“But . . .” I cleared my throat.
“I've showered,” the King said with a twinkle in his eyes, acting more and more like the Cyn I'd dubbed him. “I assure you, I smell much better. I even combed my hair.”
“You know that's not . . . oh, fuck it.” I pulled off the new tunic he'd given me earlier and tossed it over a chair. “Fine. But I really should sleep in front of the door.”
“My guards are in the hallway. If someone can get past them, you will not make a difference.”
“Thanks a lot,” I muttered as I kicked off my boots.
Then I removed my pants. When I straightened, the King was wearing a pair of thin shorts—that's all. I stared at his broad shoulders, then made my way down to his bulging pectorals. Even more muscles rippled his stomach and his waist was trim. As I stared, his shorts moved, the thin material bulging with his growing erection.
My stare shot back to the King's face.
“I will not apologize for getting aroused after the way you just looked at me,” he said.
“You . . . you've filled out.” I rolled my eyes at my idiocy. “I don't mean your shorts. I mean, you're more muscular than you were this morning.”
“Yes.” He got in bed. “I'm feeling much closer to my old self.”
“Closer?” My stare went back to his chest.
The King fluffed his pillow and leaned back against the headboard. “I'm usually a little larger than this.”
I couldn't stop my stare from going to his lap.
“Not there.” He laughed. “You made that grow without the aid of a potion.”
“Holy fuck,” I whispered. “I just gave the King a hard-on.”
The aroused monarch pulled back the blankets on my side of the bed. “I don't expect you to help me with it. Come to bed, Ru.”
I climbed onto the thick mattress, then awkwardly laid back on the pillow. As I settled, I groaned.
“What is it?” The King shifted downward to lie beside me.
“This is the most comfortable bed I've laid on.”
He chuckled. “Good night, Ru.”
“Good night, Your Majesty.”
The King reached over to pull the light cord to turn off the bedside lamp. I closed my eyes but that made it so much worse. I could hear him shifting about, then making soft sounds. His breath was like a physical caress. I rolled on my side toward the King and found him on his side, facing me. He opened his eyes as if he could feel me staring.
“Is everything all right?” the King asked.
“Yes. Are you all right? You keep moving around.”
“I'm trying to relax enough for my erection to subside.”
“Oh.”
It felt so much more intimate in the dark. As if we were already lovers. But I couldn't make the first move, could I? He was the King. He obviously found me attractive. He had said as much. And even if he didn't, that massive erection said it all. Still, I didn't want to make him uncomfortable around me. If I fucked the King tonight, he could change his mind tomorrow, and then I'd have to sleep on the floor. Or he'd fire me.
“You're thinking hard enough for me to hear a whirring,” the King drawled.
“What?”
“I'm teasing you. You seem to be deep in thought. What is it that is vexing you?”
