The bath ended in silence.

His fingers had wrung every breath from your lungs, every name from your mind — until only his name trembled on your lips.

But he wasn’t done.

He dried you with velvet towels — slow, focused, like he was memorizing every inch of you. He didn’t speak. Just watched you, eyes glowing gold in the candlelight, as if waiting to see if you'd tremble.

You did.

The bed was already turned down. Sheets dark. Pillows like clouds. The whole room smelled like roses and him.

He guided you gently back, cradling your jaw as he laid you against the cool silk. He hovered — moonlight on his back, hair falling forward like pale curtains around your face.

“You're quiet,” he said softly, voice like dusk. “Still thinking about him?”

You shook your head. But he didn't smile.

He leaned down, brushing his lips to your collarbone. Then lower.

“Good,” he murmured, hand pressing to your hip. “I’ll make sure you never do again.”

It was slow — again. But there was a fire in his touch now. Not frantic, but furious in its restraint.

His hands moved like silk and steel. His kisses burned. Every time he felt you hesitate — squirm under the weight of his stare — he brought your gaze back to his, fingers tipping your chin.

“Eyes on me, love. Only me.”

The pleasure was patient. Built like a cathedral — one that only he could enter, only he could shape.

He whispered your name like a vow. Again and again. And with each moan he coaxed from your lips, his possessiveness deepened.

You weren’t just his. You were claimed. Worshipped. Ruined for anyone else.

“Say it,” he breathed at your throat, voice trembling with hunger. “Say who you belong to.”

And when you did — broken, breathless, trembling under him — only then did he kiss your lips again. Sweet and slow.

He pulled the blanket over you both afterward. Held you tightly, your leg tangled with his. One hand traced the curve of your waist, keeping you flush against him.

And in the dark, just before sleep, he whispered against your ear:

“You’re mine, darling. Mine, in every life.”