Chapter 118
As the door clicked closed, Lucien tried to make himself calm down. His heart was racing, and he was breathing heavily, and he could stop neither of those things as he turned to Elain, still clutching one of her hands tightly in his. He lifted the other hand, sliding it over her shoulder and pulling her to himself. Drawing a deep breath, Lucien took in Elain's floral scent hoping that she, and the lavender she washed her hair with, would soothe him. His hand moved down her back, pulling her more tightly to himself as he clutched at her, pressing his face into her hair. When Elain slid her hand from his and wrapped both of her arms around his neck, Lucien dropped both of his own hands to her waist, pressing closer.
"Mine…" the word was snarled, and Lucien heard it before he'd even been aware that it had come from him.
"Mhmm…" One of Elain's hands slid up the back of his neck into his hair, and Lucien began stroking the palms of his hands over the light linen material of the Day Court dress she was wearing. At the thought of the way the faeries in the throne room had been looking at Elain, a surge of possessiveness moved through Lucien and his hands began to move more quickly. He wanted to feel more of her, all of her, and he pulled her hips firmly against his own, letting her feel how hard he was. Elain made a surprised sound, and one of her hands grasped at his shoulder.
Unable to stop, Lucien ran his hands up Elain's sides, taking the short dress up as he did so. Her hand tightened on his shoulder and he paused. "Mine…" he breathed, fingers moving to drag up her thighs again as his lips moved to her forehead.
"Yes…" she murmured, gasping when his hands clutched more tightly at her, squeezing. He slid one hand between her thighs, pausing again at the sound she made. He didn't know what he was doing. Every instinct in him had been screaming at him to get her back here, where he could have her all to himself, and where nobody else would be looking at her or able to touch her. Nobody but him. He had his hands on her now, and he wanted far more. He wasn't about to just throw her on the floor and do as he liked, however, and the mere thought of that pretty much set his blood alight in his veins. Lucien groaned. Just because he was worked up and feeling possessive didn't mean that Elain wanted that.
Lucien lifted his head enough to meet her dark eyes. He was still breathing heavily, and his hands were shaking with the effort it took to keep them still and not moving over every inch of her that he could reach. When Elain slid one of her hands down to rest over his heart, Lucien remembered that she could hear it and figured it must be pounding in her head as much as it was in his own. "Elain…" he breathed, still trying to force himself to breathe more easily.
Elain's brown eyes moved across his face and she lifted the hand from his chest to his cheek a moment later. Lucien forced his own hands to remain still on her back. This was worse than that first time he'd been struck by this that night she had walked in on him in the kitchen in the dark when he had first returned to Velaris. Just being able to hold her had been enough then. It wasn't now.
He was trembling. Elain could feel Lucien's hands shaking, pressed against her back, and she could feel him quivering beneath her own hands. The tension in him was evident as he was so very clearly struggling to keep himself under control. She could hear his rapid, ragged, breathing, see the muscles in his face and throat working as he kept himself in check.
Need was slamming repeatedly into her down the bond, as well as the constant sense of MINE. She knew that he was desperately trying to stop himself from whatever it was he was being driven to do, and the possessive way he had held her since he had first gotten his hands on her in the throne room told Elain exactly what that was going to be. He was waiting for her decision though. She could feel that in the way he was forcing himself to remain still, and the way his eyes were locked on hers. If she told him 'no', she knew that he would listen. It would be extremely difficult, but she knew that he would heed her. Elain trusted that; trusted him.
Going up on her toes, she pressed her lips gently to Lucien's, meeting his eyes again when she went back down. She saw the instant that he realised she was giving him permission to stop restraining himself and then his hands were tight on her hips as he backed her across the room, his eyes not leaving hers for an instant.
When Elain's back hit the wall, she gasped. Lucien bent, his hands sliding down her thighs, before he lifted her from the floor and helped her wrap her legs around his waist. His hands were possessive once more as they moved back up over her, one moving over her ribs while the other came up to her throat. When his mouth crashed down over hers a instant later, Elain tightened her arms around his neck as he held her pinned to the wall with his own body. The hand from her ribs had slid down and she could feel him fiddling with his own pants as his hot kiss moved across her cheek.
Mine…" he breathed in her ear, and Elain could barely hear him over the sound of his thundering heart. "Mate…"
"Yes…"
Lucien's only response was to shift the short dress she was still wearing out of his way, and then he was inside of her. Elain gave a cry, her hands clutching at his shoulders and back, as Lucien slowed for a moment, his own hands moving firmly over her as if still trying to touch every part of her he possibly could. Flashes of the throne room reached Elain down the bond then, and she saw images of Helion touching her shoulder, and masses of faerie faces looking their way. A snarl ripped out of Lucien at that, and she felt a trickle of anger that followed. His hold on her tightened and then he thrust up into her and she was unable to bite back another cry. He followed that thrust with another and Elain's fingernails scratched at the jacket he still wore. A feral snarl was still coming from him and Elain whimpered when he thrust again, slipping into a smooth rhythm.
Closing her eyes, Elain clutched desperately at Lucien's shoulders, trying to steady herself as he held her in place, still snarling as he fucked her against the wall. His hands continued to move over her, possessive and searching, as if still trying to reassure himself of something, but Elain didn't know what. Lucien continued in this manner for quite a while, and then his rhythm shifted and Elain groaned. He moved again and she opened her eyes when one of his hands took hold of her face. Russet and gold eyes met hers and she found Lucien's face mere inches from her own. He held her gaze as he continued to thrust in to her, holding her face still to ensure she wouldn't look away, and Elain's breath began to catch in her throat. There was fire in his russet eye, and a soft grunt behind every one of his movements.
Mine. Mine. Mine. The word continued to reach Elain down the bond over and over, matching itself to Lucien's movements inside of her, and she found herself chanting the word in her own mind.
"Lucien…" she whimpered his name and his lips met hers in response. She just clung to him, her fingernails still scratching at his coat as she gasped into his kiss, her breath escaping her. Her own edge was close, and she could feel that Lucien's was as well. His hand remained on her face, holding her where he could maintain his view of her face, his eyes remaining on hers as he continued to push her toward that edge, still firmly against the wall.