anthology Once Upon A Prince (Ellora's Cave)

by james

  * * * * *

  A light touch on her arm woke Amelle. She blinked sleepily, seeing Kanin standing in front of her. Leaning against the pole, she felt the rough wood against her face. Kanin knelt beside her, his hand resting on her knee. “Amelle, sweetheart,” he said softly.

  “Hmm?” She asked. She focused her gaze on him, not wanting to look past him to the yard outside where the guests waited for their wedding. As wakefulness returned, she remembered that she was to marry him today. The wedding would end with Kanin taking her in front of all the guests. She pulled away from him. “What do you want?”

  “The guests are hungry,” he said. “We’ve a bountiful feast to serve, but the guests cannot eat until after we’re married.” He looked at her, his gaze hungry.

  Lightly, he wrapped his hand around her wrist and drew her to her feet. The fabric of her dress whispered, parting and shifting to reveal tantalizing glimpses of her skin. He trailed his fingers down her arm, sending electric sparks jolting through her. Her body betrayed her mind, her nipples hardening with desire. As he caressed her chin, drawing her gaze up to meet his, she felt warmth pooling low in her belly, and for a moment, she closed her eyes, wishing that he would make love to her. Surely, she thought for a traitorous moment, it wouldn’t be so bad to perform the duties of the wedding ceremony. Kanin surely would make it a pleasurable experience. As if he read her thoughts, he dipped his head and kissed her lightly.

  “You’ve made love to me several times now. Why must we complete our union in front of everyone? Remember our first time, when the blanket appeared. Surely someone saw us then.”

  “I’m sure we were watched, but to complete the marriage we must consummate our union after saying the ritual words. It is the only way Logos are married.”

  Amelle swallowed hard. She stared at the shackles on her wrist, feeling as if she didn’t have a choice. She sighed heavily.

  Kanin reached out and trailed his fingers over her cheek. “You must consent to be my wife. It is Logos tradition. Please, Amelle, I want to marry you.” His voice turned husky. “I do not desire anyone like I desire you.”

  She wanted to believe it was so, wanted to lose herself in his arms. Glancing out the window, she saw the guests arranging themselves on the lawn in front of the cottage. Kanin slid his hand over her waist to where the folds of the skirt parted and he could caress her silky thigh through the fabric.

  “Are you scared of me?” he asked. His voice sounded desperate, as if he needed to find a reason why she wouldn’t agree to marry him. His fingers caressed the place where thigh and hip met, dipping until he touched the curls between her legs. Gently, with a single finger, he parted her folds and stroked. “I would do nothing to hurt you.” He touched her damp sex, his finger unerringly finding her clit. He began to rub it, causing Amelle to whimper. “In fact,” he said, rubbing harder, “I would give you great pleasure. You have already experienced that for yourself.” He touched her with a second finger.

  “I know that,” Amelle whispered. “Please don’t make this any harder.” She closed her eyes, trying hard to keep her moans of pleasure locked behind sealed lips. On their own, her hips rocked against Kanin’s hand. Her body ached for him, wanted to feel him buried deeply inside her, and she parted her legs. “I can’t,” she whimpered.

  With his other hand, Kanin cupped her breast, using his thumb to tease her nipple into a tight peak. “Why not?” he said. He stepped closer and slipped a finger inside of her. Thrusting it deep inside, he stroked her silken walls. “Come for me, Amelle. Come for me, and tell me you want to be my wife.”

  Amelle gripped Kanin’s shoulders. She rode his hand, crying out as he inserted a second finger into her. “No,” she gasped. “I don’t want –” her words faded away as shudders ravaged her body. She looked into his eyes, saw his masculine smile of pleasure, and knew he felt her body pulsing around his fingers. Closing her eyes, she tried to control the force of her release and couldn’t. She leaned on Kanin, breathing heavily as she came. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. With feather-light touches of his lips, he kissed her cheek, her hair, her ear, anywhere he could reach.

  Amelle pulled away. “Not yet,” she said, grudgingly admitting even to herself that the idea of spending the rest of her life in Kanin’s arms sounded heavenly. “Can you unshackle me? I would feel more comfortable about our arrangement if I weren’t in chains.” She held up her manacled wrists to illustrate. “It seems an odd way to keep the woman you are about to marry.”

  Kanin pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. “Okay, but promise me you won’t run off.”

  Amelle nodded and sat down on the stool, hands held out in front of her. I’m sorry, my love, but I have to leave.

  Chapter Four

  Kanin walked across the cottage, quickly returning with the keys to release her. He quickly opened the locks. “I have to mingle with the guests. When you are ready to go through with it, just come outside, okay? I hope you won’t keep me waiting long.” He balled his hands into fists at his sides, almost as if he wanted to reach out to her and didn’t. Without saying anything further, he turned and walked outside.

  Amelle watched him go. She watched him interact with the guests, a smile here, a nod and a quick word there. He seemed so at home among them. In their human forms, she knew not what they might be when they changed and watching the guests arrive had taught her that the Logos were a varied people.

  I think I might love him, but I have to go. I cannot stay here. The thought formed in her mind, rooted in her fear of staying.

  Where would you go? Her thoughts taunted her. She knew she couldn’t return to her mother. Daria would be furious at her daughter’s defection, not to mention the fact that she was no longer a virgin. Sighing deeply, Amelle knew she could probably find some kind of work in the village or beyond. Maybe she could ride to the capital and throw herself on the mercy of the King. Tell him of these strange creatures who lived in the forest. Her thoughts gave her confidence.

  She glanced down at her freed wrists, then back at the cottage. She saw no door except the one through with Kanin had exited. Rising to her feet, she walked towards the back of the cottage and the windows there. She wondered if she could get away in time, and shivered thinking of the shape-shifters in the front yard who would probably hunt her down at Kanin’s command. Taking a deep breath, she stopped in the corner of the cottage. A small window above the curtained alcove that looked as if it had been hastily set up as a privy drew her attention. The window looked wide enough for her to slip through, and better yet, when she turned she didn’t see the windows looking over the front yard.

  She glanced down at her dress. She couldn’t run away in that, yet she had nothing else suitable for wearing into the forest. At least, she thought with a wry glance at the slits in the material, it would keep her legs free for running.

  Amelle stared at the window. Kanin had to understand her fears. He just had to. He’d taken her away from her mother, from her life, presented her with his strange rituals and expected her to marry him. She supposed she could argue that her mother treated her far worse than anything she’d ever suffer at Kanin’s hands. Still, he had taken her choice away from her. She wanted to go to the King’s castle and find a real prince. Now she would never be allowed to leave these woods. She felt sure of it. Swallowing hard, she rose on her tiptoes and grasped the window ledge. It wouldn’t be hard once she opened the window to slip outside. A sense of triumph filled her. She flipped the latch open, then grasped the sill and hauled herself through the window.

  Glancing around, she saw no one in the back yard. She shoved herself all the way out, landing on the ground with a soft thud. Her heart hammering in her ears, she rose to her feet and darted away from the cottage.

  She ran towards the woods, afraid at any moment that Kanin or one of his Logos might jump out and haul her back to the marriage ceremony. She saw no one as she darted toward the cover of the trees. Keeping to the trails, she ran,
winding deeper and deeper into the forest. Sweat ran from her in rivulets, dripping down her back and staining the delicate fabric of her dress.

  She didn’t care. Her need for freedom burned in her veins, hotter than Kanin’s passion. Somewhere, these trails had to lead back to a settlement, a farm somewhere where she could explain her plight and go back home. She remembered her thoughts about trying for the King’s mercy. She was young and beautiful. Surely there were other things for her in the world. Amelle slowed. Suddenly, she realized she didn’t want to go back home; she wanted to see the world, to be her own woman. She picked up speed again.

  How long she had been running, Amelle didn’t know. The knowledge that soon she would be her own woman, free in the world, gave her strength, so when she slowed, she noticed the angle of the sun had moved closer towards the horizon. Shadows lengthened beneath the trees. The trickle of a stream or a waterfall sounded up ahead, and Amelle decided to rest. She walked, the fabric of her dress rustling against the undergrowth. Glancing behind her, she saw nothing except more trees and the path down which she had run.

  Amelle stepped into a clearing. A waterfall bounced down a pile of rocks to land in a cool pond. The water looked heavenly, reminding Amelle that she hadn’t had anything to eat or drink all day. Stripping her battered and sweaty dress from her body, she stepped into the pool. This would be a nice place to rest and think about what to do next.

  * * * * *

  Kanin glanced back towards the cottage. He couldn’t see Amelle through the window, and she hadn’t come outside to marry him. Worry gnawed at him, making him think for the first time in years that perhaps he had been wrong. He had watched her since she was a child, watched her blossom into the beautiful young woman she had become, and through it all, he loved her. He wanted to tell her, the need causing a physical pain in his heart, but he was afraid. She might think he had stalked her, that his love wasn’t real, and he didn’t think he could deal with that.

  He extracted himself from a giggling group of Logos maidens, magpies all in their other forms, and walked back towards the house. He crossed the yard and paused outside the door. Closing his eyes, he hoped he would find her ready to marry him. He wanted to join with her, to make her the Queen of the Logos, as her mother should have been, but the fear of rejection nearly kept him rooted in place. He hesitantly reached forward and opened the door.

  “Amelle?” he queried after he had stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

  Silence greeted him.

  “Amelle? Princess?” he called again.

  When no one answered, he moved into the room. He didn’t see her near her post, nor in the bed. Stepping around the corner, he saw the curtain to the privy area was open, and Amelle wasn’t in sight. The open window above the privy caught his attention, and with long strides he crossed the room to stand before it. He glanced out the window, seeing clearly now what had happened. A scrap of white cloth fluttered on the edge of the casement. Kanin reached for it, drawing it to his lips to kiss the fabric, his only trace of Amelle.

  I must go after her. There are others who would not be so kind to her as my kin and I. The thought galvanized him to action. Quickly shifting into his form as a rabbit, he bounded to a shelf standing near the window. From the shelf, he propelled himself out the window, grunting as he landed on the grass. He sat there a moment, stunned by the impact, then took off down the path he saw winding through the forest. He had to find her. Racing as fast as his legs would carry him, he followed the path, hoping he still had time to find her.

  * * * * *

  Sunlight warmed Amelle’s body, drying the droplets of water still clinging to her. She lay naked on the shore of the pool, her eyes closed. Berries growing nearby had sated her hunger, and with her body clean and nourished, she simply let herself enjoy the moment.

  Kanin. A pang of loss shot through her at the thought of his name. He hadn’t meant to scare her, of that she was sure, but his ways were so different from her own. A part of her wanted to clothe herself in the wedding dress and return to him. She felt torn, between her own desires of freedom and Kanin. Taking a deep breath, she sat. Either way, she couldn’t stay here. She stared across the water wishing that it held the answer to her question. With twilight falling over the forest and still no farms in sight, she wondered if she had been foolish to run away. Kanin had shown gentleness to her, and surely the life he offered would be better than the life she had.

  Behind her, she heard the crack of a twig. She waited, unsure whether to move or remain still. It might be an animal in the forest, she tried to tell herself, but she felt a gaze on her back, tracing the long, line of her spine and the gentle curve of her buttocks. She glanced behind her.

  Kanin stood at the edge of the clearing. He was naked, and she clearly saw his partially hard erection.

  “Amelle,” he said, as if he didn’t believe he was seeing her.

  She nodded. He moved towards her, his strides powerful, and as she watched his body, she felt herself growing wet with arousal. She wanted him and felt like she betrayed herself. She rose to her feet. Her prince stood in front of her and she was too scared to reach out and grab him. Well no more. She reached out her arms and stood naked before him.

  “You’ve come to take me back.” The words were a simple statement of truth, not a question.

  Kanin stopped in front of her. With a shaking hand, he reached out and caressed her cheek. His thumb touched her lips, and Amelle kissed it. She thought she heard him groan. “Only if you want to,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. He reached out and cupped her shoulders. Stepping closer, he placed a kiss on her forehead. “Only if you want to, Amelle. I won’t hold you against your will.”

  She leaned into him. She felt the hardness of his shaft against her belly, and her body responded. Her breasts tingled where they pressed against his chest. Hesitantly, she placed her arms around him. “Do you mean that?” she whispered against his skin. “No more shackles. No more being bound against my will? I want to travel, to see places.”

  “I do,” Kanin replied. His hands dropped to her buttocks, and he pulled her hard against him. “I want you. I want you as my wife, but I will not keep you prisoner. I’m sorry I even tried.”

  Amelle looked up at him. “I am thankful you took me away from my mother, but please tell me that we won’t stay cloistered in the woods. There’s an entire world out there I haven’t seen, Kanin. I don’t want to be holed up in the forest, even if it means staying with you.”

  “Then we’ll see the world together. We’ll spend half our time with the Logos, the other half traveling. Oh, there are places I want to show you, my dearest. I love you, Amelle. I loved you the first time I saw you. I want you to be the Queen of the Logos with me, want you to rule our people with me.” Kanin caressed her hip, his hand moving higher to cup her breast. He flicked his thumb across her sensitive nipple. “Mostly,” he said, his voice husky. “I want to make love to you every night. I want to know that you are mine. My other form is that of the hare. You know how my kind are. There’s a reason why they say fuck like rabbits.”

  He captured her lips then, giving her no chance for denial. He kissed her, his lips and tongue demanding entrance. When she gave it, he swept his tongue inside, branding her as his.

  She moaned against his mouth, feeling him lift her.

  “Wrap your legs around my waist,” he said, his breathing ragged.

  She did, and he lowered her, impaling her on his hard shaft. He held her there, his body stiff. She clenched her inner muscles around him. Tears stung her eyes. Tears of joy for the life he offered her.

  He steadied her with one hand. With his other, he reached up and wiped her tears away.

  “Will you marry me?” He flexed his hips, driving himself even deeper inside her. “Will you be the Queen of the Logos?”

  “Kanin, I—“ She gasped as he reached between them to tease her clit with his fingers.

  Kanin knelt on the ground and gently lai
d her back. The soft grass at the bank of the pond cushioned her, and he kissed her lips. The gentle stroke of his mouth against hers bespoke of his love, and Amelle closed her eyes as emotion surged through her.

  She could easily grow to love him. Suddenly, with his lips reverent on her skin, to be anything other than his wife was abhorrent to her.

  “Yes,” Amelle said, then as he slid into her once more. “Yes, yes.”

  “I love you, Amelle, my Queen.” He claimed her lips once more, a hard and demanding kiss that branded her as his own. Kanin caressed her breasts, his ministrations working her nipples into turgid peaks. He kissed her, telling her in actions how much he loved her.

  She lie there in the grass and let the rapture of Kanin’s loving wash over her. And as he brought her to a shattering climax, she knew she had finally found a prince she could love.

  The End