Chapter Twenty-Three
Two days later, I woke up in Kaspian's arms on my own. This was momentous since he usually woke me. With his cock. Too far? Sorry, not sorry. I sighed and stretched, arching out of his embrace before rolling away. Although the bed was round, it was large enough to sleep five, so I didn't immediately roll off the edge. Thinking about the angel, I wondered if he was the reason Kas had such a big bed. Or maybe he used to host orgies in it. He was a king, after all, and a popular one, if the welcome he received was any sign.
Shaking my head at my stupid insecurities, I slid off the mattress and onto the floor. The bed reigned on a platform in the middle of the room, but it had steps. So, I didn't have far to jump. I hit the platform, climbed down the two steps, and staggered to the bathroom as I rubbed my eyes.
“Mate?” Kaspian called to me.
I froze in my tracks. “Shit, I thought it was over.”
“It is. I was just about to tell you that.”
I looked back at him and grinned. “Oh. Okay. Not that I didn't enjoy the constant sex. It was awesome. But I've been dying to see your world.”
Kas shot upright. “You are not dying! You will never die!”
“Whoa, easy now.” I held up my hands in surrender. “It's just a saying. I didn't mean that I was actually dying.”
“Ah. I see.” He moved to the edge of the bed and hung his legs over the side. “I'm still a bit . . . affected.”
“Ah. I see,” I mimicked him and chuckled, then went into the bathroom.
As I headed for the toilet room, Kas came in behind me. I didn't care. I wasn't shy. I didn't bother to close the door when I peed. That's all part of being in a relationship, right? You get comfortable.
Kas stretched, arching his back and putting that glorious chest on display. I was glad then that I hadn't closed the door. I watched him twist and turn, cracking his neck before turning on the shower. Finishing up, I flushed and went to join him. And don't get on me about not washing my hands. I only held my dick, and I was about to wash everything.
“Mmm, I love showering with you.” Kaspian drew me under the spray with him.
There was no door or curtain for the stall. It had tiled walls, one curving around the showerhead to partially form a circle before turning in the other direction like an S. The narrow entrance kept the water from spraying everywhere. I loved just walking into the shower. It felt luxurious. But then, everything did when you lived in a castle.
Closing my eyes, I lifted my face to the hot water. Thank God they had plumbing on Serai. I couldn't do without hot showers. And as much as I could be a man's man—literally—I didn't want to poop outside. No, thank you. And having to go outside would mean taking an elevator down several floors whenever you had to go. Ridiculous. And if they hadn't had elevators, I would have had to walk down several flights of stairs to go poop—even more ridiculous.
And Dragons were not ridiculous.
Kaspian's powerful hands massaged soap into my tight muscles, making me sigh. I slid my hands over his chest, absently playing with his nipples while he bathed me. This was one of his favorite things to do. So, who was I to deny him? I smiled to myself and hoped that this wasn't another result of the mating magic affecting him. I didn't want him to suddenly stop.
Kas angled me further into the spray, then eased me out. His mouth went to my neck and nibbled. His broad palm went to my chest and moved over it, sliding from pec to pec and brushing my nipples. Steam enveloped us, turning it into a dream. Hell, I didn't need steam for that. From the moment I had first seen Kaspian standing in that forest, I'd been living in a dream.
Please, God, don't let me wake up. I don't fucking care if I'm in the matrix. Just leave me plugged in and let me enjoy the fantasy. You can use me like a battery.
“I will take you into the city today.” Kaspian bit my earlobe. “But you must promise to not oppose me in public, Mate. I cannot have that.”
I blinked. There went the matrix. Not even a middle finger from Keanu. Just blammo—back to reality!
I pulled back to look at him. Kas was taking most of the spray on his back. It created a haze around him that made his stern expression seem deadly. I remembered my freak-out then—that hysterical scene I'd made when we found the angel in Kaspian's bed. It wasn't just his old lover that had upset me. It was all of it. The new planet. My new life. Leaving my world behind. Yes, it was fabulous and exciting, but it was also terrifying. And Kaspian knew exactly what I was going through. He should have been more sympathetic. More gentle.
Not that I needed a gentle lover. That's not what I mean. I needed a gentle guide into this new life. I had tried to be gentle with him on my world. I had paced things out. Tried not to go too quickly. Sure, we made some leaps, but I was there to help Kas through them. Yet when the roles were reversed, he snatched me up, flew me through a rift between worlds, and smacked me down in the middle of his world, expecting me to submit and obey.
What the actual fuck? He'd been aggressive with me before, but there hadn't been any of this obey nonsense. Had it been because I'd smacked that shit down before it had a chance to blossom? I did kinda force him to be nice to me.
I stepped further back. Then I turned around and left the shower.
“Mate!” Kas came after me.
I spun and held up a hand. “We've been so busy seeing to your needs that maybe you've lost sight of mine. So, I'm going to give you this one chance to rethink your approach. Go back under that hot water, let it work on your tension while you ruminate over my situation and what I might be feeling, then come out and talk to me.”
I thought I was being very reasonable.
Kaspian didn't agree.
