Filed To Story: Between Two Kings: A Split or Swallow Book PDF Free
Despite herself, Tem knew he was right. And why, exactly, was she afraid? Did she fear something in Apollo, or did she fear something in herself? Which, ultimately, was worse? Tem had no idea anymore. Ever since she’d been under the mountain, her sense of morals and what was right had utterly changed. Basilisks didn’t act like humans. They lived by different rules here, prioritized different things. It was impossible to tell right from wrong anymore.
“I…” she whispered, struggling to form the words. “Don’t want to lose myself.”
She knew in her heart that Apollo meant her no harm. But that didn’t mean he was safe to be around. It didn’t mean that she was safe with him. He was dangerous in the same seductive way that all basilisks were dangerous. He was depraved in a way Caspen wasn’t; he allowed himself to walk the line of morality. If Tem allowed herself to walk that line too, she didn’t know where it would end. She didn’t want to stray from the path of light-didn’t want to become something she was not.
“I would not let you stray.”
Apollo’s words were quiet, and Tem was struck by the meaning of them. She’d never heard him say anything heartfelt and sincere like that before. But if she allowed herself to believe him-to indulge in the fantasy that he had her best interests at heart-she would make herself vulnerable. It wasn’t a risk she was willing to take. Before she could decide how to answer, the hairs on the back of Tem’s neck stood straight up. Someone else had entered the grotto.
Apollo also straightened, his eyes still on hers as he said, “Hello, Brother.”
Caspen was leaning against the mouth of the grotto. His arms were crossed, but he didn’t look angry. Instead, his pupils were wide, his eyes nearly as black as Apollo’s. Tem knew that look. Both brothers were turned on.
By her.
For a very real moment, Tem wondered what was about to happen next.
“What do have we here?” Caspen murmured.
“We were just talking,” Tem said.
“Talking,” he repeated, his voice low.
“Yes.”
She glanced at Apollo for backup. His eyes were trained on Caspen’s, his posture still stiff. Tem had no idea how to proceed. Of all the people in this cave, she hardly felt qualified to determine the course of events. Things were delicate between her and Caspen. Between petrifying with Apollo and the disastrous Sunday dinner, she had no idea where his mind was.
Both brothers stood silently, staring at each other. Tem was just considering breaking the silence when Caspen’s presence entered her mind, settling next to Apollo’s, as if they were both holding her skull in their hands. It was a strange sensation but not an unpleasant one. Tem’s mind accommodated theirs with ease, stretching to take both of them at once.
Then Caspen’s voice came to them, deep and languid in the darkness: Touch her.
For a moment, nobody moved.
Was Caspen testing her? Testing them? If so, why? Was this like when he ordered them to kiss the night Gabriel came under the mountain? Tem had disobeyed him that night. But now, a wave of possibility swept over her. They were sequestered in a grotto, where no one else could see them. Anything could happen in here. Anything would. The three of them were not bound by the conventions of human society-they didn’t need to adhere to the rules she’d been raised to revere. Here, things were different. Here, they were free.
She looked at Apollo, who was looking at her.
Temperance?
Just her name, nothing else.
Tem looked into his eyes-eyes that were now completely black-as he extended his hand, stopping just short of her hip. A pause. Both brothers stared at her, waiting. They were on a precipice with only Tem preventing them from falling. But what if she wanted to fall? Nothing bad could happen here tonight. Caspen would never let her get hurt, and neither would Apollo. No harm would come to her at the hands of the Drakon brothers. And if that were truly the case, that meant they were here for one thing only: pleasure.
So Tem said, Yes.
Just one word. Permission.
As soon as Tem granted it, Apollo reached for her. His fingers skimmed over her skin, tracing up the curve of her waist. Tem’s entire body erupted in goose bumps at the contact, and her nipples immediately hardened. Apollo raised his hand to meet them, brushing his palm over her breast. Tem bit her lip. The air of the grotto became so warm, she could feel the gold of her necklace singeing her skin. She was completely wet, and with both brothers in her mind, she knew they could tell.
Another command came from Caspen, this time for Tem:
Touch him.
Something inside her stirred at his words.
Part of Tem yearned to obey. Her basilisk side had wanted to touch Apollo for a long time, far longer than she cared to admit. But her human side still hesitated. Even as his hands moved up her body, wrapping gently around her neck so his thumbs were cradling her jaw, feeling her pulse. Still, she hesitated. What would it say about her if she touched him? If she were just a human, it would mean being unfaithful. But the man before her and the man commanding her weren’t human. They were basilisks. And everything was allowed here.
So Tem reached for Apollo.
When she was within an inch of his body she paused, waiting for Caspen to speak again. But he gave no more commands. Instead, a rush of desire bore down on her mind with such intensity that she winced. Caspen wanted her to do as she was told.
Good thing he’d told her to do something so tempting.
Tem’s fingers found purchase, brushing over Apollo’s impossibly warm skin. He held perfectly still as she touched him, pressing her palms flat against his torso. She slid her fingertips along the grooves of his abs, feeling every plane of muscle, noticing the way they shifted beneath her hands. Tem touched the great curve of his shoulders, sensing the unrestrained power in his body. He was truly an incredible man. Perhaps she hadn’t allowed herself to see it until now. But now that she had, she could notice nothing else. There was a small scar on his left bicep. She brushed over it gently. Then she trailed her fingers back to the center of his chest, noticing the way his breath hitched while she did it. As her hands went lower, desire grew ferociously in her mind. Tem couldn’t tell if it was Caspen’s or Apollo’s or her own. Ultimately it didn’t matter.
When she reached the base of his cock, she paused. The air, already warm, became sweltering. Smoke was seeping from Apollo’s skin and also from Tem’s. A hiss filled the grotto, and she knew it as Caspen. Without wasting another second, Tem wrapped her hand around Apollo’s cock. There was nothing more thrilling than holding this part of a man in her hand. It was pure adrenaline-pure power. Tem could snap him in half if she wanted to, right here and now. It didn’t matter that Caspen was the one giving orders. What happened next was entirely in her control.
Tem dragged a single finger down his shaft in an imitation of what she’d made him do in the banquet hall, watching the way his face changed as she did so. Apollo’s jaw clenched; his eyes fluttered shut. It was so easy with them, these brothers. To know one was to know the other. Tem knew what to do because Caspen had taught her but also because she felt an instinctive pull to Apollo in the same way she was drawn to his brother. Perhaps this was always meant to happen. Perhaps the three of them were always destined to end up in this grotto, the air on fire around them. It wasn’t surprising to Tem. It was nothing more than fate.
She stroked Apollo slowly, feeling the friction of his skin against hers. His cock was warmer, if it was even possible, than his torso had been. Obsession, desire, and deep-seated hunger surged from both brothers’ minds to hers. It was so overwhelming that Tem nearly dropped her hand. The moment the thought occurred to her, Apollo clasped his own hand over hers.
Do. Not. Stop.
Tem stared into his blackened eyes. He burned for her-craved her as a starving man craved his last meal. She wondered what it would take to feed him.
Without warning, the claw pulsed. Tem was so wet, she’d forgotten she was wearing it. Now it was the only thing she felt as Caspen sent a long, lingering vibration that throbbed in her center like a heartbeat. Apollo was still gripping her, guiding her motions, stroking himself with her hand. The two sensations combined made her so aroused that she let out a desperate whimper. At the sound, Apollo smiled.
Do that again.
Tem made the noise again, and this time, Apollo’s other hand went to her mouth, as if he could catch the sound. He brushed two fingers over her bottom lip. They weren’t kissing. But they may as well have been. Tem expected Caspen to approach-to intervene-to tell her they’d gone too far. Instead, he remained where he was, leaning against the grotto entrance as he dropped a single word into her mind:
Kneel.
Caspen gave no name, but Tem knew the command was for her.
To her surprise, every part of her wanted to follow it. Why shouldn’t she kneel before Apollo the way she’d knelt for Caspen? Why shouldn’t she bestow the same gifts upon his brother? It was only fair.
Without another thought, Tem knelt.
The brothers’ grip on her mind tightened as she lowered herself, digging deep into her brain, seeping into her until she was made up more of them than of herself. Tem was secure between them, nestled within their grasp. Before Caspen could give another command, Tem opened her mouth, and Apollo let out a sigh as her lips met his cock. He laced his fingers through the curls on either side of her face, holding her head in place. Slowly, keeping eye contact, he slid himself just an inch into her mouth before pulling back out. Then he pushed back in. This time Tem took him all the way down her throat; she knew how to do this now, and she knew how to make it feel good.
Again.
Tem couldn’t tell if the voice was Caspen’s or Apollo’s, or both. Perhaps it didn’t matter. Perhaps they were one and the same. Tem gave herself over to them without hesitation, trusting the two men to guide her. There was nothing more pleasurable than this, nothing more certain. She welcomed their direction knowing that it was her, ultimately, who held their focus.
All the way in, then all the way back out.
Tem arched her back, letting Apollo as far down her throat as possible. Twin waves of approval shot through her mind the moment she did so. She wanted to show them that she could do this-that she was willing to take direction-that she was capable of more. It was intoxicating to get their approval, to know she was pleasing them both. She wished she could touch Caspen too. The thought turned her on, and she touched her breasts, running her palms over them gently, matching the slow pace of Apollo’s thrusts.
Caspen’s approval burned in the back of her mind. He was still sending pulses, and they were getting stronger. None of them spoke anymore; Tem couldn’t have anyway. Their dalliance had moved beyond words. Pleasure was all that mattered now.
The grotto was so full of smoke, it was becoming difficult to see. So Tem closed her eyes. Instantly, all other sensations heightened. She felt the skim of smoke up her back, the wetness between her legs. The pulses were uncompromising; her clitoris throbbed. It took all her effort to stay kneeling-to stay still for Apollo. Sometimes he was in charge, sometimes Tem was. They took turns initiating the motions, ceding and exercising power at will.
She is extraordinary, is she not?
Caspen’s compliment was barely audible. Nothing more than a breath. Apollo’s response was similarly so.
That she is.
Tem’s wetness was dripping steadily onto the mossy grotto floor. The claw pulsed relentlessly, and Tem was reminded of Caspen’s power. He’d always had this control over her-and she’d always liked it. She remembered how he’d made her come at church, in broad daylight. Now, in the darkness of the grotto, she could submit to it without fear.