The Archer & the Flame (Whispers of the Night Ravens #1)

Chapter 24

Sunlight streamed into the room through a gap in the hastily drawn curtains, stirring me from my slumber. It had been a dreamless sleep, the type where exhaustion demanded that rest took priority, and it took a moment for me to remember where I was.

And who was with me.

Waking up next to Silas felt like the most natural thing in the world. He was already awake, stroking my head softly where it rested against his bare chest. During the night we’d drifted together, Silas holding me against him like he would never let me go. I cuddled into him, wanting to enjoy the moment of bliss for a little longer before facing reality.

He felt like home.

His bruises had faded significantly overnight to a yellow-green colour. They still marked his skin enough for me to want to march to Eirel on his behalf, but it was a rapid improvement from the previous evening. His healing was already underway, amplified by the returning power of his Blessing.

The worst was over.

When he noticed I was awake, his hand stilled. Our gazes locked, and I found myself drowning in the beauty of his emerald eyes, seeing into the depths of my soul without flinching.

“Have you been awake for long?” I asked. He brushed a strand of hair off my forehead, his touch sending shivers ghosting over my skin.

“I didn’t want to disturb you. You needed the rest,” he said.

“I did, but I feel better now.” I was almost back to normal, aside from a few lingering aches.

His hand trailed down my cheek, caressing it softly. My breath hitched.

Was he aware of the power he possessed over me, eliciting pleasure with the simplest of touches? Was it the same for him?

I traced one of his bruises with my finger, enjoying the relaxed smile it drew from him. My gentle exploration continued along his forearm, Silas’ eyes fluttering shut in response.

“I feared this had all been a dream, that I would wake up still a prisoner. I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve this slice of happiness with you, but I’m grateful for it all the same.”

I nuzzled into his neck, his scent washing over me. How did he make the inn’s cheap soap smell so good?

“You believed in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself,” I murmured against him. “You made me feel safe enough to trust again.”

“That will never change, I promise.” That mischievous hand of his blazed a trail across my collarbone, raising goosebumps in its wake. His touch was intoxicating, the anticipation of where he would tease next making heat rush to my skin. By the way his eyes burned as they followed the movement, the feeling was mutual.

My fingers flexed as they resisted the urge to touch him again, but I feared if I moved, the magic would break and this would all fall apart.

“I’ll always be here for you,” he murmured, his lips brushing my cheek.

I turned my head, greedy, wanting his mouth on mine. He groaned, deepening the kiss, his hand fisting in my hair.

The intensity of my feelings for him boiled over. I wanted to feel him anywhere, everywhere, all at once. Discover what he liked and what made him lose control. Watch, enraptured, as he entered me, finally joining us together as one.

I moaned. As my lips parted, Silas seized the opportunity to explore my mouth with his tongue, his teasing strokes making me melt against him.

His kiss tasted sweeter than moon wine and was far more addictive.

He devoured me as I clung to him, held captive by the sensations.

“Do you know how long I’ve been dreaming of this moment?” His thumb brushed my lip, his gaze fixated on my mouth. “I wanted you to be mine since the day you dragged a tree across half the forest to rescue me. I knew then I didn’t stand a chance.”

“You’ll have to try harder than that to have any claim over me,” I said, goading him.

I straddled him, pinning his body to the bed, careful to avoid the worst of his bruises. My nightgown rode up daringly to reveal my skin.

He grinned as if this had been his plan all along, gripping my hips.

“You already have my heart, but I will spend every day of my existence earning yours if I have to.”

I kissed him feverishly, my hands splayed on his warm chest. The growing hardness between his thighs pressed against me insistently, temptingly close. I was bare beneath my clothes and only the material of his trousers stood between us, the friction stoking my need until it was unbearable.

“And you already know I’m incredibly skilled,” he continued once his mouth was unoccupied.

I swatted him playfully. His fingers unravelled the fastenings of my nightgown until it was loose on my chest, exploring the cleavage that he’d exposed with tantalising caresses. I shivered, arching into his touch and grinding down onto him.

He moaned, the sound rumbling through me. “Fuck, Willow.”

His responsiveness only encouraged me, driving me to discover what other sounds I could elicit from him. I grinned, moving my hips again until he bucked against me, his thick length unyielding where our bodies met.

Silas’ eyes darkened, a dangerous expression on his face that made me want to push him further. “I didn’t realise we were playing dirty. That changes things.”

He flipped us, roughly ripping my nightgown over my head in a single move, drinking in every inch of exposed skin.

“You’re exquisite,” he said, not fire in his eyes this time, but pure longing.

Without warning, he took a nipple into his mouth, sucking and teasing me until I was incoherent with need. I couldn’t move, his body pressing me to the bed as he subjected me to his torment.

I felt every lick of his tongue like it was between my legs, wetness pooling there.

He was single-minded in his focus, determined to bring me pleasure like I’d never experienced before. I let out a sigh as his fingers toyed with my other breast, at his mercy. He took his sweet time, savouring me, in no hurry to take things further.

By his smirk, he knew exactly what effect he was having on me.

I squirmed against his hold, needing more than the excruciatingly slow torture.

“Patience,” he chastised. “I’ve had many sleepless nights envisioning what I’d do to you if I ever had the chance. Indulge my fantasies for a moment, won’t you?”

“Please,” I whimpered. My need was a powerful force that had me spinning out of control, twisting beneath him, desperate for friction, for any sense of relief. It did little to help, heightening my desire until it became overwhelming.

“Silas, I can’t take much more of this,” I panted as his mouth moved from my breast to nip at my neck.

“Good,” he said with a hint of smugness.

I wrestled for control over my mind, one thought cutting through the haze. I wanted to make him feel as wild and helpless as I did.

Resisting his attempts to keep me where I was, I cupped his cock through his trousers, giving it a light squeeze where it filled my hand. His fist clenched the bedsheets.

I smiled at him savagely. This was going to be fun.

“I already regret teasing you,” Silas said, his breath laboured.

My touch was feather light as I hooked my fingers into his waistband, rolling the trousers down his thighs. His impressive length jutted out proudly, a bead of pre-cum visible on the tip that I would’ve tasted if not for my desire to bring him to his knees.

I wanted him whimpering underneath me and begging for my touch, lost to pleasure as I had been. Removing his trousers completely, I trailed my hands up his toned legs, slowly, his skin hot beneath my fingers. As my thumbs kneaded his inner thighs, he groaned, the sound spurring me on.

My desire was unbearable. I wished for nothing more than for him to sink into me, filling me and satisfying my aching core, but I needed to bide my time. I traced teasing, light touches around him, deftly avoiding his attempts to push into my hands with a laugh. He was panting already, his body taut and shaking with need.

He was beautiful.

Silas’ hair was a mess, and the rest of him wasn’t much better. His cheeks were flushed, his eyes lidded with lust, and beads of sweat ran down his heaving chest. At every caress of my fingers on his skin, his head dropped back, his face contorted like he was in pain. But then his cock would twitch, his ruinous smile igniting me.

When my hand finally grasped him, hot and hard, he thrust into it involuntarily with a shudder of relief, moaning my name. I worked him mercilessly with fast strokes, swallowing his moans with a kiss that was all need.

He was getting close. There was no trace of the confident fae I knew left, only a writhing mess beneath me.

“Please,” he panted. “I need you so much.”

I’d been patient so far, but my iron resolve was breaking.

I hesitated, suddenly nervous. I’d been physically intimate before, but this was different. With Silas, it would change everything.

His eyes searched mine. “We can stop here if you need to.”

I shook my head. I didn’t think I could stop if I tried. “No, I want this. It’s just…I’ve never felt anything like this before.”

It was exhilarating and terrifying, everything I craved and feared at once.

“Me neither. I want forever with you, Willow. If you’ll have me,” Silas said with an intensity that matched my own.

It was another leap of faith, just like the one I’d taken with our bargain, but this time I leapt off the ledge, feet first.

“I want it all with you. Please.”

He pushed inside me at last, filling me in a way that would ruin me for anyone else. I moaned into his chest, my thighs wrapping around him as he fucked me. I was molten, surrendering myself completely to the need. Every stroke of him nearly undid me, too much and not enough, Silas pouring weeks of tension and longing into his thrusts.

We were united as one, claimed by each other.

His lips captured mine again, the kiss burning with his passion. I clawed his back desperately, and his pace only intensified until all I could do was hang on, lost to the pleasure.

Silas’ cock hit a spot inside me that made me see stars. I cried out, clenching around him. He laughed at the noises that came out of my mouth, finding that spot again and redoubling his efforts until I was trembling.

If I thought he would take pity on me, I was sorely mistaken.

He withdrew from me, leaving me feeling empty. The sensation was short-lived. He helped me to my knees until I was braced on all fours.

“Don’t you dare go easy on me,” I said, my voice husky.

“The thought never crossed my mind. I know you can handle it.” His hand stroked the curve of my rear as his cock teased my entrance.

He slammed into me, giving me no time to recover before he did it again. I gave myself over to the ecstasy, pushing back against him to meet every thrust. He was true to his word, giving me all he had, pounding me into oblivion, the bed squeaking beneath us.

I was burning alive, sure I would erupt if he kept up his relentless rhythm. His fingers dug into my hips, guiding my movements as he drove into me, my legs shaking.

When I couldn’t stand it any longer, Silas reached a hand between us, massaging my clit with an expert touch. I shattered, my climax crashing into me, pressing my face into my arm to muffle the sound of my scream. My body convulsed with the power of it, shockwaves of pleasure thrumming through me.

He gave me no respite, continuing to fuck me with slow, deep thrusts as I pulsed around him. It was a bliss like I’d never felt, and a sob came out of me.

When the sensations finally ceased, I wiggled out from underneath him, rolling so I could face Silas as his cock claimed me. He was devastatingly handsome, his eyes dazed and his lips swollen from kissing me.

This time when he pushed into me, it didn’t take long before I was close to the edge again, brought nearer by his ragged breath in my ear as I took him deeper, lifting my hips from the bed.

His thumb drew a circle around my clit, the extra pressure enough to destroy me.

I gasped with the force of my orgasm, Silas wearing a wicked grin as he watched me come apart on his cock.

“You are more beautiful than words can describe when you come for me. I can’t wait to watch you do it again and again until you beg for mercy.”

Soon, his movements became jerkier. I tilted his head towards me, the raw desperation in his gaze utterly captivating. As his eyes met mine, he groaned, his cock jerking as his release joined with mine.

Afterwards, I rested my head against his, content to stay there, but Silas had other ideas. He brushed my aching clit, and he plunged two fingers into me. I bucked against his touch, every sensation amplified by my sensitivity.

“I meant what I said,” he murmured, curving them inside me as he increased the pressure. “I could spend all day watching you come, but this will have to suffice.”

My release had me arching off the bed, Silas’ arms steadying me.

I could think of worse ways to spend the day.