by Meg Xuemei X
THE EMPRESS
OF MYSTH
book two
angel’s indecent proposal
MEG XUEMEI X
The Empress of Mysth Copyright © 2016 by Meg Xuemei X
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photography, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the author. Requests for permission should be sent to [email protected].
Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.
First Edition
Meg Xuemei X
Cover art by Lou Harper
Edited by Mia Darien
The novel is a work of fiction. Any and all characters, events, and places are of the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or events or places is merely coincidence. Novel intended for adults only. Must be 18 years or older to read.
ABOUT THE EMPRESS OF MYSTH
Forbidden. Sworn Enemy. Wicked Seduction.
Savage angels have turned Earth into their hunting ground. To save all earthborn, the fey princess Rose cedes to the marriage demands of the King of Angels, knowing she won't survive the wedding night. When she comes to Atlantis to find a secret weapon to banish angels from our planet, she awakens the darkest lust in the king's lethal brother.
The most formidable angel comes across the universe and finds her. He will stop at nothing to possess her, even if he must fall.
The High Prince offers Rose an indecent proposal: sleep with him once and he'll keep her safe. Rose will turn his urge against him and destroy the angels' house. While unbridled lust burns the prince, it also torments her.
This sizzling mythological romance series centers on war and lust between an immortal race and fallen angels, before humans walked the earth.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Also by Author
About the Author
Chapter 1
PRINCESS ROSE
I stood beside the King of Angels as his future trophy queen. Prince Seth stayed on the other side of the throne. A rush of electric current skipped the king and dashed between the prince and me. I swallowed in near panic, though my face remained a cool, regal mask.
If King Agro spotted the skyrocketing chemistry between his brother and me, I’d be done for. I mentally repelled the sexual charge washing over my skin, but it didn’t withdraw. It had no care for my worries.
The lure teased, demanded, and urged me to go to the prince. Was this happening because I’d agreed to his indecent proposal, or because I’d stroked his male member?
His shaft was gorgeous and so hard. It had thrust wildly in my hand.
Stop it.
I dared not turn to look at the prince, but I wondered if he was also affected by the lure.
Then the ruffling of his wings rose in the quiet court.
I couldn’t help but steal a glance at him. He held my gaze, his usually icy, formidable façade dropped for a second before it returned.
The electric lure had hit him, too.
His golden wings arched above his massive shoulders while every other angel had tightly tucked theirs in out of respect for the king.
The court stared at their prince, jaws dropped.
The earthborn kings and queens, who knelt beneath the golden dais, snapped their attention from King Agro to the high prince. The Earth rulers had all come to pay their tributes to the angel king. They’d bowed before the invaders. When they’d seen their neighbors being slaughtered, they hadn’t aided them. They served the winged aliens now, calling them superior heavenly beings.
The only one absent was my emperor father.
The Mysthians had not officially knelt before the angels.
The Earth rulers looked uneasy and frightened. The high prince was the most feared being, for tales of his bloody deeds on the battlefield had spread to every conquered Earth nation.
No matter how fearsome he was, I would face him in battle one day. His lust for me wouldn’t stop him from striking me down. For that one fuck I’d deceived him with, he could get it in burning hell.
The king turned to his brother in displeasure. “Must you bring attention to yourself in my court and upset my subjects? Last time you tried to intimidate my bride, I haven’t filed a complaint to Father’s high counsels yet. You’ve lost your cool twice now!”
“My wings were itching,” the prince said.
“I don’t believe your excuse!” the king shouted. “When will you get rid of your petty jealousy that I own this planet? I’ll report to Father and he’ll summon you back. You’re not helping here by constantly harassing my subjects and disturbing the peace on Earth.”
“Call Father then,” the prince said. “He doesn’t give a fuck about peace on Earth.”
“Seth!” the king warned.
“Fine, I’ll be polite,” the prince sighed. “I doubt Father has time to listen to your whining. Besides, my time here isn’t over yet. I’ll leave this planet only when I get what I want.” He caught my glance, mischief glinting in his grey eyes.
“What is it you want?” The king gritted his teeth. “My throne?”
“Your throne is the least in my mind,” the prince said, “so rest your fear.”
“Fear you?” the king growled.
“Of course you don’t fear me, Brother,” the prince said.
“You must address me as Your Majesty!” the king said.
“Your Majesty.” The prince saluted. “Now is probably not the time for our petty quarrel. Your subjects are waiting for your inspirational speech. You have their absolutely undivided attention.”
“Don’t embarrass me again!” The king gave his brother a hateful glare before turning to the earthling kings and queens and his noble angels. He started his long speech, bragging about his glory of having successfully colonized the new Earth, about bringing hope and prosperity.
As long as I live, I vowed, you angels will never conquer Mysth.
But from the angels’ perspective, they owned my kingdom. They were only waiting to make it official at my wedding ceremony. That was why King Agro requested I be present, why he displayed me to the Earth nation: to show that the future Empress of Mysth belonged to the King of Angels.
Fury and contempt burned in me, but I kept my face expressionless.
The day dragged on; unfortunately the prince didn’t bring any more entertainment.
Amid the court, a pair of eyes bored a hole in me. Victoria, King Agro’s mistress and general, didn’t drop her death glare as mine met hers.
An icy feeling surged up from the base of my spine.
Victoria was said to be even crueler than the kin
g, and she was one of the most powerful battle angels. She had looked forward to being King Agro’s queen, but, all of a sudden, I stood in her way. My recent move of sending my sexy courtiers to King Agro made her even less of a fan.
Her hatred for me almost matched mine for her whole race.
Neither King Agro nor Prince Seth were an immediate threat to me, but this infamous angel would seek any opportunity to eliminate me. I was in her city, and she had an army under her command.
I might need to take care of her first.
“Such a bore.” I jerked back as the angel king whispered in my ear. “I need to get back to your courtiers. They’re the delight of Earth.”
“I’m glad,” I said with a smile, yet felt like I was swallowing shards of glass.
There would be no atonement for me for whoring my own people, despite that some said all was necessary to win a war. Any day I couldn’t accomplish my task was one more my courtiers would have to suffer the monster.
“But not everyone agrees with us, Your Majesty,” I said.
“Who?” King Agro growled. He followed my line of sight and saw his mistress’s malicious stare glued on me.
The king chuckled. This inferior being constantly craved females fighting over him.
I would fight, not for him, but against him and all his angels.
Chapter 2
PRINCE SETH
My brother paraded Princess Rose in front of the surrendered leaders of the Earth nations. He wanted to show them that the twilight realm was already his since the future Empress of Mysth was soon to be his consort queen.
I pictured running my sword through him for thinking she was his.
Yet I wasn’t the only jealous one. I’d targeted my brother; his mistress had marked the princess. How bitter and disappointed she must be—the general had assumed that she would be King Agro’s queen.
Whoever had offended Victoria in the past hadn’t kept their heads attached to their necks for long. And she hadn’t hated anyone more than the fey princess.
I’d bedded countless females. But even before I’d lost interest in sex, I’d never touched Victoria. After I’d turned her down, she’d turned to Agro. Part of the rift between my brother and me had been caused by her. She just couldn’t accept that anyone would reject her.
On the surface, we maintained basic courtesy. Her resentment of me had lessened lately, probably because I’d been rude to the princess on several occasions.
I didn’t give a rat’s ass that love was long lost between us, but if she’d marked Rose, then she’d become a problem for me. After the princess had agreed to my proposal, I’d regarded her as my lamb. I would allow no one to snatch or slaughter her.
Victoria wouldn’t openly murder the princess out of fear of my brother, but she could create a series of accidents to cause the princess’s fall.
For a second, I wondered what would happen to me if Rose perished. Would it kick me back to unfeeling? Would my lust be gone as if it had never been awoken?
From now on, I’d keep extra guards around the princess. I didn’t care that she had several of her own loyal guards watching her day and night. I’d take no chances, and I’d safeguard her in person whenever I could.
My mood lightened at the prospect of spending more time with her, seducing her while guarding her. My pulse quickened at the memory of the shadow opening between her thighs, and my erection suddenly grew too large. I had to bring a wing to cover my front, so the court wouldn’t discover my dilemma.
As long as the princess was around, I would always be in this unwanted condition.
As lust kept slamming into me, a luscious electric current coiled between the princess and me. I was the prince of lightning, yet I was defenseless against the charged electricity. My wings tingled all over.
Fortunately, my idiot brother was oblivious. When I moved my wing to cover my erection, he only accused me of jealousy because he’d acquired Earth and the most beautiful Earth daughter.
He thought he finally had an edge over me. He wasn’t wrong. I was furious that he had purchased the license from the Emperor of Mysth to declare ownership of the princess.
He wouldn’t have her. I snarled. Not while I stood.
As the court watched the king’s mistress firmly position herself as the princess’s enemy, the aristocrats were thrilled. Bloodlust was in their nature. More of them would join the ongoing bet as to whether the fey princess would see her wedding day.
But none knew that I’d entered the equation.
Victoria and her subordinates bore no threat to me, other than as nuisances, but I would need to stop the princess’s foolish scheme before it brought her to ruin. She was my prize and I wouldn’t allow anyone, including her, to sabotage my claim.
I needed to burn the concept in her stubborn little mind: there was no besting the angels. She should have been grateful that I took an interest in her and offered her a safety net. She should focus on pleasing me and keeping me hooked.
I planned to pay her a visit tonight during her bath. Perhaps she’d give me more then.
I fluttered my wings in anticipation, and my brother sent me another angry glare.
Chapter 3
PRINCE SETH
I didn’t find Princess Rose in the Spring Hall.
I strode toward the common room, where her guards loitered. The Mysthians weren’t around. Three angel guards were playing a stripping card game with two pretty, curvy courtiers.
The game must have been going for a while, judging from the fact that one courtier had on only a lacy bra. The guards were all topless, their wings tucked behind them and their gazes on the cleavages of the courtiers rather than their own cards.
A disgraceful bunch.
Spotting me, the guards tossed their cards to the table as if bitten and rose to their feet, their faces pale. One of them toppled the bench he’d been perched on.
The princess’s lady-in-waiting hurried out from the princess’s suite and stared at me in surprise. No one had expected me to return so soon because I’d been called away to a remote city to quash a riot caused by a group of earthlings.
I stiffened. The princess’ scent had been absent for awhile.
She wasn’t in her suite. She wasn’t in this side of the south wing.
Rage and fear rose in me.
Before I struck the guards, a courtier untied her bra and let her bountiful, creamy breasts free in front of me. “Come join us, High Prince.” She curtsied and purred.
I narrowed my eyes in cold disdain. She thought she could entice me to join my soldiers’ rank? Her breasts didn’t interest me, and I could kill them all for this offensive display.
“I’ll get you a chair, High Prince,” the lady-in-waiting said, rushing toward me and waving away the guards. “We’ll reset the games to your liking.”
This had been a set-up for her mistress to get away.
“Where’s the princess?” I asked icily.
“In the Spring Hall,” the maid said. “Her Highness ordered that no one disturb her bath.”
I snorted, but I wouldn’t tell her that she’d lied about her mistress being in the bath hall. Antagonizing her would bring up the princess’s hostility toward me.
I turned to the guards, who hurried to put their uniforms back on. “What if assassins come?” I asked. “How could you protect the princess?”
“Well,” the king’s guard said, “who would dare harm our future queen?”
I lunged and backhanded him, sending him crashing into the wall. His left wing flapped, broken. “You’d be surprised,” I snarled. “Plenty will try! If a hair on her head drops, I’ll take all of your heads.”
My guard knelt. “My liege, I apo—”
My foot landed on his neck and he fell. “You disgraced yourself. Go pack and never let me see your face again.”
I had no time to punish the third guard.
The courtiers and the maid froze in fear but stared at me with the defiant expressions of “I�
�d be honored to die for our princess—the Morning Star of Mysth!”
I gave them a chilly look. “Pray your princess is safe.”
Rose’s scent led me to my own library near the golden tower.
Chapter 4
PRINCESS ROSE
I’d memorized the blueprint provided by North, the leader of the Dragonian rebels. The map had marked secret entrances to the tunnels that the Dragonian engineers had built before the angels’ invasion.
The hidden doors were inside the two royal libraries—the king’s and the prince’s. The angels had no idea of the web of passages below Atlantis. If they had known, they’d have sealed every gateway when they’d taken the Dragonian capital.
The sky was the angels’ playground. They did not fancy enclosed spaces.
The Dragonian, on the other hand, were underground animals. They loved to dig. Their ancestors must have had reptile genes.
I’d ditched the angel guards easily with the help of my courtiers.
In a scribe’s baggy robe, Lexa and I scrambled along a hallway. With a grey hood over my head, no one could really see who I was.
We rounded a few turns and stopped at the front of the prince’s library. I pulled out a one-inch silver column from my bra and flashed it at the transparent metal door. The door glided open. I slipped in, Lexa at my heels.
My lady guard strode beside me, taking in the surroundings, not impressed by the rows and rows of books in all forms. The warrior prince actually read.
I stopped at the archway at the south corner. One of the granite columns near the wall seemed slightly uneven. That was my signal. I ran my device along its edge and it whooshed as if air hissed inside the wall.
A blade appeared in Lexa’s hand.
“Relax,” I whispered.
Behind the column, a door that hadn’t been there before now was. Before I pushed it, Lexa beat me to it. “Let me enter first.” She ducked in swiftly and descended a flight of stairs into the subterranean maze. I followed.