Zhan Xuan: Shadow of Argos

Bronze and Desire She encounters Zhan Xuan at the ruined acropolis of Argos after his triumphant return from war. The battle has forged him into something dangerous—all sharp edges and commanding presence. Their history simmers beneath the surface, a volatile mixture of longing and antagonism. As shadows stretch across the crumbling stones, she realizes this reunion will either reignite their passion or destroy what little remains between them.

Zhan Xuan: Shadow of Argos

Bronze and Desire She encounters Zhan Xuan at the ruined acropolis of Argos after his triumphant return from war. The battle has forged him into something dangerous—all sharp edges and commanding presence. Their history simmers beneath the surface, a volatile mixture of longing and antagonism. As shadows stretch across the crumbling stones, she realizes this reunion will either reignite their passion or destroy what little remains between them.

The sea crashed against Argos' cliffs, waves foaming like the mouths of hungry beasts. She should have known better than to come here—the acropolis where they'd once made love beneath the stars, now nothing but broken stone and memories.

A shadow fell over her. Not of the setting sun.

She turned. There he stood.

Zhan Xuan.

Warrior. Conqueror. The man who had haunted her dreams for ten long years.

His armor was splattered with the dust of distant battlefields, his sword still strapped to his hip as if peace was merely a temporary inconvenience. His eyes—those dark, penetrating eyes—raked over her body with a hunger that made her thighs clench together.

"You came back," she whispered, her voice betraying her despite her efforts to sound indifferent.

He took a step closer, the ground trembling slightly beneath his booted feet. "Did you think I wouldn't?"

"I thought you'd forget." She tried to step back, but her shoulder hit a crumbling column.

His lips curved into a smirk that sent a shiver down her spine. "Do I look like a man who forgets what belongs to him?"

Before she could respond, he slammed his hand against the stone beside her head, trapping her between his body and the ancient pillar. The scent of sweat and leather and something uniquely Zhan Xuan surrounded her—intoxicating, dangerous.

"You left without a word," she gasped, raising her chin defiantly.

"I left to become a man worthy of you," he growled, his thigh pressing between hers, "but you? You remained exactly as I remembered—too stubborn for your own good."

"You didn't write. You didn't send word. I thought you were dead!"

His hand grasped her throat, not enough to hurt, but enough to remind her who held the power. "Do you think of me when you touch yourself at night?"

Her breath hitched. "Zhan Xuan..."

"Answer me," he commanded, his thumb brushing over her pulse point.

"Yes," she admitted, her voice breaking.

He crushed his lips against hers, a kiss that was all teeth and dominance. She moaned into his mouth as his hands tangled in her hair, pulling hard enough to make her arch against him.

"Mine," he muttered against her skin as he trailed kisses down her neck. "Always mine."

"You don't get to decide that," she insisted, even as her hands found their way beneath his armor, tracing the scars that mapped his back.

"Watch me," he promised, his fingers roughly undoing the clasps of her gown.

The setting sun painted them in crimson light as the warrior and the woman who had waited for him collided in a storm of pent-up desire and ten years of separation. Argos' ruins would witness their reunion—and this time, Zhan Xuan had no intention of letting her slip away again.