by Liz Schulte
I pressed my mouth back onto his, arching against the feel of his hand. “Everywhere.” I slipped my hands under his shirt and kneaded the tight muscles in his back.
His mouth smiled against mine. “Do you want to go inside?”
“No,” I said as I rolled our bodies so I was straddling him. “I want you inside.”
Sitting up, I unbuttoned his pants—then I pulled back enough to discard my shirt. His face buried in my breasts, licking and sucking my nipples through the satin of my bra until a moan tore from my throat. Pushing Cheney back down, I kissed his chest and stomach as I moved down his body, tugging his jeans off. A low vibrating sound formed deep in his chest.
“Christ, I can’t wait,” he growled, pulling me up and flipping us over again. My pants were discarded unceremoniously. He drove into me fully—then withdrew nearly all of the way before doing it again and again and again. My eyes blurred and my body screamed for him.
“Faster,” I begged, squeezing him between my thighs. Cheney complied, bringing me to my end again and again before finding his own. Breathing heavily, we lay tangled with one another. If this was what it was like to lose to Cheney, then maybe I didn’t mind losing.
“This is a much more enjoyable way to train.”
“If Sebastian starts training you like this, I’ll kill him.” His expression grew serious. “I don’t want this to change. We’re in a good place right now. If becoming king will change that, I won’t do it.”
“It’s not going to change.”
“How do you know?”
“Cheney, you waited twenty-six years for me. If that didn’t change our feelings, nothing will.”
“You didn’t exactly welcome me back with open arms. Look, I want to make it clear: you’re more important to me than anything else. I don’t think I ever showed you that before. If you have any hesitations about this, now is the time.”
Yes, I had hesitations about becoming queen and entering fully into a world I knew nothing about, but it wasn’t fair to put that on him. This was Cheney’s destiny—something he had to do. Those three words were on my tongue, ready to come out, but I couldn’t say them. Not yet.
“I don’t have any hesitations,” I lied. “Do you?”
He closed his eyes. “Nothing but.”
I pulled away and dressed quickly. How was I supposed to respond to that? I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep the hurt from my face, so I didn’t look at him. “Hey,” he said, tugging my hand. “Are you mad at me again?”
“No.”
“We were having a conversation and you stopped talking. If that isn’t mad, what is it?”
“I don’t know, Cheney. You tell me.”
“I only said that I have hesitations.” I turned my head away from him, and he pulled me back to the ground. “I didn’t mean about you. I love you. I thought you knew that.”
“There’d be something wrong with you if you didn’t have reservations about the rest of it. Hell, I have reservations about asking my friends if they want in on this, about involving my family, and about you going against yours. I thought we were talking about us.”
“Wait, what are you talking about?” He frowned. “When did you decide to ask your friends, and what’s this about your family?”
“Sebastian and I talked about it today. He pointed out that I can’t be half in, half out on this if we expect people to follow us.”
“Sebastian shouldn’t have said anything about that. It’s your decision.” Cheney looked furious.
“I needed to hear it. My instinct is to protect them, but if we do this, we both have to be completely committed or it won’t work. If I can’t risk those I love, how can we expect others to?”
“So you’re bringing them in?”
“No, I’m giving them the choice. If they want in, I won’t try to stop it. This is going to be my life after all. Part of who I am.”
“You don’t have to give up your human life for me.”
“I’m not giving it up for you. I’m giving it up for us.” I couldn’t believe the words that came out of my mouth. They were true, but I didn’t realize it until I spoke them. Could I really give up everything for a person I had only known a month? Granted my feelings for him were older than that …
“You amaze me.”
I kissed him once more. “Well, you’re going to have to be amazed and dressed. I need to see my friends and Gram, too. Plus I need to visit Sy as well, if we still want his help.”
“Not tonight. We have guests coming.”
“Who?”
“Recruits.”
“How many?”
“Four.”
I looked back at the cottage. How were four recruits, Cheney, Sebastian, and I supposed to fit in that one tiny house? “In there?”
“No, none of them can know where we’re staying. It’s safer that way. I’ve arranged a neutral meeting place.”
“How many of these people knew me?”
“None of them well. But we’re not going to advertise your memory loss, so don’t mention it.”
“And what are we going to do if I have a memory?
He laughed. “Don’t do that either.”
I shook my head. “Who are these people? I take it you know them?”
“I’m acquainted with each of them, yes, but they’re not my close friends. Adan is a representative of the high elves. High elves are the oldest race. Generally they don’t get involved. They choose to stay separate from the rest of us, but they’re very just. Beleg is the dwarf regent. Obviously the dwarves have never been treated the same as the elves. They have been strong enough to resist the rebel advances, but they could be interested in change. Turin is the goblin ruler. The goblins have, perhaps, been treated the worst under our rule. They’ve been demeaned to a role of servant instead of the magical power they once were. The rebels have also overlooked them because they’re not old enough to remember what a great power they once held.” Cheney looked down and pressed his lips together. “The last is Alanna. She’s an empress of the light faeries. Getting her on our side would be quite a coup. Father never marginalized the dark or light fae because their chaotic power was far greater than our own. However, Alanna has always had a bit of a soft spot for me, so try not to offend her.”
“People like me.” I put my hands on my hips. “Olivia liked me.”
“Alanna is not like Olivia. Just try to keep your temper.”
“Why haven’t you involved any of your friends, other than Sebastian?”
“I’m friends with other elves, but I’m not ready to include the elves just yet. If I recruit amongst them, word will get back to Father before we can make our move.”
“What about the vampires? Will you ask them?”
Cheney sighed. “That’s what we’re discussing tonight. I don’t want to get them and lose other allies. They’d be strong, but it’s risky to align ourselves with them.”
“So how exactly is this going to work? We’re going to barge into your father’s court with our hodgepodge of a group and demand he treats everyone fairly or you’ll take over?”
“Something like that. I thought the two of us would go together and request an audience in private. That way you can speak with him. He will, of course, refuse this request and make a public display of his contempt. I’ll step forward and tell him you’re my wife and he must treat you accordingly. The crowd will gasp—at your beauty, of course.”
“Of course,” I said, and Cheney smiled.
“Father will declare I’m no longer his son. I will make an official challenge for the throne, at which point our allies will walk through the doors and everyone will see we are not alone.” Cheney ran his fingers through his hair. “Think of this as a political campaign. If we can get more of the houses to back us, it will not come to fighting. He’ll be forced to relinquish the crown. We can’t afford for this to be a war or drawn out.”
“That’s quite the plan. What happens when it doesn’t go as you imagine?”
“What makes you think it won’t?”
“Nothing ever does.”
“This will.”
I wanted to believe Cheney was right, but it seemed naïve to me. When did anything ever go as planned?
Cheney and I walked into the lobby of a five star hotel and headed straight for the elevator, which we rode to the penthouse floor. The sprawling room was sleek and modern. Sebastian sat on the couch, looking terribly out of place.
“Sebastian, I hear you spoke with Selene about her friends and family?” Cheney asked with thinly veiled anger. My stomached plunged. The last thing I wanted to do was get Sebastian in trouble.
“You weren’t going to do it,” Sebastian said calmly. “Were you?”
“It was her choice.”
“Yes, and now she can make an informed decision.”
“Don’t disregard my wishes again, Sebastian.” His voice was quiet and threatening. “I will not stand for it.”
“It was necessary.”
“Not again.”
Sebastian nodded, dropping the argument. I wondered how their friendship worked. Sometimes it seemed Sebastian was more of an employee than Cheney’s friend. Note to self, ask about that later.
“So …” I said, drawing it out when I realized I had nothing to say. I didn’t know Sebastian outside of training, and Cheney already answered my most pressing questions about what we were doing. Both men looked at me expectantly. “That’s all I’ve got,” I said blushing. I completely sucked at relieving awkward tension.
Sebastian gave me a puzzled look and Cheney laughed, sitting down next to Sebastian. “I think it makes Selene uncomfortable when she thinks we’re fighting, Sebastian.”
Understanding dawned on his face. “We’re not fighting. Cheney is the prince, Selene, and I am his advisor. We do not agree, but we always speak the truth to one another. I over-stepped and Cheney let me know. Much nicer than he normally would have. There are no hard feelings, I assure you.” Sebastian shook his head. “You have changed.”
“Well, if anyone cares what I think, I appreciate Sebastian telling me what was happening and not leaving me in the dark.” I gave Cheney a look. Understanding these two was impossible. Was it an elf thing or a guy thing? And what would the old me have done? “But, tonight the old me and the new me are one and the same, so hopefully she was quiet. I intend to be an observer tonight.”
“You were most definitely not quiet, but none of them knew you well enough to know that. If you don’t want to participate, you don’t have to, but if you have an opinion, don’t hesitate to voice it. You’re a part of this group,” Cheney said.
“Did you warn her about Alanna?”
Cheney cleared his throat and I gave Sebastian a sharp look. “What do you mean ‘warn me’?” Why did they both think I was going to claw her eyes out? The old me must’ve been psychotic.
“I told you she has a soft spot for me.”
“Yeah, and I have a soft spot for tater tots, but that doesn’t require me to warn people.”
“I think I can safely say she doesn’t feel about me like you feel about tater tots,” Cheney said, unsuccessfully trying to suppress his amusement.
“I don’t know. I really like tater tots,” I mumbled.
Cheney’s laughter filled the room. “I stand corrected. Apparently your love for fried potato nuggets is much deeper than I gave it credit.”
“So what kind of warning do I need, Sebastian?” Cheney started to answer, and I cut him off. “You be quiet. I’m asking Sebastian. Is she an ex-girlfriend?” That was the last thing I needed right now.
“She wasn’t my girlfriend,” Cheney said indignantly. “We were lovers for a brief period of time. We both—”
I had no idea what my face was doing, but whatever it was must’ve been expressive because Cheney trailed off and Sebastian left the living room area without comment. “Before or after me, Cheney?”
“We should probably discuss this later.”
“So it was after me.” I looked into his worried eyes. “When exactly are we talking about?”
“You don’t even remember—”
“No, no, no. You don’t get to say that tonight. It’s relevant for me to know if the two of you were sleeping together twenty years ago or within the past year.”
“Within the past year,” he said quietly. “I had no reasonable expectation of you ever coming back. I wouldn’t have disrupted your life if it weren’t necessary. I let you go.”
A rational voice in my mind told me this was no different than any of my boyfriends, but another voice insisted it was different. I didn’t know I was married, but he had. “Sure. Why wouldn’t you have an affair?”
“Selene, you’ve had your own lovers. I imagine I’ve had far fewer by comparison. You were gone for twenty-six years.”
I wasn’t sure if I was more upset by him making me sound like a whore or by the fact that my ego had taken a severe blow. Deep down I liked the idea that he waited so long for me. “The difference is I was a normal girl, dating and coming of age. I didn’t know I was married.”
“It wasn’t like that. We’d both been in long term committed relationships and found ourselves alone. It was more about comfort.”
The first knock sounded at the door. Our conversation had no choice but to be paused. Cheney stood, offering me his hand with a meaningful look. I took it, but this was by no means over. Cheney had apparently only been telling me the pieces of our pasts he wanted to tell me. How much else had he left out? I turned to see whom Sebastian was ushering into the room.
A short, stout man with a wide face and thick neck followed Sebastian into the room. He wore his long hair in a neat ponytail, and his dark beard was cropped close to his face. His clothes were custom made, and he held himself in a manner that demanded respect. Cheney walked over to shake his hand. The comparison between the two of them was absurd. One was a tall, lean hunter and the other a tree stump. It was the cheetah and a rock.
“It is good to see you again, Beleg. You remember Selene,” Cheney said, looking back to me.
I walked up to the dwarf regent with as much grace and dignity as I could muster. Beleg took my hand in his rough, thick one, giving it a firm, no nonsense shake. “It has been a long time, Selene. You look no worse for wear.”
“Thank you.” I took it that was meant to be a compliment. “And you look well. Have you lost weight?” I made a stab in the dark, wanting to return the compliment—and who didn’t like to be told they looked thinner?
“Well—I, uh …” He cleared his throat, his cheeks reddened a little, and a smile tilted his mouth for a moment before he nodded and looked back at the flabbergasted Sebastian and Cheney. “When’s this meeting supposed to start?” he asked them gruffly.
“Once everyone is here. Please have a seat.” Cheney motioned to the living room.
I walked with Beleg. “Can I get you a drink?” I asked.
“A whiskey,” he said roughly. “Please,” he added in a softer voice when I smiled at him.
“You want ice with that?” He shook his head and I walked over to the bar. Cheney met me there with a look of amazement.
“You remember him of all people?”
“No,” I said, pouring a healthy glass. Beleg seemed like a man who could hold his liquor.
“How did you know he lost weight?”
“I didn’t, but that hardly seems to matter. Everyone likes to think they look like they have.”
“I can’t believe it. He even said please. A bloody dwarf said please to you.” Cheney kissed my forehead. “You’re amazing.”
Another knock came at the door. I took Beleg his drink and joined Cheney in greeting his guests. This time a tall, rail thin elf walked in. His snowy hair was like long silk thread that parted around his ears. He wore heavy blue robes and had piercing, glacier eyes. Cheney and Sebastian bowed stiffly.
“Cheney, it is a pleasure seeing you again,” the man said in a lyrical, resonating voic
e.
“And you, Adan. It is an honor to have you here.” I noticed Cheney held himself a bit straighter and the normal ease in his stance had evaporated. Adan made Cheney nervous—an emotion that looked foreign on him. “May I introduce Selene?”
Adan’s eyes met mine directly. I didn’t avert my gaze or bow to him. I understood he was a high elf, and if that meant anything at all to me, perhaps I would’ve been nervous, too, but it didn’t. “It’s a pleasure meeting you,” I said, offering him my hand.
Cheney’s eyes widened. Crap, was this some sort of faux pas? They really needed to tell me this stuff. I began to withdraw my hand when Adan took it in his long, cool fingers and kissed it, his eyes never wavering from mine.
“Yes, now I can see what has finally pushed Cheney to take this necessary step. You are lovely.”
“It isn’t very fair to Cheney to think he would do this for merely a pretty face.” I raised a gentle but challenging eyebrow.
Adan smiled and nodded. “Your loveliness isn’t just on the outside. You will challenge him and he will challenge you. The two of you are an excellent match.”
“Thank you. May I offer you a drink?”
“No, thank you, but if you would walk me to the seating area, I would like very much to see my old friend Beleg.”
“Absolutely.”
Sebastian and Cheney stared at me as I came back like I was wearing a monkey suit.
“What?” I mouthed to them, but just then there was another knock. Ugh, when it rains it pours.
This time two people walked inside. One was a small, emaciated creature with leathery skin and no hair whatsoever. The other was a curvy goddess with long, flowing red hair that fell past her butt and the face of an angel. You can guess which one was Alanna.
“Turin, we are honored to have you here. Do you remember Selene?”
Turin gave me a once-over and said in a jovial voice, “Nice to make your acquaintance, missus. I have heard much of you. We met once long ago. I doubt you remember.”
“Of course I remember. How could I forget you?” I said, hoping I wasn’t backing myself into a corner. I felt Alanna’s sharp eyes on me, peeling my skin back layer by layer.
