Someone died, or they left, and the ones who cared for them had to pick up the pieces and go on with their lives, no matter how painful it was. It wasn’t for me. I didn’t need it, and I wanted no part of it.
I changed my mind about going directly to find Taran, and instead, I went down to speak to my guards—some twenty or more of them since the king and his consort arrived. It was the basic team that would be assigned to the Laltanan palace. We could bring more in as time went on and we assessed needs. The rest of Prince Mikos’s guards were still on his ship, orbiting Moravia as they waited for the surface storms to pass. After speaking to the men about the change in plans and answering their concerns, I went upstairs to find Taran and begin packing to leave.
I went directly to his room, because I didn’t have that much to pack anyway. Judging from what I’d seen Taran wearing and his need to constantly borrow cast-off clothing from PrinceVannos’s sons, he would have hardly any packing at all to speak of. I wondered if Prince Larz had made it upstairs to talk to his family yet, and if Taran would even know what was going on.
I rapped softly on his door, and he opened it right away, giving me a big smile.
“I wondered where you’ve been. Come in,” he said, stepping back so I could enter.
“Larz came back a while ago and told us the news. First of all, I was shocked when he asked me about you. Larz said Blake mentioned he’d noticed an ‘attachment between us,’ as he put it. He wanted to know if it was true.”
“And what did you say?”
“I said that of course it was. I’m relieved that Blake noticed and told everyone.” He pulled back to look at me. “That is, I am if you are. Are you okay with it?”
I had to pull him in my arms and kiss him. It went a little longer than I’d planned actually, until Taran pulled away, patting my cheek. “Yes. I feel the same way. Now you can marry me. I left Larz and Janos talking and came to my room to tell you. I figured you’d be by.”
“You were, were you?” I said, stepping inside. “And this talk of marriage is ill-advised, I never mentioned marriage.”
“No, but I did. I think I can overcome any objections you might have. In fact, I’d devote myself to it.”
He made a little growling sound and immediately came to wrap his arms around my waist. I bent down to kiss him and spent a few minutes doing it to my satisfaction.
“And how do you feel about traveling to Tygeria?” I asked between kisses.
“Excited,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to go, and now I finally get a chance to see the famous planet my father comes from.”
I smiled, pleased by his answer. “I look forward to showing it to you, though I imagine it’s quite different than your home planet.”
“Larz told me it’s colder than what I’m used to.” He rubbed his little body against mine. “You may have to keep me warm.”
“It will be my pleasure. Let’s start practicing now.”
Chapter Fifteen
Taran
I was pulled up and crushed against his hard, muscular chest, as he continued kissing me and holding me in his arms. I wanted him to make love to me, and I did everything I could to persuade him to. In the end, it didn’t take all that much after all.
He picked me up and carried me over to my bed, pulling back the covers and laying me down. I wasn’t used to being hoisted off my feet like that, but with Kirstos I thought I could learn to like it. He was whispering sweet words in my ear, telling me how beautiful I was and describing what he was going to do to me in great detail. At least that’s what I thought he was saying. Most of what he said when he got excited like this was in Tygerian, which I’d always previously thought of as a harsh-sounding language. But it certainly wasn’t when Kirstos spoke it so softly in my ear. I didn’t understand the language really, but still I knew exactly what he meant. I kept trying to assure him the feeling was mutual. I put my arms up around his neck, and he leaned down to mingle his hot breath with mine.
“Make love to me,” I moaned, rutting against him shamelessly, wanting to feel him inside me. I kept trying to reach down inside his trousers, so I could put my hands on him. I was coming to realize that when it came to Kirstos Vargarra, I was a very tactile person.
“Please,” I begged him, needing him to hurry things along, though I hardly even knew exactly what I was asking for. The most I’d ever done before had been with him. Oh, I’d fooled around with men a few times in my life—hell, I’d fooled around with him the first time I ever saw him. Mostly I’d had very littlesex though, other than groping and being groped by another boy in the dark in the barracks and taking a few stolen kisses here and there. None of them had ever been anything like this.
I was very afraid that Tygerians were a violent people or had that possibility within them. I’d certainly heard that ever since I met Janos, and when Prince Mikos and his consort came to get Larz, there had been a lot of trouble and arguing. But then again, all the Imperials had been nice enough to me since I’d been here, and they had definitely saved Janos at the bridge. Kirstos had been downright heroic.
He had also been arrogant and overbearing, and just unbearably sexy. I couldn’t seem to stop yearning for him after that first night when he’d caught me in his room. I had followed him around, trying to get him to notice me again. I no longer cared what anyone thought about it—perhaps it would be worth other people’s censure for me to be able to have one whole night with him. He pushed my hand away as he stripped off my clothing with a muttered curse, as I was no doubt interfering more than helping with anything.
He was running his hands over my body, while still managing to kiss me passionately. I could feel the muscles rippling down his strong arms as he held me. All the while, he was murmuring to me in those growly, unintelligible words that were making my whole body weak. His kisses had a drugging effect on me. His lips were warm and full, and I pressed my mouth against them. He ground into it, sighing into my inexperienced attempts at kissing him and caressing my tongue with his gently, while his big hands sweetly, maddeningly massaged the cheeks of my naked ass. He flipped me over on my stomach suddenly, putting a hand under me to lift me up on my knees.
I stopped struggling to help—he didn’t seem to need any assistance—and just gave in, allowing him to arrange me anyway he liked. I felt his mouth down sliding over my entrance again and again, and I was too shocked to move at first. Then I began to squirm and try to get away. Not because he was hurting me or I didn’t like it, or it didn’t feel good. It felt almost too good, and I was embarrassed by the sounds I was making. The wet heat was making my head spin and the thought of what he was doing to me was making me blush all over. He held me there though and made me take it. It was the worst and, at the same time, the most exciting, pleasurable thing that had ever happened to me.
He left me for a moment to get something, he said. I could hardly even think by then. He came back with oil, kneeling over me and applying it liberally to my most private parts and to his. I groaned and strained away but he patiently pulled me back.
“I have to get you ready. Be still.”
He was so bossy, but how could I be still with him doing what he was doing to me? His fingers were inside me, stretching and massaging until I thought I’d go crazy. I begged him; I cried out; I clutched the covers and tried to get away, but he ignored it all and kept going. Finally, he pressed his prick inside me and eased himself into me, filling me slowly but inexorably until his scrotum brushed my ass. I shouted out then and he stopped at once, peering down at me breathlessly, but when he saw I was only excited, he began at last to slowly move again.
