And as for Niko, I avoided him. I just wasn't sure what to believe. His vows of affection and loyalty rung hollow. Maybe if he hadn't offered Konstantin those thrusts, I would have believed him. But as it was, it didn't make sense. And Nikoalwaysmade sense. If he planned something, there would be a reason behind it and a reason for every step of that plan. Oh, and he loved to brag about his genius. The fact that he was withholding most of his plan from me only made him more suspicious.
So I spent the day wandering the castle, hiding in window alcoves when necessary. Like a criminal. A thief. A fucking coward. It was pathetic, but I wanted to be alone and if I had stayed in my chambers or gone to the theater, Niko could have found me. Not that he usually sent for me during the day, but if he did, I wanted to be elsewhere.
I was in one such hiding spot when a couple of the ladies of court paused just a few feet away to have a conversation. I recognized their voices as Lady Varvana and Lady Daria. Niko had used them a few times for his bedsport, but they had seemed to enjoy themselves. Varvana had even tried to entice the King into more such interludes. So it didn't surprise me when she started praising the Garin.
“I must have him. That body is unlike anything I've ever seen. No Larch man has a build like that,” Lady Varvana said. “I'll bet his cock matches his muscles. He definitely has big cock charisma.”
“You saw him with Mikhail; he's a lover of men,” Lady Daria said.
“That man cannot be purely gay. He's too masculine for it.”
“That's ridiculous. Our king is gay, and he's utterly masculine.”
“He's been with me before,” Varvana's tone went smug.
“He has not.”
“He has indeed!”
“Insideyou?”
A pause.
“Yes, as I thought,” Daria said. “The King had someone else fuck you as he watched, just as he's done with the rest of us. He likes to watch, that's all. Likes to see us on our hands and knees at his command. That doesn't mean he wants to fuck women.”
“Whatever, I'm going after the Garin. If I have to bend over and pretend to be a boy for him, I will. I must have that tiger!”
“He might let you suck his cock, but that will be all.”
“I'm good with that.”
Daria giggled. “To be honest, I'd be good with it too. Do you think we'd have better luck if we approached him together?”
“It couldn't hurt. What man doesn't have a fantasy of having two women together.”
Uh, this man,I thought to myself.
As the women walked off, planning their dual-seduction of Konstantin, my belly turned to stone. Varvana may be wrong about that masculinity thing—and I would remember she said that bullshit—but she may also be right about Konstantin. Many men enjoyed both men and women in their bed, and he radiated that type of voracity. I could easily see him taking all that was offered, be it from a man or a woman.
And why did I care?
I stormed out from behind the curtain and headed for my room. If the King sent for me, so be it. I was ready to fuck that tiger out of my head.
Chapter Eight
Just like the Garin, Niko didn't send for me that day. Nor that night. I spent it tossing and turning in my bed alone, my anger shifting from one man to the other, all while images of Konstantin fucking the entire court with his huge dick flashed through my mind. Women screaming his name, men licking the curves of his hard muscles, and him smiling wickedly the whole time. I woke up hard everywhere, muscles and cock aching. Even my jaw hurt from clenching my teeth.
I couldn't sit across a table from Konstantin again, so I ate in my room, then took a leisurely bath. I was just drying off when someone knocked on my door. Still wet, I pulled on my bathrobe and went to answer it, expecting it to be one of the castle pages. The knock came again before I reached the door, more aggressive than the first. Then once more, even louder.
Annoyed, I dropped my robe's belt and yanked open the door. “What the fuck is your problem?!” Then I froze, staring at Konstantin's broad chest. I lifted my gaze to his and lowered my voice, “Shit. Sorry, I thought you were one of the errand boys.”
The Garin's gaze caught fire as it slid down my wet body. A low growl rumbled out of him when he reached midway, and I looked down to see that my robe was hanging open, putting my sex on display for him as if I'd draped it specifically for his viewing pleasure.
I stepped back.
The tiger stepped forward.
“That was an accident.” I yanked my robe shut. “I didn't know you were at the door.”
