end to those things. But she also knew that she had to wake. There were things she had to do, people she had to find, and she couldn’t do that while she was asleep in Cas’ arms.

Her Phoenix hadn’t been Cas. Or maybe she’d misunderstood the Mother’s words. She’d thought that if they shared passion, he would burn for her. But nothing had happened in that direction.

She’d certainly burned.

Emryn made her eyes open, sitting up and finding she was alone. But the bed was still warm, and she willed down the instant’s worth of panic and went to find Cas.

He wasn’t anywhere in their rooms, so she pulled her shredded gown back on and tied it around the wings that still hung on her back. Emryn fluffed them so they sat neatly, but she winced at the pain in her chest.

She couldn’t just let them drag, though. Fire hung from them, and she didn’t want to set the rug ablaze.

So she slipped her cloak over the wings and left the room. It was still early, the light had that iron gray quality that said it was just past false dawn. Her husband was not an early riser, so why was he up?

She wasn’t going to panic that he was gone. That he was in danger and she’d slept through him being harmed or taken like a fool.

Or that he’d decided he didn’t care for her after all. Emryn’s steps dragged to a halt in the hallway. Maybe that was what had happened, maybe he’d decided-

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