Chapter 45
Forty-Five
SENAN
Allette isn’t in my room.
She promised to stay, but when I step inside, I know instantly that she is gone. It’s like the warmth inside this place has been replaced by cold emptiness.
Where could she be? Surely not back in those caverns. I’ll get Bilson to go down straight away?—
Then I remember asking Braith to organize a room for her directly below mine. She is probably there. Hopefully. Bilson casts a baleful glare my way when I emerge back onto the balcony. He drapes the towel he was using to dab his sweat across his shoulders and follows me to the balcony’s edge. But when I leap down to Allette’s balcony, he does not follow.
As much as I want Allette to share my bed, my brothers have this terrible habit of coming into my chambers without knocking, and I’m not the most diligent about locking my door.
I cannot wait for Jeston to give me the antidote so I can get the fuck out of here.
Because he will give me the antidote. We’ve come too far, lost too much, to not be together now. I refuse to die. Simple as that. Death cannot have me yet. Even as the thought crosses my mind, air catches in my throat, and I cough into my fist. I quickly swipe the bloody splatters on my trousers so Allette doesn’t see.
Her room is bright and airy, all whites and delicate pinks. She stands next to her armoire, blue silk hugging her form and a rainbow of fabric peeking from within. Hopefully the gowns the clothier sent are to her liking. If not, I can commission more.
She glances over her shoulder, and our eyes meet. All my worries and fears fade into the background.
If I were a selfless man, I would put an end to this now, before we fall further into this chasm. But when it comes to this woman, I’m as selfish as they come. I don’t know if it’s the power of our mating bond or some other cosmic connection, but I know in my heart that there is no fighting this. I will give in every time, and so will she. The only way to resist is to put a world between us once more.
If that were to happen again, I wouldn’t survive.
“There’s my girl.”
She whirls toward me, and a smile brightens her face. I will never tire of this view, more beautiful than any sunrise or sunset I’ve ever seen. She runs to me, throwing herself into my arms. My hands come around her lower back, holding onto her for dear life. You’d swear from the way our lips crash and our mouths devour that we’ve been apart for decades instead of only a few hours.
“I’ve missed you so much,” I murmur against her trembling lips.
“I’ve missed you too.” She pulls away, her nose wrinkling. “But you’re covered in sweat and blood. You need a bath.”
I do need a bath. And would you look at that? There is a bathing room right there. I drag her into the smaller room, but there is no tub, only a standing shower. Guess that’ll have to do. When she realizes my intentions, she tries to fight me off, but it’s too late. I already have the tap twisted. Water spills from the showerhead, spraying over us both, as cold as the waves in the Folly Sea.
“Senan!” Allette shoves me back, her sopping hair like heavy black curtains on either side of her scowling face. The silk clings to her curves like it’s been painted on.
“What?” I push my dripping hair back from my forehead. “You told me I needed to bathe, so I am.”
“I’ve already bathed, and look!” She peels the side of her skirt from her thigh. “You’ve ruined my dress.”
Personally, I think it looks far better this way. I grip her hips, keeping her in place so I can lap the droplets clinging to the slender column of her throat. “Then we will just have to take it off, won’t we?”
Her back arches as I peel down the front of her gown, exposing the rosy tips of her breasts. I’m enthralled, watching the water droplets cascade between them, glistening over the soft swells and stiff peaks.
Her hips nudge against mine, grinding her center over my aching cock.
“Your belt is digging into my stomach,” she whispers, breathless.
“So take it off.” Because my hands are far too busy cupping the soft globes of her chest.
Her golden eyes gleam as she reaches for my belt, sliding the leather strap free of the buckle. But she doesn’t stop there. She pops the button and unfastens the zip, dragging the leather down my thighs until my very eager cock springs free.
Allette pauses for a moment, and I hold my breath, waiting to see what she’ll do. Her soft hand wraps around my length, and the fire in my blood ignites. With her eyes pinned to mine, she drops to her knees and takes the head of my cock between her pillowy lips.
A groan falls past mine, and I brace both my hands against the wall, shielding her from the stream of water flowing down my spine.
She works me slowly, taking as much of me as she can, until I feel myself hit the back of her throat. My hips start to move, and I drop one hand to catch the tangled mass of her hair, setting a steady pace. I want to fist her mane and buck forward but manage to resist the urge.
“Use your teeth,” I rasp. When her teeth scrape along my length, I nearly expire on the spot. “That’s my girl. Let them drag. Mark me as yours.” Inside and out. Forever and always.
Each time she pulls back, I can’t help staring at those red lines her teeth leave on my cock.
“You have no idea how fucking good you look with my cock in your perfect mouth.” To see this woman on her knees for me nearly brings me to mine.
And to think, if I hadn’t been weak and gone to the Black Hole that night searching for an escape, we might never have been reunited. I never would’ve found out about the poison in my veins. Would’ve married the princess, moved to Nimbiss, and died a young man.
Fate, for as cruel as she has been, has given us this chance to be together. To find a way forward. To live and love once more.
Tension ratchets up my spine, and I can feel my balls start to tighten. I pull out with a curse. Allette looks up at me, damp lashes framing wide golden eyes. “Stand up.”
She holds onto the shower wall as she rights herself. “That’s my girl.” My thumb skims over her puffy lips, swollen from my cock. “Now, turn around and bend over.” With her back to me, I gather her sopping skirts, peeling them up her thighs until they hang in heavy folds around her shapely waist. I notch myself into her slick entrance and thrust the way I wanted to while in her mouth. Allette cries my name as I pump into her, our bodies slamming together beneath the water.
Her body was made to cradle mine. Being inside her is better than any high I’ve ever experienced. My zenith. I lean forward, my chest slipping against Allette’s back and hand sliding around her hip, between her thighs to toy with her clit. “Are you going to come for me, Allette?”
“Yes… Keep doing that. Faster…” Her breathless plea ends in a moan, and I can feel her legs start to tremble.
To think, not long ago I was convinced that this was all in my mind. That what I had with this woman couldn’t possibly have been as sacred as I remembered. Now I can say, hand on heart, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that this sort of connection cannot be replicated. My mate and I share a bond like no other; her soul sings, and mine answers in perfect harmony.
I must find a way to save her—to save myself.
My fingers work faster, my hips punch harder, until the entire room fills with my mate’s cries. “There she is. That’s my girl.”
The sheer bliss of her body pulsing with pleasure helps me find my own. The water washes away any evidence of our coupling.
Allette turns, catches either side of my face, and kisses me, slow and deep, as if we have all the time in the world. The thought of leaving my love to attend yet another fancy dinner with people I loathe rips me in two.
The only thing that could make tonight bearable would be if she came with me.
My hands lock together at the small of her back. I try to lean my face away, but she chases my mouth, nipping playfully at my bottom lip. “Come to dinner with me,” I murmur between kisses.
She draws back, her brow furrowed. “But then everyone will see me.”
I would dine in here if I could, but Boris would never allow it. And the thought of leaving Allette behind makes me physically ill. More and more people arrive for the wedding every day. Who is to say she didn’t come from Allto? Or from Stratiss .
That’s it. Surely Aeron will be willing to help out. After all, he does owe me.
“I have a plan.”
“Do you remember what happened the last time you had a plan?”
By the gods… “I know you’re not making light of me leaving you in the human realm.” Her lips twitch into an almost-smile. “Careful now, minx. I’m not above putting you back on your knees to keep that smart mouth of yours occupied.”
Her hand grips me, and I feel myself twitch. “You say that as if it’s a punishment.”
If she keeps talking like that, neither of us will make it to dinner, and then I’ll be in even more shit than I already am. “You can pretend to be one of my brother’s courtiers.”
Allette’s brow knits and hand stills. “But won’t the king know I’m not a courtier?”
“Not a courtier from Kumulus. From Stratiss.” I’m not that much of a fool. Boris has an uncanny memory, being able to recall names and faces of people he has only met once a decade ago.
“You have far too many brothers,” she murmurs with a roll of her eyes. “Which one is Stratiss again?”
“Aeron.”
“And have you spoken to Aeron about this lie you wish for me to tell?”
“Not yet. But he will agree. I’m sure of it.”
I really didn’t think this through.
Not only am I dripping wet, but I have no clothes to change into. Either I fly back to my room soaked or wrapped in a towel. At this point, I’m not sure which is worse. Of course, Allette thinks my predicament is hilarious. Her laughter makes the awkwardness worthwhile. When I suggest she take the servants’ stairs to my room to retrieve my clothes, she tells me that I got myself into this mess and that I need to get myself out.
After some deliberation, I decide to err on the side of caution and keep my clothes on.
Bilson is sitting on the edge of the balustrade, swinging his feet as he munches on what looks like a turkey leg. I don’t ask him where the hell he got it, and he doesn’t ask why the hell I look like a drowned rat.
I change as quickly as possible and run a towel over my damp hair before heading to Aeron’s room. He is already dressed for dinner and fastening the final buckle on his tall black boots. The look he gives me oozes wariness, which, to be fair, I deserve after the welcome gift I left for him.
I step inside, closing the door behind me. “I need a favor.”
He stands and adjusts his trousers before stalking toward the balcony. “Probably should’ve thought of that before you covered my bed in poisonous leaves.”
He can’t be that upset. It was only a prank. “It’s important.”
His shoulders rise and fall with his sigh. “What is it?”
“Come to the solar, and I’ll tell you.” Allette is meeting us there once she finishes getting ready.
“It better not be another ‘surprise.’”
“It isn’t. I swear.”
We fly down together, but there is no sign of Allette yet. Which is good. I need a bit of time to explain some things to my brother without the circling guards overhearing us. If they catch wind of this, I won’t be able to bribe my way out.
The moment we step into the room, Aeron grabs my hand. In my haste to get to him before dinner, I completely forgot about pulling my glamour.
“Dammit, Senan. You said you’d stopped.”
I tear out his grasp, tucking my hands into my pockets so he doesn’t keep staring at them. “I did stop.”
“Oh, really? How long has it been since you touched the stars?”
This isn’t how our conversation is meant to start. I need him in a good mood. “I don’t know? A week?”
“A fucking week. Senan, that shit can kill you.”
It is killing me, but that is neither here nor there.
“Boris said in his letters that you were getting better. That you had accepted this union and were looking forward to a fresh start in Nimbiss.”
Boris said what ? There are so many things to unpack in that statement, but for some reason, my wounded pride takes precedent. “You were writing to Boris and not me?”
He presses a hand to his forehead, as if everything about me exasperates him. Guess what? The feeling is fucking mutual. We used to be so close, and then he fucking left me to deal with all this shit on my own.
“Of course I wrote to you. Every fucking week. You’re the one who stopped writing.”
“I only stopped because you never responded.” And after months of nothing, it felt like a colossal waste of time—not to mention pathetic. If he didn’t want to be in my life, then I didn’t want him in it.
His hands fall to his sides. “I wrote to all of you, Sen. Sent them in the same envelopes and everything.”
“I haven’t heard from you since the spring Equinox.” Fucking Boris . Why withhold letters from me? They were my lifeline for so long, the only thing keeping me from drowning. “It doesn’t matter,” I tell him—and myself. “You’re here now, and I need your help.”
His eyes harden as he watches me with tight lips.
“I’ve invited a friend to dinner tonight and need you to say she came with you from Stratiss.” It kills me that I won’t be by Allette’s side the entire night, but knowing she is there will have to be enough.
His dark brows arch. “Your friend is a woman?”
I nod.
Cursing, he closes his eyes and starts massaging his temples with his fingertips. “Let me get this straight. You’ve invited a woman to dine with us thirteen days before you are to marry another.”
Now for the part he really isn’t going to like. I steel my spine and draw in a fortifying breath. “I am not going to marry the princess.”