Chapter 192

Chapter 192: Chapter 192

Lysander’s pov

"Do what?" I purred, letting my palms slide smoothly up his chest, feeling the thunderous rhythm of his heart beneath my fingers.

"Touch the man who locked me in a cage? The man who built iron doors because he’s terrified of how much he still wants me?"

"You broke my trust," he growled low in his chest, though his hands twitched at his sides, his fingers clenching into tight fists as if he were fighting every instinct in his body not to pull me against him.

"And you locked me away to punish yourself as much as me," I countered, stepping right into his space until my chest brushed his.

I reached up, my fingers hooking gently into the lapels of his jacket, slowly dragging the dark fabric down his shoulders. The jacket fell to the floorboards with a quiet thud, leaving him in his thin linen shirt, exposing the hard, broad lines of his chest to my touch.

Drake gasped softly, his crimson eyes darkening to a deep, dangerous shade of wine as my fingers slid up his neck, my thumb lightly tracing the sharp line of his jaw.

"Let go of your pride, Drake," I whispered against his lips, my breath hot and sweet against his skin, my hips leaning subtly into his frame. "Just for a moment. Look at me... touch me... and tell me you don’t crave this as much as I do."

Drake went completely still, his chest rising and falling in short, ragged gasps as my touch melted through his cold armor, driving his sharp, unyielding pride straight to the edge of a cliff.

For three agonizing seconds, Drake didn’t breathe.

His crimson eyes burned down into mine, wild and dark, filled with a storm of furious betrayal, lingering pain, and an ancient, raw hunger that no iron door could ever contain.

My palms rested flat against his broad chest, feeling the violent, erratic thud of his heart hammering beneath the linen of his shirt.

Just like that, his cold control snapped.

A low, guttural growl tore from deep within his chest, a sound so primal and dark it vibrated straight through my marrow. Before I could draw breath, Drake’s large, warm hands shot out, wrapping around my waist with a fierce, possessive force that pulled me flush against his towering frame.

I let out a soft, breathless gasp as my chest slammed into his.

His grip was unyielding, crushing the distance between us until there was no air left to separate us. His right hand slid up my back, his fingers tangling tightly into the hair at the nape of my neck, tilting my head back with absolute, commanding ownership.

"You dangerous, maddening bird," Drake growled into my skin, his breath hot, ragged, and trembling against my jaw.

He didn’t give me time to answer. His mouth crashed down on mine with a dark, desperate intensity that stole the air right out of my lungs.

A ruthless, starving claim forged from weeks of cold distance, silent fury, and suffocating isolation. His lips pressed hot and hard against mine, demanding everything I had spent days withholding from him. I opened to him instantly, a soft moan breaking in my throat as my arms wrapped tightly around his neck, my fingers digging into his broad shoulders to hold myself up against his overwhelming heat.

The pureblood pressure in the room didn’t freeze us out anymore; it wrapped around us like a thick, insulating blanket, throbbing in rhythm with the violent beat of our hearts.

Drake backed me up with swift, unhurried strides until my thighs hit the edge of the low mattress. He didn’t let go of my waist for even a second. His thumb dragged up the column of my throat, tilting my face higher, his mouth sliding down to trace the sensitive line beneath my ear, nipping lightly at my skin until a sharp, sweet shudder coursed down my spine.

"Drake..." I gasped, my fingers tightening in his dark hair, my wolf blood humming with a frantic, desperate joy at the feel of his touch. "Drake, please..."

"You think you can break my walls so easily?" Drake whispered, his voice dark, raspy, and laced with a possessive fever that sent my pulse soaring. His hands slid beneath the hem of my loose linen tunic, his warm, rough palms pressing directly against the bare skin of my sides. "You think you can stand in this room, look at me with those dark eyes, and make me forget everything?"

"I don’t want you to forget," I rasped out, my chest heaving against his as his hands traveled down to rest gently, almost reverently over the subtle curve of my lower abdomen.

The moment his large, warm palms covered my core, the frantic edge of his aura smoothed out into a deep, protective thrum. His thumb stroked softly over my skin, feeling the quiet, miraculous pulse of life taking root within me.

Drake went completely still, his forehead dropping against mine, his short, ragged breaths fanning across my lips. His eyes fluttered shut for a brief fraction of a second, the formidable man melting away into a man completely undone by the creature in his arms.

"You are tearing me apart, Lysander," Drake murmured, his voice dropping into a low, raw whisper that held no pride, no coldness, and no armor. "I want to hate you for what you did... but I cannot stop my blood from answering yours."

I reached up, my hand gently cupping his sharp jawline, forcing him to open his eyes and look at me. "Then don’t fight it anymore. Stay here. Stay with me."

Drake looked down at my face, his crimson eyes clear and deep, his hand holding my stomach as if it were the most precious, fragile treasure in his domain.

The icy wall between us had crumbled to ash, leaving only the fierce, dangerous fire of a bond that refused to die but as soon as it crumbled, a new thick wall was built.

Drake shook his head and yanked me away, "No, this just proves you think you still have power over me. Get the fuck off me!"

He said it in a low tone and I immediately obeyed because his eyes had gone red, he hissed at me, "Don’t ever try this again." He warned.