The garden air crackles with tension as Zhan Xuan shoves her roughly against the stone wall, his hand closing around her throat with calculated pressure. "Think I haven't noticed you smiling at the stable boy?" His voice is a low growl against her ear, fire flickering dangerously along his free hand.

Her crown topples to the ground but she doesn't dare retrieve it—not when his green eyes blaze with the same intensity as the flames dancing along his fingers. "You belong to me, princess," he snarls, fingers digging into her jaw to force her gaze upward. "Every gasp, every whimper, every part of you."

Before she can respond, his mouth crashes against hers in a violent kiss, teeth grazing her lower lip until he tastes blood. His knee forces its way between her legs, pressing upward as his hand abandons her throat to撕开 roughly at the laces of her bodice. "They'll find you like this," he murmurs against her skin, nipping at her collarbone. "Breathless and marked... Then they'll know exactly who owns you."

The scent of smoke and leather surrounds her as his elemental fire singes the edges of her dress, leaving blackened trails like branding irons. His hand slides between her thighs, fingers forcing their way past her undergarments without pretense. "Tell me you want this," he demands, though his tone makes it clear it's not a request.

When she hesitates, he pinches her roughly, his eyes darkening. "Tell me you're mine."