“Fuck, Asha,” he groans, caught in the sensation, unable to pull away as I work him.
I stop just long enough to meet his eyes. “I love you. All of you. Even here. Especially here.” I kiss the spot again, then push my tongue fully inside, hands moving on him until he spills across my fingers in sharp bursts, moaning loud enough to fill the room, the sound dragged out of him without restraint.
He slumps halfway in the chair, legs trembling, chest flushed, fingers still tangled in my hair. He stares at me for a long stretch, something raw and unguarded in his expression as his breath steadies. He pulls me onto his lap, my face wet, hand still slick. I am not sure what to do next, if I should kiss him or if he would be disgusted, or if he is upset?—
He presses his mouth onto mine, kissing me through the mess as though understanding my hesitation. He takes his tongue and traces my gums as though to prove a point.
He pulls away from me without warning, and by the time I can catch my breath, he is already moving.
When he returns, he is dressed and composed, as though nothing just happened. “Stand,” he says.
I do.
He lifts my dress and pulls it back over my head, his hands steady, efficient, not lingering this time. There is something different in him now, something quieter and far more controlled.
“Come.”
CHAPTER 79
Perfect
He takes my hand and leads me from the room. We move through the halls without slowing, the castle alive again beyond the privacy we left behind. Voices carry, distant at first, then louder as we approach, until they spill fully into the corridor ahead.
When we enter, the sound hits all at once. Laughter. Shouting. The clatter of cups against wood. A jester moves through the center of the room, drawing jeers and applause in equal measure as soldiers crowd around him, drinking, talking, existing in a way that feels almost too loud after the quiet we just left.
Colsar pulls the hood of my cloak over my head before I can ask why.
We do not move toward the center. He guides me instead to the edge of the room, into a darker corner where the light does not quite reach, where we can see without being seen clearly in return.
I glance around, trying to understand. Most of them are Avanki soldiers. Some Veynar. All of them unaware.
I turn toward him, about to ask?—
But he is already sitting. He pulls me with him, guiding me closer, one hand firm at my waist as he eases back into the chair.
Then his other hand moves, lifting the edge of my dress.
“Sit,” he says.
I sit on his lap, feeling him hard beneath me as he presses into me and starts to move, grinding slow. The thrill of the noisy room, the risk of being seen, makes me ache, and I bite my lip to keep quiet. He lifts my leg, shifting the angle until he’s pressing exactly where I can’t hold back. “Colsar,” I breathe, barely audible.
“I didn’t say you could talk,” he cuts in.
“Colsar, I?—”
“Shh,” he murmurs against my ear, breath hot on my skin. “Your soldiers respect you so much. What would they say if they knew where their queen just licked me? If they knew she likes getting fucked while watching them drink?” A pause, then softer, “That’s what you like, isn’t it?”
I nod, unable to speak as heat builds inside me. He stills his hips, letting me feel every inch of him, and slides a hand up to my chest, fingers teasing through the fabric. He pulls me back against him, my spine to his torso. “Asha Bear, tell me what you want, and you’ll get it. Gentle? Rough? Or should it hurt?”
His hand drifts down to my stomach, stroking lightly as he presses a kiss to my shoulder. “If you say stop tonight, I’ll stop. Otherwise, after you answer, you listen. No talking back, no speaking unless I ask for it.”
A moan slips out as I roll my hips against him, unable to help myself. He clamps down on my waist, stopping me. “Answer my question.”
“Make it hurt,” I say, voice trembling but sure.
He thrusts hard, sudden and deep, and I nearly scream, but his power closes around us, swallowing the sound. Pleasure crashes through me in relentless waves, wetness slicking down my thighs as tears prick my eyes. He pulls me tighter, hands slipping inside my dress to rub my chest, pinching just enough to sting. “I’ve noticed nothing gets you wetter, sweet wife, than knowing you might get caught,” he says, voice rough.
He nips at my earlobe. “So tonight, that’s exactly what we’ll do.”
