Chapter 10: First Blood
The moon hung high above the treetops, casting its pale light across the darkened woods like a spotlight from the heavens. Shadows danced between the skeletal trees, their bare branches clawing at the sky. The smoke from Ashen Vale still clung to the air, an acrid reminder of the carnage Aria had barely survived. She stumbled forward, her limbs aching, her vision wavering with every breath.
Lucian was beside her silent, vigilant, dangerous. He had not spoken much since he dragged her from the flames. But his presence loomed larger than words. Each time her gaze flicked toward him, her stomach twisted with something primal. She didn't trust him. And yet, she didn't fear him either.
They reached a secluded glade surrounded by massive blackwood trees. The moonlight pooled like liquid silver on the moss-covered ground. Lucian's expression softened as he scanned the perimeter.
"We'll rest here," he said, voice low and gravelly.
Aria nodded. She dropped to her knees, panting as the tension began to bleed from her limbs. He shed his cloak and laid it on the ground for her. Without a word, he knelt beside her, tending a small fire with deft hands. Sparks danced upward, illuminating his sharp features the angular jaw, the intense golden eyes that glowed with supernatural restraint.
She watched him. Felt the bond stirring in her chest like a waking beast.
"I saw you in the flames," she whispered. "I remembered... your face."
Lucian stiffened. "You shouldn't remember yet."
"But I do."
He met her gaze. And what she saw there was not the predator she feared but the man she had once loved in a lifetime long buried.
Aria moved toward him, heart pounding. Her fingers grazed his chest, the heat of him scorching through the thin fabric of his shirt. "You saved me."
Lucian caught her wrist, but didn't push her away. His voice was ragged. "You don't understand what you're doing."
"Yes, I do."
Their mouths met before reason could intervene.
It wasn't soft.
It wasn't gentle.
It was fire and fury, centuries of separation combusting into one devastating kiss.
Lucian crushed her against him, hands sliding to her hips as he devoured her mouth. She clung to him, fingers tangled in his hair, lips opening to his demand. The kiss grew frantic, their breath stolen, hearts pounding in a feverish rhythm.
He lifted her effortlessly, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, their bodies pressed tightly. Her back hit a tree, bark rough against her spine, but she didn't care. His mouth moved from her lips to her jaw, to her throat, to the place where her mating mark would bloom.
She gasped, arching against him. "Lucian..."
His golden eyes burned. "You want this?"
"Yes."
"You know what it means?"
"I don't care. I want you."
His growl was deep and animalistic, vibrating through her core. He pulled back only long enough to tug her tunic over her head, baring her to the night. The firelight danced across her skin. Lucian paused, eyes roaming her curves with a hunger that made her tremble.
"You are... magnificent," he whispered.
She reached for him, tugging at his shirt, desperate to feel his skin. He let her strip it away, revealing the muscled, scarred perfection of his chest. Her palms ran over his abdomen, memorizing the valleys and ridges. He shivered under her touch.
Then he laid her down on the cloak.
The ground was cold, but his body was fire.
Lucian kissed her slowly now deeply, reverently. His hands explored her, relearning every inch of her flesh as if it were sacred. She gasped when his mouth found her breast, his tongue circling her hardened nipple. One hand cupped the other breast, fingers rolling, teasing.
Aria moaned, her back arching. "Please..."
Lucian slid lower, his lips tracing the curve of her stomach. He parted her thighs gently and settled between them like he belonged there which he did. She felt vulnerable and powerful all at once, like a goddess being worshiped.
His tongue flicked against her folds, and she cried out.
He groaned against her, tongue moving in long, deliberate strokes. One hand held her hips as the other slid two fingers inside her. She bucked into him, panting, moaning his name. Her climax built fast, too fast, overwhelming her.
"Lucian ..I"
"Let go," he said, voice thick with lust.
She shattered, crying out as her body pulsed around his fingers, the orgasm ripping through her like a lightning strike. He licked her through it, tasting every drop, groaning in satisfaction.
When she opened her eyes, he was already above her again, kissing her deeply, sharing her taste. She could feel his erection pressing hard against her inner thigh.
"I need you," she whispered.
"You have me."
He positioned himself at her entrance, eyes locked on hers. "Tell me to stop."
"I'll kill you if you do."
He smiled, and thrust inside.
It hurt at first briefly but pleasure quickly bloomed. He moved slowly, inch by inch, filling her completely. She gasped, clawing at his back, wrapping her legs around him as if to never let go.
He stilled. Let her adjust.
Then he moved.
Long, deep strokes.
A rhythm that built with every thrust, grinding her against the moss, his hips meeting hers in a rhythm as ancient as the moonlight.
Aria sobbed his name, her body slick with sweat. He kissed her throat, her shoulder, her lips. His hand slipped between them to stroke her again, bringing her higher and higher.
"Come with me," he growled.
She did.
The second orgasm overtook her in a rush of fire and light. She clenched around him, and Lucian groaned as he spilled inside her, his body trembling above hers.
They lay there, panting, spent. The bond shimmered between them like a golden thread.
Not yet a mark.
But something had shifted.
Something permanent.
He cradled her to his chest. "We still have a war to fight."
She nodded. "But now we fight together."
Lucian kissed the crown of her head.
"First blood," he murmured. "But not the last."