As soon as that particular bombshell had been dropped squarely on the dinner table, Az had ushered away Lois. Zann had asked to speak to Jaya. And Lady Zalora and Vel had made a quick retreat with the rest of the servants leaving Kiahn and I alone at the dinner table.
“So…” he says, drawing out the word as he drums his thick fingers on the tablecloth.
I raise both my brows at him. “So?…Are you kidding me? Why didn’t you warn me about this?” I ask, pointing directly atthe offending piece of tech, currently masquerading as a giant‘fuck me now’invitation.
His pretty green eyes flick down to the jewel before he swallows and meets my gaze again. “I apologize. I was just so-” he huffs to himself and looks up to the high, ornate ceilings above us, like he’s asking for some divine intervention. When that obviously doesn’t come, his big hands scrub at his handsome face and he meets my eye again. “Niska, the truth is that I was just so incredibly…arousedby the thought of you wearing my collar - signalling to everyone that you are my bride, that I forgot to explain it fully to you. Iamsorry. We can disable the function if you wish. I can invite the collarsmith to come straight away and-”
“No,” I interrupt. “No. It’s fine.” I’m a little too overwhelmed to be interacting with another person right now - especially while broadcasting that I’m ripe and ready to be bred.
We’re both quiet for a moment and I pick up my silver spork, using it to chase around something that’s not too dissimilar to a melon ball on my plate. All the while, I canfeelKiahn’s gaze on me. “Aroused, huh?” I ask, sliding him a side-ways glance accompanied by a smirk.
From the corner of my eye, I can see his fist tighten around his napkin. His voice is a strangled whine when he answers, “like you wouldn’t fucking believe.”
My pulse sings in my veins. I tap my pointer finger twice on the red jewel, my heart dancing erratically in my chest. “So are we going to do anything about this?”
I bite down on my bottom lip, hoping he can tell that I’m not talking about calling the collarsmith out to fix the stone tech.
The ragged exhale the huge, horned alien prince gives me tells me that he knows exactly what I’m hinting at.
* * *
“I had hoped that when this time came, I would have found out your favorite flower so that I can decorate the room with them,” Kiahn says, leading me to a large, ornate room that is joined with his bedchambers. The walls are draped in soft white and cream fabrics, tumbling and artfully swathed over rods of gold. If it weren’t for the overly-tall windows, it might feel like we were standing in a grown-up blanket-fort.
“Flowers?” I ask, a little absentmindedly as I turn on the spot, gawping at the elegance and emptiness of the room.
Kiahn grunts in acknowledgement as he shuts the door. “To make you comfortable. I’d like to know your favorite scent, too. It is my duty and wish to make this as painless as possible for you, Niska.”
“Painless?”
Kiahn winces and rubs at his horn. “For Xaviann females, this is often the first time they are touched in such a way. It is the first time they will be vulnerable to a male and trust he will not abuse that vulnerability. Often, their first time on the bench can be very daunting and overwhelming. It is not uncommon for the first time to end without… completion.”
Oh. I can understand that. Especially considering the consequences should the male lose control and end up bond-biting her, opening her up to the torture and madness of eternal unrequited love. And, from what I understand of the whole situation with Zann and his friend, Xoe, it makes even more sense to me that she might want her first time being vulnerablewith one of these big, Xaviann males to be with one that she trusts - her friend.
I let my gaze rise and fall down the length of Kiahn. From the tips of his sharp, spiraling black horns, down to his leather boots and everything in between. He is big. Huge, even. He’s powerful, and that means he could essentially do whatever he wants with me and there would be little to no repercussions for him.
But as I look at him, it’s notfearof what he could do to me that bubbles to the brim within me, it’s anticipation.
“I trust you not to hurt me, Kiahn,” I tell him, allowing myself a faint smile when I see his broad shoulders visibly relax.
He ducks his head, and lets out a low breath before glancing at me through his lashes. “You have not taken my cock yet, little human.”
Oh, the zing that those words send through my body.
“My size is-…” He flounders a bit, trying to find his words as he gestures loosely between the two of us.
“Sizable,” I finish for him, because it’s true.
The anticipation centered between my legs builds when I see the bulge becoming visible in Kiahn’s pants.
“Your body will need to be…readied wellto take me,” he adds, clearing his throat as he steps into the center of the room where there is a large object, draped in cream velvet. “I had hoped to have more time to have it properly decorated, but the modifications are done, and these should help your body to relax.” He grips the velvet in one hand and pulls off the drape, revealing-
Revealing…
“Whatisthat?”
It’s a piece of furniture of some sort. Although, it’s raised with one golden central stand. The rest sits at around table-height. Maybe taller. But this is no table. The main surface is plush and covered in turquoise silk. There’s what looks likea headrest at one end, along with golden handles, not too dissimilar to something you might see on some kind of exercise machine at the gym… except in solid gold. At the other end, the shape of the padding is sculpted and there’s two padded ledges of sorts. Honestly, I can’t figure out what this thing is meant to-
“It is your breeding bench.”
