I squirmed around to face him, then kissed him. “I love you,” I said into his mouth.
Ari groaned. “If you keep rubbing against me like that, you’ll rouse me for a round two.”
Adopting a joking tone of my own, I said, “Then I’ll just lie here like this.” I pulled back the blanket and struck a pose on my side with my head in my hand and my hair falling over my neck.
His groan and immediate physical reaction were gratifying. “That’s cheating,” he protested.
“I’m not even touching you,” I said with mock innocence, jiggling my chest.
He fell on me in a flash, kissing me like he wanted to fuck his tongue down my throat. I grabbed a fistful of hair. Even with both hands, I couldn’t touch everywhere I wanted at once. I freed my mouth to nip his earlobe. Then I kissed a trail down his neck, planting a hickey on that gorgeous collarbone. Each desperate noise spurred me on.
I curled my tongue around a nipple, teasing out the most fun reactions. With great reluctance, I kept kissing my way down his chest. I was in the mood to take control. At this angle, I could see his blown-out eyes and flushed cheeks. I reveled in finally being able to touch him back. It felt absolutely perfect, that moment when I took him into my mouth and his pupils dilated. His butterfly tattoo seemed to flap wings every time he moved; it was intoxicatingly sexy. I wanted to see my always polished and confident Ari lose control. Slowly, I slid my lips down and teased until he finally cried out, “Please!” Then I took him all the way.
His thrusts went wild and suddenly neither of us had control, lost in the animalistic pace, until he came so deep I barely tasted it.
Exhausted, I sagged against the side of the bed. Ari tugged me onto the bed alongside him and tucked my head on his arm. Soft adoration filled his gaze as he kissed my forehead.
“You’re beautiful,” he whispered.
When he said it like that, I could believe it.
Ysabel, Kaine, and Alzira stood together in the courtyard. “Last chance to say goodbye,” Kaine said as he summoned shadows around his body.
I hugged my older sister. “Make certain you write frequently. When you’re close to your due date, I’ll come down and help you.”
She hugged me back. “There’s no need to make a fuss, but I’d be glad to have you visit any time.”
“Of course I want to be there for the birth of my first nibling.” I smiled.
Ysabel examined me. “You look rather cheerful this morning.”
I bit my tongue to stop myself from flushing. “It’s a very good morning. Bright and sunny. I’m sad to see you go, of course.”
My sister whispered into my ear, “It’s okay, you don’t need to thank me. The fact that you’re not walking straight tells me everything I need to know.”
Then she teleported away, robbing me of my opportunity to either thank her or kill her.
I’d promised to take Antonia toy shopping as a reward for sitting through another boring coronation. Araceli had a ring that could make people not look directly at us so we could blend in with the crowd and enjoy the day under a cloud of anonymity. Our heavy coats hid our noble clothing.
People bustled down the street full of shops, walking carefully to avoid the ice patches. The snow had started to melt, running trails to the gutters. Signs hung over the glass doors. Most of the shops had a second floor above, where the owners usually lived. Younger entrepreneurs set up temporary stands along the sidewalk to hawk wares. It was good to see how many more stands had opened up. Even more so, it was good to see people smiling and carrying flags to celebrate the coronation. Winter was ending for Arahasnor in more ways than one.
At a street stand, a teenage girl held up a painted gold hairpin with a fake flower on top, shouting, “This is a replica of the pin Lady Bora wore at the royal coronation. Only available here!”
Araceli laughed. “Already? Word travels fast.”
Hats would be out of fashion within the week. My gently evil style of leadership was working.
“I told you that everyone would love your hairpin,” Antonia said, nudging me with the proud grin of someone who’d helped design it.
“Itdoeslook great on me.” I smiled at my own reflection in the glass, adjusting my pin slightly. “I tipped off the local hat sellers in advance to start producing a new product.”
Antonia clapped her hands. “You’re a pigeon plucker.”
I choked. “Where did you hear that word?”
“My tutor said that it means a very smart person.”
“It means a scammer.” And it seemed to have entered the upper-class vernacular since I had lied to some of the nobles that it was a compliment, but I decided to make that not my problem.
