Forbidden Throne: An LGBTQ+ Fantasy Novella

by Jennifer Laslie

  I paused on one of the landings to catch my breath. “I’m as good as dead.”

  “She can’t kill you if she can’t find you.” Helena gave me a quick kiss. “I’ll fly us back to my homeland. No one would dare broach the mountains and face our wrath.”

  “I can’t solve my problems by running away.”

  “You have my admiration for that.” Helena shoved me into the corner and devoured my mouth. Her body pressed against mine and lit a fire within me.

  I cried out when her pelvis ground against mine. Such a delicious heat coiled with me as our bodies rubbed together.

  Helena licked along my jaw, nibbled down my neck, and kissed the tops of my breasts. “I will protect you,” she whispered against my skin. “No one will harm you while I live.”

  My chest rose and fell as I tried to catch my breath, but Helena was playing me like a fine-tuned instrument. Her hands trailed over every available piece of flesh.

  “You are mine.” She growled low.

  “I’m yours.” I claimed her mouth when she rose from kissing my breasts. “We need to get to my room before someone sees us like this.”

  “Agreed.” Helena pulled me up the last flight of stairs and cracked the door. “Coast is clear.”

  We made a run for my bedroom, slipped inside, and shut it as giggles erupted from both of us.

  I’d never felt so free. Here I was, being myself, loving whoever I wanted. Helena wasn’t my mother’s choice, but she was mine. Tossing my wig to the ground, I began pulling pins out of my hair. When all of those were out, I unwound my braids and started to undo them.

  Helena watched with fascination as strand after strand was freed. “It’s beautiful.”

  “I’m just glad my mother let me keep my hair.” The end of my second braid finally laid in waves down my back almost touching my butt. “She’d talked of chopping it off.”

  “Not a chance in hell.” Helena combed her fingers through my hair. “My dragon is pleased with her mate.”

  “Your dragon?”

  “Yes, she’s a part of me.” Helena placed my hand on her chest. “She lives inside of me, but when I shift, she gets to be free. We coexist in this body, protecting the other.”

  “She…she likes me?”

  “She more than likes you. You are our chosen mate.” Helena began to unbutton my shirt. “Now, let’s finish what we started in the servant hall.”

  I fumbled with the ties of my britches while she messed with my shirt. When she’d finished peeling my top off, I shimmied out of my bottoms and kicked them to the side.

  “Help me get this dress off.” Helena spun around and presented me with her back.

  I kissed the crook of her neck, and she rolled her head to the opposite side. “Mm, I like that.”

  The ties holding her dress to her body were expertly knotted. I wished I had longer fingernails to get some of these undone. When her dress slipped down her body and pooled at her feet, I began to shake.

  My nerves were getting the best of me.

  Helena stepped out of her dress one foot at a time, stalking me like prey.

  I backed up step by step until my thighs hit the edge of the bed.

  “There’s nothing to fear from me. I may devour you, but you’ll relish in it.” She gave a gentle push against my shoulders, and I fell back onto the bed. She pulled my panties down my legs and tossed them onto the ever-growing pile of clothes.

  I stared down the length of my body as she crawled onto the bed.

  Helena took her time, placing kisses and licking languidly along my skin as she crawled up the length of me. “You are perfection.” Her hand caressed down my thigh, sending goosebumps along my flesh, until her hand hooked behind my knee. Then she lifted my leg and brought my knee toward my chest.

  With her body straddling the other leg, she ground into me like in the hall.

  Her hand dipped between us, gathering moisture on her fingers, and then teased my clit. “I can feel how wet you are for me. And I love that I have that effect on you.”

  I moaned as she leaned into me and moved her hips in slow circles.

  Her lips claimed mine, devouring my cries of pleasure as our bodies moved together.

  “You feel so good,” I cried out as I came up for air.

  “Mm, you do too.” She lifted her body.

  I cried out from the absence of her.

  “I bet you taste even better.”

  “What?”

  Helena sat back on her heels and traced her tongue between my folds.

  I raised my hips and nearly came undone when her tongue found my clit. I was no stranger to self-pleasure, but to have someone else between my thighs was a completely new experience for me.

  “Oh, God. Helena.” I fisted my hands into the sheets as her tongue continued its exquisite torture. “Don’t stop!”

  She buried her face further, lapping up every bit of moisture, and then raising back up to circle that bud of pleasure until I cried out and bucked against her mouth.

  Only after I was spent did I wonder if anyone in the hall had heard us. I closed my eyes and tried to reorient my soul back to my body. “That was amazing.”

  “It was glorious. Watching you fall apart was beautiful.”

  I raised up on my elbows and met her gaze. “What about you?”

  “What about me?”

  “You didn’t get yours.” I sat up and pushed her to the bed, feeling bold and empowered. “I want you to feel exactly what I felt. I want you to cry my name as I make you come.”

  Helena smirked. “I believe I’ve created a monster.”

  “You have no idea.” Forgetting the world outside my bedroom, the promises I’d made to my mother, and the expectations of an entire kingdom, I lavished my dragon princess with the same pleasure she showed me.

  Tomorrow, I would deal with the consequences.

  Chapter 10

  “Rosalyn!” Astrid screamed, startling me from a fantastic dream where a beautiful blonde had her legs wrapped around me.

  I frowned as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes. Pushing Helena’s arm away, I sat up to confront my sister.

  Helena?

  Shit.

  “What have you done?” Astrid asked. “Mother is going to be livid.”

  “You’re going to keep your big, fat, mouth shut so she doesn’t find out.” I threw the covers off, not caring that I was completely naked. “In fact, you won’t breathe a word of this to anyone. Right?”

  Astrid stared at me, shocked. “But—”

  “No buts.” Pointing a finger at her, I glared at her with all the authority I could muster. “As the next heir of Sulenia, you will do as I say.”

  My sister visibly swallowed. “Yes, Your Highness.”

  Helena sat up in bed, pulled the sheet to her chest, and chuckled. “If someone could help me into my dress, I can help remove some of the evidence.”

  “We can fix this. I can fix this.” Astrid paced back and forth.

  “Stop. This wasn’t a mistake. There isn’t anything to fix.” I strode over to my dresser and pulled out a clean pair of underwear and put them on. Rummaging through another drawer, I found one of the more constricting bras. It didn’t quite flatten my chest, but it was better than having someone wrap it. I put that on and then it was my turn to pace.

  “One of our distant cousins, Rory, just arrived this morning.” Astrid scraped a hand down her face. “By all accounts, he’s next in line should you fail. This is a disaster.”

  Helena gave up trying to conceal herself. She dropped the sheet and collected her underwear. She hadn’t needed a bra considering her dress had a built-in corset. “I still think my plan could work.”

  “What plan?” I asked.

  “The one I tried to tell you about last night, but we got a little preoccupied.” Helena wiggled her eyebrows.

  Astrid gagged. “Really? Come on.”

  “Oh, we did.” Helena laughed when Astrid blanched. “Lighten up. You people are too
prudish.”

  “Here, our relationships are between a man and a woman,” said Astrid.

  Helena crossed her arms. “And here you also dress your sister up and try to pass her off as a boy.”

  Astrid tried to hold her gaze and not look at any other part of Helena. “That’s different.”

  “How is it different? You’re making her be someone she’s not.” Helena waved a hand to the door. “How many other people in your kingdom are hiding who they truly are and aren’t able to love who they want?”

  “When you put it like that, it does sound bad.” Astrid bent down and picked up Helena’s dress. “Here.”

  “Thank you.” Helena stepped into it and pulled it up. “Something here needs to change. Laws aren’t absolute, sometimes they have to adapt with the times.”

  I stepped up behind Helena and started lacing her up. “I agree, but what if the people won’t listen? What if they shun me, kick my family out for lying, and my cousin takes over?”

  “Can he prove he’s in line to inherit the throne?” Helena asked.

  “I’m not sure, but he’s boasted about it before. He’s not been shy about telling us what he’d do should something happen to me.” I shivered. “When I was younger, I had a royal taste tester to ensure I’d never be poisoned.”

  Helena looked over her shoulder at me. “That’s awful.”

  “It’s even worse when one of those taste testers dies in front of you.” I tied the last knot and suddenly felt vulnerable in just my bra and panties. Gone was the bravado I’d developed last night.

  Astrid stepped over to my wardrobe. “I remember that day. You were only five years old. Mother had her suspicions about one of the people in the kitchen. She had a fight with father over it.”

  “Why?” I asked.

  “Because he trusted everyone under his employ and Mom didn’t.” Astrid pulled out a cream shirt and coal gray pants. “But she was right not to.”

  “She was, but that doesn’t make it right for her to make me live a life I never chose.” I took the shirt Astrid offered me and slipped into it. With shaky fingers, I buttoned up the front. “I don’t know what to do though.”

  Helena looked in my vanity mirror and tried to make her hair look presentable. “You accept the crown this weekend, that’s what you do. And once you’re the king, you’re going to change the laws.” She straightened up and looked my way. “You’ll be the king, and won’t your law be absolute?”

  “Technically speaking, that is how a monarchy works,” Astrid said. “But that doesn’t mean the people will accept it. Us Northerners are pretty set in our ways.”

  “You make it sound so simple, Helena.” Slipping my pants on, I secured them around my waist. “Not everything is black and white.”

  Helena shrugged. “But what if it is? You won’t know until you try.”

  “Trying could mean death,” I said.

  “No, it won’t. I will burn this place down before anyone lays a hand on you.” Helena wrapped her arms around my waist and placed a chaste kiss on my lips. “You’re mine, remember?”

  “I’m standing right here.” Astrid looked away. “How did you all find out you liked each other anyways? If you like women, you certainly shouldn’t have been attracted to a man.”

  “Who says I’m only attracted to women?” Helena arched an eyebrow. “I knew from the moment I met Rosalyn that she was mine.”

  “That’s crazy.” Astrid shook her head and headed toward the door. “I’d better get downstairs before Mom wonders where I’ve been.”

  “But it’s not crazy.” Helena held up a hand. “Give me a minute to explain.”

  “I’ll give you thirty seconds.” Astrid crossed her arms and leaned against the door.

  “A dragon is taught from a young age that there is someone out there for everyone.” Helena glanced at me, then back to Astrid. “Gender isn’t a deal breaker. When I saw Rosalyn, everything clicked into place. She is my one true mate. I’ll never want anyone else.”

  “I’ve heard rumors about Dragonia, but I didn’t think they were true.” Astrid pointed to me. “But she’s not even a dragon.”

  “Her species is inconsequential. I have a human form, which I stay in about ninety percent of the time.”

  Astrid’s face paled. “How big is your dragon?”

  Helena smirked. “She’s big enough. Don’t threaten me or my mate and you’ll never have to find out.”

  “Duly noted.” Astrid opened the door.

  “Oh, and Astrid?” Helena asked.

  My sister turned back. “Yeah?”

  “That includes telling anyone what you saw here this morning.”

  Astrid fled from the room, slamming the door behind her.

  One thing was clear. Having a dragon for a mate came in handy when you needed a personal bodyguard.

  Chapter 11

  Peeking through a thin slit in the study door, I watched as people poured into the throne room and picked out seats in the chairs the staff had lined up this morning. Not only were all of our guests in attendance, but a select few villagers had been permitted to attend.

  My mother had held a lottery for those prized seats. A section of seats, right in the front row and to the left of the dais, had been marked for the winners. They were about to be in for the show of a lifetime.

  I held my hand out in front of me and watched it shake. Being crowned king was enough anxiety, but add on top of that the fact I was going to out myself as a liar after the coronation and try to get the law changed, and I’d probably throw up in front of everyone before I even started to speak.

  Helena placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “You’ve got this.”

  “One can only hope.”

  Mother entered through the side entrance and stopped short. “What’s she doing here?”

  “Helena is my friend and only offering me support.” I eased the door to the throne room closed and turned to address my mother. “Is there a problem?”

  I was greeted with the thin line of her lips and a shove to the other side of the room.

  “I warned you not to spend too much time with her,” whispered Mom. “She can’t be trusted.”

  I rolled my eyes. “She’s not going to poison me.”

  “No, but what if she finds out who you are?” Her fingers dug into my arm, eyes wild.

  “The only person hurting me right now is you.” I jerked my arm from her grip and backed away. “Not everyone is out to get me.”

  “Once you’re king, people will always want something from you. And if they can’t get what they want, they’ll take it by force.” She wagged a finger in my face. “Mark my words.”

  All the years of trying to keep me safe and keep my secret had sent my mother over the edge. She’d developed such a severe case of paranoia. I needed to tread lightly.

  “I’ll be sure to watch my back.”

  “You do just that.” She breezed past me and confronted Helena. “I think it’s time you leave. You are welcome to find a seat, but don’t you dare come near my son again.”

  Helena cocked her head to the side and smirked. “You don’t have to worry. I’ll not bother your son. And I was just leaving, anyway.”

  Once Helena left, my mother’s shoulders sagged in relief. “That one, I’m telling you. If she knew, she’d scream it to the whole world.”

  “You don’t have to worry about Helena. She’s harmless.” And she was. Helena wasn’t the one Mother had to worry about, I was. Once that crown sat heavy on my head, I was going to oust myself and scream it to the whole world.

  “Are you ready to take your rightful place?” she asked.

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.” I walked through the door as she opened it. Walking over to stand front and center on the dais, I waved to those gathered.

  The head priest approached and smiled. “Such a pleasure to see you today, Stefan.”

  “You as well, Father.”

  The priest addressed the crowd. “Today,
we step into a new era as Prince Stefan rises to power and helps keep our land whole.”

  Applause filled the room but died down when the priest motioned for silence.

  “Prince Stefan, are you ready to take the coronation oath?” the priest asked.

  “Yes, Father. I am.” When I folded my hands in front of me, they slid against each other from the sweat. I resisted the urge to wipe them on my pants.

  “Will you swear to govern the people of Sulenia with a just hand according to our laws and customs?” The priest's words filled the space and laid heavy on my shoulders. No one knew the burden I was about to undertake.

  “I promise to do so.”

  The priest dipped his fingers in a bowl of sacred water and smeared them across my forehead. “Blessed are those that rule Sulenia. May they grow and prosper with the land.”

  I bowed my head.

  “By the power vested in me by the gods of this world, I crown you the next King of Sulenia.” Father placed the simple crown on my head and made sure it was secure. “Rise now and address your subjects.”

  Standing tall, I looked out over the crowd. “People of Sulenia. Thank you for accepting me as your next King. I vow to always have your best interests at heart.”

  Cheers rose as people stood and clapped.

  “Thank you, thank you.

  The crowd settled down, but many remained standing.

  “I feel the tides of change upon us.” I put my hands behind my back and paced the length of the dais. “We as a people are oppressed. We’re close-minded and sometimes our hearts are filled with hate, even if we don’t realize it.”

  The room grew quiet. I had everyone’s attention.

  My mother gave me the evil eye and mouthed what are you doing?

  I held up a finger to her. She’d find out in due time.

  “You see, I’ve also been oppressed.”

  “What?” my mother screamed.

  Helena rose from her chair in the back, ready to defend me should the Queen Regent have other ideas.