Queen of Empire: A fantasy romance (The Relic Trilogy Book 1)

by HR Moore

Their mouths finally met to a shower of tingles, Anita forgetting everything but him as his lips caressed hers. They started with slow, sensual touches, each of them learning the territory, fireworks of pleasure going off in Anita's mind. It was all consuming, nothing else existing, only the kiss, only Alexander.

  The kiss deepened, tongues testing, tasting, savoring. He pushed his body into her, the kiss more demanding, desire pooling in Anita's core, her hands fisting his hair.

  Alexander broke away, pulled back, turned his head from hers, his brow furrowed. He took deep, shuddering breaths, wresting himself back under control, strengthening his resolve, before returning for one last gentle kiss.

  'I hope you forgive my secrets,' he said, moving his face dangerously close to Anita's before pushing himself away, leaving them both shaken, wanting more.

  'Me too,' she said, a deep sense of loss welling up inside her. She tried desperately to regain some composure, her energy going crazy, her instincts urging her to demand more. Who cared about secrets anyway?

  Alexander sat on the grass next to the plunge pool, just out of range of the spray. Anita sat next to him, leaning back against a rock, toes still tingling from the kiss.

  'Shall I go first?' she asked. She wasn't sure she wanted to hear what Alexander had to say.

  'Sure,' he said, taking her hand, 'fire away.'

  Anita told Alexander everything. She told him how she'd been approached by Helena, and how she'd agreed to help. She told him about the cylinder with Austin's memory, about being beaten up, and about how she'd felt for the past few weeks.

  Alexander's energy remained calm the whole time. He stroked her hand when she told him about the beating, the emptiness, the self-loathing, and how stupid she'd felt.

  When she finished, he said, 'You thought you were doing something to help. You had no idea Helena was lying to you. We can only make decisions based on the information we have in front of us. You chose to do something rather than sit back and let the world suffer. I would probably have done the same thing, especially if the proposal had been from someone I trusted.'

  'But I should have known not to trust her. She's been lying to me for years about my parents.'

  'Things look different with hindsight; you were just trying to help.'

  Anita took a deep breath, she didn't want to talk about it anymore, although she was glad Alexander knew the truth. 'Alright, your turn,' she said, smiling. 'Make it quick; we have better things to do.'

  Alexander stalled, kissing her temple. Her chest contained an entire aviary of birds, all flapping their wings furiously inside her. She held her breath.

  'When we first arrived in Empire, we came because Christiana was ill; she wanted to find someone, a girl, before she died. Austin agreed to it because he thought Christiana only intended to see the girl from a distance. Christiana had other ideas; she wanted to tell her the truth about something that happened a long time ago, that Christiana had regretted ever since.

  'I've had to piece together the story, and I don't know for sure, but it seems they altered the bloodline so the Relic could never be sent back. I have no idea why, or why Christiana had a change of heart, but Christiana thought it was wrong for them to play God. She wanted to set the record straight and tell the girl what had happened.'

  Alexander paused, steeling himself. 'The most plausible candidate for that girl is you, Anita.'

  His words hit her like a hammer. 'What?' she laughed. 'Have you hit your head? You think I might be a Descendant?'

  'You've got to admit you're powerful. You're probably the most adept Body I've ever met.'

  'But I also have a significant Spirit influence; I wouldn't be a reader if I were the Body Descendant.'

  'Christiana was a reader.'

  'I'm not a Descendant.'

  'Really? Why not? Who were your parents?'

  'Gods, Alexander, that's a bit much.'

  'I'm sorry, but just entertain the idea for a second before you dismiss it…and there's more.'

  Alexander told Anita about the conversation he'd heard between Elistair and Peter, confirming she was the Descendant, about the note from Philip, and that Austin had killed Christiana to keep her quiet. The bit Anita was most surprised about was that Elistair was involved. He had always looked after her…surely this couldn't be the reason why?

  'It all fits perfectly,' said Alexander. 'I'm just sorry I didn't tell you sooner.'

  She sat numbly, staring at the water, processing his words. 'It's going to take some time for me to get my head around this,' she said slowly.

  'I know,' he said, stroking her hand. She entwined their fingers, savoring the low hum of energy that pulsed between them. He pulled her into him, wrapped his arms around her, and she rested her head against his chest. They sat there, only the sound of the water piercing the quiet, their breathing aligned.

  'I still want to kiss you,' she said eventually, twisting and pulling his head down towards her. Alexander looked relived, placing a quick, promising kiss on her lips.

  'Good, because I want to kiss you too,' he said, wrapping her back in his arms, kissing her hair.

  Anita tried to get up, but he tightened his grip. She had to resort to tickling to make him let her go. He threw his hands up in defeat and let her wriggle around to face him. She pulled herself up onto his torso and kissed him before pulling away and getting to her feet. 'Come on,' she said, 'I think we should go somewhere more private.'

  'I'm not going to argue with that,' said Alexander, getting up and putting his arm around her, pulling her close to his side as they made their way back towards Empire.

  They walked in silence, full of blissful content, Anita not quite believing this was happening. They stole glances at each other every now and again just to check it was real.

  They emerged from the woods onto the track that led back to Empire. They waited for the energy van that was coming down the road to pass by. However, to their surprise, as the van pulled level with them, it screeched to a halt, and the side door opened.

  Four hooded men dressed all in black jumped out and bundled them inside, where another four men were waiting to restrain them.

  They struggled wildly and Anita tried to scream, but a gloved hand covered her mouth, stifling her cries. They quickly realized that to struggle was futile, so they stilled. There were eight men against two of them and they already had cuffs clamped around their wrists. They could do nothing now but wait.

  The van travelled for what seemed like forever, the path it followed winding this way and that, nobody saying a word. They sat with their backs to one another, not even able to share a reassuring look.

  The van stopped abruptly and the door opened, two men dragging Anita out and two dragging Alexander. The others flanked them, presumably in case they tried to make a bid for freedom. Although it was pitch black, the place felt familiar to Anita, like she had been here before, but she couldn't quite place it.

  They were dragged roughly into a barn, then towards an open hole in the middle of the floor, which they were forced to jump into one at a time. It wasn't deep and they each landed lithely on their feet. Several more guards were ready to collect them when they landed, the hole's cover replaced as soon as they were in.

  They were shoved along a rudimentary corridor and into a small, box-like room, the guards forcibly pushing them down onto wooden chairs, their hands and feet tied to the struts. Anita was reminded of her time spent in Austin's dungeon, wondering if he was behind this too.

  The men filed out of the room as three new figures entered. Two of them Anita didn't recognize, but the third she knew only too well. Helena? Why would she do this?

  They'd been gagged, but Anita's eyes flew wide with surprise.

  'So good to see you both,' said Helena. 'Sorry about the unfortunate circumstances, but it was the only way.'

  Helena sat down, taking her time, making herself comfortable before speaking again. 'Now, Anita, let's have a little chat about that cylinder in your head.'
>
  I hope you enjoyed Queen of Empire. Book two, Temple of Sand, is coming early 2021. In the meantime…

  CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP!

  Or go to this link: https://www.subscribepage.com/r2a0n6

  I'd really appreciate it if you left a review on Amazon, Goodreads, Instagram (#TheRelicTrilogy #QueenOfEmpire #FantasyRomance), or any other place you can think of…authors aren't fussy! Just a few words, or a line or two would be perfection. Thank you for your support.

  CONNECT WITH HR MOORE

  Are you a Mind, Body, or Spirit? Sign up to HR Moore's newsletter and find out! You'll also get all the latest news about releases, book recommendations, and freebies too!

  Find HR Moore on Instagram and Twitter:

  @HR_Moore

  #TheRelicTrilogy

  #QueenOfEmpire

  #FantasyRomance

  See what the world of The Relic Trilogy looks like on Pinterest:

  https://www.pinterest.com/authorhrmoore/

  Like the HR Moore page on Facebook:

  https://www.facebook.com/authorhrmoore

  Follow HR Moore on Goodreads:

  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7228761.H_R_Moore

  Or check out HR Moore's website:

  http://www.hrmoore.com/

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Harriet's British, but lives in New Hampshire with her husband and two young daughters. When she isn't writing, editing, eating, running around after her kids, or imagining how much better life would be with the addition of a springer spaniel, she occasionally finds the time to make hats.

  TITLES BY HR MOORE

  The Relic Trilogy:

  Queen of Empire

  Temple of Sand (coming early 2021)

  Court of Crystal (coming mid 2021)

  In the Gleaming Light