“I don’t care what it is,” he says between brushes of his lips. “You look like a goddess.” In another instant we’re at the sofa, but I’ve lost track of what my magic is doing or not doing. Thorne sets me down gently on the cushion, then splays my legs wide with his large hands. He stares at the apex of my thighs with a hungry gleam in his eyes, like he can’t wait to devour me. “You’re so fucking wet for me, witchling,” he murmurs. I tremble under his lust-filled gaze, suddenly self-conscious. I cover my breasts with my hands and slowly bring my knees together, but Thorne uses a rope of light to bind my wrists and pull them above my head like he did that day on the moors. He forces my knees open with his palms, laying me bare. When he speaks, his voice is so gentle it makes something inside of me crack open even wider, heart aching at the tenderness.

“I promised you I wouldn’t take you until you were sure about us, sure about the bond. We can still walk away, Laurel. I want to fuck you with my mouth so bad it’s consuming me, but I won’t. I’ll help you dress, then I’ll go back to that separate room you had prepared for me. It doesn’t matter that you’ve magically accepted the mating bond. If you desire it, we can continue our slow courting. I’ll wait however long you want to take this next step. Just say the word.”

Aethers, this male. I have no hesitation. Not anymore, not after telling him the things I’ve been afraid to tell anyone else for three centuries. His acceptance of those deeply-buried secrets has removed any lingering doubt.

“I want you. I want us. I want to be fucked by my mate,” I say with my aether-voice, commanding him to take me. He lets out a feral noise that’s half moan and half feral howl.

“Then you better use all that power of yours to conceal the noises coming from this room and set up a protective barrier, because I don’t plan on stopping until you’re screaming my name with magic laced through your voice and losing control.” The words are a demand, and this time, I obey without hesitation. I close my eyes, sealing us in and locking the doors. Then I weave a barrier around both the room and the empty estate for good measure. With the right protections in place, I raise a brow, challenging him to make good on his promise.