Queen's Ransom: The Golden Bulls of Minos

by Isabel Wroth

  Her back arched, she drew in an urgent gasp of air, and there it was. A blinding, nearly vicious, absolutely rapturous wave of release that crashed through her and left her trembling in his grasp.

  Tears wet her cheeks as her body convulsed with the lingering aftershocks, dimly aware of being moved, something soft cushioning her back.

  Jalia felt weakness steal through her, shaking from the intensity of that release, her gaze heavy-lidded, her mind sluggish until she felt cooler air wash over her entire body, and Dhega rose over her, blocking the sunlight that blinded her.

  He spread her thighs with loving hands, his expression tight with wanton delight, greedy as he scrutinized every bare inch of her laid out before him like an offering.

  She watched him raise his hand, still glistening with her juices, licking the taste of her from his fingers like it was the most decadent treat he'd ever been given.

  Dhega made it a sexual act in and of itself, and that weakness she felt preventing her from lifting so much as an eyebrow, was pushed aside in favor of more. More pleasure, more touch, more of him.

  "We have plenty of time for another nap before the evening meal, my love. Are you tired?" he drawled, teasing her with the glide of his cock through her cleft. Jalia shook her head, the desperation, the out-of-control need building once again.

  "No? Are you sure?"

  She sank her shaking hands into the glorious mounds of his ass, laughably unable to make him move so much as an inch,

  "I'm not tired," she insisted, still trying to catch her breath. She could smell the faint hint of her on his mouth when he bent and brushed his lips ever so softly against hers.

  "You will be," he promised and struck.

  Everything inside her seized. Her body contracting around the hard, almost brutal plunge of his cock inside her.

  There was that infinitesimal moment where she felt the heaviness of his shaft stretching her, the pulse of blood through the thick veins electrifying the nerve-rich tissue, the echo of that throb sounding in every single one of her cells.

  She released the grip she had on his backside in favor of digging her nails into his pelt, somehow finding the power to lift her legs and lock her ankles around his waist, her body rocking with the power of his driving hips, holding on for dear life while the world dissolved around them and became nothing but pleasure.

  Raw, pounding, all-consuming pleasure.

  *****

  Dhega stifled a yawn, wondering perhaps if he shouldn't have joined Jalia in her revitalization chair. His clever queen had woken this morning ravenous for the taste of him, as though it had been days since they last came together, instead of mere hours.

  He watched her walk toward him now and wondered if his physical desire for her would ever wane in its intensity, fervently praying it would not.

  The dark circles were gone from beneath her eyes, the tension that had tightened her shoulders had eased, and perhaps it was his biased adoration, perhaps it was simply the power of the technology on board her silver ship, but she seemed to float across the room, glowing with health and vitality.

  On the day of their wedding, she had come to him with her natural hair and eyes, and she did so now wearing a gown the same soft blue as her eyes.

  The smile she sent his way...he had to force himself not to grin back at her. His council and princes already thought he was a fool for his queen, which of course he was, but no need to reinforce their thoughts by giving them visible proof.

  He kissed her fingers when she set her hand in his, knowing if he took so much as a whisper of a kiss from her lips, he would give away the depth of his love for her.

  Thus far, no one had given him reason to suspect they had nefarious thoughts toward Jalia, and never in his wildest dreams had he ever considered he would be so taken by a woman or so deeply, emotionally entangled.

  He held her hand now and felt the heat of her where she sat beside him, giving a glance around the room at the faces surrounding them, searching for any signs of malice or ideas to weaken him by harming Jalia.

  It had not been said in jest; Dhega would see blood in the streets before he allowed harm to come to her.

  "Whatever you're thinking, stop it," she whispered in his ear, drawing his attention back to her and how beautifully she glowed.

  "You're feeling better?"

  "Much better. Did you get a chance to speak with Nivir?"

  Dhega nodded, rubbing his thumb deeply into the pad of her hand, feeling oddly unbalanced to only have Zavir at his back, but content in the knowledge Nivir would go out into the galaxy and be his voice.

  Jalia had been concerned he would be displeased with her choice, but how could Dhega be displeased? She was here because of Nivir's diligence and resourcefulness.

  "I did. He has agreed and will begin his duties today."

  Jalia looked very pleased with herself, almost smug if the sparkle in her eyes was anything to go by.

  He had little time to wonder what she was thinking as the meeting was called to start, and his focus became on how to counteract the arguments made against the plan to bring Minos into the future.

  Though in truth, his queen seemed to be in her element and shot everyone down with well thought out, logical, unemotional responses. Dhega had little to do other than agree or disagree, but he noticed not once did Jalia mention her familial ties to the UC or the terraforming company JC6.

  No one seemed particularly surprised by Dhega's announcement that Nivir was their new ambassador, and he couldn't have been more pleased when Nivir took to the position as though he had been doing it his whole life.

  It seemed the princes around them had no idea how capable Nivir was, or that he possessed the ability to pose intelligent, well thought out rebuttals and suggestions to add to the conversation.

  The only one openly displeased was Simo,

  "I don't understand why Dymigona is to bear the brunt of the financing! If we are all participating in the purchase of these...these terraforming items, why is Iros or Antaeus, or Kaetonia not expected to contribute?"

  The vibrant glow Jalia had begun the meeting with had faded as time went on, and as this was the second time Simo's financial concerns had been raised, her irritation was plain.

  Dhega bit into his cheek, rubbing his hand across his lips that wanted so badly to split into a grin, not envying Simo at all when her eyes narrowed on the scowling prince.

  "If we filled this council chamber with sand from Dymigona, would your desert suddenly disappear, Simo?" she challenged, her impatience giving a harsh bite to her words.

  "Of course not, but—"

  "Are you using the sand from the desert for any purpose? Building mortar? Sculptures? Some religious reasons we don't know about?"

  Jalia ruthlessly fired back, her hair darkening to a sinister black, her skin paling to an eerie white, her blue eyes taking on a tinge of red as her temper reached dangerous levels.

  How strange that when she became afraid, her hair turned yellow. When she was angry, it turned black. Did she do it on purpose or was it completely involuntary?

  "No, but—"

  "All the other provinces are providing coins and jewels in equal measure, along with manpower and specific resources unique to their provinces.

  “Dymigona is providing sand. No labor, no extra gems or gold, sand. Sand that has uncommon properties in huge demand by the outside world.

  "If such a resource was located in another province, believe me, they would be called upon in exactly the same manner as you.

  “You're not being asked to go out there and dig it up yourself, none of the people of your province are being asked to pack the sand or carry it to Letau on their backs.

  “You're the very last person at this table who has reason to be upset about what they're being asked to provide."

  Simo looked to him as though he would agree Jalia's proposal was ludicrous—which only served to anger Jalia further—and Dhega shrugged.

  "Every province i
s contributing to the process in different ways, Simo. Dymigona has a rare product Minos can provide without doing any damage to the planet, which ensures when we go to purchase our defenses, we will carry no debt, which means we will not be forced to ally with the UC unless we want to. Give me a reason why that is so unfair, and I will gladly consider it."

  "Perhaps his highness would prefer to match the total quantity of gems and gold provided by the rest of us?" Turju offered with a silken smile.

  Jalia coolly agreed that was an acceptable compromise, and Simo finally realized if he continued to complain, he truly would be bearing the brunt of the financial burden.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Dhega came awake, uncertain at first what had disturbed him. Bright moonlight spilled through the open archways, the wind blew gently through the sheer curtains around the bed, and not a single one of the night sounds were discordant enough to have awoken him so suddenly.

  The meeting of princes had lasted well into the evening, and by the time Dhega called an end to it he could tell Jalia was a breath away from collapsing with exhaustion.

  He had picked her up with every intention of carrying her to the LUX but hadn't made it more than a few feet past the council chambers before she was asleep.

  She hadn't stirred at all when he put a knee on the bed and lay her down, or when he eased the cuff from around her wrist to ensure no communications would disturb her, or the spray of jewels from her hair.

  Dysis had brought food and drink, all without so much as a whisper to disturb Jalia.

  He bathed, ate his fill, put down his thoughts on the day's meeting before they faded, and crawled into bed with his sleeping queen, unable to keep from ginning when she turned to him and cuddled against his side in her preferred position.

  Now he looked over to see if Jalia was still sleeping peacefully, only to find her side of the bed empty and the sheets cool to the touch.

  His heart rate tripled as he searched the shadows for her but saw no sign of her anywhere. He threw back the blankets and jerked the curtains aside as he leaped to his feet, checking the daybed out on the terrace, fear pumping through him that someone had snuck past Tom and taken Jalia while Dhega had slept on undisturbed.

  He had just sucked in the breath to call for his guard when he heard a soft splash. He found his queen in the bath, the urgency fading from him on a breath of relief as he watched scoop the water off her face and startle a little when she looked up and found him looming over her.

  "Fark my shoes, you scared me!" she told him, pressing her hand to her chest with a breathless little laugh. "Did I wake you? I was trying to be quiet,"

  Dhega crouched at the edge of the pool, crooking his finger at her, taking her chin in his hand when she came close enough, glaring at her in hopes of impressing upon her how worried he'd been by her absence.

  "We have a palace full of disgruntled princes and the potential for one of them to do something stupid. Wake me next time. It was disturbing to reach over and not know where you are."

  She stretched up on her toes to brush a soft, apologetic kiss across his mouth, promising in the future to wake him if she got up in the middle of the night and left the bed to do anything other than go to the bathroom.

  "Thank you, are you hungry? You missed the evening meal."

  A sheepish blush painted her cheeks, and she admitted to having eaten her fill before getting into the bath,

  "You looked so peaceful. I didn't want to disturb you. I do have something to show you, though. Unless you want to go back to bed?"

  Dhega shook his head and got up to bring her a towel, holding it for her, watching her carefully climb the steps, the water parting to reveal her beautiful body, slick and glistening in the moonlight that filled the chamber.

  She grinned and purposefully reached up and back to wring the excess water from her hair, her breasts lifting towards him so enticingly he found himself salivating a little.

  Jalia stood perfectly still and let him take his time drying her, humming hungrily when he licked at the little droplets clinging to her nipples, gripping onto his horns as she went up on her toes in response to his lips wrapping around the furled buds.

  Dhega suckled strongly, one then the other, using his tongue to press the swollen tips to the roof of his mouth, doing a little grinning himself at her moan of protest when he stopped.

  He knelt down to dry off each of her beautiful long legs, licking at the crease of her hip, kissing his way across her belly to lick the other side, loving how the scrape of his teeth across her hip made her breath hitch and her skin prickle beneath his lips.

  Her eyes were glazed with pleasure, she was clinging to him and ever so slightly trembling, teeth gripping her lip at the careful swipe of the towel between her thighs.

  "Perhaps I do want to go back to bed,"

  "Me too," she agreed breathlessly.

  "I thought you had something to show me?" he reminded, carefully tipping his head back as he stood to keep from accidentally catching her with his horns.

  "Sh-show you, uh hu," Jalia gave herself a shake, giving him a playful scowl while knotting the towel beneath her arm. "You're a six-and-a-half-foot tall distraction with horns, that's what you are."

  He couldn't help but laugh as she claimed him by the hand and led the way back to their bed, urging him to sit while she went to fetch her cuff.

  She climbed back up beside him and put it on, swiping her finger over the surface to display a small holographic window.

  Two blue lines moved across the black background, the rhythmic pulses were different, and he had no idea what he was looking at.

  He had just begun to learn the many functions of the cuff that downloaded and displayed data, fielded communications and filtered them through the ring in his ear along with what she claimed were millions of languages.

  It did so many things he couldn't remember them all, but Jalia was smiling at him with excitement, with such happiness, he couldn't admit he'd forgotten.

  She laughed, obviously able to tell anyway and took pity on him to explain.

  "This is my heartbeat," she told him, her finger following the peaks of the slower line at the top of the grid, "and this, is why I've been so tired and cranky the last few weeks."

  *****

  It had been a shock for her, sitting back in the revita-chair expecting a rush of energy and relaxation, only to hear the automated system announce the chair could not complete the process on its current setting.

  Angel Eyes had given her a weird look, shrugging at the unexpected announcement.

  "It's a brand-new chair, so what's wrong with you?" Angel asked, and of course, Jalia said nothing. Which meant a trip to the infirmary, only to discover a startling surprise.

  The Svrian clinic Jalia had visited to get her medical screening? Yeah, they'd disabled her birth control chip and not mentioned it. Pulling up her chart, the reason she was pregnant was clearly notated—

  Breeding capability required: hormone inhibitor deactivated.

  Jalia thought she would have trouble keeping the surprise a secret and keeping her hands off her belly during the meeting, but the constant aggravation provided by Simo and Tyro regarding the finances it would take to purchase the machines and devices necessary for planetary defense had kept her quite distracted.

  Now it was the dead of night, the light of the full moon was bright enough to see Dhega was staring at the second line of vitals, rubbing his jaw, looking at her skeptically, not comprehending its significance.

  All he heard was that there was a reason behind her exhaustion, and he was worried. It showed in the deep line between his brows, in the narrowing of his eyes.

  She gave him a minute to figure it out on his own and was just about to tell him when comprehension struck.

  Every muscle in his body froze as his frown melted away and his wide eyes dropped to her stomach.

  "Eight weeks and a few days ago, we were at Iros," she told him softly, flicking her wrist to
dismiss the display of the heart monitor, which seemed to snap Dhega out of his stupor.

  He opened his mouth to speak, stopped, tried again, and utterly took her breath away when he reached out a trembling hand to brush her towel away, settling and spreading his fingers as wide as he could manage on her bare skin.

  "Iros," he repeated hoarsely, his thumb sweeping back and forth above her navel, drawing her into his lap so he could hold her and not relinquish her belly,

  "A baby?"

  Jalia managed a laugh even as his awe-filled question brought happy tears to her eyes,

  "Yeah. Do you want to know what it is?"

  "What it...your machines can tell us the sex? Truly?"

  "Truly," his eyes were wide with wonder, and when she wrapped her arms around his shoulders he cuddled her even closer, tugging her towel away from her, so they were skin to skin,

  "Do you want to know, or be surprised?" He was quiet for long enough Jalia thought maybe he hadn't heard her, fixedly staring at the spot his palm covered.

  "Dhega?"

  "I want to know,"

  She couldn't help but tease him, just a little bit. "Are you sure?"

  "Yes,"

  "You don't sound sure."

  "Jalia," his tone took on a dark edge, but his touch remained gentle as ever.

  She continued to giggle, reaching up to kiss his jaw, shocked and touched to feel how it quivered beneath her lips.

  It dried up her laughter in a flash, leaving only the warmth of happiness behind.

  "Based on the growth calculations, we're going to have a little boy in about ten months."

  What breath he'd gathered whooshed out of him on a ragged sigh. Jalia hadn't been sure what Dhega's reaction would be.

  She'd hoped he would be ecstatic, but truthfully, she hadn't expected the depth of his emotion or for there to be unshed tears glimmering across the surface of his beautiful golden eyes.