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Ravid was studying me with his brows furrowed. "This isn't like you, Zira. You are usually so reserved and peaceable. Instead, you're acting like a…" Ravid's brows rose with surprise. "Oh!" His head turned back to Luther. "We should take a break while you deal with your restless companion, Prince Saboa."
Luther shook his head dismissively. "Do not be ridiculous. She will do what she is told."
"Luther," I growled, but my uncle stepped next to me, taking my hand and patting it.
"Prince Saboa, there are certain times in a woman's life when she needs more attention than normal. As a man who has seen my companion through those times twice over, I would highly advise giving your companion what she needs, lest she finds it elsewhere."
Glancing at Ravid speculatively, Luther turned to Stark and the two Elite in the room with him. "Leave!" Bowing their heads, they left the room quietly, closing the doors behind them. "What do you know of Zira's condition?"
Ravid smiled. "Only that she has one, Prince Saboa. Restlessness and neediness are the first indicators, along with excessive energy consumption. I would have thought you'd wait until things were more settled, but I understand why you might have thought it best."
"It wasn't intentional, Uncle," I murmured. "I didn't know what I was doing."
Ravid nodded. "Natural instinct. Either way, I will give you your time." Ravid turned back to Luther. "With your leave, I will collect my son and companion to settle them in our rooms. By that time, I think the Princess will be calm for a few more hours again."
"And what should I do to calm the princess?" Luther was irritated by their planning being interrupted, but I was probably more in the dark than both of them. I just wanted to go for a walk.
Ravid laughed. "The same you did to get her in this condition, Prince Saboa. You will never be more welcome in your companion's bed than while she carries. This time usually bonds the royal womb and her companion, since he is typically chosen for her."
Luther pointed to me. "This is normal for Avalonians?"
Ravid nodded. "Usually, the men go without much sleep of a night so that the woman will rest most of the day and allow us to go about our day jobs. It is only fair we be sleep deprived before as the female will be afterward."
Luther's brows shot up to his hairline, his eyes flicking from Ravid to me. "I am guessing you were ignorant of this as you have been everything else?"
For some reason, the comment hurt, and I shrunk in on myself. My uncle squeezed my hand sympathetically. "It was wrong of her mother not to prepare her, Prince Saboa, but I think she was trying to undo her first decade of being raised for a single purpose. Living here in Praldia opened Zira's parents’ eyes to a lot of new prospects for her." When I squeezed his hand as a thank you, Ravid bowed his head to Luther. "With your leave?"
Luther nodded, watching Ravid leave quietly. When the Elite guard went to step back into the room, Luther shook his head. Bowing, they closed the door to give us privacy. "You look confused, Zira."
"I am. I'm not sure what's going on. I just wanted to go for a walk."
Pushing away from the desk, Luther held out his arm to indicate I should come to him. Swallowing my confusion, I moved around the desk, letting Luther pull me onto his lap. Then, wrapping that outstretched arm around my waist, Luther caressed the cheek that wasn't pressed to his chest. "You are nothing like a Cyran woman, Zira."
Frowning, unsure if that was a compliment or complaint, I stayed quiet. Lifting my chin, Luther placed a tender kiss on my lips for a long moment. When he finally withdrew, Luther stood holding me close, making sure my feet were steady beneath me before releasing his hold. Taking my hand, Luther led me from the room. As the door slid open, all twelve Elite guards turned their eyes to us. Luther walked towards the outer residence without a word, and all the guards fell in around us.
We reached the area of the floor where the lift was, and for the first time, Luther stayed beside me. Four of our Elite went before us, two with, the rest after. Walking deeper into the residence on the ground floor, Luther meandered through the ground floor corridors around the kitchen and other staff work areas. Some of the Praldian staff quickly scooted back out of our way as we moved through, dropping their heads in reverence until we passed.
Exiting the building through a large metal framed glass door, we emerged into the pool area between the residence and royal guard compound. There was some construction happening in the pool courtyard over the past few days, but I hadn't known what it was.
Since the abduction attempt, a glass roof was installed and a wall of sliding glass doors at the garden end facing the grounds and the cliffs. "It is not finished yet. We are still waiting on an alarm to be installed and our normal high-level security access to the doors. But, once it is complete, you will be able to come down here to swim with only your Elite to guard you."
Gazing around the new indoor swimming complex, my heart swelled. "You did this for me?"
"I understand that you used to swim at home daily and go for long walks. This I can at least give you until you are free to wander around without risk again."
Letting go of my hand, Luther turned back to address the guard. Stepping away from him, I moved to the edge of the pool, magnetically drawn to the water.
"Two at each door, the rest can relax, but you will keep your backs to the pool. You are all aware of the Avalonian way. You will not embarrass the Princess."
By the time Luther joined me by the pool, I'd stepped out of my shoes, lifted my skirt to my knees, and stood ankle-deep on the top step. The cool water lapping around my ankles was thrilling after only having the bath since I'd been taken from my home. Touching my shoulder, Luther released the seam of my dress. Startled, I looked at him questioningly as he started to lift it over my head. His eyes were reassuring as he placed a kiss on my cheek. "They will not look, Zira. Arms."
Unsure, I glanced around the complex. All the guards faced the windows, chatting quietly by themselves. Swallowing my hesitancy, I lifted my arms, allowing him to remove my dress. Then, as Luther turned to place it on a bench nearby, I dove beneath the water, swimming the length of the pool beneath the surface.
A calm I'd missed moved through me as I swam. I knew then that I'd needed this more than a walk or even food. Swimming back to Luther's end, I completed four more laps before I came up for a rest. Luther was swimming laps at the surface.
Standing with my back to the wall, I watched him approach, admiring his stroke. It was graceful how his body seemed skewered down his center, hinging on a central rod to propel itself through the water with his natural Cyran strength. Pulling up just short of the wall, Luther breathed easily despite the speed he'd been moving through the water. When he looked at me questioningly, I smiled, watching as he pushed a hand back through his matted hair.
Stepped forward, Luther pinned me between his body and the wall, kissing me hard with need. His fingers gripped in the material of my drenched undergarment. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I grabbed the hair at the back of his head. Then, doing as my uncle suggested, Luther did me right there in the pool. Our men were just over fifty meters away and able to see everything if they decided to turn their heads. For once, the lack of privacy didn't bother me. Forgetting the men's presence, I lost myself to Luther's touch and kisses as he drove into me with a need that matched my own. Smothering my cries in the flesh of his shoulder, Luther gritted his teeth to hold in his own release, then he held me breathless in his arms.
