Chapter 26
Seda
The castle walls seemed familiar—cold and gray—as Seda rested on the black furs covering the bed. She curled up and brushed her hand across her face, wiping away tears that had unexpectedly fallen.
A door opened, and someone walked in. She tightly closed her eyes and dug her face into the pillows, feeling herself wanting to hide her emotions from them.
She felt the bed shift, and a warm hand rested on her shoulder.
“We’ll keep trying,” she heard them say.
A vaguely familiar sadness enveloped her, and she felt her stomach tighten as a cry erupted from her lips.
“It will never happen,” she choked out through muffled sobs.
She felt their hand tighten on her, and the shock that this person might also be upset made her heart fall even further into the recesses of her now-empty soul.
Then she heard her mother’s voice in the growing darkness, and a slight flare of love began to pulse within her heart. “Once upon a time, there was a magical Fae who wished to be more…”
Seda gasped as she awoke and sat up in bed, gripping the emerald-green, silken sheets between her hands.
The feeling of dread curdled deep within her.
She frantically scanned her surroundings and relaxed when she saw Cahir asleep beside her, exhaustion evident on his face.
The sheets had been pulled down, barely covering the lower half of his body.
She watched the bare skin of his stomach muscles ripple, and his closed eyes move back and forth, as if lost within a dream.
They had stayed up late the night before, planning their trips with the others, and Cahir had insisted on staying awake as long as possible by her side. Kalon had not entered her dreams since the incident in the garden, and she wondered when the dreams of snakes would return.
Instead, she was having vivid dreams of unfamiliar things, unknown places, and unrecognized feelings.
What were they? Premonitions? Fear of things to come?
She lay back down on the bed and stared up at the glass ceiling, watching the green orbs and clouds float by, their pink hues drenched in the morning glow.
She shifted on the bed, and the sheets rubbed against her irritated back. She reached her arm around to scratch it through her nightgown, and pain flared through her.
She hissed as she ground her teeth together.
Cahir stirred next to her, and he opened his eyes, staring at her with pursed lips. “Is everything okay? Did you have a bad dream?” he asked as he quickly rubbed his puffy eyes and sat up in bed, returning his attention to her.
Was that a bad dream? It felt… sad. But nothing had happened to cause fear, and Kalon wasn’t there to torment her.
“No dreams of Kalon,” she replied.
He adjusted himself and looked at her, running his hands through her hair. “Your hair…” he started.
She looked down and lightly grabbed the section of it that had fallen over her shoulder. Glittering stands of white with iridescent purples and blues rested on her fingertips.
“It’s changed more,” she noted, dropping the strands when pain flared through her back once more. “Hey, can you look at my back again, please? It’s really hurting.”
He nodded, and she turned around, loosening the laces on the front of her nightgown and allowing it to slip free from her shoulders.
He gently brushed her hair away from her back and gasped, causing her to flinch when his fingers gently ran over her sensitive skin.
“What is it?” she asked, turning back to stare at him.
“Something’s growing out of your back. It…” He paused and chewed on his bottom lip.
“It what?”
He cleared his throat. “It’s… feathers.”
“What?!” She jumped out of the bed and ran to the vanity, turning around and looking over her shoulder into the mirror.
Glistening, black feathers, no larger than her pinky finger, met her eyes, and a soft gasp escaped her astonished lips.
How could she have feathers?
Cahir walked up to her and rested his hands on her shoulders. “They almost look like Roya’s.”
She looked up into Cahir’s gentle gaze, and a small smile played across his lips, the points of his teeth slipping free. “They’re beautiful, Seda.”
She wasn’t sure how she felt about this. Her back was red and sore to the touch. The strange dreams, her hair changing color, and now feathers?
“I want to talk to Roya and Ferona,” she finally said, looking back into the mirror and staring at them once more.
Cahir touched his finger under her chin and directed her face back to his. She stared up into his eyes, and his voice was barely a whisper as he said, “Sed, you’re so fucking magical.”
He bent down and pressed his lips to hers, and heat began to build through her core.
She released the fabric of her nightgown, letting it puddle to the floor, and felt the cool air of the room sting her exposed skin. She balanced on her toes to wrap her arms around him and pressed her lips to his.
A groan escaped him as he wrapped his hands around her thighs, feeling her bare skin, and lifted her up so she didn’t have to strain to reach him. Seda wrapped her legs around him and felt the heat and muscle of his abdomen against the increasingly sensitive area at the apex of her thighs.
“I need to brush my teeth,” she said between breaths.
“No… You fucking don’t,” he replied as he nipped her lower lip.
He sat on the edge of the bed, positioning her over him, and she felt his rigid desire press into her through his pants. She couldn’t help herself and wiggled herself over him, causing him to groan as he attempted to kiss the top of her head.
His fevered lips met her own once more, and he ran his warm tongue across hers. His palm clasped over her breast, and he gently squeezed it, kissing her as if she were the source of all life.
She felt herself throb and tighten in anticipation, and she ground into him once more.
“Fuck.” His voice was rough as he breathed into her.
She reached between her legs and pressed her palm against his hardened length, loving the sensation of power she felt as his body responded to her this way, knowing she could bring this king to his knees if she wanted.
He adjusted and pulled his cock out of his pants, and they quickly stared into each other’s eyes, both questioning if they should go further.
Was she ready for this?
She felt ready. She wanted him. She needed to replace her painful memories with something special she could share with someone she cared about.
She needed him inside her more than anything else in the world right now.
He carefully eased her onto the bed.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said as the silky fabric of the bedding caressed the sensitive skin on her back.
“You won’t hurt me.” Her back didn’t matter right now.
She saw the pleading look in his eyes, the way he continued being so gentle with her—so cautious. She didn’t want that. She wanted them to claim each other in ways only they could share.
His breathing became heavy and strained. She stared back down at his length that pushed through the hole in his pants. “I want you, Cahir,” she whispered breathlessly, and he groaned in response.
He held onto himself and lightly rubbed the head of his cock against her sensitive flesh, slowly sliding it up and down between her, grazing it against her clit.
Her eyes flared at the contact, the feel of his warm, silky skin against hers, and she began to lose all sense of control, grasping at his hips for more.
“I want you forever, Seda.” His voice was rough as he slid his length up and down, causing her body to shudder in response. “Until my body turns to dust and my soul wanders through the ends of time, I want you.”
That same tension from the other night began to build within her, and she moaned as he continued to glide against her.
More. She wanted more. She needed more.
“Look what you do to me, Sed—only you. You’re the air that prevents my lungs from collapsing, the source that continues to beat my heart. Every breath I take belongs to you.”
She stared down between her legs, at his now darkened cock slowly sliding up and down between her, at the bead of cum forming on the top.
“More,” she moaned, and he bent over her, continuing to glide himself between her legs as he kissed her with claiming vigor. He released her lips with a ragged breath and pushed himself back up, looking down at her with awe, like she was everything he said and more.
His pants fell to his ankles before he lined himself up at her entrance.
Cahir glanced down between them, at his hard length throbbing against her, begging for entry. His chest heaved, with his pulse pounding visibly in his throat. His hooded gaze shifted back to hers, looking for her final approval.
“Please,” she pleaded, urging him on, hoping he wouldn’t cease. She bit down on her bottom lip.
He watched her mouth with a deep, hungry gaze, his pupils expanding with her permission. He slowly circled his cock around her entrance, emitting a moan at the feel of their bodies so close.
“You’re so fucking beautiful, Sed,” he whispered breathlessly, the words caressing her spine and making her shiver.
He slowly pushed himself in, just an inch, and she felt her body stretch around him, felt herself open to him willingly, causing her to gasp in pleasure.
“More,” Seda begged. “More,” she demanded.
Cahir leaned over and pressed his full lips into hers in a ragged, rushed kiss, like he was fighting against himself, and ever so slowly slid himself the rest of the way in.
He remained seated, giving her time to adjust, then let out a rough growl.
She lost herself in the feel of being filled by him, of feeling him everywhere around her.
Seda’s magic erupted from within, causing the room to glow with shimmering violet hues. This was everything, this was an explosion of freedom—her want, her body… her choice.
She felt him trembling against her as he pulled himself out and slowly pushed back in as pleasure tore through every fiber of her being.