“He and Mother are in their quarters. I figured I would give you a chance to adjust before I brought you together.” Marek adjusted his son in his arms when the child began to fuss.“Although I and the rest of your brothers are more open-minded about your choices, Father is still set in his ways, and Mother still thinks whatever he tells her to think. They’re a tough sell, even in the apocalypse.”
Lyk nodded. He’d expected nothing less. “I appreciate you trying to give me a soft landing, but circumstances being what they are, I’d prefer to get my scolding out of the way sooner rather than later.”
Jazmine laughed, causing the little girl in her arms to giggle along with her. “I like this brother,” she said to Marek. “Your parents intimidate even me, but he’s fearless.”
“Not quite,” Lyk said. “There is one person I fear. This little lady at my side.” Ally blinked up at him in confusion, her cheeks turning red. He gave her a reassuring smile. “If I don’t feed her soon, I fear for the whole planet.”
Marek chucked. “Mom’s been harvesting her royal grapes again. I’m sure she’ll have plenty of her special fruits and vegetables on offer.”
“Thanks,” Lyk said, pouring all of his appreciation into the simple word.
Marek nodded. “I’m glad you’re back. We’re going to need everything we can muster against the Crown Prince. And judging from the way you easily handled that cyborg, your strength will be sorely needed in the coming war.”
Lyk gave him a mock salute, the one he used to give as a child to annoy his older brother. Marek laughed, then picked up his son’s arm and bent it, placing his tiny hand to his forehead and mimicking the salute. “Dismissed.”
Lyk turned, leading Ally out of the throne room and turning left down the corridor that led to his parents’ apartments. With each step that took him closer, he felt as if he were regressing to the troublemaking boy he’d once been. In those days, being summoned to his parents’ quarters had often meanta punishment in the offing. Was there any way his father could punish him now?
The blue door to his parents’ quarters finally stood in front of them. Turning to Ally, he cupped her face, looking down at her earnestly. “No matter what my father might say, remember, this isn’t about you. He’s an old man with antiquated ideas. He’s got to say his piece, but he’s no longer in charge around here. Once we pay our respects, we can put this long day behind us and focus on the future.”
Ally nodded, and unable to help himself, he leaned in to kiss her softly. The kiss fortified him, gave him strength to face what lay ahead. Turning back to the door, he knocked briskly. Lyk took a deep breath, ready to see his parents again after decades.
It didn’t take long for the door to swing open, and then his mother was before him, looking much the same as she had long ago. She let out a cry of delight and leapt into his arms, hugging him tightly. “My baby boy! You’ve come home!”
Lyk hugged her back, surprised at her reaction. He remembered the day he’d left, when she’d stood silently beside his father while he berated Lyk for his crimes. That day, he’d wanted her more than anything to stick up for him, to tell his father that he was wrong. But her silence had given consent, had indicated she agreed that her son was a terrorist who’d endangered the lives of everyone on the planet.
“It’s good to see you again, Mother,” he murmured softly.
Finally, she pulled away and acknowledged the woman at his side. “Who’s this with you?”
“Mother, this is Allandria. Ally for short.”
“Pleased to meet you, Your Majesty,” Ally said, bobbing a perfectly respectable curtsey even though she was in coveralls.
“What a polite female you’ve found,” his mother said with delight. “Please come inside and join me for a glass of summer wine and some delicious offerings from my very own garden.”
The apartments were almost exactly the same as before he’d left. Airy, luxuriously furnished, with his mother’s bric-a-brac scattered around, accompanied by reminders of his childhood. He noticed a picture he’d drawn as a child was framed next to others that belonged to his siblings. A family portrait hung on the wall, prominently displayed in a large golden frame. It had been painted when he was ten, the youngest and smallest of all the Vartik siblings save Kara who was perched on their father’s knee. Lyk took a moment to stare at it.
“I removed the sheet your father had covering it a few years after you left,” his mother said, coming up behind him. “He might have ordered everyone not to mention your name, but I wouldn’t let him pretend that you never existed.”
Lyk wasn’t sure how to respond. Luckily, Ally saved him from having to. “You have a lovely family, Majesty.”
“Thank you, my dear.” His mother beamed, then looped her arm through Ally’s. “You look hungry. Won’t you join me in the sitting room for some light refreshment?”
They sat on comfortable chairs gathered around a table full of the fruits of his mother’s garden and full cups of summer wine. Lyk could see that Ally was struggling. She cast furtive glances at his mother, then at the fruit, then back again. She was clearly hungry, but she didn’t want to display bad manners in front of the former queen.
Lyk had to hide his smile. He took her plate and filled it, then filled one for his mother, and then his own. Without hesitating, he started popping grapes into his mouth. They were juicy, and he couldn’t help a satisfied moan. Okay, he could, but he wanted Ally to know that she could dig in and not risk offending his mother.
Taking her lead from him, Ally placed a grape in her mouth and carefully bit. He knew that sweet juice was now sliding down her throat, evidenced by the way she closed her eyes and leanedback in pure pleasure. To his embarrassment, his cock began to harden as he watched her.
His mate made him feel fulfilled in a way he’d never experienced, but she also drove him crazy with lust. Every moment they weren’t in bed, with him buried deep inside her, bringing her to the summit of sensuality over and over again, was a moment wasted.
No one spoke as they enjoyed the fruit and wine. Lyk’s gaze drifted out the window where he could see his mother’s garden had expanded in the years he’d been gone. It had been only a small plot, but now the entire side yard was laid out in a geometrical pattern of plots, each overflowing with nature’s bounty.
It seems like some things have changed.
“Where’s Father?” he asked after a moment.
His mother turned her gaze to him, a hint of sadness in her expression. “He’s in his quarters, doing gods know what.”
