The mark didn't fade.
In fact, it was like it was burning brighter each day. It seemed to pulse with its own life, its power weaving into my skin. I couldn't escape it, no matter how hard I tried. It felt like the mark was part of me now—part of my magic, part of my soul.
Wyll had noticed it too.
He kept looking at me with suspicion, eyes narrowed. At first, he tried to act like everything was normal, but the tension between us was palpable. And the more I tried to distance myself from the demon, the more my body betrayed me. It wanted him. It craved him.
Rael'Zhar was becoming a presence in my every thought, like a shadow that followed me, even when he wasn't physically there. I'd never felt this pulled by someone, not even when I was with other people back at the academy. It was different. It was darker.
And yet, I couldn't help but want it.
I was sitting in the library late one night, the silence suffocating, when I felt it—the pull. It was like an invisible thread tugging me toward the entrance.
I stood up, almost on instinct, and walked toward the door. As I passed the last row of bookshelves, I heard it—a soft chuckle, low and teasing. My heart skipped a beat.
"There you are," Rael'Zhar's voice whispered, like velvet wrapped in dark promises.
I froze. His voice was all around me, as if he was inside my head, inside my very skin.
"I'm here," I said, though my voice barely sounded like my own. The tension in the air was thick with magic. Dangerous. Sexy. "What do you want, Rael'Zhar?"
"I don't want anything," he replied smoothly. "Not yet."
I felt him before I saw him. His presence flooded the room, filling the space with a smoldering heat. And then he was there—leaning casually against the bookshelf, his tall, muscular frame almost too much for the room to contain.
"I think you do," he murmured, eyes glinting in the low light. His gaze raked over me, not just seeing, but claiming every part of me.
I shook my head, trying to push away the mounting heat that coiled in my gut. "No. I don't need you. This—this mark—it's a mistake."
He stepped closer, too close. His scent filled my senses—something heady, almost intoxicating, like smoke and spice.
"Is it a mistake?" he asked, tilting his head. "You're lying. I can feel the way you want me, Elias. You can't pretend anymore."
I looked up at him, his tall form looming over me, the dangerous tension in the air palpable. My magic throbbed in my chest, urging me forward, and my body seemed to betray me once again. My mouth was dry, my heart racing.
Rael'Zhar grinned, stepping even closer, his breath warm against my skin. "You're scared of this, aren't you? But that's what makes it fun."
"I don't know what you want from me," I managed to say, my voice trembling.
He placed his hand on my chest, right over the mark, and I couldn't hold back the gasp that escaped my lips. His touch was electric, and the pulse of the mark was now matching the rhythm of my heartbeat.
"I want you," he said, his voice thick with desire. "I want to claim you, Elias. I want you to be mine."
My pulse quickened at his words, a mix of fear and desire swirling inside me. His hand slid lower, fingers brushing against my stomach. I couldn't breathe. The heat between us was suffocating, overwhelming.
"Stop…" I whispered, though I didn't mean it.
But Rael'Zhar didn't stop. He leaned down, his lips brushing against my neck. "Say you want it. Say you want me."
The world blurred around me. Everything became heavy, intoxicating. I couldn't think. All I could feel was the pull of his magic, the fire in my veins, the aching need that was quickly consuming me.
"I want you," I breathed, the words escaping before I could stop them. And then, his lips claimed mine.
It was a kiss that burned through every layer of my restraint. Hot. Demanding. His tongue was sharp, exploring, a force that invaded my mouth and made my knees weak. I kissed him back, unable to stop myself, my body reacting before my mind could catch up.
Rael'Zhar's hands roamed lower, tracing the lines of my body, testing me. He knew I wanted him. He knew I couldn't stop myself.
And just as I was about to give in completely, his touch stopped.
I gasped, pulling back, and he smirked.
"Not yet, Elias. Not yet," he whispered, his lips barely brushing mine. "You're not ready for all of me."
I was panting, my chest heaving. I wanted him so badly, but part of me was still fighting. I wasn't ready to surrender everything. Not yet.
But Rael'Zhar was patient.
And he knew he had me.