Chapter 356: The Unlucky Patrol

Cherion’s head was swimming, but for once, it had absolutely nothing to do with royal politics, court conspiracies, or poisoners hiding in the palace.

In theory, leaning against a freezing stone pillar should have cooled Cherion down. In reality, Zarius was radiating heat like a freshly stoked furnace, rendering the marble utterly useless. Cherion’s fingers were tangled tight in the fabric of Zarius’s heavy collar, dragging him down, but Zarius didn’t need much persuading. The moment Cherion’s mouth met his again, any lingering restraint Zarius had been clinging to completely shattered.

It wasn’t a noble, textbook kiss. It was messy, heavy, and entirely shameless, filled with a sharp, needy edge that sucked every last drop of air right out of Cherion’s lungs.

Cherion knew he should have been the responsible one here. He knew Zarius’s affliction was making him reckless, and he knew his own magic was the only thing keeping Zarius grounded. But looking at Zarius’s desperate eyes, Cherion couldn’t bring himself to care about the risk.

Cherion was completely helpless against him, and Zarius clearly knew it. Zarius let out a low, needy groan against his mouth, and Cherion’s brain officially threw in the towel. The vibration sent a dizzying shiver straight down his spine, only made worse, or better, when Zarius slid a hand down to his waist and yanked Cherion flush against his chest, completely erasing the concept of personal space.

Knowing they were completely exposed in the middle of the hallway, Zarius didn’t even bother breaking the kiss. Instead, he blindly snagged a fistful of heavy velvet drapery and backed Cherion right behind the massive window curtains, wrapping them both in a dark, quiet little world shielded from the main corridor.

Tucking themselves into the shadows didn’t fix the problem, it just made everything ten times worse. Zarius slanted his head, deepening the kiss until Cherion’s knees gave out entirely. His tongue slid past Cherion’s parted lips, hot, heavy, and drinking him in like a man dying of thirst. Every touch felt ridiculously electric, a feverish rush of heat that wiped Cherion’s brain clean of any remaining sanity.

Zarius caught Cherion’s lower lip between his teeth, giving a sharp, feverish nip before sucking at it with a low, ragged sound that vibrated right against Cherion’s skin. Cherion gasped, a soft, helpless moan slipping out of his throat straight into Zarius’s mouth.

When Zarius finally gave him an inch of space, it barely helped. His breath was scalding hot against Cherion’s flushed lips, his eyes completely heavy and glazed over with a dizzying, dangerous haze that made Cherion want to pull him right back in.

"You’re driving me insane, Cherion," Zarius murmured, his voice a low, gravelly rasp against Cherion’s ear. He pressed a slow, lingering kiss to the sensitive turn of Cherion’s jaw, his thumb stroking the heat on Cherion’s cheek. "I can’t get enough of you... and you’re making it impossible to think about anything else."

Cherion’s pulse hammered wildly against his ribs. "Zarius... wait..." Cherion panted, his hands trembling where they clutched Zarius’s broad shoulders. "We shouldn’t... not here..."

"Then stop giving me so much," Zarius whispered against his skin, sliding his hand beneath the edge of Cherion’s tunic to press his bare palm against Cherion’s waist, searing him right through the skin. "Every time you touch me like this, I want to tear this entire palace down just to stay inside you."

A shiver ran straight down Cherion’s spine. Logically, he knew how insane this was. They were supposed to be making it back to their bedroom, where they could slam the door shut, turn the bolt, and rip each other’s clothes off without having to worry about being caught. They were supposed to devour each other properly, not fumble around like desperate teenagers in a public hallway.

He should push him off. He should tell him to wait two minutes until they got inside their room.

Except Zarius’s thumb was tracing the line of Cherion’s jaw, his grip on Cherion’s waist so possessive, so deliciously tight, that Cherion couldn’t bring himself to stop it. He didn’t want it to stop. Not for a single second.

"Zero patience," Cherion breathed, his voice thick with a sudden, breathless surrender.

Cherion reached up, snagged Zarius by the collar, and pulled him right back down into another deep, devouring kiss.

A low, chest-rattling hum vibrated right against Cherion’s lips as Zarius claimed his mouth all over again, a slick, heavy slide of lips and tongue that robbed Cherion of his last remaining shred of oxygen.

Then came the one sound guaranteed to ruin everything, heavy, metallic footsteps echoing around the bend. Cherion’s eyes snapped open, his heart slamming into his ribs as reality crashed back in with the force of a runaway carriage.

"Hey! What are you two doing over th..." a young imperial guard began, his voice laced with strict authority as he stepped toward closer to the curtain.

The guard stopped dead in his tracks.

The guard paused, catching the faint, wet sound of a desperate, breathless kiss muffling against the thick fabric. The curtain did its job keeping them hidden, but it didn’t do a damn thing for noise control. Behind the curtain, Cherion held his breath as a low, stifled gasp slipped out, Zarius’s fingers digging tight into his hip to pin him dead still against the wall.

In a wave of sheer panic, Cherion pinched the edge of the heavy curtain and pulled it back a fraction of an inch to peek into the hall.

Two guards had come to an abrupt, screeching halt outside. One of them was staring straight at the swaying curtain with wide, horrified eyes, the color draining from his face as he clearly put two and two together after hearing Cherion’s gasp.

"I.... uh...." the first guard squeaked, his voice cracking horribly. He slammed his eyes shut, took a rigid, clumsy step backward, and immediately spun on his heel. "Right! Patrol path... seems like we haven’t gone down this hall yet! No! Moving along!"

The second guard didn’t even bother talking. He just grabbed his partner’s arm, gave a terrified nod toward the swaying curtain, and practically hauled him down the corridor at a full sprint. Cherion slumped against the stone wall behind the curtain, burying his burning face directly into Zarius’s chest, wishing the floor would open up and swallow him whole.

The heavy armor clanked frantically down the hall as the guard practically ran away in the direction he had just come from.

Cherion pulled back slightly, his lips swollen, wet, and bright red, his chest heaving as he stared at the empty corridor in disbelief.

"See?" Cherion whispered frantically, a flustered, breathless laugh escaping him as his hands pushed lightly against Zarius’s chest. "I told you! Someone caught us!"

"They’re gone now," Zarius grunted softly, not caring in the slightest.

Before Cherion could argue further, Zarius hooked his arm firmly under Cherion’s thighs, lifting Cherion up until his hips were hoisted right against Zarius’s waist, forcing Cherion to wrap his legs around him for support.

Cherion let out a soft gasp as Zarius pinned him against the stone wall, captured his mouth again in a relentless, breathless kiss, and dragged him deeper into the cramped space behind the heavy velvet curtain.