Chapter Thirteen #4
“That is why you are a just guardian for the people and the king, for you represent the best of what an elf from the streets can accomplish.” He leaned back on his hands, arms locked behind him, to stare at the stars winking above.
I slipped my foot into the water slowly.
Teryn chuckled. I looked over to see him gazing at my toes touching the pond.
“It is not lava, my dear, just water. They have no teeth.”
Rolling a shoulder, I eased my entire foot in. Two large fish swam over to taste my toes. I jerked at the sensation but left my foot submerged.
“So you stood with the woman and child. Commendable. She will hopefully adapt well in your household. Being from the Black Sands, she and the boy should not mind the heat.” I wiggled my big toe.
A slim fish, more gold than white, rubbed its side along it like a cat would a leg.
The sensation was enjoyable if rather odd.
“I hope they do not cause any problems for you. She is, and will remain, a rebel.”
“True, but she knows she has to put her children first now that her husband will be gone from their lives.” He sighed, allowing his arms to fold so he could recline on the thick grasses.
“Whatever discussion Kenton and Aelir had late into the night must have swayed the king as I was sure Jaska would be facing execution.”
I laid back as well, one foot in a shoe, the other in the water. The scent of sand sage wafted by whenever the gentle winds of the Silvura washed over us.
“It was a lengthy talk, as most are between them, but I think that at the heart of it is that Aelir is a kindhearted man. Killing Jaska would have only created a martyr.”
“That is true. He will be a hero though, and those are difficult to wipe from the memories of the people. Being sent to the mines is a fitting verdict, if not a cruel one.”
“Is it crueler to be swinging a pickaxe until you are too old to lift one or swinging from the gallows?”
“A very deep and philosophical question, my dear.”
I moved to lie on my hip, to face him, to admire his profile in the moonlight. “That is twice you have called me dear. Are you sure you should be using such endearments?”
He did the same, rolling to his side to stare at me. “Do you not wish to be lovers any longer? Is that why you have erected a wall between us?”
I rolled my lips over my teeth as I thought. “I would like nothing more than to remain lovers, but the facts are that you are a noble member of the Vahasi’s Court, and I am a guard. Also, you are leaving within a few days.”
“Am I?” He reached out to caress my cheek.
“Yes, I…are you not?” I could not think clearly with his hand on my face. The warmth of his skin, the subtle aroma of sand sage and Teryn pulsing off his wrist fogged my thoughts.
“I had not planned on it. I have been given two generous offers that I am thinking I might accept, that is, if there is a certain guard captain willing to let me fully into his heart.” His fingertips skimmed down the side of my head, the pads outlining my ear as my pulse doubled.
“Offers?” I asked, my tongue unable to form anything more than one word now, it seemed. By Ihdos, what this man did to me with a mere touch…
“Yes, one from the king to remain here in Celear as a permanent envoy as we move forward with more open trade, naval operations, and an extended hand of friendship. Also, I spent a few hours chatting with Beirich Drayath. He and his husband run a school for druidcraft that is growing by leaps and bounds. They are in desperate need of teachers as the wood elves tend to not wish to come into the city, and so he extended a proposal for me to consider taking on the role of a head scholar in the arts of metamorphology with an honorary credential in the Sandrayan magicks. So, if I accept those positions, I will be living here in the capital for quite some time.”
“Oh.” I felt the stones in the wall that I’d been hurriedly building between his heart and mine starting to crumble. Amazing. With just a few whispered words, he had kicked down the barriers. Barefoot as he was, they crumbled as if made of paper. “Would you remain in the halls of Avolire?”
“No, the king has added an incentive of a small land grant on the outskirts of Celear. I have ridden out to look upon it with my son and daughter. The holding is charming—a well-tended cottage with enough rooms for light company, a small stable, several fat cows, and a staff of four. While I make no claim to be a farmer, the appeal of waking up to the cock’s crow with you at my side is enough to tempt me into accepting both offers. ”
“Oh.” My mind was a whirlwind. “That is a generous offer.”
“Indeed. The guard commander said he thought to propose you receive the property as a gift for services rendered to the crown but knew you would decline.”
“He was correct. I need no cows or vegetable gardens for repayment for doing what I vowed to do when I bent the knee to King Aelir.”
“Such a proud, noble man. So, those are the offers awaiting my reply. If you do not wish to further our affair, I shall be crushed but will understand. My decision to stay or go will be mine with no reflection on our relationship status, so do not allow guilt to weigh down your decision.” His hand cupped my jaw.
“What say you, my dear? Are you willing to face the scorn of the nobles while we lark about as proud companions, daring the aristocrats to scorn us for being as one—dark and light—in broad daylight?”
There was a lengthy pause as I opened my heart fully, the barriers sealing out any deep emotions cracking. There was a rush of fear that quickly dissipated when I looked into beautiful amber eyes.
“Or shall we say goodbye now?” His query was weakly spoken.
That made me smile. The final rock fell to the earth. “I would lark about the whole of the world with your hand in mine, Teryn. My love for you is…I’m unsure how to put it into words, for I have spent a lifetime trying to avoid emotional entanglements.”
“Hearing you say that you love me is poetic enough, my dear, for I love you as well.” He moved closer, wiggling like a worm, until his belly rested against mine.
I could feel the heat of his body through his riding clothes as well as the ridge of his hard cock.
“Show me how you feel when the words struggle to break free. I do speak several tongues quite well.”
I moved to him with speed, plastering my mouth over his, moving him to his back as I pressed him into the soft green earth.
His lips parted with ease. I groaned at the taste of him—red tea and spice, the heat of the desert on his tongue as it slipped over mine.
We wasted little time stripping off our clothes.
The soft sounds of the horses grazing nearby mixed with the song of the dark green crickets and bulbous toads on the shore of the pond as I took our cocks in hand, both rigid and leaking, to bring us off in unison.
Teryn nipped at my lower lip as we rocked into my fist, slippery drops of arousal making the slip and slide that much better.
“You are a glorious man. I would have you every night in my bed, curled about me, sheltering me from the cold winds that blow in this land.” He cupped my ass as we rutted, his teeth nipping at my throat.
“It is never that cold here in Celear,” I reminded him as I thrust harder, pulling a gasp from him as his cock swelled and then spewed.
The hot wash of his spend coated our shafts, easing my frantic drives so well that I felt my balls tighten in warning.
I lowered my mouth to his, inhaling his pants, as white-hot pleasure erupted through me.
My cock kicked, adding my seed to the mix, both of us humping madly to create a froth of semen.
I licked deep into his mouth, raspy with my release, before my arm folded.
I collapsed to the side, my prick leaving a wet streak over his hip as the ground caught me with a firm hand.
“It will be…cold for me,” he mumbled, his chest rising and falling as we lay side by side staring at the heavens. “I will require a coat. I have never owned one before. Even now, I feel chilled.”
I chortled. “It can be a thin one. We rarely see snow here as we are too far south.” He sighed with pleasure, like a cat filled with cream, before moving closer. I pulled him to my side. He burrowed in like a badger in its den. “Are you warm now?”
“Oh yes, quite warm. I think you shall have to be in my bed every night from this moment on lest I freeze.” He kissed my pectoral and then rested his cheek on my chest.
“We cannot have that.” I pressed my lips to his sweetly scented hair. “I shall warm you nightly to ensure we have no diplomatic upheavals.”
If only ensuring peace and goodwill between all elves was as joyously easy as holding this man close…