Kingdom of the Cursed (Kingdom of the Wicked Book 2)

Wrath trailed a line of searing kisses down my neck, igniting my desire.

The chocolate-covered berries were forgotten. There was a new indulgence being served. And I’d gladly take my fill of this pleasant delight. I’d asked for seduction, and the prince was delivering. His hands drifted along the silhouette of my body, pausing to rest on my waist.

It didn’t feel possessive as much as it seemed like he was holding himself in check. Or maybe he was contemplating clever ways to slowly torture me. He fiddled with the clasp on one of my necklaces. The excessive strands of diamonds were hardly a barrier, but I wanted them gone all the same. I wanted nothing between us.

He brought his mouth to my body again and my mind emptied of all else.

I tossed my head back, lost in ecstasy as his tongue smoothed over the sharp little nip he’d given me. He pulled me against him, his teeth now lightly scraping where my shoulder and neck connected. Chills danced over my body in the most tantalizing way. This feeling… it was not sinful, as mortals tried teaching their daughters. It was natural. Blissful. If it was socially acceptable for Wrath to take a lover, then the same right should be afforded to me.

After all, there were two people involved in such encounters.

I arched into his touch. I owned this desire, enjoyed it. And it did not make me lustful or wanton. It made me feel human, in control of my wants. Denying my passions no longer.

I braced myself with a hand on each of his thighs, gripping him as he lavished all his attention and kisses on my neck, my shoulders. I wanted to spin around and face him, needing to explore his body as languidly. For some reason, even with my newfound conviction, I hesitated.

“Is there something you want from me, my lady?”

“You don’t have to call me that when we’re alone. There’s no need for a show.”

He smiled against my neck. “Any other requests?”

“I…”

“Assert your wants. You need not apologize for them.”

“Even if I want you to stop?”

“Especially then.”

“Take my diamonds off. Please.”

The prince undid each strand of precious stones, letting them clink to the ground.

“I’m curious.” His voice was velvet soft as he leaned in and removed the final necklace. “About the Sin Corridor. What you experienced that night you called out my name. Tell me.”

There was no magical command or demonic thrall attached to his request. Only genuine curiosity. I realized the feeling of dizziness brought on by drinking was also gone. I was no longer under the influence of anything, save being drunk on my own passions, and hadn’t been since before he first kissed me.

Maybe it was our current position—the fact I didn’t have to see his face—that made my confession easier. Or perhaps I simply did not wish to feel guilt or shame regarding my body and the things I wanted and craved. I gathered up my courage, knowing precisely where this admission would lead. Praying for it to travel that path, really.

“You were… you were behind me, like this. Except we were laying down.”

He rewarded my honesty with a gentle stroke along my arm. “And?”

“I was wearing your shirt and you were unbuttoning it. So slowly I was going mad.”

“I imagine you demanded I remove it.” His fingertips ghosted across my shoulder, then my clavicle, before dipping lower, teasing the skin exposed above my décolletage. My breath hitched as he paused his ministrations, one hand slipping beneath a strap of my gown. Only the thin scrap of silk stood between us. “And I obliged. Is that correct?”

“More or less.”

“Would you like me to do the same now?” With only the slightest pause, I nodded. “I need to hear the words, Emilia. Do you wish for me to stop?”

“No.” My grip on his thighs tightened as if I could keep him there forever. “No, I do not.”

He moved my hair aside and leaned back in his chair, allowing enough space between us for him to lightly massage my shoulders. Gripping one strap in each hand, he pressed his lips to my spine, kissing me there as he slipped the top of my gown off.

Cool air blew across my flushed skin.

“What happened next?”

Fantasy and reality were colliding. My breaths quickened in anticipation. “You wanted me to tell you that you are my favorite sin.”

His chuckle was low, deep. It made me ache for him all the more. “Am I?”

“At the moment, yes.”

“You didn’t confess it then.”

I heard the question even though he hadn’t phrased it that way.

“No.” My eyes fluttered shut before I opened them again. “You started touching me and I could think of nothing else.”

He nuzzled the back of my neck before reaching around to cup my breasts. Heat shot through me. His fingers traced the outer curves, circling closer to the peaks in the center. When he brushed across them, they hardened. My breath caught as I sunk my teeth into my lower lip. I inched back, craving more of his heat, and noticed how affected he was.

“Tell me what I did in your illusion that made you call for me.”

I flushed. There was no way I’d tell him about that part. I closed my eyes and gathered my resolve, forcing myself to not be embarrassed. With renewed confidence I allowed myself the freedom of letting go. “You were gently pulling me against your arousal and your hand slipped under my skirts. You touched me. There. With your fingers.”

“Did it feel as it did in the Crescent Shallows?”

“Almost. It felt incredible, for a mere moment. Then I awoke.”

“Before you climaxed?”

“I… believe so.”

“Allow me the honor of making that up to you now.”

He didn’t move right away, and I realized he was waiting for my consent. Wrath would never take without permission. “Please.”

“With pleasure.”

He slipped one hand beneath the silk gown and his light touch slid over my calf, against my inner thigh, then slowly traced circular patterns there, roving a bit higher with each daring stroke, until I could no longer stand it. I stopped pressing my knees together and he dragged a finger across the apex of my body. It felt better than the Sin Corridor and Crescent Shallows combined.

Wrath pressed me forward until I was nearly bent over him, then trailed kisses down my spine. My skin tingled with each pass of his lips. All the while his fingers teased and danced across my body, driving me into a frenzy.

Once I was convinced I’d perish from the pleasure, he slipped them inside me. I stilled, getting accustomed to the feel of it as he slowly began moving them.

Unable to handle how good each sensation was, I sat up and pushed against him, his arousal hard and welcome against my backside. He paused his kisses and gently bit my neck.

My breathing quickened. I was chasing a feeling, almost familiar and not quite. It was magnificent. Ecstasy unlike any other. Sensing my growing need, Wrath’s fingers moved faster and that ache turned into the most glorious tidal wave of euphoria.

I stopped being self-conscious and shut out thoughts of everything except that incredible feeling. I moved against him, chasing the rapture, realizing Wrath was now letting me take my own pleasure. I was setting the pace and moving as fast or slow as I wished. That I was in command of my own body, my own desires, that no mortal rules would bind me…

… I came undone.

I cried out as pleasure broke through my body, in one marvelous tingling wave after another, then finally slumped against his chest, breathing as if I’d just run for my life.

Once I stopped trembling from the release, Wrath slowly removed his hand from beneath my skirts and righted the top of my gown. A long beat of silence stretched between us as I adjusted the straps with more care and attention than was necessary.

I shifted in his lap, noticing his arousal hadn’t abated. My heartbeat sped up. We could complete one of the next steps of accepting our marriage bond in moments.

Right here. In the weapons room. Only his trousers and my gown lay between us. And they could be removed easily enough. Perhaps it was the euphoria still running through my veins, clouding my senses, but it didn’t seem like such a terrible idea.

If a ceremony was needed as the final step, we didn’t have to perform it. We could indulge in carnal pleasure and remain free from any bond that would tether us for eternity. I shifted in such a way that our bodies intimately rubbed together. The sensation it created, especially after the pleasure he’d just wrought from me, was a new level of rapture.

Wrath didn’t move. He was giving me leave to choose.

I grabbed the hem of my skirts and slowly brought them up, over my thighs, my ass. Now all Wrath had to do was release himself from his trousers. I sat back, and the friction of his arousal against my body had me swallowing a moan. His hands tightened on my hips.

A bolt of alarm shot through me, stealing my breath. I no longer knew if sleeping together was a good idea, or if my judgment was impaired from what we’d just done. It was probably nerves. I steeled myself, refusing to succumb to second-guessing anything.

“Our training for this evening is done.”

In one swift motion Wrath stood, bringing us both to our feet. I spun around, staring at him. He was wholly unreadable. “Training? That’s how you’d describe what just happened?”

“You asked for seduction. I obliged.” He bent at the waist, offering a polite bow. “Now that you know what you enjoy, you may find the same pleasure at your own hand. Good night.”