Even though his lips still covered hers, she imagined that she could hear whispered words in his voice floating through her mind.
Good girl, she heard as her hips rose and fell to match the rhythm of his finger’s thrusts. When he added a second and then a third, she moaned low, hips rising to force him deeper. She sensed the deep satisfaction within him. Mine.
With a primal instinct devoid of conscious thought, her thighs fell even further open. He broke their kiss and moved lower down her body, tracing his lips along the exposed skin in his path. Steam from the nearby pool surrounded them, combining with the moist heat of their bodies. His features blurred in the fog-thickened air that caught in her throat, but she saw the flash of his eyes in the darkness just before he buried his face between her thighs.
His lips found her clit with unerring accuracy, even as his stroking fingers continued their assault on her slick-drenched channel. Slurping and sucking sounds filled the air as his mouth captured her flesh. She keened beneath him, only capable of writhing desperately underneath his body as the pleasure spiked.
She was no longer concerned with the fact that the other Omegas would be returned to the harem at literally any moment. The only thing that mattered was having him inside of her as soon as possible.
“Please…”
“Spread your legs,” he commanded. “Wider.”
Aura complied because she had no choice, her legs falling as wide as she could spread them with a plaintive cry. The cool air that washed over her nether flesh as he shifted over her did little to soothe the heated ache. She wanted him with a single-mindedness that was inexplicable, capable of putting aside all the hurt and pain that he had put her through.
The tips of his fingers still played at her opening, spreading the slick on her flesh in concentrated circles, up to the exquisitely sensitive bud of her clit and down to stroke disturbingly close to her rear entrance.
She recognized that he teased her, prolonging the moment until she lost any hint of self-control and begged him to fuck her. But that recognition didn’t stop her from giving him exactly what he wanted, pleading with the frantic pull of her hands and whispered words for him to finally join with her.
Castor knew her body better than she did and played it like a virtuoso with his favored instrument. He kissed her with lips covered in her slick and the taste of her own arousal flavored her tongue. He growled again into her mouth, sending her inner channel into clenching spasms that sent another river of slick to drench the bedding beneath her hips. Her body needed him as much as she did, if not more.
There was no room for self-consciousness or shame. All she could experience was the pleasure that he inflicted on her like a weapon and hope to survive it.
As he kissed her, Aura sucked greedily at his tongue, inviting it further into her mouth in the frantic hope that he would take inspiration and enter her completely. Her hands caressed the hard planes of his back, distantly marveling at the barely restrained power of his musculature. He could destroy her body with the smallest amount of effort, snap her in half with just his bare hands.
And that knowledge somehow sent the spike of pleasure even higher, as if recognition of her vulnerability in the face of his strength was enough to undo her completely.
He shifted slightly and then he was inside of her, hard length of him filling her completely with one stroke. Aura screamed, he captured the sound with the seal of his mouth on hers. His face was one of intense concentration when he pulled away enough to break their kiss, teeth bared in a growl.
Mine.
She heard the word again in his voice, even though his lips had not so much as twitched. His member thrust into her, just as his mind invaded hers until she could not separate one sensation from another. Her body tightened around him, but still he forced himself deeper until he had overcome even the smallest hint of resistance.
Slowly and maddeningly, he moved in and out of her with his gaze trained on her face to watch the play of emotions that crossed her features with each deep stroke. Each thrust of his hips stoked the fire in her higher until it threatened to burn them both to dust.
Castor pushed forward until the heavy weight of his scrotum rested against her bottom, the full length of him swallowed up inside of her. He rotated his hips which forced the iron-hard flesh against the soft walls of her insides. The spark of pleasure and pain was enough to bring her head up from the pillow, forcing her mouth to open in a soundless gasp.
Aura was caught between twin and warring impulses, wanting desperately for him to relieve her from this torture and for it to never end. They stared into each other’s eyes but the connection between them ran deeper than such superficial contact.
Before she could gather herself, he shifted them so that her body rose above his, allowing her to control the speed of their mating. She traced his features in the low light, memorizing them as if she might never see them again. She tried to remind herself that he would soon tie himself to another and be lost to her forever. But in that moment, there was only space in her mind for the feel of him filling her and the look on his face as he shuddered toward completion.
He filled her more completely from this angle, striking the spot inside of her that made the pleasure spike and brought her that much closer to the ragged edge.
“Mine.” This time the growled words were said aloud. His hands rose to force her hips down as he thrust up, spearing her completely.
Aura’s body spasmed around him. His voice, touch and the exquisite stretch from the growing knot within her combined to trigger her orgasm. He had been merciless with his thrusts, but the force of her clamping down around him was enough to still his movements.
Her cunt milked his knot, drawing spurts of cum and bathing her insides until there was nothing less. And for the entirety of it, she stared down at him and marveled at how easy it would be to lose herself in the crystal depths of his eyes.
Eventually, he urged her down to rest against him so that her head pressed against the solid wall of his chest, gently rising and falling with each harsh breath that he took. The knot kept them bound together, but there was no fight left in her or even the desire to get away. Through the bond she sensed his temporary contentment and the self-hatred that would rear its head the moment that the haze of pleasure faded away. She felt cast adrift, as if only the mass of his body kept her afloat in an ocean of nothingness. Without him, she would be lost.
And she hated them both for it.
Chapter Eight
Castor had taken to visiting her at night. He would bypass the locked door of the harem as if it did not exist, unbothered by the guards and move silently through the darkness until he reached her room. She couldn’t be sure if any of the women in the harem knew of the nighttime visits, but none of them had spoken so much as a word of it to her, not even Dharia.
During the day, Aura fought to remember that she had an intense desire to leave and someday return to her family. But the moment he crossed her threshold, and she caught the first hint of his scent, any thoughts that were not related to having him inside of her fled from her mind.
He was careful to speak no word of Sirena, but Aura understood that the princess was still somewhere in the palace, busy with preparations for the upcoming wedding. She tried her best not to think of it because the pain quickly overcame any other emotion.
And she hated that Castor could inspire any feelings in her at all. She could rationalize the desire as something outside of her control, a biological imperative that couldn’t be overcome. The Sotiri had done this terrible thing to her that made her crave her own degradation. But the emotions she felt that were greater than mere physical desire, she held herself responsible for that. With each night that passed, she grew closer to losing herself.
For his part, Castor seemed unbothered by the battle that waged within her. They barely spoke beyond the growled words he growled harshly in her ear as he climbed over her prostrate body — you are mine, no other man will ever touch y
ou.
Open for me.
She heard his voice even when she was alone, those words whispering through the small room even after he had left her to return to his own bed. He made a point of never falling asleep beside her, for reasons he never explained. Perhaps he feared discovery but the more likely explanation, as far as Aura was concerned, was that once their mating was complete, he found no other point to being with her.
The force of his presence she used to feel through the bond had receded, as if a wall had been erected between them. Although it still caused her pain, she felt more removed from him even when he stood in the room with her.
But that didn’t stop her body from craving his touch. And the mark still burned. She felt as trapped by her desire for him as she did by the four walls surrounding her.
One night, when the knot kept them bound together in a way that neither could escape, she did finally speak those words aloud. “You have to let me out of here.”
“We’ve discussed this.” Castor twisted his hips so that his still swollen knot pressed against the sensitive spot inside of her until stars exploded across her vision. “I can’t let you leave the palace.”
Except she wasn’t trying to make the same tired argument he had consistently ignored. “But you can let me into the rest of the palace. Being trapped in the pavilion is driving me mad.”
“Is that the only thing driving you mad?”
His hand wormed between their bodies to play at the sensitive bud of her clit, sending another spasm clenching through her inner walls and drawing a moan from her lips. Despite the pleasure that rocketed through her, she understood that he only used it as a distraction. “Please. The boredom is more than I take.”
He seemed to consider her words for a moment, looking almost pensive, but then he gripped her hips hard enough to leave bruises on the skin. “Let’s see what else you can take.”
There would be no more talk between them for the night.
But the next day, a female guard entered the pavilion and announced that they would be allowed to explore the palace as an outing once a day, with a guard accompanying them. Dharia had turned to her with an expression of shock on her face and Aura had struggled to keep a neutral expression on her own.
To Aura’s surprise, most of the women in the harem seemed disinterested in venturing outside of the pavilion. Dharia was the only one who initially accompanied her, and the other woman quickly lost interest in exploring.
Aura eventually found herself alone and wandering the long halls with a silent guard following closely behind her. The silent presence was an easy thing to ignore and Aura understood that without the guard, she would never have been allowed out of the harem in the first place. Castor was willing to concede something, but not that much.
She was most interested in the library and it became a place she returned to, day after day. From what she’d come understand, books were also a rare and expensive commodity here, but they’d been practically unheard of on the Citadel. She found herself drawn there, both to read and to enjoy the enticing aroma of ink and ancient paper. Eventually, the silent guard started waiting in the hall outside, giving her brief but much-needed privacy.
And she was so enamored with exploring the volumes that, on one day, Aura did not notice the library was occupied until she turned a corner and ran straight into the Vigilian Princess.
“Apologies,” Sirena murmured as she caught her balance.
When Aura looked up from the shelf, she found herself face to face with Princess Sirena, the advisor Faseer only steps behind her. A heavy book fell from her hands, striking the carpeted floor with a muffled thud.
“No harm done.” Aura rubbed the sore spot on her forehead that had collided with the taller woman’s chest. “I should have been looking where I was going.”
The Princess gave a little start of surprise, but then replied easily. “I thought no one else ever came here. Aura, isn’t it?”
“Yes. I’m surprised you remember, Princess Sirena.”
She found it strange to be facing Sirena, armed with the knowledge that the Princess’s soon-to-be-husband had been visiting her room night after night. Part of her felt ashamed, but the greater part urged her to silence. Every night that he spent with her, was one that Castor did not seek out his fiancée. For all she knew, their marriage was one of convenience. Sirena could be well aware of Castor’s nocturnal activities, but did not care about them.
And Aura wasn’t sure if that would make things better or worse, which helped convince her to maintain her silence. What did she owe this woman? Nothing.
She bent to pick up the fallen book, but Faseer stepped smoothly forward, close enough it was a slight invasion of her personal space.
“Please, allow me.”
When he handed the volume back to her, he held it so that his fingers brushed hers for the briefest of moments. At his touch, a deep sense of revulsion rolled over her. Aura forced herself to turn away before he could see it on her face.
“You have my thanks.”
“I’m sure someone as beautiful as you is often put in the position of giving thanks for gallant attention.” Faseer did not move away after releasing the book into her hands, forcing Aura to step back herself so she could breathe again. He noticed the small retreat and smiled in a way that was purely predatory. “But there is no need. It is an honor to simply be in your presence.”
“Faseer is a bit over-excited,” Sirena demurred. A slight smile revealed nothing, but she looped her arm through the advisor’s and shifted them towards a nearby shelf. It might have been a coincidence, but it seemed as if the Princess was attempting to ease the tension. “We have few Omegas in Vigil.”
“And it’s the largest crisis we face,” Faseer said as he took a book down and peered at it. “Our birthrates are the lowest that they’ve been in a century and projected to continue falling. Without restoring the balance of dynamics, I fear for the future of our sector.”
“You must tell me what it’s like to be a part of the King’s harem. My father speaks of it in almost mythic tones, proof of Pandora’s abundance. It’s part of the reason he arranged this union.” Sirena seemed genuinely curious, and not at all put off by the idea of a group of women kept in sexual slavery which made Aura wonder what things were like where she came from. “Such a thing is unheard of in Vigil. There simply aren’t enough Omegas to go around.”
Aura tried to demur, hoping that her discomfort wasn’t obvious. “There isn’t anything interesting to tell, really. I am simply in service to the Crown, like everyone else who lives in Pandora.”
“Well I find that particular notion of service very interesting.” Faseer did not try to hide the leer on his face. “We must discuss it further, at some point.”
She wanted to run and had to clench her hands into hard fists behind her back, the slight pain enough to steady her. Like any predator, fleeing would only compel him to chase her. And Sirena seemed oblivious to Faseer’s inappropriate comments, or perhaps the Princess had simply grown accustomed to it so wasn’t bothered.
Aura plastered as pleasant a smile as she could muster on her face. “I’m sure the King would be pleased to discuss it. You should ask him.”
But Faseer didn’t rise to the bait. “Perhaps I will.”
“Vigil has other things to offer, of course.” Sirena took a seat in a nearby armchair, opened a large volume in her lap and bent over the colorful illustration on the page. “We’re technologically sophisticated so there’s much our scientists could do to improve living conditions in your city.”
“Quite right.” While the Princess was distracted, Faseer sidled closer. “Vigilian scientists are responsible for many recent advancements. For example, we have recently rediscovered space travel.”
Aura’s head snapped up. “Space travel?”
“Only near-orbit missions at this point, but we expect to continue our explorations soon. Have you ever wondered what it might be like to leave the planet’s surfa
ce?”
The knowing look in his eyes should have been enough to encourage silence, but Aura could not stop herself from asking further questions. “I never thought it was possible. What are you hoping to find out there?”
“I’m afraid that information is currently classified.” Faseer smiled, but it did not reach his eyes, which were narrowed in contemplation as he held Aura’s gaze. She couldn’t shake the thought he was able to see right through her. “But I’m sure all will be revealed in due time. That is among the questions to be answered once our negotiations are completed. Vigil has much to offer, but we seek something of equal value in return.”
Sirena’s easy laugh broke the sudden tension. “Don’t speak as if our union is not a foregone conclusion, my dear Faseer. You focus too much on the details.”
“Alas, the devil is in the details, your majesty.”
“Oh, stop teasing, Faseer,” Sirena said from the chair, voice light. “You take everything so seriously.”
“I take my responsibilities seriously.”
Aura stared into eyes that resembled chips of ice. The advisor studied her as if she were a particularly interesting laboratory specimen. Aura had never felt such immediate revulsion for a man before, but she also recognized that it was important to tread carefully. This man was very dangerous. She shifted to the side and moved toward the exit. “Enjoy the library.”
“Before you go, I must ask you one more thing.” Faseer closed the already small distance that separated them, near enough that his breath washed over her cheek as he spoke. “However did you come to learn our language?”
And then Aura realized, with a sick sense of dread, that the translation unit could not discriminate. It translated any words that were spoken to her, regardless of whether she should understand them. The Princess must have innately apologized in her native tongue when they bumped into each other, which prompted the translator to craft a reply in the same language. Aura wouldn’t have known the difference. But it was an oversight that would be difficult to explain away.
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