In one smooth movement he flipped me over on my stomach, spreading my wings out between his hands. He lowered his face to the sensitive skin in between my wings and licked a path from the base of the wing joint all the way to the tips. I was glad my face was buried in the sand to muffle the deep, guttural sound of need that welled from my throat. I knew draken wings were sensitive, but this was another level of torture. I felt him against my bottom, hard and raging even as he took his time to ensure he’d touched every scale and crevice on my wings. Then his hand was on my neck, picking me up and pulling me up so I was on my knees, my elbows propped in the sand. A shadow fell over me as he flared his own wings, the sun casting a purple sheen over us as it glinted off his scales. He groaned at how easily he slid into me, his hands pausing at my waist to grip my hips and push me further down onto him.
“I wanted…to go slow…” He grit out, the tension in his muscles belying how much he strained to keep his instincts in check. Instincts which scream at him to claim me, to push me down into the sand and—
“I didn’t choose you because of your manners.” I remarked coyly, and I only heard him chuckle darkly before he let go. My hands and face bit into the sand as he rammed straight into him, a cry of shock leaving my lips. I gathered my weight on my elbows and pushed back into him, and the growl he released only made me wetter. His fingers tangled in my hair and yanked back, arching my body as his thrusts picked up in intensity.
It would be easy to let him continue…to let him finish, and just revel in the intensity. I didn’t do that. I snarled and hooked my calves around his and tucked my wings into my back. I pushed off the sand with my arms, using the momentum and flipping us over. He hit the ground hard, an ‘oomph’ leaving his mouth as he shifted into his human form to avoid damaging his wings. I flared mine higher as I straddled his lap, a look of smug victory stretched across my face. Benedict gawked at me for a moment before laughing; a deep, booming sound that made the entire world seem just a bit brighter.
Then I started to move, and he went quiet. The cords of muscles on his forearm tightened, but I snarled at him to stay put as I gyrated my hips, looking for the perfect rhythm. He relaxed and laid back, his hands reaching only to steady my waist as I rocked against him.
I quickly found a spot to both our liking, his breaths hitching as I went faster and harder on top of him. His head fell back against the sand, his eyes closed in fierce concentration. I was so close, so near…with a grunt and yell my I collapsed on him, my inner walls spasming as my orgasm ripped through me. Benedict came with a barely an exhale, his hands pinning my hips in place as he rode the cresting wave of his own completion.
We both came back down together, though I frowned when I noticed the flicker of shame in his eyes.
“I don’t deserve your love. I don’t deserve anything.”
His hair hung down over his face, holding himself up with both arms on either side of me.
“Benedict, I—”
“I didn’t believe Bair would betray me, that D'Arcy would—" He broke off, and took a deep breath. “All I could see were threats everywhere. I thought I was going mad. Sometimes I still do.”
He grabbed me and rolled us over, his fingers gently stroking the inner skin of my wings. I closed my eyes, just reveling in the sensation as I straddled his body.
“I thought you weren’t going to talk?” I joked, but softly.
“Please. I need to say this. I treated you horribly, and still you were loyal to my people. You got them ready for battle and fought with them while I sulked like a child. You were a true queen, and Kieran and Ronan never doubted you for a moment—I don’t deserve to be first mate.”
He let go of me, laying on his back in the sand. I flipped onto the sand next to him, both of us staring up at the blue sky.
“Kieran has said the same. Several times, in fact.”
Benedict jerked next to me. I turned onto my elbow, facing him.
“Do you know what I said to him? I told him you were my choice. You don’t get to decide who I want.” I glanced out at the ocean—the sheer vastness and power. Seeing it all laid out before me helped to put my life into perspective in ways I hadn’t anticipated.
“What you may do is spend your life trying to live up to my high expectations.” I kept my voice light and airy, and he grunted in amusement. I held his gaze, my tone suddenly serious.
“All I ask is that every day you make the choice to keep trying. Even on the days where it seems like happiness isn't something you’ll ever see or know yourself. Even on the days you think the world would be better off without you. Promise me.”
His amethyst eyes found mine, and his hand came to stroke my cheek. He nodded once, then stood in one fluid motion.
“Let’s get the level-headed, intelligent mate.”
I laughed and took to the sky after him.
I heard Kieran before I saw him. Benedict and I entered the cave carefully, Benedict going first. A low groan echoed off the stone walls, bringing me back to the battle—to the scores of wounded and dying. When I saw Kieran, I took a deep breath. He was in his draken
