Page 50 of Threaded
The golden bridge was near complete now, that single thread continuing to grow in length as it wound and wound itself together, the resulting link stronger than any metal or chain known to their world. Then, the bridge was complete, and she floated off it, settling herself into the space beside the other shape waiting for her. A golden tendril, the same one that had built that bridge, twisted into the air between her and the figure, circling once around them both before shooting itself straight into the gray shroud, not hesitating to meld itself to the very fabric of the being sharing that space with her. The thread wove itself into his very soul, until all she could see was a subtle golden thrum, deep in the center of the shape.
Mariah knew that feeling well, the claiming the magic could have on you.
Mariah. Her name. Even in this strange place, reality began to rush back in, chasing away the fog that made her forget even her own name. And deep in the gray shroud beside her, she could’ve sworn she saw the wisps surrounding it fade slightly, the hazel forming itself into the hazy shape of eyes looking out at her with a look that chased the breath from her lungs.
Her lungs.
She didn’t have lungs in this place, but she had them somewhere. She didn’t belong here. She turned back to the way she’d come, to the golden bridge she knew would remain open to her forever. With a final glance back at the figure—Sebastian’s—ethereal form, here in this strange place between their minds, she moved back onto the bridge and flew across it, retreating to the safety of her own consciousness.
* * *
With a gasp, Mariah’s eyes flew open, chest heaving as she met Sebastian’s heated stare.
Her hand was still pressed to his chest, but she no longer knelt before him. While her mind had floated through that void, she’d moved impossibly closer to him, her legs now straddling his, her body suddenlyveryaware of their proximity and of every inch pressing against her, both hard and smooth.
She stared at Sebastian, sharing breath with him for several heaving exhales, her emotions still fractured and spiraling. She’d just beeninside his soul, and she could still feel that bridge between their minds, could feel his consciousness brush against her, the feelings of arousal and shattering self-control rolling down the fresh bond in waves. Mariah knew the only thing keeping him still, kept him from grabbing her andclaimingher, was his incredible respect and devotion to her and what she desired. She shifted slightly; the movement eliciting a soft groan from her mouth as the most intimate parts of her pressed closer to the length of him, and watched as his pupils dilated, his nostrils flared.
Fuck it.
Not letting her mind catch up to her body, she crashed her lips to his, ripping her still-bleeding palm from his chest and plunging it into his hair. Blood smeared down the back of his neck as he returned her frenzied kiss with his own gentle fervor, his tongue parting her lips as he wrapped his well-muscled arms around her back, lifting her up and even closer to him. She dipped her left hand down between them, wrapping it around his length, her blood thrumming and pounding through her body. She stroked him once, twice, and his answering groan into her mouth turned her feral.
“Fuck… Mariah …”
She rocked herself harder against him, desperate for some kind of release to quiet the screaming maelstrom of emotions rattling through her soul. The bond between their souls raged out of control, the intensity of the moment capturing every animalistic instinct she had and then cutting them loose.
Mariah had been warned the bonding could be intense.
Nothing, however, could have prepared her forthis.
Sebastian pulled his lips from hers, dropping his head to the crook of her neck, panting hard as she continued to move over him, around him, inching him closer to the place she wanted him most. Suddenly, he growled against her, the sound low and rumbling, and then he was pulling her off of him, pushing her down so she lay on her back on the soft blanket. He moved over her, his strong, solid weight settling on her and pressing deliciously against her skin. Still spurred by feral desire, Mariah wrapped her legs around his hips, trying,begging,to pull him closer. He was strong, though, and instead of pushing into her like she wanted, he captured her lips in a quick, gentle kiss, a rough laugh in his throat.
He released her mouth and pulled back, staring at her with the candlelight dancing in his hazel eyes, his expression ravenous as he spoke.
“I’m not sure if this is the only night you’ll give me. And since it very well may be, I intend to take this opportunity to worship you fully.”
Her own blood raged with fires she didn’t have as he proceeded to do just that.
He skimmed his mouth over her jaw, down her neck, between the swell of her breasts and the smooth expanse of her stomach. He eventually came to rest between her legs, his hands on her thighs and her hips both strong and gentle, just like he was.
And as he’d promised, he worshiped her, so thoroughly and completely she thought she might fly into the stars that glittered in the night sky above them. They joined together there under the light of the twin moons, the raging in her body caused by the intensity of the bond finally receiving what it so desperately craved. Soon they both found their release, her mind fracturing and splintering with threads of golden light so bright and vivid she thought she might be blinded.
But as she felt herself slowly returning to the earth beneath her, to her body lying on that blanket in the ring of candlelight, to the incredible man whispering words of affection she neither wanted nor deserved, an image flashed into her mind, reflecting off the back of her still-closed eyelids.
Less an image, actually. More like acolor.
As the picture of shadowed, wicked tanzanite lanced through her mind, Mariah was filled with a sudden and infuriating anger at the demon named Andrian for tainting what had very likely been the best night she’d spent with a man in her life.
CHAPTER23
Groggy with sleep, Mariah shifted, rolling her body over and flinging out an arm … smacking Sebastian in the face.
The contact shocked away the lingering tendrils of unconsciousness, and Mariah shot up, unable to stop the quiet laugh that spilled from her mouth.
“Shit … I’m sorry.” Glancing down at her errant arm, she realized with a jolt that she was also utterly naked, and decidedly flopped back onto the bed, pulling the heavy comforter up and over her head.
How very queen-like, Mariah.
Sebastian’s low chuckle, still thick with sleep, vibrated from beside her. “Good morning to you, too.”