by S. E. Smith
“Well, I met a woman that I imagine could kick their asses if you need any help,” she murmured, leaning forward until their lips almost touched. “I love you, Ashure.”
He reached up and buried his hand in her hair. She parted her lips, and he kissed her with a passion that left her knees weak and her body raging for more. She tangled her fingers in his hair and kissed him with the intensity of a woman who knew she had been given a second chance at life and at love.
“Mm, I think I’ll go keep Pai company,” an amused voice said from behind Ashure.
Ashure reluctantly broke their kiss. He didn’t look at the woman who had spoken, but continued to stare deeply into Tonya’s eyes. It took him a few seconds to catch his breath enough to speak.
“It may be awhile, Nali,” he finally said.
Nali’s low chuckle filled the air. “How about if Pai just brings you home when you two are ready? There’s a lovely little hut that I sometimes stay in when I come to visit. Xyrie can show you where it is,” she suggested.
“Perfect,” Ashure muttered, already bending his head to kiss Tonya again.
Tonya heard the sound of wings and felt the flutter of a breeze in her hair. She had no idea who Nali was or how she was going to get home. All she cared about at the moment was touching Ashure and knowing that they would have a lifetime together. Suddenly, she wondered if one lifetime together was enough before the pleasure of Ashure’s kiss swept aside all thoughts from her mind.
28
“This way,” Ashure said, pulling her along the narrow path that led through the forest.
He grinned when Tonya laughed and gripped his hand more tightly. The feel of her hand in his and the sound of her laughter filled him with joy. They were both a little giddy at the moment—something that he would never confess to if asked.
“Are you sure you know where you’re going? I thought Nali said to ask Xyrie to show us where the hut was located,” she breathlessly asked.
He stopped and faced her. He cupped her cheeks and kissed her deeply. Their lips feverishly caressed each other’s before he pulled back and stared at her with love blazing in his eyes.
“We’re here,” he said.
“How do you know…?” her voice faded when he stepped to the side.
In front of her a small, but beautiful hut stood nestled amongst a stand of large trees. A thickly thatched roof with a chimney peeking up from one side sat upon the stone walls that were latticed with vines filled with colorful flowers. The roof shimmered from the light green moss that grew atop it. Beds of brilliant wildflowers edged the stone walkway and randomly grew in small patches bordering the walls of the hut.
“This is—this is like out of a fairy tale,” she breathed before she stopped and looked at him with a wary expression. “There aren’t any crazed witches hiding to jump out at us are there?” she asked.
He tilted his head back and laughed. “Nay, my love, there may be a few Sprites and Gnomes lurking about though,” he cautioned.
She parted her lips as if to repeat what he said before she shook her head. “Which Isle are we on again?” she asked.
Ashure brushed a light kiss across her lips. “The Isle of the Monsters. Nali’s kingdom contains one of the most diverse populations of creatures in the entire Seven Kingdoms,” he explained, guiding her over the stepping stones to the front door.
He pushed open the door and blinked in surprise when several diminutive House Elves in the process of setting a small table froze and stared up at them with bright green eyes. His gaze swept over the table filled with fresh fruits, cheeses, vegetables, and breads. A medium-sized pot bubbling with a fragrant stew hung from a ring over the magical fire. Another House Elf was arranging fresh flowers on a side cupboard.
“This is so beautiful,” Tonya murmured in awe.
Ashure nodded. “It would appear Nali doesn’t expect our return any time soon,” he replied.
She looked at him with a startled expression. “How do you know?” she asked.
He nodded to the House Elves who were scurrying into what he suspected was a magical cupboard. “Those are some of her personal assistants,” he commented.
“Will they be here the whole time?” she asked, wrinkling her nose in uncertainty.
He chuckled. “They know when to disappear. We are alone,” he promised.
She breathed out a long sigh. “Good, because while I like getting wild with you, I’m really not into having an audience,” she admitted.
“Only an audience of one, love, only of one,” he murmured.
She ran her hands over the top of his head, smoothing his hair back, continued sliding them over his ears, and to his face, cupping his cheeks. He leaned forward, meeting her lips with his. She ran her tongue over his bottom lip.
“I guess you should prepare to be entertained then,” she said with a wiggle of her eyebrows.
He raised his head and looked at her with an inquisitive expression. “Entertained?” he asked.
She nodded with a sly smile. “Does this magical mini-palace have a bathroom?” she asked.
“Yes,” he muttered, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
She slid her hand down his body and cupped his crotch. “There’s something about almost dying that makes a woman want a refreshing shower and some really hot sex,” she confessed.
He frowned when she mentioned almost dying. It would take a long time before the image of her, deathly pale and bloody, faded from his mind. He held her chin and kissed her. Her lips parted under his and their tongues tangled.
A minute later, the cooler air of the room on his heated flesh sank into his passion-laden brain and he realized that while they were kissing Tonya had skillfully begun removing his clothing. He lifted his head and looked down at her with desire-laden eyes. Her lips were curved into a dreamy smile.
“It looks like the entertainment will start in the bathroom,” he said.
Tonya didn’t even remember removing her clothes. For that matter, she barely remembered helping Ashure off with his! She greedily studied his muscular body and made mental notes of all the places that she wanted to spend more time on.
Damn, but that man has the cutest ass! she thought with pleasure.
It was true. Ashure wasn’t big and muscular like a wrestling star or body builder. No, he was the lean and dangerous type that made her think of James Bond. His broad shoulders tapered to a narrow waist, and his hips were perfect for straddling while his ass was just yummy. It was tight with a slight coating of hair that made her want to rub her hands along his butt cheeks and add a tiny slap to see if they flexed the way she imagined.
“Are you going to stare at my ass all afternoon, or are we going to have some of that hot sex you mentioned?” he teasingly inquired
“Hot sex and it isn’t only your ass I’m ogling now,” she immediately responded with a grin.
He looked down at his cock that was very full and very happy. A choked laugh slipped from her when he moved his hips and made it bounce. Her heart melted at the teasing, sensual look in his eyes. He was the perfect lover—exciting, fun, sexy-as-hell, and she knew he loved her.
“I love you, Ashure,” she said in a voice filled with emotion at the thought of what she had come so close to losing.
His expression softened, and he held his hand out to her. “Let me show you how much I love you,” he replied.
She slid her hand into his and gasped in surprise when he suddenly twirled her around until her bare back was pressed against his chest. He released her hand and slowly slid his hands down her body from her breasts to her hips, drawing a moan of anticipation from her.
This is what it meant to make love. It was more than the physical satisfaction—it was the emotional connection. They moved like dancers, his hands on her body while she moved against him. There was something deeply intimate about their slow caresses of bare flesh.
She turned in his arms, her sensitive nipples growing painfully taut when they brushed against his coarse chest h
air. He kissed her passionately while his cock, the bulbous head full and the tip glistening with pre-cum, slid between her legs. She rocked her hips back and forth, brushing her soft curls along his shaft. His breathing became more erratic as the ultra-sensitive head brushed against her womanhood.
They moved in unison, stepping back into the soft flow of warm water falling like rain in the shower. The moisture caused their bodies to become slick, and the friction of bare flesh against bare flesh fanned the flame of their desires.
She closed her eyes and leaned her head back so that he could trail his lips along her throat. She used her other senses to absorb every nuance of the moment. His lips were warm against her wet flesh. His fingers strong and possessive as he held her. She rolled her hips in rhythm with the sensuous touch of his lips that were now leaving a mark along her neck for all to see.
Their moans of pleasure along with the sound of rainfall filled the shower. He washed her with floral-scented soap, making her skin tingle. She bowed her head and opened her eyes to watch him run the foamy soap over her breasts.
“Ashure,” she moaned when he tweaked her nipples.
“All in good time, my love,” he promised.
Tonya nodded, unable to speak as his hands moved along her chest. He paused at the spot where one of the bullets had pierced her. A small, barely visible heart-shaped mark that she hadn’t noticed earlier in the meadow marred her smooth skin. A shiver ran through her when he gently ran the sponge over the spot and waited for the water to rinse it, before he pressed a kiss to the mark.
He continued down along her abdomen, pausing at the second faint scar and giving it the same tender care. His focus was intense, and the expression on his face so haunting that she lifted her hands and ran her fingers through his hair. She gripped his hair tighter, unable to contain her moan when he began to wash her soft folds.
“You are on very—dangerous— Oh—oh, hell, yes,” she moaned.
He replaced the sponge with his lips and teeth. Her breathing grew uneven as he began doing incredible things to her body. Her legs trembled and she would have collapsed if not for her hands on his shoulder.
“Damn,” she whispered when he flicked his tongue over her swollen nub, sending ripples down her spine.
“There is more to come, my love, much, much more,” he promised.
It was obvious from Ashure’s expert touch he was aware of her body’s reaction—aka the way her vagina was pulsing on the finger he had inside her. She laughed softly to everything he was doing to her. She sighed when he continued torturing her while running the sponge along both of her legs. Her hips moved in unison with his lips, drawing out her pleasure. Her lips parted in protest when he suddenly stopped and stood up to worship her with his eyes.
The protest died when she noticed the carnal fire burning in his eyes. Her eyes followed the movement of his tongue as he ran it along his upper lip. Damn if the man didn’t know how to turn her on with the simplest things.
“Is it my turn now?” she murmured.
“Oh, no, my little vixen, I still have your back to wash,” he informed her.
Her eyes grew wider when he wrapped his arm around her and brushed his fingers along the crevice between her butt cheeks. He pressed a little harder, and she spun to face the shower wall. She lifted her arms and pressed her hands against the wall as he washed her. Her breath caught at the knowledge that she was about to be well and truly loved when he tossed the sponge to the side.
“Now, the entertainment truly begins,” he murmured against her ear.
“Ashure!” she moaned long and loud when his cock pushed between her soft folds.
The sound of his name on her lips was a sweet balm to his ears. He reached down, gripped his engorged cock with one hand, and gently pressed her lower back with the other. He gritted his teeth as the sensitive head brushed against her.
The intense pleasure of her silky feminine depths closing around his shaft almost pushed him over the edge. A shudder ran through him despite the warm water cascading over them. He studied their intimate joining as he pushed farther inside her. A hoarse moan slipped from him when she squeezed him. His fingers bit into her hips as he buried his cock as far as it would go before he pulled back. The slow, measured strokes caused the pressure to build inside him and he could tell from her increased whimpers that she was feeling the same intense pleasure.
He gripped her hips and held her steady as he began to move faster. The primitive need to possess Tonya lit a flame inside him that quickly began to burn out of control. Subconsciously, he understood that the heightened emotional waves flooding his mind and body were caused by her near death experience. He closed his eyes briefly as another shaft of pleasure-pain swept through him when she moaned and slightly lifted her hips.
The sound of their smacking flesh grew faster and harder as he took her. Her breasts swayed back and forth from where she was bent forward. Still holding her by her right hip, he reached underneath and captured one of her breasts in his left hand. He pinched her nipple hard as he pounded into her.
A low, desperate scream erupted from her and she stiffened as she came. Releasing her hip, he cupped her right breast and pinched the nipple while caging her body with his as he continued impaling her as she climaxed.
She was so tight that he could barely pull out of her. He could feel the pulsing of her channel and the sudden added lubrication from her orgasm. Her breaths came in broken pants, and her low cries of pleasure built until the pressure inside him released. He slammed into her, burying his cock to the hilt and released a long, low, almost tortured moan as his hot seed filled her.
She was trembling uncontrollably, and he wrapped his arms around her to keep her from collapsing. He was shocked that they were both still able to stand. Laying his cheek against her shoulder, they remained locked together as the water continued to fall.
“So…,” she forced out in a voice laced with satisfaction, “when will you be ready for round two?”
He chuckled and pressed a kiss against her wet shoulder. “As soon as I can dry us off,” he promised.
Another shudder ran through her when his cock twitched inside her. She responded by squeezing him. He shook his head.
“Oh, to hell with it—who needs recovery time. Round two starts now,” he growled.
“Sweet! My turn to wash you,” she drawled.
29
A week later, Ashure concluded that the ‘honeymoon’, as Tonya called it, was over. His First Mate, Dapier, had received the message he’d sent, and then taken it upon himself to bring half of the Pirate fleet to the Isle of the Monsters to celebrate the return of their King from yet another noble quest.
He had no idea what preposterous stories Dapier had made up this time, but he was sure they must have been good from all the hooting, hollering, and cheers coming from the docks. The Pirates were in a celebratory mood. He just hoped it wasn’t from raiding his private stash of fine liquor.
The thud of boots on the polished stone warned him that Nali had told Dapier where to find him and Tonya. Sure enough, he saw the old pirate’s wiry gray hair and tattered hat appear first as Dapier came up the stairs. The old man was followed by two brawny young men who were barely old enough to shave.
New recruits, he silently groaned as they entered the room where he and Tonya were staying.
“Glad to see you are well, my King. The lads and I were wonderin’ what grand adventures you might’ve gone on without us. Life’s been a bit dull since you’ve been away, Cap’n. It ain’t the same when we’re not almost dyin’ every other day,” Dapier cheerily stated.
Tonya looked at him with a raised eyebrow. “Ashure, is he serious about almost dying?” she whispered.
Ashure grimaced and sent his oft-too-cheerful First Mate a look of warning that, as usual, went right over the man’s head. He just shook his head in defeat. There was no changing the plump old pirate’s tendency to blurt out everything that popped into his head. He imagined that Ton
ya was about to learn more than she was ready to about the life of a pirate.
“Well, not every day. There are other tedious things like diplomacy, socializing, contracts, and other inane activities associated with ruling a kingdom to do as well,” he began.
“Don’t forget plunderin’, raidin’, and irritatin’ the dragons, Cap’n,” Dapier said as he signaled the two men to bring the large wooden chest into the room.
“And, perhaps a bit of those things, as well. Dapier, why don’t you be a good chap and return the chest to the ship. We won’t need the items here,” Ashure instructed.
Ashure felt remorse at the pout on Dapier’s lips. Obviously the chest contained more than what he had ordered for Tonya. Dapier was always doing odd little things—like hiding a Sea Monkey in his cabin or pilfering a golden egg whenever they were visiting the Isle of the Monsters.
“Oh, just stay another day or three, Ashure. Your men are good for my economy—and they also give my guards some fighting practice,” Nali commented, leaning against the doorframe with one ankle crossed over the other.
Dapier cheered up. “The Empress is right, Cap’n. The men would be happy to give the Empress’s guards a little sport, and it would do them some good to practice their thievery. They have to run twice as fast against the Centaurs, and a few scuffles with the Cyclopes and the Minotaurs would toughen up a few of the new recruits. I did bring a case of your best brandy for the Empress,” he rambled on.
“A case—could you make that two, Dapier?” Nali suggested with a mischievous smirk.
“Anything for you, Empress,” Dapier eagerly agreed.
Ashure looked at Dapier with an incredulous expression. “Simply unbelievable,” he muttered as Dapier kept talking—and promising half of his best stash.
Tonya threaded her arm through his and grinned at him. “What?” she asked.
“My First Mate not only gives away all the joys of being a pirate, but my best brandy as well. Please tell me I was never like this,” Ashure jestingly pleaded.