"But Eve didn't just hurt herself by sinning."

"You give her too much credit," Lucifer said. "She ate a fucking apple. That's it. She couldn't ignore her hunger. The temptation was too great. And if anything, instead of holding it against Eve, the world should really envy her."

"Why?"

"Because she experienced a pleasure none of them will ever get, gratification none of them will ever come close to. Even I don’t know what it’s like to bite into that apple, and I’ve never denied myself anything." Lucifer stroked his thumb along her cheek, a small seductive smirk twisting the corner of his lips. "Give in to it, angel."

"Give in to what?"

"The hunger," he said, his tongue slowly running across his bottom lip. "The need. Give in to the craving. Give in to me."

"Never," she whispered, the word impulsively tumbling from her lips, no conviction in her feeble voice.

"I know you feel it, deep inside of you, screaming out to be acknowledged, to be satiated," he continued as if she hadn’t spoken. "I can sense it, clawing underneath your skin, begging to be let loose, begging to be invited out to play."

She shook her head, silently refuting his words.

"Tell me you don’t feel it then, the fluttering in your chest; the hair on the nape of your neck rising as your nerve endings stir, your fingers tingling with the need to reach out and caress something." His eyes raked down her form. "Tell me your body doesn’t ache at the mere thought of me between your thighs, on top of you, inside of you, giving you what my brother never could—real feeling, the kind of feeling that makes you scream so loud your throat feels like it’s bleeding. Agonizing pleasure, the kind that torments your every thought, driving you to the brink of insanity only to pull you right back from the edge, over and over and over again. Unbearable pleasure, the kind that makes you beg for it to stop, but the moment it’s over, you feel like nothing but an empty, useless shell—a shell that needs more."

Warmth flooded her body, starting from the top of her head and rushing down, engulfing that spot at the apex of her thighs that seemed to involuntarily respond to his tirade.

"Tell me," he growled. "Tell me you don’t feel your body coming alive. Tell me you don’t want more of it, that you’d be content going back to your miserable, endless existence where a fucking tingle is enough to quench your thirst. Tell me, and I’ll never ask you again."

Serah opened her mouth to tell him, to end the charade, but she couldn’t force the words from her lips. She couldn’t lie. She swallowed thickly, her breath quickening as she rubbed her hands against her dress, wiping away the sudden dampness of her palms.

Lucifer jumped out of his seat, slamming his hands on both sides of Serah on the table. He towered over her, red raging in his eyes at her prolonged silence. "Tell me!"

"No."

The pathetic squeak of a word, barely audible, was enough of a spark to ignite a fire in the room. With no hesitation, no ounce of self-doubt, no second-guessing, Lucifer smashed his lips to Serah’s, kissing her with a fervor she’d never perceived before. He slammed her onto her back on the table, forcing her legs apart as he pressed himself against her, the layers of clothing between them not enough to contain the heat radiating from him. His erection throbbed in his pants, pulsating between her thighs as she ran her hands through his hair.

Oh, Heavens. . .

Lucifer’s hands slid up her outer thighs, shoving her dress around her waist as he hitched her legs up at his hips. There was no kindness in his movements, no gentleness in his touch, none of the sweetness she’d always associated with the act. This was lust, raw and authentic, an unfiltered yearning that brewed between them, unleashed for the first time.

Lucifer broke from her lips long enough to tear her clothes off and throw them across the room. He pulled back as she lay on the table, not a shred of material shielding her from his eyes. He yanked his shirt off and dropped it to the floor near his feet, his dark stare fixated on her bare chest. His hands brushed across her nipples, the sensitive flesh puckering under his touch. A single fingertip slowly trailed down her stomach, circling her navel, before dipping into the bare flesh between them.

Her eyes closed when his finger brushed against her clit, electricity jolting her. Through the darkness, she saw fireworks, her world exploding in vast colors she'd never seen before. A groan rumbled in her chest as she shifted her hips involuntarily, seeking more friction. He didn’t deny her, picking up her cues right away. He rubbed circles around the spot as he undid his pants with his free hand, kicking them off when they dropped to his ankles.

Serah’s eyes opened again the second the connection was lost, but she didn’t have a moment to spare a curious glance at him. He plunged inside of her, filling her in one hard stroke. The breath caught in Serah's throat, escaping as a strangled moan as she threw her head back, arching her spine at the sensation. Lucifer’s mouth went straight for her neck, licking and sucking the exposed flesh as he plowed into her, his hips slamming into her thighs.

Her unsteady hands explored his sculpted back as her body tried to adjust to him inside of her, her fingers acclimating to the rough texture of his skin. She let out a shuddering breath when his lips found hers again, messily kissing her with abandon, teeth gnashing together.

"Do you like that?" he murmured against her mouth. "Does it feel good to have me inside of you, fucking you?"