The next three days blurred into a whirlwind of steel, strategy, and sin at Draven Estate.
Mornings began in the underground training halls.
Selene, dressed in tight black combat gear that hugged every curve, sparred with Viktor under the watchful eye of Darius Vale.
Her reflexes had sharpened dramatically thanks to the mate bond faster strikes, stronger blocks, the ability to sense movement before it happened.
But Viktor never made it easy.
Again, he commanded after disarming her for the fourth time that morning.
Sweat glistened on her skin, the cropped top clinging to her breasts, nipples visibly hard beneath the fabric.
Selene lunged.
Viktor caught her wrist, spun her around, and pinned her face-first against the padded wall.
His hard body pressed into her back, thick cock already straining against his pants and grinding against her ass.
Distraction is death, he growled, yanking her leggings down just enough to expose her.
Two fingers plunged into her soaked pussy without warning.
You’re dripping again, my queen.
Does fighting me make you this wet?
Selene moaned, pushing back onto his hand.
Yes, fuck—yes.
He finger-fucked her hard and fast until she came with a sharp cry, walls clenching around his digits.
Only then did he free his massive cock and thrust into her from behind in one brutal stroke.
He fucked her against the wall with punishing snaps of his hips, one hand fisting her hair, the other rubbing her clit.
Come again while you hold the blade, he ordered, pressing the practice knife back into her palm.
Selene came screaming, orgasm ripping through her as she tried to keep her grip.
Viktor followed with a deep groan, flooding her with hot pulses of cum while his fangs sank into her shoulder.
Training always ended like this, raw, sweaty, possessive fucking that left her marked and leaking his seed.
Afternoons were spent in the war room.
Maps of Carpathian territories covered the long obsidian table.
Loyal clan leaders joined via secure video links while Darius coordinated weapons shipments and human mercenaries.
Selene sat at Viktor’s right, learning the intricate web of alliances, old blood feuds, and financial empires that underpinned his rule.
One evening, as the sun set, Viktor pulled her onto his lap during a strategy meeting.
While Darius briefed the room on Volkov troop movements near the northern border, Viktor’s hand slipped beneath her skirt.
Selene bit her lip bloody trying to stay silent, eventually coming with a muffled whimper against his shoulder as the meeting continued around them.
Nights belonged entirely to them.
In the tower bedroom, Viktor worshipped her for hours.
Tonight was no exception.
He had her tied spread-eagle to the four-poster bed with velvet ropes, completely naked under the moonlight streaming through the windows.
Selene’s body glistened with a light sheen of sweat, bite marks decorating her breasts, throat, and inner thighs like dark jewels.
Viktor knelt between her spread legs, his tongue lapping slowly at her dripping pussy.
You taste even sweeter when you’re full of my cum from earlier, he murmured, sucking her clit gently between his lips.
Selene arched, wrists tugging at the restraints.
Viktor… please… I need your cock.
Not yet.
He pushed three fingers inside her, curling them expertly while his mouth worked her swollen nub.
He brought her to the edge twice, backing off each time until she was sobbing with need.
Only when she was begging incoherently did he climb up her body and sink his thick cock into her in one deep thrust.
The stretch was perfect, filling every inch of her.
He fucked her slow and deep at first, grinding against her clit with every roll of his hips.
Look at me, he commanded.
Their eyes locked as he gradually increased his pace, pounding into her harder, the bed shaking beneath them.
Selene’s breasts bounced with every thrust.
Viktor leaned down, capturing one nipple in his mouth and biting just hard enough to draw a thin line of blood.
He drank from her while he fucked her, the dual sensation sending her spiraling into a shattering orgasm.
He didn’t stop.
He released her wrists only to flip her onto her stomach, yanking her hips up and driving back inside her from behind.
One hand fisted her hair, the other slapped her ass in sharp, stinging smacks that made her moan louder.
“Mine,” he snarled with every thrust.
My mate.
No Volkov will ever touch what belongs to me.
Selene came again, screaming into the pillow as her walls milked him rhythmically.
Viktor buried his fangs in the back of her neck and followed, flooding her with thick ropes of cool seed until it overflowed and dripped down her thighs.
They collapsed together, Viktor pulling her into his arms and licking the fresh bites closed with gentle strokes of his tongue.
As they lay tangled in sweat and silk, a sharp knock sounded at the heavy door.
Darius’s voice carried through, urgent.
My king.
Scouts report movement on the northern border.
Volkov forces, armed with silver ammunition and daylight gear for their human mercenaries.
They’re testing the outer wards.
It’s beginning.
Viktor’s body tensed, but his hand continued stroking Selene’s hair.
“How long?”
Two days at most before they reach striking distance.
They’re moving fast.
Selene sat up, heart pounding but voice steady.
Then we fight.
I’m ready.
Viktor looked at her with fierce pride, his fingers tracing the fresh bite mark on her neck.
You are.
Tomorrow we move the council to the estate and fortify.
Tonight… He rolled her beneath him again, cock already hardening against her thigh.
Tonight I remind you exactly why you’re worth every drop of blood that will be spilled.
He thrust back into her slowly, claiming her once more with deep, possessive strokes.
Outside the tower, the night wind carried the distant howl of wolves and the metallic scent of approaching war.
The Volkov clan had finally declared open conflict.
But in the arms of her vampire king, Selene felt no fear, only power, pleasure, and the burning certainty that she would stand beside him until the end.
Whatever the cost.