The chamber was quiet, save for the sound of Ariana's shallow breathing and the thunder of her heartbeat. The cold air kissed her bare shoulders, but the heat from Damian's body swallowed her whole.
He hovered over her, muscles tense, eyes dark with something between restraint and hunger. His hand cupped her cheek with surprising gentleness.
"You don't understand what I become when I lose control," he murmured, voice deep and ragged.
"Then lose it," Ariana whispered.
That broke him.
His lips crashed into hers with raw, bruising need. The kiss was possessive — not tender — like he'd been starving for her and couldn't afford to be soft anymore. His hands explored her body like it belonged to him, like he had the right to take and take and take.
Clothes melted away between them, tossed carelessly to the floor. Ariana's back arched under his touch, her body trembling beneath his heated gaze.
"Say it," he growled, mouth trailing fire along her jaw.
"Say what?"
"That you're mine."
She didn't say it — not with words.
She said it when she pulled him closer.
She said it when she wrapped her legs around his waist, baring herself completely.
She said it when she gasped his name as he entered her, slow, deep, and full of intent.
Damian moved with barely restrained power, his forehead pressed against hers, his breath uneven. It wasn't just about desire anymore. It was about claiming something that had already broken him.
Ariana matched his rhythm, her hands clutching his shoulders, nails digging into skin. Every breath, every movement, every tremor in her body begged him not to stop.
And he didn't.
He lost himself in her — and found something terrifying in return.
When it was over, they lay entangled in silence, their bodies slick with sweat, their hearts beating in the same, unsteady rhythm.
He brushed a lock of hair from her cheek.
"I warned you," Damian whispered. "There's no going back now."
Ariana closed her eyes.
Because she already knew…
She didn't want to.