Page 163 of The Darkness is Calling

“What?”

“At Christmas you were blonde,” I clarify, looking at her chestnut strands.

She smiles.

“I was going through a period where I was trying to find myself. We had just made the engagement official, and I couldn’t find my place anywhere. Something wasn’t right.”

She laughs, visibly embarrassed.

“I thought blonde would help me feel like part of the world Oliver was taking me into. But at Christmas, I saw a raven who radiated power precisely through his dark naturalness. He wasn’t pretending and wasn’t trying to be someone else. And I realized I wanted to be just as strong, without pretending I was anything other than what I am. Meaning a brunette with Russian blood, not a lady of the British court.”

Kissing the corner of her mouth, I speak the words with absolute certainty. “Dusha moya, you are more noble than any queen. You are my queen. The entire Bratva will kneel at your feet.”

I can’t resist kissing her anymore. My lips seek hers gently, remembering how fragile she is and what an ugly day she’s had. But she grows hungrier, taking the lead as she pulls me closer, her fingers buried in my hair.

“Kiss me, Artem,” she asks hoarsely.

“I am.”

“Not like that. You know how I like to feel you...”

“You had a difficult day, my soul...”

Even the voices revolt at my words.

“That’s exactly why I need you. To show me how strong our love is. I missed you so much all these days...”

Even if I wanted to resist her, I couldn’t. I never could, and especially not now, when she’s asking me so nicely.

My hands immediately start undoing the dress stained with the blood of our enemies, and I kiss every inch of the skin I reveal.

“They ruined your dress, but I’ll buy you ten more just like it, only so I can tear them apart the way I wanted to from the moment you entered that room and I saw it on you.”

“That’s what you were thinking about in that moment?”

“Always, when it comes to you. Especially in this little dress.”

“That was the plan this morning too, when I put it on.”

I stop with my lips exactly where they had reached between her breasts, now covered only by a simple skin-colored bra. I rise my eyes, a little stunned.

“And what exactly were your intentions this morning?” I ask with interest.

“To tell you that I want us to make this marriage as real as possible. And that I love you too much.”

One more reason to make Oliver suffer, because he destroyed the moment she had planned.

“If I had known, I wouldn’t have left at all,” I growl, frustrated.

I move one cup aside and take her breast into my mouth, then continue speaking with my lips pressed to her smooth skin.

“I don’t think you would have managed to speak. I would have picked you up and taken you straight to the bedroom before you got the first word out.”

She laughs softly, but that wonderful sound suddenly turns into a moan torn from heaven when I bite and then suck her nipple. I move to the other breast too, giving both attention with my mouth and with hands that massage and tease.

She loses her fingers in my hair, seeking me. Bringing me closer to her.

Her whole body vibrates with desire, and nothing exists around us anymore except her. I pay attention to every sigh, every tremor, and I insist wherever I feel she likes it most. She loves when I bite her, only to lick and suck her breasts afterward, especially her nipples. Through pain and pleasure, this game brings out her strongest moans.