by Mila Young
I place a handful into the fireplace, but with no idea on how to start a fire without matches, I turn to the basket of food instead. Underneath the kitchen towel is an array of breads, sliced roast meat, cheeses, chutney, bottles of wine and water, and what looks like half a fruit cake. I lay them out on the table, finding not only plates, cups, and cutlery at the bottom, but also strips of cured meat, tomatoes, eggs I assume are hard boiled, and a small jar of churned butter along with a small bowl of tiny pears and plums. I have no idea how the kitchen packed so much into the basket, but I couldn’t be happier to have all this food while trapped here during the storm.
The door opens abruptly, and an explosion of winds rushes into the cottage. The cold finds me, digging claws into my flesh, and I'm shaking instantly.
Luther forces the door shut and shakes his head, sending snow in every direction.
"It's wild out there. We might be stuck here until it quiets down, little wolf." The way he says that isn't with any hint of worry, but more of excitement at us two being alone together. For that, I’m excited too.
"I'll get the fire started, you serve the food," he says and blows me a kiss. My knees soften at the gesture, my stomach flip-flopping. "I'm so fucking hungry right now," he murmurs.
"Then get your ass into gear," I throw back playfully and look over at the lack of fire.
He doesn't take long to ignite a blaze and have it burning. An orange glow lights up the room quickly. The windows rattle from the wild weather, small pellets of ice hitting the glass, but in here, it feels cozy and oh-so-right when I look over to Luther getting to his feet.
He's gorgeous. Built like a bear, and those amber eyes complement his midnight black hair.
My gaze trails over his muscles, at how tall he stands… and why in the world does a fae like him see anything in me? Truthfully, I suspect if we crossed paths in the street, he wouldn’t even bat an eye my way. I am ordinary. He is a god and would have every woman stopping in her tracks to check him out.
What drew us together were the years we spent in each other’s minds, talking to one another. I may not have realized it at the time, but I fell for Luther long ago. And I believe he feels the same about me.
He turns to the table with the food. At the sight of the mountain of food on his plate, my stomach groans.
I make my way toward the food and help myself before he eats it all—and that is no exaggeration.
We're both on the couch, enjoying our meal. With my legs folded under me, I balance the plate on the wide armrest. Heat from the fireplace curls around us, while the blaze crackles and spits. There's something therapeutic about eating comfort food and watching logs burning while a storm howls outside.
"If the weather doesn't stop, we'll spend the night here," Luther explains, then bites into a slice of roast venison. He watches me, waiting for my response like his comment is meant to elicit a dramatic reaction. Of course I know what he's implying. One bed, two of us.... and the thought sends a shiver of excitement down my spine.
I shrug and keep eating, refusing to show him my reaction. Mostly to tease the hell out of him. "How far is the castle anyway? Can't be that far."
He eyes me while I get up to fetch some cake. “You want to go back already?”
His gaze sits heavy on my back, and it takes everything I have to refrain from grinning as I walk past him. He's so easy to rile up, it's hilarious.
The floorboard creaks behind me, and his hands are on my waist instantly. His breath is in my ear. "You're not as clever as you think you are, little wolf."
Setting the plate down on the table, I turn, but he forces me to remain with my back to him.
"Yeah, how do you figure?"
His mouth is on my neck, nipping at my skin, then licking up to my earlobe. My knees wobble. He ignites desire within me in seconds. That's all it takes, apparently.
"Because the moment you heard we are staying here tonight, your stomach fluttered and your delicious little pussy pulsed, didn't it?"
I scoff for effect. "If you say so."
His hands fall to my waist, fingers tugging at my pants. "Let's find out, shall we?" he teases.
I slap his hands away playfully and throw myself out of his arms, then pivot around to face him. "Don't even think about it." I poke my tongue out at him.
His expression morphs into one of mischief, clearly seeing my response as a challenge. God, I love that response more than I thought, and the idea of him chasing after me is exhilarating.
He lunges after me, and I spin and dart across the room, but there's hardly anywhere to go. Careening around the couch only brings him leaping over the furniture and straight for me.
I’m giggling as I whip around.
Strong arms snap around my middle and lift me off my feet.
"You're cheating." I love toying with him.
He laughs in my ear, his tone full of mirth. "Only the loser would say that."
I writhe against him. I'll show him who the loser is. But suddenly, I'm flying toward the bed and land face first on the soft mattress where I bounce up and down before settling. Hastily, I roll over, but Luther is there, forcing me back onto my stomach. His body covers mine, holding me in place. Butterflies burst through my stomach, the heat between my legs melting into a puddle.
"You know how long I've waited to have you all to myself?"
"Years," I gasp with sarcasm from under his weight.
He shifts to hold himself on bent arms, still on top of me. "The tiny taste I had in that small town was just the beginning. I haven't been able to get you out of my mind."
"And is squishing me to death part of your plan?"
He gently sweeps my long hair off the back of my neck, and his lips on my skin cover me in goosebumps. "If it means pinning you down."
His weight lifts off me in seconds, and he tugs the fabric of my dress up to my waist, exposing my bare ass.
"Oh, little wolf. Here you are protesting, and yet you’ve come prepared."
Heat scales my cheeks, and I roll over. "For your information, the maids took my underwear and never brought it back. Then you wanted to go on a sleigh ride, and well, here we are."
His eyebrows rise, as do the corners of my mouth. He tugs on his top and yanks it up and over his head, so he’s bare-chested. “Yes, here we are.” He grabs my ankles and drags me across the bed toward him.
I cry out with laughter, while hunger sweeps over his expression. “Tonight, you’re mine.”
Chapter 9
Guendolyn
I’m burning up, and I’m still clothed.
Well, partially. Luther is only in his pants, and I’m missing my underwear. While I lay on my back on the bed, propped up on my elbows, I can’t stop looking at my gorgeous fae. At the way his biceps flex as he runs a hand through his pitch-black hair, the pecs on his chest, the rippled abs. I could very well be staring at a model, except he’s a prince and here for me. After everything we’ve been through, I still need to pinch myself to realize I’m in a relationship with this man.
I don’t fully understand the exact level of our dating or courting…. It just happened.
Luther unbuckles his belt, and my gaze dips.
“I could watch you strip all day long,” I tease.
“My preference is the other way around.” A devious expression sweeps behind his eyes. “Once things settle down in the kingdom, we will announce to everyone we are officially together.”
My body tingles at the promise of his words, but they also have me curious. “Like in telling everyone we’re dating?”
“Huh?”
“Boyfriend and girlfriend kind of thing?” I sound like a thirteen-year-old, even to myself.
He nods. “If that is what you call it on Earth, then yes, we will announce to everyone that you and I are betrothed for the sake of rules. This way, no more hiding, and you can easily be with us.”
My heart stops, and I push myself to sit up on the bed, crossing my legs. “What?” I suddenly can�
��t speak, and my heart is racing at a million miles an hour.
“It’s only to ensure that no one questions your presence in the mansion. And we can arrange for you to marry us as that is permitted.”
My entire body is strung so tight. One second ago I thought he was proposing our engagement, and now he’s implying it’s going to be fake. Does that mean he doesn’t want that? My head hurts, especially since this never crossed my mind until now. I adore the guys more than anything, and it kills me that I don’t understand what is going on with Ahren. But I don’t want to lose them, and I guess that means eventually ending up together for life. My thoughts ramble endlessly, while my chest constricts.
He kneels on the mattress in front of me, still in his pants, and reaches over to cup my face with one hand. “Are you going to be sick? You’ve suddenly gone pale.”
I swallow the thickness in my throat. “So, you don’t want to be betrothed to me?” They aren’t the words I intended to ask, or the conversation I expected us to have. My cheeks blush that I made such a presumption or put Luther on the spot.
At this point, all I want is to feel safe and keep the three princes with me. To feel their kisses, their touches, their bodies against mine. Yeah, it sounds simple and maybe greedy—the voice in my head reminds me of that constantly—but is it wrong to want happiness?
Luther's smile warms me, but I don’t want to talk about this any longer. All I’m doing is setting myself up for disappointment. He takes my hand and guides me off the bed.
“Come with me,” he instructs.
I follow him to the window across the room from us. The trees sway wildly in the storm, the snow coming down at an angle now, the wind whistling past.
“Look straight ahead down the path.”
Squinting, I tilt my head to the side and catch a perfect tiny view of the castle—the tall towers, the ridged bridges, the arched windows—all smothered in snow. It reminds me of a snow globe.
“It’s beautiful.”
“Once Ahren takes the throne, Deimos and I will rule the Shadow Court with him, but there are rules that come with such roles. We can’t be seen in public with females unless we are courting them with the intention to marry them.”
My breath catches in my throat, and I can’t turn around as he embraces me from behind. I don’t know where this conversation is going, but my stomach is turning. I really can’t take any more surprises or disappointments right now.
“Deimos and I have talked about this. We both agreed that to keep you close to us, you will be betrothed to us.” His arms squeeze me slightly as he kisses the side of my face.
I blink and twist around in his arms. “So like, a fake engagement?”
He narrows his gaze at me. “Why fake?”
My head spins at what he’s saying, and I don’t want to jump at conclusions. “Does betrothed mean something else in this world than it does on Earth?”
“It means we have the intention to marry.”
The cold shock of his response knocks the breath out of me. Except, I’m missing something. “So, we will pretend to be engaged for as long as…” I don’t know how to continue that, because what happens next? I still don’t know where I really live or belong.
“You will have a new identity, but this isn't pretend, little wolf.”
I stare into his genuine expression, and my stomach twists into knots, my knees close to giving out under me.
“You’re asking me to marry you? For real?”
He stiffens and pulls back from me, and my heart stops beating for a few moments.
“You’re right. I did this completely wrong.” He gets down on one knee in front of me and fiddles with his hands, then looks at me.
Those stunning eyes, crowned by thick brows.
This prince is addictive.
He’s royalty.
Everything I would ever want in a man.
And he’s about to propose to me…
My eyes prick with tears while my heart clenches. This can’t be right… can it? Is he pranking me?
“Guendolyn, will you marry me?” He stretches out his open palm toward me.
Shock hurtles through me. I adore this fae beyond belief… Hell, I love him.
Emotions tumble through me so fast I can't think, and I rush into his arms as he stands, tears running down my cheeks. We collide spectacularly, and he embraces me, lifts me off my feet.
“Oh, little wolf, you are so beautiful. And that's a yes then?”
I'm laughing, and when he finally puts me back onto my feet, I wipe my tears and nod crazily. “You're being serious, right? Like a real marriage, not a ruse just to get me to stay in the castle?”
Luther's face morphs into a serious look, and he cups my face, forcing me to look at him. “I do not joke about these things. My intentions are to marry you for life. I hadn't intended to ask you here and now, or like this, but I love spontaneity. It's been that way since you entered our lives.” He kisses me as his thumbs wipe away my tears. “I love you, little wolf.”
My whole body trembles to hear those words. I keep my eyes trained on his, at the way he smiles at me with genuine emotion. There's no teasing or assessing, just a fae opening himself up to me.
He lifts my hand, and I look down as he pushes a ring on my finger. A dark metal intertwined on itself like a vine. One line is studded with diamonds, the other filled with an electric blue stone that glimmers like a moving ocean. “This is beautiful.”
My heart beats too fast with the emotions building inside me.
“This belonged to my grandmother, and she made me promise I gift it to my future wife. It's black gold with dragon tears and lava from the oldest volcano in our realm, the one they say the first fairies emerged from.”
I glance up at him. “Wow, are you sure you want to part with it?”
“I've been carrying it around with me since we got back from Ash Court, trying to find the right time to give it to you. In fact, Deimos and I were meant to do this together, so I kind of stole that from him. Oops.”
I run my finger over the surface of the ring that fits perfectly on my finger and throw my arms around Luther's neck, then shower his face with kisses.
“Yes,” I assure him. “Yes, I want to marry you and Deimos. I wish he was with us too.”
Luther kisses me firmly, his hands gripping my arms as I melt against him. Fingers slide over and cup my breasts, squeezing them. I moan against him as he pulls at the laced-up ties across my chest, loosening the bodice. Then he pushes the fabric down my shoulders and body until it falls into a heap around my feet.
Coldness creeps over my back from the window behind me, and I tuck myself against Luther. With my breasts against his bare chest, the heat is instant. My prince. My fiancé. My husband to be.
This is definitely going to take a lot of getting used to. Maybe for once, things are going to start going right for me.
“You are divine, and I'm going to devour you tonight.” Luther steps back and eyes me head to toe, and the erection growing in his pants does not go unnoticed.
My whole body burns while I pull at his pants, needing them off already. The moment I tug them open, his cock springs out like a jack-in-the-box, and I can't help but laugh. He's so huge, the long vein running down the front of his shaft thick, his tip coated in pre-cum.
Not wasting a second, he drops his pants to the floor and steps out of them, then takes me into his arms. Pressed together, I lean in and kiss him as he slides a hand down my leg and guides it around his hip, then does the same with the other. He walks me over to the wall away from the window and cages me in with his body.
“Tonight is just the beginning to all the ways I'll fuck your sweet, tight pussy.”
Arousal claims me, consumes me. I want it to rip away everything else so nothing remains but the raw emotions we share. “I'll hold you to that,” I answer and grasp onto his strong shoulders, drawing him closer and kissing him. The tip of his erection slides over my heat with the promise o
f so much more.
“Tell me what you want,” he commands.
“God, I want you so badly.” I shudder with need and arousal, my body scorching hot, my focus on where we’re merging.
He's breathing heavily, teasing me. I shift to better accommodate him—my prince is a very big boy.
“Say it,” he demands, his hands to my throat, keeping me in place firmly but not painfully.
“Fuck me, please. I can't wait any longer.”
He laughs and starts pushing into me, gradually at first, stretching me. My toes curl and I hiss out as my head falls back against the wall. He never relents, but moves all the way in, all the way to his balls.
He groans, sucking in air. “Fuck, you're so incredibly tight.” Slow at first, he pulls out of me then moves back in, his pace picking up. Friction builds between us, igniting me.
Digging my fingers into his arms, I hold on as he thrusts into me, harder, faster now. His muscles tense and shift beneath my body.
“You will always be mine,” he groans as he fucks me like nothing else in the world matters. His gaze never breaks from mine, and it reminds me how much I fell for him even before we met, how my heart beat for him even before I ever admitted it to myself. He watches me moan as I bounce up and down on his cock. “No one can even come close to what you mean to me. To how beautiful you are. To how perfect your sweet pussy is. Ever.”
“I love when you say those things.” My words are breathy, exhilaration building in me. He lets go of my throat, hands on my hips as he grinds into me. Seconds later he wrenches me toward him and walks us to the bed with him still embedded in me. Lying me on my back, he slides off, and I moan my protest.
“On your hands and knees,” he orders.
“Oh yes, please.” I roll over and prop myself up just as his hand gives my ass a hard slap. “Ouch.” The word comes out involuntarily, but there’s no denying there was something delicious about how good that felt.
He growls deeply, grabbing my hips and drawing me backward so my knees balance on the edge of the mattress, my ass high in the air and everything I have exposed.