Chapter40
Tori
Inever thought theDragonKingwould be such a cuddler.Iawoke in the morning, and he had left again.Onhis pillowIsaw a small note that just read,I’llbe back soon.Itook that as an invitation to stay and wait for him.Irolled to get out of bed and found, once again, my legs weren’t really cooperating.
Theywere sore and shook with even the small effort of moving, and my entire core was swollen, still covered in the fluids from the night before.Theking hadn’t allowed me to get up after last night to wash myself, soIcould feel his dried seed on my thighs and the pantiesIstill wore.Partof me was disgusted, but a deeper, feral part of me was pleased, thinking of me covered in his smell, the soreness reminding me of the mind-breaking sensation of him entering me last night.
Icouldn’t help a small grin from crossing my face, asIbit down on my finger, remembering all we had done.Ithad been a while sinceIhad been with a partner who was so endowed, and gods,Ihad come so fast onceIhad finally gotten him inside of me.Mycore throbbed, but it sent shocks through the tender tissue.Ineeded a cold shower.
Imanaged to wobble out of bed.Ilooked out the huge, peaked windows to see the grey ocean pounding the rocky shore.Thesky was clear today and the weather looked practically balmy forXyr.Tothe side of the king’s bed, a small door led to whatIassumed was the washroom.Ipeeked in to seeIwas correct.Itwas very similar to the one in my room, with a bath and separate waterfall shower, but his shower was placed up against a huge floor-to-ceiling window that mimicked the ones in his room.
Istepped into the shower to look out.Isupposed this high up in the castle and with no ships passing in theShadowedSea, one didn’t have to worry about voyeurs.Althoughconsidering what he got up to in the night, maybe he wouldn’t mind.
Isaw a small table set somewhat out of place, and upon closer examination, a small note on top read,LittleBird.Underneathwas a clean day dress.Simple, but made of exquisite fabric that floated like the clouds absent from the sky today in a dark grey to match my eyes.IntypicalDragonKingdomfashion, the dress itself was cut rather conservatively, with long billowing sleeves, tight at the wrists, and high boat neckline and a flowing skirt, but the dress was very sheer.Apair of lovely underwear and a matchingcorset-style bustier with white accents and a nude background were included as well.
Itseemed my options once again were to slink back to my room, unwashed, or give in and embrace the king’s gifts.Thelittle voice in my head said to think of the lookAbraxaswould give me in this, andIwas already stepping into the shower.Itreally was splendid to feel the water rushing over me while looking out at the majestic view.Agirl could get used to this.Butshe shouldn’t.Ihad started my plan well last night, but onceAbraxashad opened his filthy mouth and hit me with the fire in his eyes,Iwas a goner.Iscrubbed my skin harder, angry for so easily giving in to this man.Thiswould certainly make things more difficult.Ineeded to get him to crave me, soIcould ask for more.Morebooks, more access around the palace, perhaps even permission to leave.Ineeded more resourcesto make my plan to escape, to help my brother.
Iturned the water up to scalding temperatures, using the heat to drive away the helplessness rising in my chest.Ididn’t have a plan, not really.Ididn’t even know where my brother was being held.Iassumed he was in the capital ofKoron, butIcouldn’t be sure.ButAbraxaswould know.Thatwas all the planIhad.Getthat information from him.AndifIkept giving in to his every whim in the bedroom,Ididn’t know ifIwould ever be able to extract it.
Itook a steadying breath and looked out at the vast ocean as the burning water passed over me.Theocean here was always a deep grey, even in the sunlight, like today.Thewaves were treacherous and uncrossable, capped in white peaks that sliced across the rocks before them like swords.Sodifferent from the azure waters and calm tides ofNiata.ButasIstared out into the endless ocean,Icould find that same calm, that same controlIhad at home.
No, the king was clearly still interested in me, at least for now.Hiswords,I’mnot going to let you go.Theyhad seemed like playful banter at first, but now they seemed to mean more.Iwas sure that once he grew bored they wouldn’t hold much weight, but for now,Icould still play this game.
Istepped out of the shower and dried off.Idressed and saw how the blue-toned grey of my dress really did highlight my eyes, and the cut was flattering to my smaller chest and wider hips.Istepped back out into the room.
Theking had not returned.IsupposedIcould get some snooping in.Isaw now that there was another door between the main entrance and his bed as well.Itried it and it was locked.Perhapsit led off to some sort of meeting room, or somewhere for entertaining guests?Ormaybe a study?HowIwishedIcould see the books that it contained.Buttrying to break in when he was expected back didn’t seem like a great idea.
Ijumped asCiaraopened the door, and peaked her head in. “YourHighness, the king asks me to send his apologies, but he won’t be able to return this morning.Heasks thatIescort you to your room.”Itseemed leaving me completely unattended in his private space wasn’t his intention, soIstepped through the door to joinCiaraand closed it behind me.
Wewalked in silence back to my room, andIcraved the idle chatter she normally filled the air with.
Whenwe had almost reached my room,Ifinally managed to speak, “Ciara,Iapologize for the other day.Ishould not have—“
“It’salright,YourHighness,” she said, butIbarreled on.
“Pushedyou.Iwas just feeling overwhelmed, butIshould have never laid hands on you.Itwas not your fault, and it is unforgivable.”
Shelooked at me with those large golden eyes, the biggest tell of her fae heritage. “Itisalright,YourHighness.Itoo overstepped,Ishould not have…” she trailed off, perhaps hopingIhad forgotten the hug she had bestowed on me. “Byany means, there is nothing to forgive.Ihave had many encounters with fae much more brutal than yourself.”
Isuppose she was trying to make me feel better, but it really only made me feel worse to know she had been so mistreated.ButIplastered on a smile, “Youwere only showing me kindness.Youare one of the few who has since my arrival, andItruly appreciate that.”
Atrue smile spread on her face, “Ofcourse,YourHighness, you are my responsibility while you are a guest here.”Guestindeed, but she seemed proud of her responsibility, soIsmiled at her again.
“Shouldyou have need of anything else,YourHighness, please ask?”Wehad reached my door, andImoved to go inside, when a thought crossed my mind.
“Actually,Ciara,Ineed a contraceptive tea.Couldyou bring that from the apothecary?”Istuttered the words even though it was no secret whatIhad been doing with the king.Butthe smile dropped from her face.
“MyLady, the tea you drink every morning contains contraceptive herbs.Iprepare it myself.”Shemust have read the shock on my face, “Pardon,YourHighness,Ithought you knew.IfIshould remove them—“
“No, no.Theneverything is set.Thankyou,Ciara.”
Shegave me a curt nod, and asImade to close my door, “Oh, the king wished me to tell you that you will be joining him for dinner at six this evening.”Ohyes, that sounded like him—not a request.
“Isthere anything else?” she asked meekly.Ishook my head no and released her.
Pregnancywas rare among the fae, which is why children were considered so precious, and royal heirs even more so, the old bloodlines seeming to be ripe for infertility.Thiswas one of the reasons so many half-fae existed, as humans seemed to be able to reproduce left and right, and a fae had a much easier time conceiving with a human than another fae.Buteven so,Ihad wanted to have the tea, as a precaution.Butknowing that it had been given to me without my knowledge…Anuneasiness settled in my stomach that threatened to shake all my thoughts loose.
Chapter41
