I fluttered my lashes at the man innocently.Cheek? Me? I’m just here to learn magic.
Merlin rolled his green eyes, but began our lesson anyway.Close your eyes and try to find the reservoir of your magic.
Okay…I said, trailing off.And how do I do that?
Merlin’s sigh filled the room audibly this time.I fear this will take a while.
Hours later I dragged myself back into the chambers I shared with Arthur, fully intending on falling into the bed and going right to sleep.
While the lesson with Merlin hadn’t beenphysicallytaxing, the little reservoir of magic that Merlin had spent the better part of an hour helping me find felt completely drained.
I had barely been able to access it let alone use it. Seeing my disappointment, Merlin had tried to encourage me, telling me that many people took years to even access their magic and not to feel so put out… but I still felt defeated anyway.
There was no telling when the final battle that would take my pack away from me would actually occur, but my plan to heal them if they needed and now it seemed so far away now after my lesson.
“Little queen?” Arthur’s voice surprised me, pulling my gaze up from my slippered feet to where he was sitting on the bed.
“You’re here,” I breathed, surprised to find him in the room so casually after not seeing him for two days.
Arthur’s golden brows drew together. “Where else would I be?”
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I was annoyed with the alpha in a way that could only be explained by pointing fingers at my very spoiled inner-omega, but I also didn’t want to scare him off.
“No—it’s just—” I frowned, trying to find the right words. “It’s just been a while since we’ve seen each other.”
“I apologize, Guinevere,” Arthur murmured. “I found myself busy until the early hours. My extended leave from the castle left much to be done here.”
I understood, but the feeling of being neglected still wouldn’t go away.
“Is it a bit selfish of me to hate that?” I blurted out suddenly before I could stop the words.
Arthur paused, his blue eyes dancing in the dim firelight. His expression remained neutral but I could feel the sudden satisfaction coming down the bond as he stood and came over to where I was standing, his warm callused hands cradling my face. “May I also ask you a question before I answer yours?”
I leaned into his palms, nuzzling into the warmth before nodding.
“Why have you not created a nest in our chambers?”
His question took me aback as I glanced around his shoulders at the neatly made bed. On the floor next to it, one of the maids had laid out wicker baskets full of nesting materials similar to the ones that had been left for me back in my father’s castle on our wedding night.
I pursed my lips, trying to find the words to explain why I had ignored them and chose to sleep underneath the covers despite the discomfort that brought to my instincts. It felt unsafe and kept me from getting a good night’s sleep—and yet I did it anyway.
“I…” I trailed off, taking a deep breath, letting his spicy-sweet scent fill my nose and calm me. “A nest isn’t a nest when there isn’t an alpha to fill it.”
Arthur’s blue eyes darkened as the air in the room seemed to shift. “Will you build a nest for me again tonight then, little queen?”
I nodded, my mouth suddenly dry as my heartbeat began to thud in my ears.
Then he dropped his mouth to mine hungrily, as if he was a beast that had been starved for weeks even though it had only been a few since we were together last.
My feet left the floor and I let out a muffled squeal as Arthur lifted me up into his arms and carried me to the bed again, dropping me on the soft surface.
I stared up at him for a moment, watching as he reached down to snag one of the baskets, dumping it in a great pile next to me.
“Will you undress while I work?” I asked, my voice sounding much throatier than usual. My inner-omega was clambering to the surface, pushing for me to give in to the all-out desire that I was feeling and throw rational thought to the wind.
Arthur nodded, taking a step back from the bed and tugging at the leather belt that heldExcaliburto his waist. A moment later the sword clattered to the floor with a loudclang!
I picked at the pile of nesting materials critically, keeping one eye on Arthur as I tried to think about the best way to create my first nest in our shared chambers.
