The Darkest King (Lords of the Underworld 15)

She jolted, shocked. Then she melted into his touch, bucking into his hold. “William! Wicked man...more!”

One day, every part of her would crave every part of him. He would make sure of it.

He quickened his pace, hitting her clit at a clipped pace while fingering her deeper. Her little hole clenched around his thumb, eliciting an answering clench low in his gut. The need to climax worsened. Don’t come. Not yet. Will last for her.

Too good, too good.

He bit his tongue, tasted blood. Just beyond the bed was a full-length mirror he’d brought in before Sunny had awoken, planning to watch her as he worshipped at the altar of her body. Her luscious breasts swayed as her hand worked his length.

Faster, harder. Soon, they were both uttering unintelligible words. He pumped his shaft faster; she gripped his erection harder. Again and again, the plump head slammed against her clit. When she began to rock, chasing his length, he switched directions. Slam, slam.

“So close...need...now...give—yes!” she screamed, coming and coming hard. A flood of that honey drenched his shaft. Her inner walls spasmed around his thumb.

Tightening her grip on him, she reached back with her other hand and tugged on his balls. William still wasn’t ready to come—he wanted to last forever, wanted more of this, more of her—but he couldn’t stop the climax as it jetted from him.

He threw back his head, roared to the rafters.

28

“Be mine. Just kidding. Be gone.”

Sunny snuggled against William, her heart galloping in time to his, her breathing uneven. His warmth and scent cocooned her, ensuring a low level of pleasure still hummed inside her. But that pleasure was growing more tainted by the second. Any moment now, she expected him to sever contact, say something awful and leave, regretting how vulnerable he’d been with her, even though they hadn’t technically had sex.

Not that it mattered. Their connection had strengthened, and the intensity of their attraction had deepened. She’d felt it happening, and knew he had, too. If he’d been panicked by the thought of commitment before, he might be ready to race to the hills now. In fact, he hadn’t spoken a word since they’d collapsed on the mattress, utterly spent.

As one minute bled into another, he simply toyed with her hair and traced the ridges of her spine, as if content to be near her. But Sunny began to resent the silence. If William was going to act like a pouty man-baby about his growing feelings for her, she needed to know, so she could run for the hills. Because, little by little, despite everything... I’m falling for him.

What they’d done had blown her freaking mind. She didn’t just want more sex. She wanted fidelity. Trust. A family. Eternity.

She wanted everything he had to give. For real. What did he want?

Since he hadn’t bailed, she decided to test the waters. If she started with fun questions, maybe she could get him to open up. “If you could describe your life with a movie title, what would it be?”

He answered quickly, as if he’d known the whole of his life. “I’d be a double feature. A Series of Unfortunate Events followed by I Am Legend.”

“Liar! You’d be Get Hard followed by Sausage Party. I mean, do you know how many times I’ve had to hear about your link?”

He grinned. “You’d be Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Big Willy is going to eat...you...up.”

She snort-laughed. Deciding to push a little harder, now that she had him talking, she asked, “So, how’d things go with your dad?”

Between one blink and the next, misery pulsed from him. “Hades believes I plan to kill him, so he’s barred me from his home. He won’t even speak to me.”

Different parts of her constricted. “I’m sorry, baby.” She wouldn’t offer a platitude about time healing all wounds. Some wounds festered. Some scarred. While she hadn’t caused his broken heart, she desperately wanted to help mend it. “A rejection is never fun, but one day, it might be a blessing. With their actions, people show us who they are. If your father can cut you from his life, he doesn’t deserve you.”

He pulled her even closer and kissed her brow, but said nothing else.

“How did you come to be part of Hades’s family?” she asked. “I mean, I know you mentioned he and Lucifer rescued you from a hellish realm, but I hear supernatural adoptions are complicated.”

A pause, rife with strain. Would he deflect now, regretful about his previous admission? Would he leave?

He surprised her yet again; he explained, “After the woman I believed to be my mother was killed, I awoke in a Hell realm. Not just hellish. I was enslaved by—” Gaze wild, he said, “Cannibals and rapists. They called me Scum. I’m not sure how much time passed before Hades showed up with Lucifer. They killed the entire clan and asked me to go with them, to live with them and act as Hades’s hand of vengeance. I did. Sometime later, I wore a pair of bands that melted into my flesh, bonding me to the king.”

“Oh, William. The things you must have suffered in the Hell realm. I’m so sorry.” The fact that she’d once called him scum... Guilt and shame seared her. No wonder he’d flinched when she’d done it.

“Everyone suffers at some point,” he said, his voice gruffer.

“Does other people’s misery make your past any less awful? No.” Hurting for him, she traced a heart over his, well, heart. “You and Lucifer were so close. What made him want to sacrifice you? For that matter, what caused the rift between Hades and Lucifer?”

“Lucifer had staged a coup. He planned to sacrifice me to acquire my strength, and use that strength to defeat Hades.” Again the muscle beneath his eye leaped. “He failed with me, but still ambushed Hades.”

Poor William. Lucifer had destroyed his family, just as the bluebell had destroyed hers. Only, William had to suffer the betrayal of a loved one on top of everything else, and he’d had to do it after the witch had cursed him. Now he lived with the knowledge that his own father, the man he loved best, had lied to him, keeping him away from Axel for selfish reasons. Yeah, Sunny had listened to their conversation. William had endured one blow after the other. No wondered he’d never wanted to be part of a committed relationship.

“I’m so sorry for your pain,” she repeated. “I’m sorry for every century you didn’t get to spend with Axel. Hey! Speaking of, I figure you must have Sent One DNA, since you were designed by Wrathling. Although, now that I think about it, Sent One DNA tends to takeover. If you were part Sent One, you’d have wings like Axel. Feathered wings, I mean, not smoky ones. Or maybe not? What do I know? Anyway. Even though I’ve always fought for Team Good, I never thought I’d date a possible Sent One.”

She’d hoped to tease him into a good mood, but he stiffened. “What kind of men did you date before me?”

“You want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? I picked weaker males with honest, nonviolent auras who wouldn’t succeed if they made a play for my horn.”

He gave his patented eyebrow lift. “Do I want to know about my aura?”

“It’s blurry,” she told him. “I can’t read it, and I don’t know why.”

“Perhaps because I’m more than a hybrid, my DNA possibly spliced from multiple species.” He shrugged, then changed the subject. “Why do you refuse to reveal your unicorn form, even though I’ve vowed never to steal your horn?”

Since he’d opened up to her, she decided to bestow the same honor upon him. “Shifting is incredibly personal. Like stripping to reveal my naked body. In that form, I’m more powerful, yes, but I’m more vulnerable, too. Which is why we usually only shift during a battle, if we know we can kill everyone who sees us. To see the horn even once is to understand how it works, something we’ve kept secret for a reason. It would put me at a major disadvantage.”

“The explanation doesn’t apply. We are together.”

“For now,” she quipped. They’d made

no permanent arrangement.

“Together a few days and already preparing for our split?” He pursed his lips. “You trust me to pleasure your body. Why not this?”

Do it. Tell him. “Because you’re a flight risk. Because, with my dual personality, I’m weird, and there’s no denying it. What if you get tired of dealing with me? What if someone else catches your fancy? What if I fail to decode your book? What if you leave me locked up and I have to fight you to leave?”

Putting her on her back, her disheveled prince of darkness loomed over her, wicked, wanton and, for some reason, livid. “We’ll drop the unicorn thing—for now. Why did you insist on forgoing sex until the book is decoded? You weren’t worried about it before.”

Because she was falling for him so quickly. Too quickly. Because he might be falling for her. Because the curse had proven stronger than she’d expected. But telling the truth would be a huge mistake. However, a lie would be unforgivable.

His phone buzzed, saving her from having to think up a proper response. Voice firm and unbending, he said, “We aren’t done with this conversation.”

“Sure thing, babe. I’ll pencil in a rehash on the thirty-second day of the month.”

He looked to be fighting a grin. “Keep it up, and I’ll stuff something in that smart mouth of yours.” Adjusting their positions, he leaned over to grab the cell from the nightstand.

Sunny caught a glimpse of the screen.

Black Attack: You’ll be pleased to know I did it. I bagged and tagged Evelina. She’s currently resting uncomfortably in my dungeon. Also, we’ve made no progress with Lilith or that Sable chick. There are zero rumors about them, and no scent to follow.