Shattered Souls (Guardians of the Maiden Book 3)

Dyna focused on his breathing, how profound and elevated it was. The ambrosial scent of his was all over her, and she thought she might dissolve under the graze of his hands sliding up her back. Her heart matched the rapid beat of his as he kissed her gently, his lips soft, slow and sweet. It was a deep, aching sort of kiss that made Dyna sigh. Slowly his fingers came around her trembling arm. Cassiel pulled her to him until they were face to face. He was so close, her legs wrapped around his waist where she could feel all of him. Dyna’s cheeks heated under his gaze, her pulse throbbing wildly in her veins and she nearly forgot to breathe. She remained still, afraid if she moved she would break the spell.

They pulled only inches away, their noses touching as they stare at each other silently. The longing was clear for both of them. Then his arms were sliding around her, and they were pressed so tightly together she could hardly breathe.

A stroke of his fingers against her back—light as a brush of feathers, gentle as a caress of silk. He leaned in closer still, silver eyes impossibly bright. His hand slid up her nape and he gently took a fistful of her hair, drawing her close. His lips grazed her neck and she felt the throbbing build.

He lowered his mouth to hers, his kiss fierce and deep. When Cassiel’s lips left hers, her breath came out in short pants. He held her so tightly she could feel his heart pounding against her ribs. Her blood with the heated look on his face as his gaze roved over her.

His voice was low and thick when he said, “I need to hear it once more.”

He looked at her with an intensity, his dark pupils nearly drowning out the silver. There was desire there, but reverence too. He was her husband. There was no one else she would ever want but him.

Because she was no longer afraid anymore to be completely and irrevocably his.

She traced his smooth jaw with her lips and curled her hand around the back of his neck, running his silky hair between her fingers. With the gentlest pressure of her hand, he moved with her inviting tug, closing the gap between them until the barest whisper separated their faces.

“Yes.” The word was breathed on his skin, her lips finding his.

I want this. I want you.

Deep in her core, something quivered. His hand curled over the back of her head, pulling her harder into his mouth—and every secret moment of desire she had suppressed burned through her as her fingers tangled in his hair.

He kissed her as if she was life itself, and an integral part of his being fought to live. His body wrapped around hers, one hand in her hair, the other slipping behind her back to haul her closer, tighter so every part of her was flushed against his skin. She sank into him. There was no space between them yet it didn’t seem to be enough. She shook, throbbing and frantic with desperation for his touch. His hands stroked her everywhere, touching her like he never had before.

He shuddered as her fingers gently scraped up his spine to his wings. Fascinated by the soft but firm stretch of muscle and feather, her fingers traced it to the rising arch. It drew from him that unhinged sound she liked, the one that made her thighs want to squeeze together. His mouth was hot against her skin, electric tingles left behind by each press of lips.

“Mine,” he growled, his fingers digging possessively into her waist.

She sighed and arched her spine so his lips found her throat. “Yours.”

His kisses and tongue spoke of devotion on her skin. Each one leaving an imprint of adoration. The smoke of desire. The bond throbbed, sending waves through her body.

Cassiel shifted back onto the bed, keeping her locked around his waist. When they reached the middle, he rolled her beneath him. The tips of his fingers grazed up her thighs, and he moved on to pressing his mouth over her collarbone. Kissed and licked that area as if he couldn’t get enough of it. He rose on his arms as his mouth continued its descent within the valley of her chest, slowly kissing the soft, sensitive flesh over the thin chemise, the sensation making her squirm and moan.

Her mind wasn’t quite working. As if struck by lightning, her body was scorching, at the point of melting. She held back a whimper, lost to the raw sensation of feeling Cassiel all around her. Every part of her felt tight.

When he nuzzled the peaks of her breasts through the silky fabric, it sent a bolt of pleasure threading through her body. The sounds he drew from her were mortifying, but she didn’t want him to stop. She reached for his wings, stroking the feathers and it drew from him a deep groan. His hips ground into hers, instinctively searching for the release they were both wanting. But he still wore his trousers and the barrier of fabric was keeping her from him.

Dyna reached for his waist and tugged against it. Cassiel knew what she wanted. He more than eagerly shucked them off. Then his bare legs were between hers. Skin against skin, firm muscle against the softness of her thighs, and the warmth of him made her temperature climb.

With a trembling hand, she placed his on the hem of her chemise. His breath caught and his chest heaved with a shaky breath. He took his time slowly removing the fabric, his fingers shaking, lingering, as every inch of her curves were exposed until he pulled it off over her head, bearing all of her to him. Cassiel stilled as his lidded eyes blazed with desire. He took her in so intently, taking in every part of her body. She was painfully aware of the jagged lines running from her shoulder to her chest. The scar on her hip and another on her knee. She was deformed compared to the flawlessness of his kind.

Cassiel braced his arms as he rose above her, his silver eyes catching the firelight. The way he looked at her was as though every wish he ever made, everything he ever searched for and needed was found right here with her.

His fingers traced the tree geas under her left ribs, shooting tingles through her stomach. She was aware of the slow glide of his hand down her leg to her ankle, and he folded up her knee to press a reverent kiss on the scar there. He touched and caressed her everywhere she ached, as though to learn every inch of her body, murmuring little inscriptions on her skin.

“You are everything I never knew I needed.” He leaned forward, his breath falling over the intimate parts of her unveiled for him, and Dyna’s mouth trembled. “You have left me completely…” His lips coursed up her stomach, leaving a path of flames in the form of kisses to her prickled skin— “and utterly…” Her arms stretched above her, and she gripped the sheets as liquid fire filled her with every press of his mouth and tender nip of his teeth. He traveled to the valley between her breasts, lips outlining the jagged scars there, following them to the curve of her throat. “…undone.”

Cassiel’s body completely covers hers, caging her in his warmth, and she felt him there at her center. His fingers wove through hers as he devoured her with an unyielding kiss, boundless tenderness that left her breathless. She melted into him until she was panting and vibrating beneath him.

“Gam nezach lo maspik itach.” His husky voice feathered down her cheek. “With you, even eternity will never be enough.”

Every word, every kiss, was a vow. A promise of love and forever.

She couldn’t offer more than to yield to him completely and give him all that she was.

Dyna closed her wet eyes, hips shifted, and she inhaled as he held her during the brief ache of pain when they joined. Then she was stretched and full, so full. He groaned against her neck, and the guttural sound reverberated through her body.

The fit. The closeness. His body completely enveloping her. It was too much.

Cassiel’s arms trembled as he supported himself above her. He deeply breathed and waited for her to adjust to him, and to also regain control of himself. She smiled at that and he did, too.

“You’re the light of every star in my sky,” she whispered in his language, her vision welling with more tears. “Ani ohevet otcha.”

With all of her mind, heart, and soul.

The silver of his hazy eyes filled with unspoken emotion. He didn’t need to speak when she could feel everything, every exhilarating and worshiping feeling as his heart responded, throbbing in time with their bond.

I love you, it sang with the gentle roll of his hips into hers. I love you. I love you. I love you.

He planted more heated kisses on her jaw to her lips. She was completely lost to the sensations he left pulsating through her mind and body. She clutched the sheets to hold on to something solid but it was impossible. Her being felt as if it was dancing, elevating her into the atmosphere where everything glittered bright.

The markings they had painted on each other during their wedding night lit up across their skin, glowing with the promises they made. Every meeting of their bodies was slow, every kiss tender and devoting as they both learned how to move together and find their rhythm.

Flickers of pleasure swept across his beautiful face, so consumed by each wave. Her pulse spiked, and her hands slid up his back sleek with sweat, fingers threading through his hair. His wings fluttered with every sway. Heat pooled and she soared on the rise they created, higher and higher until she is teetering on the edge. Like their vows, the bond glowed bright and tendrils of light wrapped around them as their souls fully merged, at last, becoming one.

Dyna knew, after this, she would be marked as his forever more.

Then she flew off the precipice with him, shattering amongst the stars.

And it was pure magic.