Page 123 of Serpent and Shadow

He stepped nearer to me again.

I took a shocked breath…

…and then he was fully in my magic.

I saw his facial muscles loosen faster that time, more dramatically.

“Gods-damn it,” he muttered coldly.

He closed the gap entirely, and reached for me, pulling me up against him. I had my arms around his neck before I’d thought about any kind of decision. He was still wearing all black, with gold buttons, and I realized there was blood on his shirt. I stared at it, wondering if it was his.

“What does it matter?” he growled.

“So it is, then.” My eyes traveled up to his. “What happened?”

He didn’t answer but I saw that denser frustration return to his eyes.

“Give me some of it.” I bit my lip, still watching his gold eyes as they traveled down me more slowly. I could see the heat there, but tried to ignore it. “Your magic, Bones. You’re not all right. You need to give me some. Now.”

He stared at my lip where I bit it, and his arms tightened around me still more.

“Are you going to let me fuck you?” he asked thickly.

I flinched. I couldn’t help it. I felt my face heat, but I didn’t hesitate.

“Yes,” I said. Even so, a bitterness reached my voice as I studied his face. “Is that why you’re here? Did your father order this, too?”

I don’t know if he even heard anything I said beyond the yes.

He lowered his mouth to mine, wrenching me tighter up against him. He shocked me more by kissing me almost tenderly, falling into it in a way he hadn’t when I’d seen him in the Black Tower. He leaned into me with his whole body and his magic, until I couldn’t feel one thing without the other. He poured his magic into me through his mouth, his lips, his tongue.

I felt the longing mixed with need there, and I let myself fall into it, too.

Really, I was drowning in it.

It worried me at first, but I couldn’t make myself care for long.

He paused the kiss long enough to release me, tugging on the buttons of the black cross-over shirt. I couldn’t help noticing he moved the arm strangely on the bloodied side of his clothing.

“You’re injured,” I blurted.

“We already established that.” At something in my face, he shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. Leave it, Leda.”

“But it hurts. I can tell it does––”

“Not as much as this fucking hurts,” he growled.

He was yanking open the front of his shirt, working the buttons to get it off. I saw the gold collar he wore, but it looked inert again, not how it looked when I saw it hurting him in my dreams. When I reached for him, he took another step back when it seemed like I might get in the way of him undressing. Some part of me rationalized he was moving fine, that it was his choice, not mine, and then I stepped back, too.

I yanked the long-sleeved blouse I’d been wearing over my head.

I hadn’t really thought about what I had on underneath, but Bones let out a heavy groan as I finished pulling it off. I remembered I hadn’t worn a bra, that I’d just thrown on the softest thing I could find when I got out of the shower earlier.

I held his gaze as I writhed out of the leggings next, and Bones caught ahold of me, his shirt open now, his belt undone. He brought me roughly to the bed.

He was lying on me then, pressing down his weight.

He kissed me again, and groaned when he maneuvered his hips between my legs.