Chapter 24
Clover stared at Lucy, hands planted on her hips in the absurdly soft dress Jennifer loaned her. She begrudgingly admitted to herself that she liked Amos’ fake mate, even if she was too pretty to be within spitting distance of him. It wasn’t her fault she was born that way.
Lucy, however, could eat a pile of shit, because she had beamed at Clover’s husband like he’d hung the godsdamned moon. Although after Clover’s introduction, she just looked confused.
Amos shifted forward, ready to insert himself between them if needed. “Lucy, Clover is my mate.”
“And wife,” Clover added, never taking her eyes off the other woman to gauge her reaction. As expected, something flickered across her face, but it vanished too quickly to read. Still, the fact that Lucy hid how she truly felt told Clover everything she needed to know.
Lucy smiled politely. “It’s nice to meet you. I remember Thomas talking about you.”
Lucy stuck out her hand, and Clover shook it. Being queen meant being diplomatic, even if she wanted to drag her out of the room by her hair. “Thomas told me about you when he came to the Mountain Kingdom a couple of years ago. You two broke up, right?”
Lucy’s smile faltered. “Last month.”
Clover nodded, having heard about it from Isabella, who had become a good friend. The two wrote to each other often.
“What did you need?” Amos asked his close friend, voice tight.
Lucy backed away. “It really wasn’t important. We can catch up later.”
“Catch up now,” Clover clipped. “Don’t let me stop you.”
“You might as well tell me now, since you’re here,” he said, sounding exasperated. Smart man. Sometimes.
Hurt flickered across Lucy’s features before she smoothed it away. “I was just saying hi since you haven’t been back in a few weeks.”
“That’s sweet.” Clover glanced at Amos. “You two should chat. I’ll be back later.”
She tried to leave, but Amos caught her around the waist and pulled her to his chest. His lips brushed against her ear. “You’re not going anywhere,” he murmured too low for Lucy to hear. “I’m going to fuck that attitude out of you.”
His threat sank straight to her core, and much to her delight, Lucy shifted, visibly uncomfortably.
Amos lifted his gaze to Lucy. “It was nice to see you, but you need to leave so I can fuck my wife.”
Lucy paled. “O-okay. I’ll talk to you later.” She rushed out of the room and closed the door.
Clover turned in Amos’ arms and tilted her head back to look him in the eye. “I don’t want her in your rooms ever again.”
She felt his already hard cock thicken. “I like it when you’re jealous, little viper.” He tugged her closer. “I’ll relieve her of her duties here if that’s what you want. Just say the word.”
As much as Clover hated the idea of someone in their house pining over her mate, a small seed of guilt took root in her gut.
Taking away Lucy’s income didn’t sit right with her.
They could find her a job elsewhere, but she’d worked here for years.
It didn’t feel right. Having a conscience was wildly inconvenient.
“She can stay,” she decided, “but if she comes into your rooms again, even your sitting room, she’s fired. Make sure she understands that.”
Amos released Clover and dropped to his knees, never breaking eye contact. “Whatever you wish, wife. Lift your dress and hook your leg over my shoulder.”
His gravelly voice set her on fire. Gathering the fabric of her skirt, she removed the dress completely, thankful for its simple design. She lifted her leg, and he guided it over his shoulder. “Hold on.” Amos dipped his face between her legs, his tongue ghosting over the top of her mound.
His hands moved to her hips, the calluses scraping against her skin. At the feel of his tongue running softly through her folds, she braced one hand on his shoulder for balance, and fisted his hair with the other to tug him closer. His languid movements were teasing to the point of torture.
Her gasps mingled with the wet sounds of him lapping at her dripping cunt. Amos sucked her clit into his mouth, and she jolted with a cry. Pleasure built low, tingles spreading up body until even her nipples ached. She wanted to palm her breasts but was too afraid she’d fall if she let go of Amos.
He shuddered. “Fuck, I can feel you getting close through the bond.”
Sucking harder on her clit, he pushed a finger into her wet heat, her arousal making the act embarrassingly loud.
She tried to rock her hips, needing just a little more to push her over the edge.
Her need to come overwhelmed her, and she begged for it, her words almost incoherent.
Amos responded by adding another finger and curling them against that spot deep inside her.
She came with a cry, and Amos jerked, tightening his grip on her lifted thigh to the point of pain.
Her chest rose and fell in rapid breaths, and she thought her legs might give out. Amos stood, picked her up, and deposited her gently in the bed. “I need to change my pants and clean up.” He kissed her chest, right over her heart. “I’ll be right back.”
“Why do you need to change your pants?” she asked, scanning his lower body until her eyes landed on a wet spot on his thigh. “Oh.”
His mouth twitched. “You don’t have to touch my dick to make me come.” Was he blushing?
Clover sat forward and crawled toward him, beckoning him to come closer with her finger. She grabbed the waistband of his pants when he neared the bed and pulled them down to expose his heavy cock.
Leaning forward, she licked the cum off his leg until it was clean, her tongue gliding from his thigh to hip. It took a few minutes. “You came a lot.”
Amos threaded his fingers through her hair and clutched a fistful of hair, tipping her head back. “That’s what you do to me, little viper.”
The next morning, Amos woke to an empty bed, and shot up, searching the room for his mate. She stood by his desk, fully dressed in her own clothes, holding a piece of paper.
Sliding out of bed, he closed the distance between them and twined his arms around her waist. “What are you reading?”
Clover leaned into him and lifted the paper. “The invitation to Rennick’s coronation celebration. Alice brought it from your study.”
He leaned back and turned her around. “Alice was here?”
Biting back a smile, she nodded. “You sleep like the dead. She knocked earlier this morning, and you didn’t stir at all.”
That wasn’t like him. “What time is it?”
“Mid-afternoon.”
Amos’ head popped back. “I’ve never slept that late in my life.”
She shrugged a shoulder. “Your sleeping tonic works really well.”
His jaw dropped. “You drugged me?”
His wife cocked a brow. “You said it wasn’t drugging, remember?”
Damn it. “It’s not.” He kissed her forehead, deciding not to admit that the thought of her retaliation turned him on.
She looked pointedly at his now-hard cock and laughed. “You’re ridiculous. We need to pack and leave the day after tomorrow if we’re going to make it to the Mountain Kingdom in time to see Amelia and Rennick before the coronation,” she added.
Amos plucked the invitation out of her hand and scanned it. “As you wish. We’ll let the others know. A few will come with us as guards.”
Clover wrinkled her nose. “We don’t need guards.”
“No,” he agreed, “but most royals travel with guards, and with Paul in the wind, it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
He tried to shake off the nerves their upcoming trip caused. Usually, he tried not to think about it, but it was too close to ignore now. Amos would finally meet Amelia and tell her who she really was.