Elias paced the scorched circle of his dorm room, hair a mess, shirt clinging to his skin with nervous sweat, and voice one breath away from a full-on breakdown.
Rael'Zhar, meanwhile, lounged naked on his bed. Legs wide. Arms behind his head. Golden skin glowing in the candlelight. Not a single ounce of shame on that smug, arrogant, delicious face.
"You need clothes," Elias snapped, not looking at him. Couldn't. Wouldn't.
Rael'Zhar yawned like a lion. "I had them. Then the summoning burned them off. And I don't like your mortal fabrics. They itch."
"You can't just—just sit there with your—your—!"
"My what?" Rael'Zhar drawled, voice dripping with amusement. "My thighs? My chest? My cock?"
Elias made a strangled noise in the back of his throat. "You're doing this on purpose."
"Oh, very much."
Rael'Zhar stood slowly, muscles rolling under smooth golden skin. Each movement deliberate. Controlled. Predatory.
Elias backed up until he hit the bookshelf, eyes locked on the demon as he stalked closer.
"You're a guest," Elias managed. "A very, very temporary guest."
Rael'Zhar chuckled darkly. "I'm not a guest, sweetheart. I'm bound to you. Magic, blood, soul. Your energy pulses through me. Your heart? I hear it like thunder. Your scent? Addictive."
He was in front of Elias now. Too close.
Too warm.
Elias couldn't breathe. Couldn't think. Every part of his body tingled like static lightning was trapped beneath his skin.
"Look at you," Rael'Zhar whispered. "So tense. So cute. Are you scared of me?"
Elias shook his head, barely.
"Liar."
Rael'Zhar reached out, one clawed finger tracing the line of Elias's jaw. His skin shivered.
Then down.
Neck.
Chest.
Right over the spot where the summoning mark pulsed, faint and red, like a second heartbeat.
"You're burning," Rael'Zhar murmured. "So much power. So much need."
"I'm not needy," Elias snapped, voice breathless.
Rael'Zhar's hand dropped lower. Just above the waistband of Elias's pants. Not touching, but so damn close.
"You're flushed. Trembling. Half-hard and trying to pretend you're not."
Elias hissed through his teeth, head tipping back against the wall.
"You want to know what it feels like?" Rael'Zhar whispered into his ear. "To be touched by a being who knows everything about how to ruin you—in the best way?"
"I—this is—this is insane—"
"Say the word," Rael'Zhar murmured. "Just one."
His lips brushed Elias's throat, fangs grazing skin without piercing.
Elias could feel the heat in his stomach coil tight.
His mouth opened. But what came out was—
"Get dressed."
Rael'Zhar stilled. Then threw his head back and laughed, deep and throaty and full of smoke.
"Oh, Elias," he said, finally stepping back. "I think I'm going to enjoy breaking that stubborn streak."
"You won't."
"Won't I?"
Rael'Zhar winked, sauntering toward the closet like he owned the room, the world, and Elias's sanity.
He pulled on Elias's robe—too small, too tight on that chest—and smirked when Elias choked on his own tongue.
"Better?" Rael'Zhar teased.
"Not even a little," Elias muttered, cheeks flaming.
Too late. The image was burned into his brain now.