Chapter 50
Fifty
A royal’s duty is to the welfare of their subjects.
A husband’s duty is to his wife. - King Richard
She sits tight on my cock, her pussy still pulsing around me as she hangs from the rafters of her room. I tense my cock inside her, causing her to moan against my neck. Her little whimpers are what I currently live for. The knowledge that her body is mine to control, to use, to protect.
The trust she’s given me tonight has eased the tension in my chest, lessening the gap between us.
Releasing one arm from around her, I reach up to undo the belt around her hands. As soon as she’s able, she wraps her arms around me.
“You were such a good girl,” I say as I carry her into the bathroom. “But you didn’t have to take all that.”
Lifting her head, she kisses my cheek. “I wanted to.”
My arms tighten around her. My cock jumps inside her. Setting her down in the shower, I aim the spray at the floor, away from her so it won’t sting her tender skin. Grabbing the washcloth, I wet it in the warm water, then brush it gently across the bruises my fingers left on her neck.
I lower the cloth to her breasts, but I stop right before I touch them. They are red and raw and bleeding. Bruises are starting to form, hard lumps rising beneath the skin.
“Do you want a healing wand?” I ask softly, my stomach twisting with the knowledge that I’m the one who did this to her. My chest tightens with the fact that she let me. That she trusted me enough to stop. To not push her too far. To take care of her even while I was hurting.
My queen is going to be the death of me.
Lifting a hand to trace the initials I carved into her, she shakes her head. “I’m thinking of getting this as a tattoo.” Her hand moves to the other RM. “This one too.”
Groaning, I pull her onto my lap. She hisses as the spray hits her sensitive skin, but she doesn’t move away. Grabbing my cock, I push it inside her. We need to rest, to clean up and go to bed, but my body needs hers again. My soul needs me to make her mine.
My fingers digging into her hips, I lift her up and down on top of me. She clenches with a moan, her lips finding mine for a hungry kiss. I pull away to look down at where our bodies join. Her pussy grips my cock as she takes me in; the RM bleeds freely beneath the spray.
Growling, I move her faster, harder. Pounding in deep, I hold her down for a second before lifting her slowly off me. Then I jerk her back down hard.
She arches on a cry, her little pants making me feral.
Leaning forward, I take her breast in my mouth, the one I marked as mine. My tongue runs across the initials, licking off the blood, soothing the pain I’ve given her.
“Gods, you’re so good to me,” I moan, her nipple in my teeth, my tongue flipping across it. “You feel so good, so perfect.”
I slam her down on my cock.
Lift her off slowly.
“You did so well during the scene.”
Her fingers in my hair, she twists her torso and lifts her other breast to me. I take it greedily. She cries out, an edge of pain to her voice.
Lifting my head, I look at the state of her chest. Ragged and raw. Eighteen whips she took from me.
“You’re so fucking good to me,” I growl as I kiss the cut the last smack gave her.
I slam her down on my cock.
Lift her off slowly.
Reaching between us, I rub her clit until she’s bucking and crying for mercy. Taking her lips in mine, I stroke my tongue inside her mouth. Teasing. Building. Claiming.
“Did my perfect little queen like being whipped?” I ask, looking her in the eye.
Half-lidded, she stares back at me. Her lips part on little pants and whimpers. “Yes.”
I slam her down on my cock.
Lift her off slowly.
“And does my perfect little queen like it when I come inside her?”
“Yes.” She clenches around me as she starts to squirm. Her hands slap at my chest as she struggles on the edge of release. My balls grow tight.
“Gods, you’re so fucking hot.” Grabbing the back of her neck, I kiss her on the mouth. Her breaths mix with mine. Her groans and moans are mine to take. Her trust, her control – all mine.
As my chest expands with all that she’s giving me, I rub her clit harder, just like she showed me earlier.
She bucks on a cry. Holding her down, I shoot my cum deep inside her. My arms wrap around her. The spray beats down on both of us. Our breaths mingle in hard pants, hers flowing into my lungs, mine flowing into hers.
“I love you,” she whispers. “I never meant to hurt you.”
Stilling, I struggle to hold her gaze.
Cupping her face, giving myself an excuse to look away, I close my eyes and kiss her slowly. “Just promise you won’t ever again.”
She nods, tears streaming down her cheeks.
I kiss away each one. I hold her tight as the words she said bounce around my skull, marking me.
Her betrayal still cuts through my chest, but it doesn’t sting as much anymore.
She trusts me.
And for now, that is enough.
Keeping my dick inside her, I pick up the washcloth and gently begin cleaning the abrasions and cuts on her breasts. She jerks on a hiss when I touch the bruise on her left one. Ever so gently, I cup it, then pat it with the cloth.
The tension in her back eases as I make my way down her body. I wipe away the blood crusted around my initials. Spreading her legs, I tend to the rashes on her thighs. I massage the bruising on her ass.
Finished, I put the cloth down and prepare to stand up with her still wrapped around me, but my queen picks up the towel and touches it to my face.
I freeze.
Looking her in the eye, I allow her to tend to the wounds Jace gave me.
My chest expands. Her three little words bounce around my skull again.
“Who did this to you?” she asks, an edge to her voice that makes me smile.
“Why? Are you going to poison him?”
She glares at me, her eyes hard, but there’s guilt behind her fierceness. “Just give me a name, and I’ll sic Fabia on him.”
Laughing, I shake my head.
Despite the sadness in her eyes, she smiles. “She’s a bit scary, isn’t she?”
“A little,” I admit. “Bit impressive too.”
Swallowing, she glances away. Taking a deep breath, she looks back at me. “What’s going to happen to her?”
“Nothing. If the Court learns she tried to kill me, they’ll force me to execute her. If I refuse to do my duty as king, they can strip my crown from me.”
“They can do that?”
“Yes. But if they try without good, proven cause, then it’s my right to kill them for a false accusation. It keeps us in balance with each other.”
“That sounds horrible.”
I shrug.
“So you can’t punish her at all then?”
I shake my head.
“That’s not fair.”
My eyes sharpen on her, my gut tightening with unease. I don’t want this to be the night where she changes, where she becomes more “fairy”.
“Do you want her punished?” I ask slowly. “She’s your best friend.”
“She tried to kill you. She deserves something.” Arienna pauses, fury in her pale-pink eyes. “What if you have Echo do it? Make her run extra laps or something?”
“Make her fight in the pit unarmed?” I push.
She winces. “That sounds bad.”
“It is.”
“I don’t want her to die.”
“She won’t.”
“Or get hurt too much.”
“That, I can’t promise.”
She frowns. “Maybe just the laps then?”
My gut unclenching, I cup her face and kiss her. “I’ll tell Echo to give her extra laps then.”
“Like a hundred?”
I smile. “A hundred and one.”
Holding her to me, I rise to my feet, turn off the shower, and step out. She leans her head against my chest as I pat her down with a towel, not wanting to rub the bruises on her body. Slinging the bath sheet around us, I carry her into the bedroom and lay her down on the bed.
I want to take her to my room, where she belongs, but the entire suite was upheaved during my “talk” with Jace. I’ll take her there in a couple of days, when the mess is cleared and the room is redecorated with her belongings.
Kissing her gently, I finally slide out of her.
After patting the rest of her dry, I use a corner of the towel to wipe up our cum.
Then I clean my cock, taking special care around my piercing.
Lying down on my side, I wrap an arm across her waist and pull her close.
She snuggles against me and closes her eyes.
“I love you,” she sighs as she falls asleep.
And fucking hel, I wish I knew how to say it back.