“I‘m starving, Ivo.” I push down into him, grasping for pleasure, wanting more, as much as he can give.
“Take what you need from me, my love. Nothing feels better than you.” He strums my clit while my pussy jerks in his hand and tears streams down my cheeks.
“You’re so good to me, my King.” I watch his eyes grow wide as his cock swells and his body tenses.
“I’ll have you whenever I want, Elsa. And you’ll never deny me, will you?” He thrusts hard, lifting my hips to show me how deep I’m taking him.
“I’m yours to take. I’m yours, Ivo. You never have to ask.” I feel him slow down as he crashes his mouth to mine and finds his release.
Collapsing over me, smiling with exuberance, he chuckles.
“I will never get enough of you, my love.”
Chapter 18
IVAR
With a heavy heart, I trudge aimlessly through the gardens. The bright sun shines above, but every part of me feels cold. There’s no sense in following her today. All she does is sneer and ask when I’m leaving. She never thinks to offer a kind word. She saves those for her other husband.
Only Ivo exists to her.
I could demand she submits, but that’s not how I want her. The thought repulses me. I want her to love me the way she loves him. She yearns for him. Calls for him. Begs him to make love to her. But me? She pushes me away. How can she be so cruel?
Heading inside, I tense at the sight of Alecto and my mother strolling into the maze, deep in conversation. Gnashing my teeth, I jump off the steps and march towards them. The closer I get, the more my stomach churns. Both have been on my mind for different reasons and the longer I swallow my anger, the harder it will be to confront them.
Storming through the hedges, I find them comfortably sitting on a bench by the first fountain. They’re waiting for me. Of course, they are.
“Ivar, my darling. How are you this morning?” My mother suppresses a grin. Clearly, my rejection and subsequent pain has kept them entertained on their walk.
Clenching my fists, I slow my pace, treading lightly as I approach. I have questions. Questions that need answers. If I lose my temper, they may not be as forthcoming. I calm my breath. Swallow hard and glare down at two of the three women who have contributed to my misery.
“I’m not well, Mother. Not well at all.” I exhale as I walk, concentrating on each step to slow my racing heart.
“Why did you select a woman who hates me?” I snarl at Alecto. But she hardly flinches. Instead, she stands and leads me to sit between them. I try to tug away, unwilling to be close to either of them in my state, but in typical fashion, she gives me no choice.
“Ivar, are you quite done feeling sorry for yourself? Or would you like to spend a few more weeks watching the woman you love, the woman who loved you first, fall deeper in love with your brother?” Alecto’s dark eyes meet mine and in an instant, I’m transported to the evening Elsa and I met. There was a spark. I know I felt it. Where did it go?
Shaking my head, I push those thoughts aside. “She doesn’t love me. She always loved Ivo.” I tense, jerking away from her grasp.
“But you left. You left her with Ivo. Did you think your brother wouldn’t take advantage of your absence? Your uncle did.” My mother takes my hand and attempts to soothe me.
I can’t face her. I’ve carried this pain in my chest for so long, I don’t remember what it feels like to live without it. For years, I watched her with my uncle, madly in love with a man who was not my father and my father’s grief became my own.
“Why him? Why did you abandon our father? He loved you. He begged you to love him. Why did you forsake him?” My voice shakes. Staring at the ground, a flood of vile memories come rushing back and I fear darker ones will soon eclipse them. I don’t think I can bear living my life in my father’s shoes.
“The day after we married, after he believed he’d done his duty and used me to give him his heirs, he left me to be with his mistresses. He was gone for weeks. I was young. He was the only man I’d ever known. I might have loved him if he stayed to love me, but he didn’t want to know me. His brother, Aspar stayed. Aspar never left my side. Even after your father returned, he didn’t think to open his heart to me until he saw how happy we’d become in his absence.” She sighs, her voice heavy with emotion.
“I never thought you’d do the same. How can you expect to leave your new wife in the arms of another man, her lawful husband who may love her as he pleases, and expect her to greet you with open arms upon your return?” Releasing my hand, she turns away, revisited by the memory of my father’s betrayal.
Alecto takes my other hand. Shaking her head, she chastises me.
“You have not wooed or courted her. You have not made amends. You need to grovel, profess your love, and promise your devotion as a husband and father. She believes you were in the arms of another woman. Why have you not corrected her? Because you want to cause her pain? Do you think this life is her choice? No amount of jewels, crowns, dresses, or castles can make up for life with two husbands. Especially twins as disagreeable as you. If you want your wife to stop pushing you away, woo her as a man woos a woman. Before it’s too late.”
“But..” I stutter and hesitate.
“But nothing!” Screaming in unison, they both push me off the bench forcing me on to the ground.
“Enough, Ivar. Enough! Beg her. Don’t beg her for sex. Don’t demand that she love you. You need to earn it. Beg her to take a walk with you. Beg her to accept your letters or words of love. Beg that she look at you when you fall on your knees and plead for her forgiveness. You are in no position to demand anything.” In a rage, my mother pushes me on the ground and storms off.
Helping me up, Alecto, brushes the dirt off my clothes and walks me out of the maze.
“She loves you, Ivar. I feel it. She doesn’t want to love you, but she does. You came to her in dreams as she did you. I chose her for you because this was fated long before you were born. Woo her, Ivar. Win her, slowly. Don’t rush her, don’t make demands and she’ll open her heart to you.”
Chapter 19
IVO
“You will not keep her for yourself. She’s my wife too.” Ivar waits for me near the stables, the same place I warned him not to abandon Elsa the night after our wedding.
“You did not want her. You told me to keep her, brother. Don’t you remember?” I sneer and push past him. Elsa is waiting for me. I’m taking her for a ride into the country. She’s in desperate need of time away from Ivar’s prying eyes.
“No, I was wrong. I want my wife. Enjoy your time with her today, Ivo. I will take her from you. I promise.” He storms away and my heart plummets. I believe in Elsa’s love, but I saw the way she looked at him on our wedding night. He held a place in her heart, and I fear it’s a place he will easily recapture.
The time may come soon when I must share her, and I don’t know if I’m as ready as I believed.
Over the past few days, I’ve heard rumors, unpleasant ones that keep me unsettled. The Royal Chamberlain informed me Ivar has not seen Kathleen since before our wedding. He’s uncertain why he has not made this information better known, but he remained alone during his eight-day absence. Shortly before his return, she came to the palace to search for him and made quite a spectacle, angry that he had broken things off with her. His desire to keep it a secret is baffling.
I cannot prevent him from seeking Elsa’s affection, but I do not have to make it easy for him.
I keep her away most of the day, but Alecto does not want her away from the palace for so long. She now believes Elsa may carry two babies and wants to take every precaution for their safe delivery. When we return from our time alone, Ivar appears before us, he’s been waiting near the stables for our return.
Taking the reins of her mare, he helps her dismount and asks to speak to her in private. She hesitates, but something about his demeanor changes her mind. He appears humble, nervous... vulnerable.
/> What kind of game is he playing?
I hear her answer. “Will you walk me to my room to freshen up, first?” She takes his hand and allows him to lead her inside. They’re a few steps away, when she turns and offers her free hand to me, frustrating my brother when I take it.
I will not make this easy for him.
Chapter 20
ELSA
For eight days, Ivar neglected me with his absence. He rejected me by leaving the night after our wedding, preferring the company of another woman. Upon his return, he sought my love as a right. As my husband. I loved Ivo, so I should love him. Then today something changed.
He began courting me.
After our disastrous attempt at making love, I expect him to run away. He has a chance to flee undetected while we are in the country, but upon our return I spot him by the stable door. He’s waiting to speak to me.
For the first time, he seeks an opportunity to know me. He doesn’t ask for relations. His request is simple.
“Just a walk. I’d love to talk to you. We know nothing of one another. Allow me to rectify that.”
While my heart flutters, my stomach twists with guilt. Ivo has been my only companion. Allowing Ivar a chance to woo me, feels like a betrayal. But I am his wife.
Confident he will probably ruin things before making them better, I accept his invitation.
We walk hand in hand through the maze, talking about our lives and learning as much as we can about the person we’ve married. I ask him about his father and his childhood. He asks me about my parents and brothers. When we find a nice place to sit, he bows his head and quietly confesses he was not with Kathleen in his absence. He has not been with anyone since our wedding night.
“Then why? Why would you allow me to believe such a thing?” The pain in my heart intensifies, but I hold back tears that threaten to form.
“Please, forgive me. You don’t know how much it hurts me to share you. To see you with my brother feels like madness. I don’t know what imbecile created this tradition, but I do not want it for our sons. It’s unfair. It’s unnatural. I’m truly sorry, but in my anger, I wanted you to have a brief glimpse of the agony that we’ll endure.”
I stand to leave. “I don’t want to make you suffer, Ivar. I didn’t want this life. I don’t think my heart can love two men. Maybe you should ask for your own queen.” Clutching my chest, I bite my lip to keep it from trembling and run out from the maze. Ivar follows.
“That’s not what I want, Elsa. I don’t want to lose you. If it’s this way or nothing, I’ll learn to live with this pain. I just ask for your patience.” Curling his arm around my waist, he pulls me into his embrace and holds me tightly to his chest. Stroking my hair, he kisses the top of my head and sighs.
“I’m a jealous man, Elsa. If I were your only husband, I’m sure I’d live in constant fear that someone might take you from me. I promise I’ll try harder. I know you didn’t ask for this. But please try to understand, neither did we.”
Sniffling, I gaze up into his soft blue eyes and finally understand. We’re all here by force.
“Will you give me time?” I leverage his guilt. It’s not an easy thing to adjust to having two husbands and lovers. For now, I only want Ivo.
He nods and walks me back to my room.
The following day he leaves me handpicked flowers by my bedside and gifts of jewelry hidden throughout my room. They’re exquisite but I’m not ready. The next day, I receive a present for the baby and a love letter professing his undying love. Although I am not unmoved, I feel perfectly happy with Ivo and fear adding Ivar will complicate my marital bliss. I’m just not ready.
“You will never be ready for two husbands. It is just a burden you will have to bear. But it does not have to be a torment. You have two handsome men who are eager to please you. Most women do not even have one.” Alecto is persuasive and I swear I will try to be more open.
“I make no promises of when, but I will try.” I slump down in my chair and wait for her to prepare a tea for my morning sickness.
“He will make you accept him. He is a cunning boy.” Her smile gives me an uneasy feeling but I’m so grateful for my tea, I soon forget it.
Chapter 21
IVAR
This is my chance. Ivo has monopolized Elsa long enough. For weeks, he’s delayed an important meeting with a western ally until he knew I would be out of the country. The minute I heard he’d left, I rushed through meetings, cancelled an unnecessary family visit and rode my stallion through the night to return to my wife.
She wanted time. I’ve given her time. But I can’t take much more. I want to know her again. In every way. The way a husband knows his wife. I can hardly remember what it feels like to hold her in my arms and move inside her. It’s been over a month since our wedding and the longer I stay out of her bed, the closer she grows to Ivo.
Enough is enough.
I’m not proud of my actions. It pains me greatly to stoop to these measures, but I want my wife. I need Elsa.
Chapter 22
Elsa
With both Ivo and Ivar away, I’m eager to spend some time alone in my garden. The last time Ivo and I made love under the shady tree I noticed the roses were wilting and I promised myself I would try planting something new.
I want it to be a perfect place to take my children and I want the next queen to have an even more glorious garden than the one I inherited. There are gardeners who can help if I ask, but this is a labor of love.
Besides, after two days without Ivo, I have extra energy to burn.
Changing into an old dress, I make my way into the maze and get to work. But there isn’t much to do. The saplings I intended to plant were too large for me to carry and Alecto insisted the gardeners complete the task. She gave me seeds to spread, but that only took a few minutes. After wasting time reminiscing about my first afternoon here, I crawl in the grass and pull weeds. I’ve only just begun when a noise startles me and Ivo rushes in, surprising me with his early return.
“My love, I thought I would find you here.” He appears tired but excited to see me.
“Oh Ivo! I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow! I’m a mess! I’m wearing this old dress to garden.” I pout and rush to him, excited to feel his hard body against mine.
“Don’t be ridiculous, you look stunning.” He sweeps me into his arms, capturing my legs around his waist and draws his lips to mine.
The moment he kisses me, I know it isn’t Ivo. Fearing I might be imagining things, I bury my face in his neck and inhale his scent. It’s Ivar. He’s shaved his facial hair to look like his brother. There can only be one reason.
As he crashes his mouth against mine, my heart stops. I’m not sure what to do. The more he kisses me, the more I fall under his spell, remembering the man who loved me on our first night together. For the moment, I play along.
“I missed you Elsa, I raced home to be with you.” Setting me down on the grass, he undresses us both, pulling at my laces while tearing at his jacket and shirt. The more he touches me, the more I know he isn’t Ivo. He’s loving me differently. His caresses, his kisses, every stroke is being memorized and savored as if it’s all being done for the first time. I want to say something, but I want to see how far he will go.
For the past two weeks, I’ve wanted to make love with him, but guilt in my heart prevented me from initiating it. If I say nothing, I can experience Ivar without feeling like I’m betraying Ivo. It makes no sense, I know. They’re both my husbands. But I only have one heart and it’s hard to pretend I was built to love two men.
I take one more step to ensure it really is Ivar. Winding my finger in his hair, I croon, “Ivo, do that thing. The one you know I love.”
I caress his face and note the absence of Ivo’s small scar.
“What thing? I do many things.” He panics.
“Ivo, you know what I mean, you just want me to say it and sound like a trollop. You know what I want.” Ivo would assume one of his favori
tes, but Ivar has seen us do many odd things.
“My love, just take what you need from me. You know I’ll give you whatever you want.”
Placing his hands on the curve of my waist, he trails kisses across my abdomen and makes his way to my supple breasts. As I shudder from the sensation of his hot breath, his tongue encircles each one, licking and suckling, until I tremble and ask for more. Taking his time, he teases me, grazing his teeth over a taut nipple before inhaling it entirely, watching me shudder helplessly in his arms. As I go mad with desire, I struggle to think of something Ivo and I have never done. It’s a short list.
Seizing an opportunity to kill two birds with one stone, I push Ivar flat on his back and straddle his face, serving my soaked sex straight to his mouth. Thrilled and utterly aroused, he lunges upward and stabs my passage with his tongue, ravenously lapping up my honey and relishing every word of praise I offer.
“You love this don’t you? You love feeding me your cunt, you little minx.” Now I’m certain. Ivo has never done this to me, and he has never called me a minx.
The man sending me into one fitful orgasm after another is an imposter!
“Ivar! I know it’s you!” When he hears me say his name, he carries me across his body and places me on the ground. Lifting my legs, he gazes into my eyes as he buries his thick cock inside me. I gasp but wind my legs around his waist, shuddering with pleasure as he bottoms out in my tight flesh.
Wailing as my limbs shiver with surging desire, I clutch his hands and grind my hips into his, letting him thrust harder and driving him to the edge of a lustful insanity he cannot control. Grunting with every stroke, he brings me forward to suckle my breasts and claim my lips as I cry out in ecstasy, shattering in his arms.
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