It didn't work. She panted. Her lips parted and cries left her as he thrust a finger inside her, not gently but in a powerful push. In and out he worked his finger until she felt his breathing grow loud and heavy against her shoulder where his teeth pinned her. Then he growled, the sound reverberating through her pores and down to her clitoris, and his fingers swirled fast and hard around her clitoris. In a flash everything tightened to an unbearable point inside her. A fire roared in her blood, through her veins and she screamed a hoarse, raw sound as everything released in a hot, wet rush from inside her.

He came at her then. As if with her release done he could finally take her how he wanted. She was pushed to her hands and knees, had only a second to comprehend his cock nudging her unused entrance, and then his hands held her shoulders to keep her in place and he thrust in.

A cry left her, a mixture of shock, pain, and pleasure. He groaned harshly and started thrusting through her tight muscles, his hips slapping against her bottom with each dive. She felt stretched and so full; the sensation felt maddeningly wonderful. She panted, her mouth unable to stay closed. His hands went everywhere as if trying to touch her all at once. He cupped her breasts, plucked at her nipples, squeezed her bottom, and pressed kissed across her shoulders and down her spine as he worked his hard length in and out of her.

It felt too good. The initial sharp pain was fleeting and all she felt was a raw earthy passion inside her; it felt so right. He bumped repeatedly against something inside her that pulled her tighter, hotter, made her burn.

“You are mine, Ari.” Now his deep voice sent pleasure blooming in her belly. Or maybe it was just his words, she didn't know. “Take me,” he growled.

He pushed her shoulders down to the floor. She went, so low her hard nipples scraped back and forth across the rug with each pounding thrust he gave her. It felt completely wicked, so unladylike, but incredible. She wanted to do this every day for the rest of her life so long as it felt like this.

One hand clasped her hair in his hand and kept her down so her bottom was raised for him. His free hand curled around her waist, squeezing tighter and tighter as his thrusts landed harder...faster.

The deep ball of need in her belly unfurled, unraveled, flew apart. She screamed as her entire body shattered into a million pieces. This sensation felt so different from the releases he gave her before. She could feel the difference. Could feel her sex squeezing around him, wetting him with a fresh gush of cream. He growled, the hand in her hair tightening, and then he pumped in one last time and a wet, hot sensation burst inside her. He gave her his release. She found her hips writhing against his, wanting to take in all of it.

He pulled out as soon as he finished and it took all of her strength to turn around, her limbs falling loosely all around her, to look at him. He didn't meet her gaze. A chill went through her heated body.

“What's wrong?”

A slight jerk of his head and he stood, pulling on his clothes in hard jabs. She felt as though a bucket of ice water had been dropped on her. Her chest pulled incredibly tight like a cord being wound. The urge to cry crept up on her.

“What's wrong, Alrik?”

“Look at me!” His shout made her jerk hard.

“I-I am.”

He looked at his hand then curled it into a fist and punched the bedpost. The frame cracked and fell to the floor with a loud groan.

His lips fell into a flat line, his expression one of defeat, then he looked her in the eyes. “Tell me what they look like?”

“Does what look like, Alrik?”

“My eyes!” he shouted.

She flinched, her lips trembling. “B-black. They're black.” Tears escaped seemingly out of nowhere, but she had so many emotions running inside her, they had to get away somehow.

He slowly shook his head then finished pulling n his boots. Some awful, panicked feeling filled her. It felt so unlike anything she'd felt before. As if she were about to lose something precious that she wasn't ready to let go of.

“Please let me help you.” The tears ran fast down her face.

He shook his head at her, the rawness in his troubled eyes piercing her. “You can't. No one can.” He left, leaving her huddled and crying.

The next day came and Lily started to feel claustrophobic in the cabin. Telal had taken his knife and managed to kill a squirrel and rabbit. He'd cooked it, but her stomach had seized up at the smell of the meat and she'd refused any food though he tried to make her eat.

Her arms wouldn't stop itching. The skin started to turn pink from her nails dragging up and down it. Even her scalp itched and she couldn't stop scratching it. She couldn't stop pacing, but after a few minutes, she'd grow weary of that, and have to sit down only to repeat the whole process all over again.

Telal came out of the shower, fresh and wearing some clothes he'd kept in his dresser. They looked good on him but different. She wasn't used to seeing him anything other than a suit—or maybe naked. He wore a black t-shirt fitted across his strong chest and pair of loose black pants, not the expensive looking kind either. He almost looked normal—except for his gold skin and blue hair.

She smiled at him and continued pacing, scratching her arms. “What's wrong?” he asked.

She pretended to be surprised. “Nothing, just sick of being holed up here.”

“It's only been a day.”

She shrugged, let him think what he will. He inhaled deeply then his arms stiffened. “The new moon is soon.” She shrugged again. That hadn't even been a thought in her mind. Not when she wanted to rip her hair out, run back to the hotel, and make her juice. God, she needed it.

“Is your magic back yet? Is it safe to leave?”

“For the twentieth time, no. My powers won't come for some time. Maybe even a week. That poison was strong and I got hit twice.” His eyes flicked over her then he grabbed her arm. She yanked it away but he cut her a warning look before he grabbed it again and studied it. “Why are you scratching yourself?”

“I need to get back to the hotel.” She knew she was whining but desperation held her in its grasp.

“You're not telling me the truth, Lily. Why are you acting like a strung out junky?”

She stiffened then jerked her arm out of his grasp. “Fuck you, I'm not a junky.” She marched away from him before she did something that'd get her in trouble—like punch him. She ended up sitting on the bed kicking her feet out up and down.

He came in a minute later, a dark look on his face. “I didn't call you a junky. I was making a reference. Why did you get so defensive?”

Shit. She hadn't even realized she'd messed up. Panicking, she kept her eyes trained on the floor and pretended she didn’t' hear him. This became hard to do when he stepped in front of her and she had to stop kicking her legs else start pelting him with her feet.

“What are you on, Lily? And do not lie to me.”

Lily wrapped her arms around herself and rocked back and forth. A part of her wanted to tell him, she did. To finally let someone know about her guilty secret, the one that had been eating away at her for almost a year. But what would he think of her then? A pathetic fool who had to resort to a homemade drug just to get on with life? No, thank you.

“I'm not on anything.” Technically true since her goods were currently in her apartment at Telal's.

Telal squatted down in front of her cupping her face in his strong hands. A part of her faltered, her defenses cracking at his sincere expression. The warmth of his eyes almost warmed her skin.

“Please tell me, Lily.” Her eyes teared up and before she knew it she launched herself into his arms sobbing, clinging to him for dear life. “God, Lily. What is it?” The concern in his voice almost did her in. Almost sent her into a level of sadness that would require at least two boxes of tissues to fix.