Page 136 of Fate of the Sun King

The woman between my legs sucks hard, directing my attention away. I can’t quite form a response yet, so I let her continue, feeling myself grow thicker with each enthusiastic hollowing out of her cheeks. My hips move of their own accord, thrusting up and sliding down the back of her throat, causing tears to run down her cheeks.

She grips my thighs as I fist my hand into her hair, taking over as I fuck her mouth, letting all the frustrations of the past few months melt out of me for a fleeting moment of relief. After another minute, there’s a tingling at the base of my spine before I spill into her as she swallows every drop like the pro she is.

When she’s done, she slides off me with a pop before she stands up, giving me an eyeful of her lithe, toned body. “Anything else?” she asks with a tip of her head, and I wave her off.

“Just another drink.” She picks up my glass and walks away as I study her round ass in appreciation. Erevan is tucking himself back into his pants, having also just finished.

“Atlas is furious,” I say, picking up the conversation now that I can think again.

“You think I give a shit?” Erevan asks, accepting a drink from the woman who was just blowing him a moment ago. My girl returns with a tray for me as well.

“What was the point of that? You killed some of your own, Erevan.”

Erevan’s mouth tightens.

“I know. That was an accident.”

I run a hand down my face with a long sigh.

“You need to be more careful. If you keep doing shit like this, you’ll lose the little support you already have from the council. Some of them lost property in that explosion.”

Erevan casts a sharp glance at me. “Property. You think I care about a few ruined buildings when the low fae have nothing?”

“You’re absolutely right,” I say. “But that’s not how they think. You need to speak their language. Appeal to what moves them. And unfortunately, that’s money. Talk to them. Convince them that changing the laws would benefit their businesses and fill their coffers.”

Erevan takes a long drink, his gaze focused away from me. “We’ve been over this before. I refuse to be a sellout. I want them to do this because it’s the right thing to do.”

“Erevan,” I say.

“No.” He turns to me with a sharp look. “If their benedictions extend to only what’s profitable and not what’s right, then how long will it be before we’re in this position again? They have to do this for the proper reasons, or it means nothing.”

I blow out another long sigh. “I know you’re right…”

I trail off. He is right, but he’s also too idealistic for his own good. The bastard won’t even use his magic in solidarity with Aphelion’s low fae. I admire his principles, but he’ll have to learn to fight dirtier if he has any hope of victory.

“What I need is a way to shame Atlas,” Erevan says. “Something that destroys his credibility so thoroughly they’ll be calling for his head.”

My gaze slides to Erevan, who is rubbing his bottom lip with the tip of his finger.

“What are you thinking?” I ask, and he shakes his head.

“I don’t know. I’m wondering if we can use the bonding ceremonies in some way.”

I sit up in alarm.

“Don’t. If you pull another stunt like that, you’re going to ruin everything you’ve been working for. You’ll lose all the support you have from Aphelion.”

“We’re not,” he snaps at me. “But we need to get everyone’s attention. Not just here in Aphelion but across Ouranos. Other than The Aurora, no one treats the low fae this poorly. Surely another of the rulers can be rallied to our cause.”

“I think you’re a dreamer,” I reply.

Erevan lets out a derisive snort. “Perhaps.”

He takes another long sip of his drink.

“Remember when we were children and Atlas locked all three of us in that shed and left us there for hours?” he asks with a crook of his mouth.

I snicker and shake my head.