“They don’t get it,” King Collins muttered, glancing at Queen Ruckler.
“Yes, I do,” I mumbled, not wanting to hear any more of this.
Queen Ruckler shook her head, walking forward to stand directly in front of us, and bent down, placing her hands on her knees to peer directly in Brann’s face. “Your sister, Brann. You love your sister, right?”
Slowly, he nodded once.
“Okay, now try to picture every single memory you have of her…just gone. Blank voids of nothingness where any time you may have spent with her growing up, just poof, disappeared. Simple things like eating breakfast with each other, family trips, and graduation. All of these things gone, black holes. But you know something’s not right, and no matter how hard you strain to remember, and you would try to remember to the point it would become your life’s mission…nothing.” She waved her hand. “Just nothing, and you can’t for the life of you figure out how you know certain things. The knowledge will still be there, except you won’t remember how you obtained it, who told you it, how you know you can do something before you have any memories of doing it.” She stared him in the eyes for a long moment, and to whatever expression he was showing, she nodded. “There you go. Now you have an inkling of what could result in a lifetime of true insanity.”
She altered her stance to me and froze, staring me in the eyes. My heart was already hammering against my breastbone, hot sweat beginning to bead my forehead and palms. I know I stared back at her with saucer eyes, a bit unseeing. I couldn’t even picture a life like that where Sin was ripped from me, a life of fragments between nothing, because he was that much a part of my life. She patted my knee, whispering, “I don’t even need to say anything to you, I can see it in your eyes.”
She stood and walked by King Collins, muttering, “I’ve scared them enough. It’s your turn.”
He almost appeared apologetic at us before his face turned cold as he stated, “On to the next part, the part I and Queen Ruckler would rather not speak about, but it still needs to be said.” He cleared his throat. “Now, unless you want to live a life of constant fear that a child be born between you two and risk someone finding out through your child — although, it’s not said a child can’t be born — you need to use condoms when you have sex. No exceptions.” He paused. “Unless one of you has their tubes tied or a vasectomy done, then there’s that exception. Understand?”
Sounding half in a daze, Brann rumbled, “Understood.”
King Collins peered at me expectantly.
My lips pinched, and I glanced away. “Can you move on, please?”
“Caro, this is not a time for shyness—” He shut up when I shot him a hard glance.
“This is not about shyness. Don’t ask questions.”
He blinked.
Queen Ruckler blinked.
Brann even turned his face to me.
My nostrils flared, and I turned my head away from them all. “Just move along.”
King Collins hummed quietly then stated slowly, “Or unless Caro’s on birth control.” My gaze snapped to him in surprise, and I saw him flash a grin, glancing back at Queen Ruckler, stating, “I knew those books would pay off.” Appearing pleased with himself even as Queen Ruckler rolled her eyes at him, he turned his attention back to us, shrugging his shoulders a little, and I realized it was in excitement he had figured out a spirit secret. “All right, so condoms, sterilization, or since one of you is a spirit, add in birth control as your forms of contraceptives.” I swear he would have done a little happy dance right there with how large his grin was. “And I would go into the differences in the sexual act between your factions, but since I honestly don’t know what happens for a spirit, I wouldn’t be much help to you.”
I blinked. “Um, the end result would be pretty standard between male and female with peg A going in slot B.” Even as Brann started chuckling softly at my comment, I paused with dawning horror, glancing at him wide-eyed. “Wait,” I waved my hands, “Shifters don’t try to do anything freaky with their animals do they?”
His amber eyes met mine, and he squinted at me as he choked hard before managing to mutter, “No. No freaky,” more choking, “animal mating’s here.” I glared at him, my arms crossing as he lost it and started cracking up, his hilarity ringing throughout the room. He put up a large stopping hand in my direction even as his head tilted back, mouth opened wide, showing me those blinding white teeth as he laughed it up. “Sorry. Sorry.” More snickering. “But you should have seen your face.”
My gaze turned evil before I could hide it with innocence, but luckily he was chuckling merrily so he didn’t see it. “Well, when spirits hit their climax their partner sees them as they will appear when they’re dead.” I paused. “Like, decomposition dead.”
For a split second, I saw it. His laugh choked off, and his eyes widened in horror before his nostrils flared. Then I got the irritated glare, his eyes narrowing swiftly. “Not funny.”
I shrugged a shoulder. “I thought it was.” I smiled sweetly at him before I turned my attention back to King Collins and Queen Ruckler. King Collins’s jaw was dropped as he stared over his shoulder at Queen Ruckler, pointing at me, only to have Queen Ruckler chuckle quietly and shake her head in a negative. He appeared miserable when he glanced back at me, having been ripped from the possibility of that spirit information. It was a freaking funny-ass expression on him, the ferocious Elemental King.
Queen Ruckler nodded once at me. “That was pretty good. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that look on my Prodigy’s face, no matter what I’ve done to him.” She glanced at Brann and shrugged a shoulder when he turned his glare on her. “Sorry, but you did deserve it after laughing at her honest question.” Her attention came back to me. “Now, about Shifter matings: if you were a powerful Shifter, if you had an animal predator inside you, his predator would have to prove his dominance to your predator at the simple touch of your tongues together, at the taste. If he skipped that part, as some men have no skill for foreplay, and went right for,” her lips twitched, “penetration, it would also make your predator wake up and fight back.” She shrugged a shoulder when I stared at her, trying my hardest not to have a gaping jaw…because she was exactly the Shifter she was explaining, and I really didn’t want to know about her sex life. “It’s only the first time around. After that your predator recognizes the taste and doesn’t fight your partner.”
My eyebrows slowly furrowed together as I thought of something. “I’m about to ask a stupid question.” I glanced at Brann. “So no laughing, please.”
He held up his hands, stating slowly and sincerely, “That was rude earlier. I’m sorry. Won’t happen again.”
I nodded, then I motioned to his hands, staring at them as I stated hesitantly, “You lifted me earlier like I weighed nothing, like you could do it with your pinkie and not break a sweat. I know Shifters have crazy strength, since I’ve actually seen it brutally in action before, but…” My eyes darted to his then quickly altered to Queen Ruckler’s because that seemed safer. “You know, during the act,” I waved my hands, “you know, does a Shifter…” I waved my hands a bit more, uncomfortable to ask the question so bluntly. “Um, does a Shifter—” Brann stopped my ramblings by gently gripping my chin and turning my face toward him.
Chin tilted down slightly, he peered back at me openly as he lowered his fingers from my face, stating, “A Shifter’s strength is a part of their power. Their magic. So, unless a Shifter purposely pushes the use of it, it isn’t used, just their normal strength like every other Mystical.”
I nodded once in a competent manner, still a little embarrassed, and went for a businesslike tone to cover it up. “Thank you for explaining.”
King Collins cleared his throat quietly. “I would like to state, Brann, that you probably would have to be careful in the act before you learned the limits between you two because you are large, even for a Shifter, and Caro’s…well, she’s,” he paused, then he stated respectfully, “petite.�
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Christ, there went my blush again, and I dutifully stared at the coffee table as Brann’s wolf growled a little, sounding irritated, before he stated sarcastically, “Really? That never would have crossed my mind.” It was the first time I had heard that tone from him. He snorted with a bitty growl. “As if I hadn’t noticed how — and I’ll put it bluntly — damn tiny she is compared to me.”
I glared. At the coffee table. But it was still a glare. “Are we done with the sex talk?”
Queen Ruckler made a sound in her throat, then she stated, “No. I have a few more things to say.”
Sighing heavily in humiliated irritation, I lifted my gaze to her.
When she saw we were both paying attention, she murmured, “First off, King Collins and I never had this conversation with you two. Secondly, if you happen to become pregnant, do not hesitate to come to either one of us immediately for help…because we will help you.
“And thirdly,” she hesitated, licking her lips as she glanced away, “if you do choose to have a long-term relationship and not a one-night stand, the only saving grace to being caught is Law One. Marriage. Law One states a married couple can be kept apart only for a minimum of one year, no longer than two, although during a trial you would need to remind the Judge of this and let this person know you were married in secret to one another. Also remember that this is not a permanent fix because even though you would be placed back together, you wouldn’t remember each other, so the outcome of this could be even worse. I’ll leave that for you to decide, if it ever gets to that point between you both.”
She sighed heavily before adding, “And lastly, you need to think about the ramifications for your people, not only if you were caught, charged, and separated, but also if you had a lover’s quarrel or ended your relationship on bad terms. Those ruthless emotions you would feel for each other could not be acted upon in your duties as a King and Queen. Your subjects come first. They have to. And you would both need to respect that about each other.”
Silence floated about us as she stopped speaking, a heavy weight of all that had been said in here, all of the knowledge these two had imparted on us. Even though we hadn’t even done anything together except accidentally fall asleep next to each other, I could see how they might think we had. Especially since they stated that we react to one another, an instant attraction that still boggled my mind.
And, in that moment, I realized something. These two Rulers, with their harsh dictates throughout each and every day, truly did care about us to be imparting this type of intimate information to us. I did not really expect to have liked these two, and I actually did, even more so now that they had so bluntly, embarrassingly, and riskily, tried to help us.
I cleared my throat in the quiet, but my voice still came out distressingly soft. “Thank you. I realize how uncomfortable this topic is to talk about and even the risks you’re taking by having this conversation with us. And even though I might not show it all the time, since I’m not used to others being honestly kind…I do appreciate the thoughtfulness and care you both obviously have for Brann and me. It means a lot to me.”
Brann growled a sniff, his voice gruff. “What she said.”
Queen Ruckler stared for a long moment, then she blinked. “It’s always the hardasses who have the biggest hearts.” Another blink. “And me saying that isn’t a bad thing.”
King Collins grunted then cracked his neck, mumbling. “You’re both welcome.” He glanced at Queen Ruckler. “I think we’re done here.”
She blinked again with a little shake of her head, pushing off the wall. “Yes, I think we are.” Right before they exited our line of sight, Queen Ruckler paused then added, “And quit gazing at each other like lovesick puppies in public. Save that shit for private.”
Again King Collins grunted, then they were quickly out the door, shutting it firmly but quietly behind them.
I sat still, staring at the blank, thin glass of the television. “Well…”
Brann growled a grunt. “Yeah…”
We went mute, sitting in stillness and quiet.
Cocking my head at the television, I asked bluntly, “Do you want to have sex with me?” Might as well know where we stood on the subject, since we had gone through that.
There was a long beat of silence, then Brann stated just as frankly, “From the moment I saw your face I found you attractive.” I heard him inhale deeply as I sat frozen with that gifted information, instantly turned on hearing the actual words come from his mouth. “And you?”
Woodenly, I nodded once. “Same.”
He growled a grunt, his voice deeper than before. “Well…”
I stared at the television, trying to gain control. “Yeah…”
Again, we sat in stillness and quiet.
Glancing down, I picked at my pajama bottoms, really wishing my breathing would even out and that every time I inhaled it didn’t smell of forest. “You think we should…” I let the question hang.
His voice half-growl, he murmured, “Probably not.”
I agreed. “It would totally screw up…our connection.” Our friendship.
“Exactly.”
“Well…”
“Yeah…” He glanced at me. “We done here?”
“Not yet. Why the hell do you smell of forest, pine, and earth, like at the beginning of a rainfall?” I inhaled again, rolling my head on my shoulders, shivering in warmth as I dropped my face in my hands. “Christ, it’s driving me mad the way it’s strengthening.”
There was a beat of silence, then Brann rumbled a quiet chuckle. “I did shift last night, but I think it’s because I’m getting turned on, and apparently you can smell it in your own way.” A pause. “King Collins would love to know that little fact.”
I froze, then I shook my head, dispelling the worry I had given away a spirit secret, because I hadn’t purposely divulged a spirit’s secret; my motives had been pure, no one ever having told me I could scent arousals. Although oddly, now that I thought about it, anytime I had been in bed with an Elemental since my Awakening I had scented something of their Element the more heated our sexual congress became. I just hadn’t put that little piece of the puzzle together, and his scent, God his scent…
“Whatever it is, you smell fucking fantastic,” I groaned, banging my head on my hands. “Maybe we should try staying apart from each other for a little while.”
His wolf huffed quietly. “Good idea.”
That wise decision done, we lifted from the couch. But after opening the door we stopped dead, seeing Queen Ruckler and King Collins resting comfortably against the wall directly across the hall not three feet away, arms crossed, intelligent gazes scanning our faces.
Queen Ruckler pushed off the wall and stated bluntly, “Number one: you’re both making the right decision to stay apart. Number two: never have a conversation like that inside a room if someone can overhear.” She tapped her ear, staring at Brann. “The only reason King Collins and I even had that earlier conversation with you two in there is because I have sensitive hearing and could tell if anyone was nearing. Choose a spelled private room in the future for those conversations or intimacies, since you’re obviously not using your sense of smell except on her.” A pause, then a gruff order. “And number three: both of you go to your damn rooms before anyone sees you looking like you do.”
I stared wide-eyed, since we were still rumpled from sleep, and it probably did look like we had been rolling around doing things we shouldn’t.
King Collins’s lips twitched. “And Brann,” he cleared his throat, pointing vaguely to Brann’s lower half, “do something to hide your obvious issue before you scare the house staff.”
I froze and kept my eyes straight forward, not letting them dip, realization dawning I had never glanced down to see how turned on he was.
Standing next to me, Brann muttered a curse at King Collins, who only raised his blue eyebrows in return. He turned his back to everyone, readjusting himself and his clothing before he
turned back, stating, “I think we’ve been humiliated enough today, don’t you?”
Queen Ruckler raised her arms wide. “The day’s still young, and depending on how foolish you two are, I guess we’ll see.”
“Oh, fuck off,” Brann muttered, taking hold of my bicep and herding me past them. “We’re leaving.”
“Wrong move, yet again,” King Collins stated candidly, and we stopped abruptly with our backs to them. “Number four: do not touch each other in front of others if it’s not needed.” Brann growled, but dropped his hand from my arm, so King Collins continued. “And number five: never leave the same fucking way. Come on, you two. Use your damn heads. I know you’re both much smarter than this when your libidos aren’t doing the thinking for you.” A pause then slow words. “In more blatant terms…Caro, turn around and go to your room the other way. And try not to look anyone in the eye, because Prodigy, you are frankly a mess right now.”
Running a hand over my face, I turned around and glared at King Collins a moment, my inner bitch coming out to save my currently stupid-as-fuck ass, then I started marching in the other direction, brushing past them.
Even as I moved away I heard Queen Ruckler mutter quietly to King Collins, “Christ, I don’t even know how they’re walking with how badly they reek.”
“I don’t even need your nose to know that.” King Collins paused. “Now, you were telling me something about spirit info they said in there?”
I hastened my steps before he could pull me back when Queen Ruckler undoubtedly told him what had been said.
Chapter Eight
Sin was flipping through one of the many books on the Law and politics that I had been given by King Collins to study when I walked through the door to our bedroom into the retiring room. Lying on the couch, he tilted his head past the book, green eyes scanning me from white hair to pink toenails before he again slanted his head behind the book. “Do you know how many Laws I’ve broken and didn’t even know it? I wonder if there’s a book of records I could enter to have my name placed in it, you know, like a hall of crime, or something.”
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