Damien didn't wait.
The others drew back just enough to give him space, though their heat lingered on my skin. Magnus kissed my shoulder, still panting from his release, and Xavier traced trembling fingers over my cheek, his eyes dazed but burning.
But Damien—he was steady, relentless. His hands framed my hips as he lowered me onto my back again, spreading me wide for him. His gaze locked to mine, softer and fiercer than both at once, and I could see it—the promise that this moment was different.
"This isn't just hunger," he said, voice rough, shaking. "This is me claiming what's mine."
I couldn't breathe for a second. Couldn't do anything but nod, my body arching toward him.
When he pushed into me, it was deep, unhurried, filling me in a way that felt like it reached my very soul. My cry broke against his mouth as he kissed me, slow and consuming, his pace building not in frenzy but in a rhythm that tethered me to him alone.
