Page 56 of Clash of Storms
To reach for him now might mean the first chip of her chisel against his icy prison.
Be brave. Malin turned her wrist and brushed the backs of her fingers down the smooth cord of muscle she could see in his throat. His pulse flickered as if that deeply buried heart stirred to her touch.
Sirius slowly lifted his head. "How do you do it?"
"How do I do what?" She barely dared breathe.
"Turn me upside down. Destroy my best intentions. Make me consider courses of action that will lead to my downfall." He paused, and then said, a little softer, "Give me hope."
"Because you're not a monster," she said, meeting his eyes. "Even you feel it too. Admit it. You secretly want Árdís to escape. You could have had her days ago if you'd just left me behind and taken wing."
"I swear, Malin...." The heated blue of his eyes seemed to incinerate her. "You are going to be the death of me."
"That's precisely what I was hoping to av—"
He swooped lower and captured her mouth in a hard demanding kiss. Malin squeaked in shock, her fingernails curling into his shoulders.
The. Blackfrost. Was. Kissing. Her.
She had this weird out-of-body moment where her brain took a second to catch up to the logistics of the situation, and the sudden ravaging press of his claim lightened as if he sensed her misgivings. Malin stared into his eyes, her breath momentarily stuck in her throat, as Sirius paused. She had the awful suspicion he was going to withdraw, and she had botched the entire experience, but her nails subconsciously dug into his heated skin.
Don't you dare stop.
A rumble sounded in his throat as if he heard her. And then his eyelids shuttered, leaving her drowning in the scent of copper and frost, and the feel of his tongue coaxing her mouth open. No longer a conquering warlord, but a man asking a question of her: Yes? Or no?
Yes. Malin tilted her head back, surrendering to the experience as her lashes fluttered closed.
Akiss.Your very first. She didn't know what to do, but that was no problem, for he was an incredibly patient tutor.
Like this, said his mouth, all soft and silky, yet undeniably dominant. His thumbs brushed her cheeks in featherlight strokes as he moved to cup her face in both hands as he kissed her. Tilting her into the touch of his mouth, his breath stirring across her sensitive lips, he stole little breathfuls of her, tiny whispered caresses that had her shifting uneasily beneath him, not knowing what she wanted of him.
More.
Definitely more.
And this. The heated lash of his tongue stroked against hers, and Malin's fingernails dug into his shoulders. There was a storm brewing beneath her skin, a sudden almost violent urge she couldn't understand. No point even pretending she didn't want this. She wanted to explore. She wanted to drown in the taste of him. And he gave it to her, their mouths opening hungrily over each other. The hot, wet slide of his tongue taunted hers. Lured her into something deeper and wetter. Something eminently carnal. Their breathing grew unsteady, until she was lightheaded from lack of oxygen. In the wake of his kiss, she felt like she never needed to breathe again. Only this.
With a gasp, Sirius drew back, his chest heaving and his eyes glittering as if he needed to see her expression.Are you all right, his eyes asked.
Never better.
Malin didn't know what came over her, but she grabbed a fistful of his silky hair and smashed her lips to his.
"Malin." He groaned it into her mouth, and their teeth clashed, crushing her lip between them. One arm slid beneath her, his hand cupping her skull. She was surrounded by so much male heat, her fingers clutching at the rounded curve of his shoulder, exploring the silken glide of his naked skin, and the turgid flex of muscle shifting beneath it.
He was enormous. Muscled all over. This blackhearteddrekiprince who'd once been an enemy and was now... kissing her as if he'd just caught a glimpse of heaven and was determined to steal every last taste of it before they threw him out.
Sweet Goddess.
She could feel the change in the air around them, like a shift in the winds. The cradle of her hips fell open, welcoming him between her thighs. Sirius responded with a deep growl, one hand cupping her bottom as he thrust against her and suddenly there was nothing innocent about this situation at all. Every inch of him lined up between her thighs, earning another sharp gasp as she felt the firm weight of his body pressed in places that had never been touched before. Malin ignited, a flash fire sizzle of lightning racing along her nerves. He surged against her, hips flexing in a rolling move that made her arch her spine.
She'd never felt like this in her life.
Malin's mouth tore from his, and then those devastating lips were working their way across her chin, his teeth raking down the smooth column of her throat. Lower. She had the sudden striking image of his hands tearing her bodice open and baring her breasts to his plundering mouth. Nipples aching, she moaned and snagged her arms around his neck, cupping the back of his head, one hand threading through his hair. Urging him lower, when she couldn't bring herself to ask for it. All these years he'd watched her from a distance, an intense expression in his eyes, and she'd never understood it. But the blistering sensation of his mouth as he nuzzled between her breasts suddenly stirred recognition through her.Want. He'd wanted her for years. Held himself back, as if he did not dare touch her.
But he was daring now.
Malin gasped. A hand snagged in her skirts, dragging them up out of the way. Hard fingers stroked across her thighs, and her eyes burst wide in shock as she felt skin upon skin.
