Ariella was acutely aware of every move he made, perhaps thanks to her nerves or the adrenaline putting her on edge, trying to keep her alert to any dangers. Of course, she was well aware of the dangers, given that she had quite literally let them in. Then again, perhaps it was not danger that had her body so alert.<br/><br/>Whatever the reason, though, she was very focused on his touch and his movement, so when he put a little more distance between them and the cool touch of his hands fled from her skin, she felt the absence immediately. Whether that was good or bad was anyone’s guess. She took in a deep breath in the brief moment, as if to use it to calm her nerves before he was grasping the hem of her shirt and she was moving her arms to allow the garment to be removed.<br/><br/>She shivered lightly when she felt the cool touch of his hands on her shoulders. She didn’t know what she had expected to happen, then, but a shoulder massage hadn’t been it. It was welcome, though, as she did carry a great deal of tension in her muscles—more so now than ever before.<br/><br/>There was a lot riding on her right now, given that the entire treaty, the peace of two nations rested squarely on her shoulders. If she were to die, or otherwise give cause for the marriage to be called off, there were many lives at stake. It was a lot for anyone to carry. Of course, knowing that, perhaps she should consider safer traveling habits, and she certainly shouldn’t be allowing someone such as him in her room at this hour.<br/><br/>Those were concerns for another day, though. For now, she focused on the cool touch, breathing deeply—if somewhat unsteadily—to try to relax at least a little, to allow her tension to ease, if only temporarily. Perhaps then she would not be so on edge, so sensitive to the smallest movements.<br/><br/>That proved to be a false hope, though, when he moved to gather her hair to place it on her shoulder and her body responded to even the brush of his fingers against her skin. When she felt his soft lips against the back of her neck, she shuddered beneath the touch, biting her lip gently to keep from making a sound. He tested her restraint further as he trailed cool kisses down her spine and then back up again.<br/><br/>She wondered to herself what exactly she had gotten herself into as she closed her eyes, trying to keep some semblance of calm, to relax as his hands moved to her sides and massaged the small of her back. She didn’t really have time to follow that train of thought, though, as he soon slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her back so that she was pressed against him. It was easy enough to guess what would happen next, so she took in a soft breath and fought to keep from tensing up as she tried to prepare herself for the pain that was to come.<br/><br/>She let out the soft breath when his lips pressed against her neck, followed by his tongue. The next thing she felt was pain. Knowing it was coming helped to prepare her mentally, which was probably the only thing that kept her from making a sound when she felt the fangs pierce the flesh. She clenched her jaw hard to bite back the cry of pain, in its place only a soft whimper escaped as she tried not to instinctively pull away from the sensation.<br/><br/>The pain was short lived, though, just as he had promised. It wasn’t long after his fangs were removed from her flesh that she felt what she could only assume was the venom kicking in. She let out a soft, pleasant sound as the warmth and pleasure spread through her body as the venom coursed through her veins.<br/><br/>She instinctively fought the feeling for a time, but in the end, whatever pride kept her fighting eventually melted away, leaving her wondering why she was resisting when it felt so… good. Finally, she relaxed against him, allowing his body to support her own. His touch that had initially felt cold and foreign touch, making her instinctively wary, now felt warm and inviting, making her crave more of it.<br/><br/>The fingertips of her left hand traced unconsciously across his left arm, down to his left hand that rested on her lower abdomen, down to his fingertips that were brushed against the hem of her pants. She bit her lip gently before her fingers moved a little farther to unfasten the garment. From there, she moved both hands back to rest against his hips, bracing herself as she used her feet to slip off one boot and then the other, doing her best to keep her movements minimal and as smooth as possible.<br/><br/>When this was done, she relaxed against him once more, focusing only on the feelings of pleasure that spread both through her veins and from every part of her skin that he touched. She could no longer deny her desire for more, nor did she have any intention of resisting the temptation that was him.