“You are wrong,” I said. “I do understand why you don’t trust rock dragons. But you just heard the prophecy. This union is supposed to bring peace to dragons. Not some dragons. All dragons. That is what I intend to work toward—a world where we no longer fear each other, and we can all move freely between towns and cities, here and in the sky kingdom, trusting each other. So far, this prophecy has been true. I am humbled to be a part of the prophecy, and I believe that Ezeru the rock dragon came to me for a reason.”
A few of the dragons applauded at my words. Not all of them. Quite a few were subdued and skeptical. But I felt…
Amazing.
I really am a queen tonight.
I leaned into Oszin’s waiting arms.
He kissed my hand. “You hardly even sounded like my Moth,” he said softly. “You sounded like your father.”
“Oh!” I clutched him. “I hope he can see me now.”
“I believe he can, my lady. I think his strength is in you…but you can do more.”
“I know you’re just being nice, but thank you. I needed to hear that.”
“I’m not just being nice. I believe that. Why wouldn’t I? I didn’t say anything exaggerated. You are strong. And you seem even stronger without that curse hanging over you, but maybe it’s what helped you become so strong.”
I took a deep breath. “I—I guess so.”
Raia suddenly came over and glommed onto me. She hugged like a puppy. “That was so good! Did they just leave? Aurek and Seron?”
“Um…yes. They needed to discuss this in private, I’m sure.”
“Some kings they are!” She laughed. “Are you coming to dinner?”
Almost all the dragons were heading to the dining hall now. Some of them were still arguing, but at least no one was coming to blows anymore. Still, I wasn’t sure about spending the entire dinner with the people—who still didn’t quite feel like my people. Ice dragons shooting icy stares at lava dragons all night, and lava dragons getting all fired up, and crystal dragons looking imperious…without Aurek and Seron to back me up.
Oszin suddenly swept me off my feet. “I’m taking her to bed. She’s done enough.”
“That’s probably smart,” Raia said. “Leave them wanting more, huh? Should I have dinner sent up?”
“Yes, that would be good,” Oszin said. “Don’t send any weird stuff.”
“I know what she likes! No warm green salad—even though it’s good for you—no pickled fuka beads…”
“I still haven’t even figured out what fuka beads are,” I said. “But it’s horrifying.”
“It’s a creature from the swamps that’s mostly eyeballs,” Raia said. “The beads are the eyeballs.”
“Goodnight,” Oszin said. “We’re both going to vomit now.”
“Ooh, okay, well, have fun,” Raia said. “They’re delicious, though! More for me!”
Oszin carried me off to the stairs. We looked at each other and said, almost at once, “I just ate—”
“For breakfast, on my eggs, two days ago—”
“I thought they were eggs. Like little fish eggs.”
“Me too…”
I clutched his shirt. “I didn’t ask for you to carry me around.”
“You didn’t ask? Oh, I know. I decided I want you, and I’m going to have you, and Seron and Aurek are too preoccupied to care.”
“You are, now?”
“Yes. I’m always going to be second rate, stuck waiting permission, if I don’t do something about it. If I don’t take you…when I want you.” His eyes, their golden brown color as striking as any of the dragons, bored into mine, the desire in them just as potent as it was in the days when we didn’t dare to touch. Now, my hands were clutched tight around his neck. His arms held me firmly in his.
“Well?” he said. “What do you say to that?”
I laughed and stroked the prickly skin of his cheeks where he shaved. “Shh.” I craned my neck forward, tilting to meet his lips.
He’s learning a thing or two, I thought.
At the top of the stairs, Aurekdel was standing in the hallway, sipping wine. Seron was pacing just inside the door of Aurek’s bedroom. Maybe it was his bedroom now. It was the king’s bedroom. They would have to switch. Seron would set the hours now. How strange, not to see Aurekdel light the incense in the morning.
“My queen,” Aurekdel said, with a slight possessive note that I knew Oszin wouldn’t like at all—but it wasn’t angry.
“Aurekdel…sir,” Oszin said. I’m sure he’d been hoping Aurekdel and Seron would be behind a shut door.
“How is it going?” I asked.
“I suppose I’ll be the one with all that time for boating now,” Aurek said airily.
“Stop…” Seron rubbed his head. He didn’t seem like he wanted to look at anyone.
Aurekdel also seemed hurt, he was just covering it with a joke.
And then there was Oszin, clutching me, but almost frozen. No matter what, I think a part of him felt like he was breaking the rules every time he touched me.
In that moment I realized precisely why I never wanted children until I saw Seron being kind to that little boy.
I hated being a queen, married to a king, required to give him little future kings. I hated seeing Rin try to defy my father and ending up the emperor in the end, anyway, just like father would have wanted. I hated knowing that I wouldn’t have any choice in the matter either, that my brother had to force me into a marriage and I had to do my family the honor of accepting it.
And then, I hated loving three men but only being married to one, only allowed to give children to one.
I wanted to love them all equally.
I didn’t want Aurekdel to be my one and only husband and king…nor Seron either. I didn’t want Oszin left out. I wanted to share everything in my heart, knowing that well would never run dry. It would only grow deeper and deeper.
“Oszin,” I said. “Put me down. I have something I need to say to all of you.”
Aurekdel straightened out his slouch against the door. Seron, respectful of me despite his despair, stood up and looked right at me, his purple eyes solemn. Oszin set me on my feet.
“I can’t do this,” I said. “I mean—one minute, I’m Aurekdel’s wife. Now I wonder if I have to get married all over again. And then what? Will Seron stay the king? People are already out there fighting over it the moment you left the room. Meanwhile, Oszin was my own choice, a choice you’ve both accepted, but some days I wonder what would have to happen for him to get that through his skull. The priestess has five guardians, but I feel like I have three separate relationships and they’re all complicated. This country needs strong leadership. I can’t be torn in three different directions. You all need to be mine, equally, and you all have to accept that. We all have to do everything together. I mean, not everything, but the things that make sense. If you can’t accept that, then you should step back from this right now, because right now I’m not even sure who my husband is, and anyway—I don’t want a husband. I think we’re stronger together.”
Considering that Aurekdel was the most enthusiastic about both being the king and sharing his wife with other men, I wasn’t surprised that this speech seemed to perk him up. “I am with you all the way, my lady,” he said.
“But that also means you have to yield sometimes,” I said. “You have to give Seron and Oszin a chance to take command in the bedroom.”
“Mm…,” he non-answered.
“And elsewhere, too,” I added.
“It seems he will have to,” Seron said. “I don’t want to be the king. But if I have to be the king…”
Aurek crossed his arms. “You already sent a letter to Niko, so I suppose I can’t hold you back if I wanted to. You act blasé, but you care more than you let on.”
“That’s how compromises work,” I said. “That’s what we all have to do now. I just told everyone that you’re going to rule together and get along and that nothing will change. I
calmed everyone down, and now it’s my job to make sure I wasn’t lying.”
“I apologize,” Seron said. “I shouldn’t have left that task to you.”
“It’s fine. I’m the queen! I’d better get used to it.”
“We are stronger together…” Aurek walked close to me, so I stepped back, closer to Oszin’s chest. “I’ve been saying that all along. And perhaps I don’t mind yielding to your commands now and then, if that’s how it must be.” He leaned close to kiss me, his lips parting. He took a slow, deep breath, his face brushing my hair, before he finally took the kiss. “Let’s give it a try…” His hand slid down my neck, under the collar of my gown, finding my nipple and giving it a soft teasing pinch.
“Is that what you call giving up command?” Seron said, nudging him out of the way. “It’s going to take a while to stop him from always wanting to go first.”
“I have no doubt.” I looked back to Oszin, urging him with a glance not to shy back in this moment. “Please…I want this night to be for all of us. I want us to make a promise to each other that we will always have each other’s backs. I think that’s the way this prophecy can come true. Maybe it’ll just happen magically, but I don’t think so. I think we still have to work. We have to show everyone what peace would look like.”
“All right, Moth…” Oszin’s voice was soft against my ear. “You’re right. I’m ready.”
“Me too,” Seron said. “If this is the path I must take, the three of you will be my strength.”
“Well,” Aurek said. “I’ve been ready from the first day.”
The four of us swept toward the bed together, my heart beating fast with anticipation. Oh, this was not the circumstance I expected, but we would make it work. I knew we would. Three men I loved, knit together by their love for me, and my own mind helpless against the overwhelming force of their protection and devotion, the breathtaking vision of them all together with me.
Just as I needed all three of them, so did the kingdom. We each had different strengths. We would give our all to this world, to take back Irandal and the Northern Gate, once and for all.
They were still competitive, though. I was overwhelmed with kisses and touches, Aurek’s hand stripping off my dress, Oszin kissing me only to be replaced with Seron, Seron’s hands on my ass, Oszin pulling me down onto the bed, Aurek’s hand teasing between my legs, Seron’s hand—now scaled like Aurek’s had been—caressing a breast.
It was like they’d been dancing around each other so long that now all they could do was let go completely, all at once. My body was not my own, caught in a slow and sensual tug of war between three men. It probably didn’t help that the boldest of them was blind and occasionally collided a hand or something with the other two. For that matter, Oszin’s vision wasn’t great in the dim room either. It escalated quickly, the covers rumpling under me as Aurek’s hand tugged on my hair, his mouth claiming mine, Oszin’s hands spread over my breasts, and Seron pushed my legs open and took a long taste down the length of my slit.
I was coming all too quickly, six hands clutching me, three mouths tasting me, holding me fast, wringing everything out of me right from the start.
“Oh, no…” I gasped. “And this is only the beginning…”
“That’s right…you have…a very long night ahead,” Aurekdel purred, pushing me into Seron’s waiting arms. “And a king to crown.”
“I have the crown already,” Seron said.
“Seron…do you listen to one word I say about pillow talk?” Aurek said sharply.
“No.” Seron was so serious; he looked like he was deeply considering what it would mean to have sex with me, even though he’d done it before. I suppose it was different, from here on out. Sooner or later, I would have a child with one of these men. It still couldn’t be Oszin…I knew that, unfortunately. But Seron…or Aurek…
I actually sort of liked the idea that we might never really know.
I was still breathing fast from the aftershock of my first climax when Seron pulled me down onto his hard shaft.
“Oh…dear…” I flushed.
“Did I hurt you?”
“No…it feels good. Just tender. And without the rest of me aching… I mean, when you healed me, it was at the end of things. But now I feel like I could do anything.”
“I could look at you forever,” Seron said. “I’ve never had a woman in my life, the way you’ve come into it…the sight of you makes me sad, because you look so small and delicate and you can’t turn into a dragon. I want to protect you every moment. But I know you don’t need me.”
“I do need you,” I said. “But don’t be sad.”
For a moment, Aurek and Oszin held back and let Seron hold me close with his entire body, his strong arms encircling me, his kisses so tender on my skin. He was very gentle at first, but I knew he didn’t just want to protect me. I had already seen that I had stirred a raw need in him. He wanted me as a woman. My body, my children, the taste of me, his cock making me gasp as he spread my legs over his muscular thighs and forced his way deeper and deeper into me. Before long I was throwing back my head and sobbing his name, every nerve stripped raw as he stirred places deep inside me in the wake of my first, swift climax.
When the second one came, it was slow. It rolled over me and shattered me. I went limp in Seron’s arms and Aurek pulled me off of Seron and into his arms, my sex dripping with Seron’s seed. Aurek slid two of his fingers through it and licked one clean.
“I like the taste of you together,” he said.
Seron sprawled beside me now, and I luxuriated in the sight of him, the glow of the way he made me feel. The pace of the night was starting to soften. The light was low but I could still see clearly every last eyelash and tiny line on Seron’s face. Not that his face had many lines; he was still young, although it was easy to forget that sometimes. There was still a little permanent furrow starting to etch its way into his brow. He worried too much.
Aurek had moved aside and Oszin took his place, his warmth close to my back as I looked at Seron. He ran his hands up and down my thighs, and I knew he was trying to stir me back to arousal, make me ready for more. My skin was set alight by his touch and before long, I was turning away from Seron and toward Oszin. He circled my waist with his hands and we fell into a gentle caress and kiss.
But his cock was hard, and soon he was pulling me against it, rubbing it against my bud of desire.
“Mm…” I craned my body upward, pressing my pelvis against his hard shaft, wanting him. I smelled him; the fresh hay-like scent of him. He didn’t smell as much like horses as he used to, now. His hand reached back to cup the curve of my bottom in his hand. Our kiss never ended.
He groaned. “I suppose I can’t… I need one of those protective things.”
“Or you could take her behind,” Aurek said. “If you go gently. I had two fingers inside her the other day.”
Oszin flushed, his eyes tearing into me. “Is that so…”
I bit my lip. “Slowly.” I wrapped my hand around his shaft, felt the hardness under the soft skin, the trembling desire embodied in the way it flexed for me when I squeezed it a little. “Oszin…soon I want to be able to have all of you the way the priestess does. I’d like it if you had something of me first.”
“I want that too.” He clutched my face, his touch rough, uncontrolled. “I feel like I can never measure up to dragon kings, but when I look at you, it melts away. All I can give you is all that I am.”
“You do measure up. I’m not a dragon either. I could barely climb stairs until the other day.”
“You’re my girl. Mine.” He dropped such a fierce kiss on my forehead that for a second I thought he was going to bite me. Then he put a hand on my shoulder and rolled me back over to face Seron.
“You’ll want some of these oils,” Aurek said, coming up behind Oszin and running a slick hand up and down his cock.
Oszin looked mortified.
“Stop touching other guys, Aurek,” S
eron said.
“What is really the difference between Himika’s hand, your hand, or my hand?”
“Um…a big difference. Your hand is attached to your brain.”
Aurek shook his head. “You seem to get the same results out of it. I think an element of surprise makes things more interesting, doesn’t it? Himika isn’t the only one who should get taken off guard now and then. I don’t mind if you touch me.”
“We’re not touching you,” Seron said.
“So difficult,” Aurek said.
“I’m not going to do the things those tailed girls used to do to you, just for the record,” Seron said.
I bit my lip not to laugh. I was worried this might, um, take the wind out of Oszin’s sails, but it didn’t seem to. Aurek now massaged my bottom with the oils, and slicked some up my nether passage. I tensed again, as before.
“No, my girl, relax,” Aurek said. “You’re going to be pleasantly surprised at how many places we can bring you pleasure.” His finger probed a little deeper. I whimpered as he pushed a second finger in now.
“Good. Seron, help her stay relaxed. If you gently tease her sex with your hand it will keep all of her more ready. Oszin—gently now—but don’t hold back, either.”
I’m pretty sure I told him not to be so controlling, I thought.
But then…he’s so good at it and the rest of us have no experience. I had to admit this would probably be a lot more awkward fumbling without Aurek.
Oszin took me gently as I shifted to meet him. I shut my eyes and felt Oszin’s skin, heard Oszin’s breath, knew Oszin’s need and mine, mingling together, seizing a moment for ourselves. He was deep inside me before long, and the amount of pleasure I felt shocked me. I was so glad Oszin was the first. I’m glad my farm boy didn’t balk at this. I felt Seron’s hand parting my folds and stroking me and when I opened my eyes I saw his face.
This almost seemed like too much for a girl who had always been left on the sidelines, watching other people dance and kiss and disappear into the shadows.
“You three…how can all this be real…”
The Kingdoms of Sky and Shadow Box Set Page 35