Chapter 13

I knew that. She had always been mine.

My hands roamed over her body, feeling every curve, every soft plane of her skin, but it was Luxuria I saw in my mind. It was her body I imagined beneath me, her voice I wanted to hear, pleading for more.

Her breath quickened, her chest rising and falling in rapid succession as I pressed my body against hers, pinning her to the wall. Her heart raced beneath my palm as I gripped her throat, feeling her pulse quicken under my hand.

The beast stirred inside me, hungry, insatiable. My fingers tangled in her long, dark hair, tugging it back roughly, exposing the curve of her neck.

Her skin flushed beneath my grip, and I could feel her body trembling, but it wasn't fear. It was anticipation. Shikta lived for this, for the darkness I unleashed on her when the beast inside me couldn't be controlled.

I gripped her hips and pulled her roughly against me, my teeth grazing the side of her neck. The scent of her skin—warm, heady—mixed with the hunger that had been building inside me, driving me closer to the edge.

I slid my hand down her back, feeling every curve of her body, before grabbing the hem of her dress and yanking it up roughly, exposing the softness of her thighs. Shikta gasped, her breath hitching as I pressed my fingers against her inner thighs, teasing and testing her patience.

She arched her back, pressing herself harder against me, her hands flat against the stone wall as I slipped my fingers between her folds, feeling the warmth and wetness that awaited me. She moaned softly, her body pliant, yielding to me completely. She wanted to be taken—needed to be taken.

I growled again, my breath ragged as I slid my hand up her thigh, parting them, and positioned myself in between.

My fingers dug into her skin, pulling her closer. She gasped as she felt my hard erection pressed against her.

I didn't have the luxury of time to tease her further. I entered her with a hard, urgent thrust.

She cried out, her fingers curling against the stone wall as I claimed her, pushing deep inside her with a roughness that had been building for days.

I know she'd be surprised at this new side of me, but I didn't care right now. All that mattered was letting out this heat that had threatened to consume me.

Her body trembled against mine, her breath coming in ragged gasps as I thrust into her, the sound of flesh meeting flesh filling the chamber. Her moans mixed with the echoes of my own growls as I took her harder, faster, letting the beast in me have its way with her.

Her legs grew so weak under my rough thrusts that they almost gave way. I held her firmly to the spot.

She tried to turn her pleading gaze to meet mine, but I didn't let her. I hardly ever fucked her from the front. It's always from the back, and she was the only one amongst my mistresses that ever had the privilege of knowing what it feels like to be fucked by me while staring me in the eyes...

But Luxuria made me break that rule on the night I met her. Shikta doesn't know this yet. The thought of her having the upper hand among other mistresses made her feel invincible, and I intend to let it remain that way for now.

Even as I pounded into her right now, my hands gripping her hips with bruising force, it wasn't her I saw. It was Luxuria. It was her soft, white curls I imagined tangled around my fingers. It was her sapphire eyes I wanted to see wide with desire, her lips parting in a whispered plea.

Shikta's moans grew louder, her body arching and pressing harder against mine, urging me to take her deeper, but the satisfaction was hollow. No matter how many times I thrust into her, no matter how loudly she cried out, it wasn't enough.

I reached my climax. This would be the first time I'd reach my climax in such a short period.

I poured my warm seeds into her with one final thrust before I pulled out abruptly, letting her collapse to the floor on her knees, her breaths coming out in short, ragged gasps.

But she couldn't hide the disappointment in her eyes. The shock. The panic. She'd never seen me like this, never felt me so detached. She didn't need to say a word; her expression said it all.

I could feel her gaze burning into me, confusion and panic swirling in the depths of her wide eyes as she looked up from where she knelt, trying to make sense of what had just transpired. Her lips parted as if she were about to speak, to question me, but the words never came.

I didn't give her the time to ask, "Leave." The command came out colder than I intended, but I didn't care.

I didn't want to see her, to feel her disappointment any longer. I had gotten what I needed from her, yet it hadn't been enough.

It never would be.