Chapter 18: A Throne of Ruin: Chapter 18

As we approached the tree line of my village, I patted Hadriel’s arm. “Okay, stop here. We can’t bring the horse. We’ll be noticed immediately.”

“Sweetie dove, I am wearing a flower-patterned dress coat and velvet slippers with thin soles, and you are wearing a lovely outfit designed by a master in the finest of fabrics. How in the literal fuck will we not be noticed on foot? We might as well arrive in style.”

I patted him again. “We’re going to sneak around the back.”

“Need I remind you about the thin soles? I see a lot of dirt and stone out there. I doubt I’ll do much sneaking. Do you know what sneak? Horses. They sneak super well. I’ll even bend over a bit so that the horse looks lost and I look drunk. No one will notice.”

I rolled my eyes and slid off the side, stepping away. “Either stay here with the horse, or come with me on foot.”

“Ugh!” He hopped down and tied the horse up to the nearest tree. “No one is going to steal him, right?”

“And go where?”

“Lovely lady, again, I am wearing thin-soled right now. I will admit, I wasn’t thinking when I started this venture. It’s been a long time since I’ve left my post. I don’t give a shit where someone might take Mr. Chompers; it’ll be farther than I want to travel in these shoes.”

“No, no one will take him. They are afraid of this wood. Will you come on?”

We crossed the threshold and worked around to the side, but while I started to jog, he picked his way carefully, not bothering to keep up. I slowed because the last thing I needed was for a guy dressed like him to wander down the lane, peering in windows, looking for me. The village would think they were hallucinating.

As it was, Chrystal from down the way spied us passing by the back of her fence, enough boards missing that she could identify my face.

“Finley?” she called out, shielding the sun from her eyes.

I kept moving with a grimace. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if they thought they were hallucinating…

“Finley!” She hurried toward us, realized that I wasn’t stopping, and headed the other way.

“Go, go, go…” I grabbed Hadriel and yanked him along.

She appeared at a gap in the fence. Her washing basket was held firmly to her hip, and her ample bosom strained her threadbare shirt, only barely covered by a brown apron.

“Oh my stars, it’s you,” she said. “Praise the goddess, you’re not dead.” She hustled after us.

“There is some sort of washerwoman following us, Finley,” Hadriel said, glancing back. “She looks mean. Does she bite?”

“That’s just her face. She always looks like that.” I neared the corner as she overtook Hadriel. We weren’t going to get away. I stopped and faced her with a bland smile. “Hey, Chrystal.”

“Oh, Finley!” She threw her arms around me so effusively that my back cracked with the pressure. “We all thought you were dead. There have been a few sightings of the beast loitering around the general area, too.”

That must’ve been Nyfain bringing meat for my family.

“I’m okay.” I put out my hands. “It’s not as you think.”

“My goodness, look at you!” She ran her gaze down my front. “Oh my—you are the spitting image of your mother in that outfit. Well, she never wore pants. It really suits you, Finley. Tell me.” She leaned forward. “I heard you got tangled up with the demon king. I also hear he is very handsome. Is he holding you hostage and making you pay your rent with your body?” She leered.

My mouth dropped open.

“I did expect that coming from her,” Hadriel said with a grin. “You really never know, do you? I thought it was just the castle that was filled with sexual deviants, but apparently this whole kingdom is kinky as fuck.”

“It isn’t the demon king,” I said, turning. “Stop listening to Jedrek.”

“But—”

I put on a burst of speed. Hadriel would just have to figure it out.

At my house, I hopped the fence and crossed the backyard, exactly as I’d left it. Well…before the dead bodies. Hannon had cleaned up.

At the back door, I knocked softly before turning the handle. Hannon met me on the other side with a furrowed brow. In a moment, his face cleared and a big smile crossed his face.

“Finley.” He wrapped me in a tight hug. “You’re okay.” He pulled away and looked down at my clothes. “He’s treating you well?”

“As well as a broody fucker like him is capable of, yeah. Listen, I need the dried crowded everlass. I’ve been positioned as royal healer to help the masses. The other villages, Hannon…” I shook my head and whistled. “Not great. We got lucky. They are all basically fighting over the elixir.”

“Why?” Hannon moved into the kitchen and reached above the cabinets to a jar on the top. A little skull was affixed to it. “I realize not everyone can make it, but there should be enough of them to ensure it won’t be in short supply if Nyfain comes through with everlass.”

“That’s just it.” I took the jar. “They aren’t even giving out the recipe! They’re actively hoarding it.”

“But…why? Aren’t people sick?”

“Yes! Honestly, I have no idea—”

“Power.” Hadriel walked through the opened back door. His pocket hung down, ripped from the rest of the jacket. He had another tear along his thigh. “Holding the elixir gave them power over others. But Finley has just stripped them of their power and claimed it all for herself.”

Hannon gave Hadriel a once-over, lingering on the slippers. One was missing.

Hadriel noticed and pointed back the way he’d come. “The fucking fence, am I right? What’s the problem with using doors? I don’t stand out much. Not in a place where people feel comfortable wondering aloud if the royal healer is lending out her body to the demon king as a means of paying rent.”

Hannon quirked an eyebrow.

“It’s nothing. Don’t mind him.” I gave a dismissive wave. “How is Phyl? I told him I’d make him elixir, and then fucked off.”

“Well, actually, you allegedly got eaten, but close enough,” Hannon said. “We’re taking care of it. Sable collects the leaves from the field in the Forbidden Wood, and Dash makes the elixir. She can’t go at night, obviously, and Dash is not as good as you, but it’ll have to do. Nyfain is continuing to tend that field, so we have plenty for the village. We have a few people who are dwindling, though.”

“What about Father?” I chanced a glance at the back bedroom, not having done it sooner because I was a coward.

A smile spread across Hannon’s face, and something loosened in my middle.

“He’s right as rain, Finley. He’s making a full recovery! He’s obviously weak from lying in bed for so long, and his lungs still aren’t quite right, but he is at the market now, selling a pelt he made. Nyfain has been keeping us in plenty of meat.”

“Oh good,” I said on a release of breath. “Thank the goddess. It works, then. The crowded everlass actually cures.”

“Wait…” Hadriel stepped closer and leaned in. “What’s this now? You have an actual cure?”

“It’s looking like it, but it’s dangerous. I wouldn’t trust anyone else to make and distribute it just yet.”

“But…a cure.” Hadriel continued to stare. “Does Nyfain know?”

“Not conclusively.” I looked at the top of the cabinet. “How much dried everlass do you have, Hannon? The regular kind. I’ll take what I can. You can easily dry more, since you know how to work with it.”

Hannon pulled out a box, took out a few leaves, and held the rest out. “Given Dad doesn’t need it anymore, we’re just the emergency fund at this point.”

“Well, tickle my balls, your family is incredibly giving,” Hadriel said. “How are you real? This was never the way before the curse. Not that I knew of, at any rate.”

“Who is he again?” Hannon asked.

“The mediocre butler. Long story. Thanks, Hannon. Also…” I glanced around. “What are you doing right now? There’s a village in very bad shape, and you know my bedside manner…”

Without a word, he walked to his bedroom.

“Deliberation before the verdict, I like it,” Hadriel said, watching him go.

“He’s just getting his stuff. He doesn’t waste energy on idle chitchat, unlike I know…”

“The master, then? Is that who you’re talking about? I know. That guy just will not shut up. If growls were words, you know what I’m saying?”

I chuckled as Hannon returned wearing a light jacket discolored in places, worn shoes, and two-day-old scruff on his face.

“At least he’ll blend in if shit goes sideways,” Hadriel muttered.

“In that place, I’m not so sure that’s a good thing.” On our way out, I told Hannon what Chrystal had said to me.

“She’s been visiting the pub a lot lately. New demons moved in, realized the space was unoccupied, and decided to stay. They came from some other village, I guess. I don’t know which one. They aren’t used to so many people ignoring them.”

“The draught?” Hadriel asked. I nodded.

“They’ve been pushing their…magic on people pretty hard,” Hannon continued as we reached the fence in the backyard. “Some people are getting a little weird around here.”

“You have no idea, Hannon.” I motioned Hadriel up. “Come on. Chop, chop.”

He sighed dramatically, jumped, and caught the lip of the fence. He labored to pull himself up, scrabbled with his feet, and lost the other slipper.

“Ouch!” he hollered. “I think I got a splinter!”

Hannon put his hand on Hadriel’s butt and pushed him to the top. I reached up and shoved him over. Hannon threw the slipper after him.

Hadriel hollered again, ending in a grunt. “Some fucking family!”

Laughing, I handed off the jar of everlass before climbing over. Hannon handed the leaves over before following. No one noticed us sneak around the houses, and while a couple of people were on the lane, they didn’t look toward the wood. Within the tree line, Hadriel quickly jumped onto the horse. He eyed us both.

“There’s no way we’re all sitting on this horse. Hannon is too big. It is Hannon, right? We weren’t properly introduced. I’d say that was because Finley was raised in a barn, but that would disrespect both of you. You’re too big to disrespect, and she’s too mean.”

Hannon and I started walking at a brisk pace. Hadriel followed along behind us on the horse.

“How has it been?” Hannon asked me.

“Busy. I’ve been supplying the starter to make the potion—dang it, now they have me doing it—the and demon-sex-magic-be-gone draught, and trying to get a garden sorted… I’m not allowed to go out at night, so I only have the daylight hours.”

“You’re not ?”

“Yeah, that sounds bad. I mean, it’s true, I am not allowed to go out at night. The other night I did anyway, but it turned into this whole thing, and it’s not worth the annoyance, honestly.”

“Saving my ass is an annoyance, is it?” Hadriel said. “And here I thought I was the light of your world.”

I rolled my eyes and continued. “Plus…the castle is pretty crazy at night. I don’t really want to get caught up in it.”

“Wow.” Hannon’s lips turned down. “I would not have thought anyone could tell you what you were and were not allowed to do.”

“Just so we’re clear,” Hadriel said, “she doesn’t typically do as she’s told. This is more of an instance of her knowing what’s good for her.”

“If you were there, Hannon, you’d get it,” I said. “The demons there are a lot more powerful. A few of them nearly threw Hadriel out of a window. Nyfain doesn’t rein me in otherwise, though, not even when dealing with the village earlier. It’s literally just at night that he gets crazy protective.”

“Just so we’re also clear, he is crazy protective of her,” Hadriel said. “She just hasn’t tested him. If anyone touched her the wrong way, that person would soon be missing a throat. But no, he doesn’t seem concerned about reining her in.” Hadriel huffed. “Dragons. They are always asking for trouble.”

“If he wants trouble, he found it,” Hannon muttered with a grin.

“I haven’t had time for trouble. The kingdom is in a bad way and, come to find out, they aren’t even properly using all my hard work.” I pulled my ponytail in irritation.

“Yes, about that. What are we walking into?” Hannon asked.

I talked Hannon through the situation as we made our way. I clearly didn’t do a good job of describing the houses in the richer area, though, because he gaped at them as we arrived.

“These are enormous,” he said as we trod along the cobblestone.

“These are, yeah.”

“This place is way richer than our village.” Hannon looked off in the direction of their village center as I led us around the outskirts.

“Overall, yes, probably. But their poor people have it really bad, and our poor people—us—have all we need.”

“Barely, and that’s because we all work our butts off.”

“You’ll see.”

And he did see. His expression darkened, and his fists started to clench.

“It sounds like they get hassled a lot,” I murmured as we found Dabnye’s lane, Hadriel still following us on the horse, drawing plenty of attention. Horses clearly weren’t usually in this area of the village. “Maryanne, the woman we’ll see now, acted cowed over a bunch of stuff that I’ve always taken for granted. I could’ve pulled the everlass out of the ground and she would’ve let me. Can you imagine if someone from our village tried to do that to my plants?”

“No, I cannot,” Hannon said.

“No. Because I would rip that bastard’s face off. A lot of the wealth here is kept with a select group of people who are deemed important, and the rest just…die slowly, I guess. I don’t know.”

I rapped on Maryanne’s door. Her lovely face appeared in the window, her hair escaping her bun and frizzing on top of her head. She opened the door a moment later, a sheen of sweat coating her face.

“You came back,” she said. Her eyes took in Hannon, lingering for a moment, and then darted to Hadriel behind us, sliding off the horse. “And you brought a clown.”

A crooked smile worked up Hannon’s face.

“Of course we came back.” I walked into the house and went straight through to the backyard. “Why such a big house—in the scheme of things—for just you?”

“How do you know it is just me?”

“Because there is only one scent in it, and it belongs to you.”

She’d set up another little station nearer the back door, wood burning within a ring of rocks under a pot on a hook. A little table sat beside it, holding a mortar and pestle. It was perfect for smaller batches, which was exactly what she was readying.

“I lived with my gran and granddad when the curse hit,” she said. “They did okay for themselves. My cousin lived here with us, as well. But the sickness got my gran and granddad, and my cousin…” She smoothed the hair on her head. “He went into the royal wood to help disband one of the demon’s creatures…and didn’t come back. The prince wasn’t actively patrolling in those days. I’ve tried to house the orphaned children, but the council puts them in the workhouse. I have this big space, and no one will help me use it.”

“Your council has to go.” I picked up the mortar, bringing it to my nose. A slightly acidic smell wafted from it.

“They didn’t used to be so bad. That’s what my gran and granddad said, anyway. But the demons killed the old council members, and the sickness killed a bunch more people, and so this is what we’re left with.”

“You don’t have anyone to push back against them,” Hannon said, standing off to the side.

Her gaze lingered on him again, zipping to his shoulders and chest before zipping away. “No. Those who could push back benefit from the existing power structure.”

“Of course they have someone to push back.” Hadriel walked into the backyard.

“Who?” Maryanne asked with an attitude.

“Me, apparently,” I muttered.

“Oh, you dirty little goddess, look at this garden!” Hadriel exclaimed. “Finley, look at this. It’s amazing. Is this what we’re going to make?”

I put the mortar down, shaking my head. “Something is wrong with the everlass. Show me the dried leaves.”

She disappeared into the kitchen to get them, and I took stock of the situation with the cauldron. The fire under it was burning, but the water hadn’t heated up enough yet.

“I’m actually going to use the pot.” I put the jar on the table and raised my voice so she’d hear me in the house. “We’ll make a big batch for the cauldron. I’ll use the smaller pot for a very dangerous, very concentrated batch.”

“Dangerous?” She emerged, a crumpled sack in her hand.

“Oh no.” I took it from her, knelt beside the table, and emptied the contents onto the dirt ground. “No, no.” I picked out withered leaves that she’d dried instead of throwing away, then the oddly shaped leaves that had apparently dried in a cluster. Only a few leaves looked in decent shape. I smelled them and grimaced. “This whole batch has to go. You’re not working the plant right.”

She put her fist to her hip but didn’t say anything.

“It’s my clothes,” I told Hannon as I took the box of regular leaves from him. “She is afraid to talk back because of my clothes.”

“No, it’s because you clearly know what you’re talking about, and I want the knowledge,” she replied. “I don’t want to scare you away with my personality.”

“She’s got one up on you,” Hannon told me quietly. “You wouldn’t dream of holding back for the sake of knowledge.”

“I would! I just wouldn’t need to because I know everything.” I grinned.

“Are you two related or something?” Maryanne asked.

“With him.” I hooked a thumb at Hannon. “Not with the clown.”

“Oh, I’m a clown now, am I?” Hadriel straightened up within the garden.

“It’s the shoes,” I said as Hannon said, “It’s the jacket.”

“Why is she wearing finery and you’re wearing…” Maryanne was back to looking at Hannon’s shoulders.

“He didn’t have the unfortunate luxury of being kidnapped by the prince,” I said. “Now pay attention. Playtime is over. It’s time to work.”

I gave her detailed instructions on how to care for the everlass plant, from pruning and picking the leaves to showing it the love and care it craved. Finally, I used Hannon’s leaves to demonstrate making the nulling elixir, cluing her in to the various smells she was looking for and the right temperature of the water. When I was finished, she took a deep breath.

“That was…not as simple as I thought,” she said.

“Yeah, but I guarantee, if you treat the everlass right, it’ll save lives. It is worth going to the extra effort for that plant.”

“It must be, or you wouldn’t be looking like that, talking to me. Am I going to get arrested for this, by the way?”

“No. I’ve told your council that if they interfere with me, I’ll kill them. Nyfain—”

“The crowned prince, his royal highness, she means,” Hadriel cut in.

“—told them he supports me. He gave me his blessing to handle the situation. So if they bother you, or harass you in any way, get a message to me.”

“How do I do that?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. We’ll figure it out before I leave. That batch is ready for water, and then we need to distribute it. Hannon, you know how much water. You guys take care of that. I need to work with this crowded plant. Do you have another mortar and pestle?”

“What’s a crowded plant?” Maryanne asked as she got me what I needed.

I started explaining as I picked a leaf out of the jar and put it into the cleaned mortar. Remembering Nyfain’s account of his mother’s experimentation with crowded everlass, I added some lilac to smooth it out and a bit of ginger to help the stomach. Those additions wouldn’t mess with the potency, but would help with the body’s ability to handle the end result. I ground it all down as much as possible and then stilled, taking a breath.

I thought, and my animal, thankfully, didn’t reply. She knew the stakes.

“What’s the matter?” Maryanne asked softly.

“She is wondering if that elixir will heal or kill,” Hannon replied.

“Then I better give it to…whatever poor sap needs it.” Hadriel reached out. “I am a master at shit jobs. I literally shoveled horse shit before the previous butlers were murdered and my standing was elevated. This is a job for me.”

“I’ll do it. I know what to look for.” Hannon held out his hand for the mug. “How far is the house? Should we pour the water there, since this particular elixir is…touchier?”

“Probably. One of the bad cases is right next door, but…” I grabbed a potholder and pulled on my animal’s power for extra strength.

“Whoa,” Maryanne said as I picked up the pot and followed Hannon out the door.

“She has access to her animal,” Hadriel said. “Which is a secret, love. Let’s keep that—maybe all of this—between us, what do you say?”

I gave two knocks on the house next door, where the man had been alone in his bed, on death’s doorstep. I startled when the door opened. A woman looked out, sadness pulling at her gaunt features. This wasn’t sickness, it was a crushed soul, helplessly watching a loved one die.

“I’m here to help,” I said softly, heat pricking the backs of my eyes as I remembered that struggle.

“Who are…” She glanced down my front. “Who are you?”

“I’m the creator of the…potion that is helping people. I have something stronger for the man in this house. I’d like to talk to you about it.”

“The…potion?” She glanced down at the pot in my hand.

“Yes. I am working on something that will help…your husband?” She nodded, picking at her nail. “There are three options. The first is a very potent elixir—potion—that could cure him. I’ve tried it on two others, and it seems to have cured the sickness. One of them was my father, so please know that I do not take any of this lightly. However, it is also incredibly dangerous. If it doesn’t work, it’ll kill him immediately. That’s option one.”

Tears came to her eyes. She nodded without comment.

“Option two is the normal elixir—potion. It is weaker. It will help him a little, but it won’t help him for long. It’s not a cure. It’ll essentially give you a chance to say goodbye to him. The third option is doing nothing, and he’ll die quite soon, I would think. Those are your choices.”

Her tears overflowed, and she wiped them away. She took a deep breath. “You made the potion that the prince gave the village?”

“Yes.”

“They won’t give it to Rufus because they don’t have enough. We need to wait our turn.”

My heart broke for her. To see a loved one in such bad shape, know there is something to help, and be told to wait was a torture unlike any other. I couldn’t imagine her grief, waiting and hoping the help came before she lost him. Possibly losing hope by the day.

I swallowed down an uncomfortable lump in my throat and focused instead on anger. There had been no need for this continued suffering. Rufus should’ve been one of the first.

“They aren’t in charge. I am, and I say it’s your turn. I’m going to make some right now. Which kind should I make? The kind that’ll let you say goodbye, or the kind that will either cure him or kill him?”

Tears continued to slip down her face. My heart shattered because I knew what I was making her choose. But then, we all had to choose eventually. The mad king had made sure of it.

“He’s suffering,” she said, breaking down. “Please, help him if you can. Try to cure him. If it doesn’t work, at least he’ll have a timely death.”

I nodded.

Beside the bed, I poured the water into the mug and mixed it, waiting until it cooled and the smell hit the notes I was looking for. With a deep breath, I held the mug out for Hannon and walked out.

“Where is she going?” the woman asked.

“She’s done all she can. Now it’s my turn,” Hannon said gently.

Outside, I sucked in a deep breath and went back to Maryanne’s house. I would mix the other elixir now and start passing it out. All we could do was wait to see if I’d hurried a man into the beyond.

An indeterminate amount of time later, a delicious smell caught my attention. I knew it right away, and my animal perked up in pleasure, desperate to drag me that direction.

Nyfain’s large black stallion walked down the small dirt path. He sat astride it in the same T-shirt as earlier, stretching across his mouth-watering chest. The sun sank behind his head, creating a golden glow on his unruly hair.

I stopped in my trudge back to Maryanne’s to check on the supplies and see if I could make more elixir. We’d been lugging the stuff to every house in the whole neighborhood, it seemed like. So many people were in various stages of affliction. It wasn’t like my village at all. I realized that we’d had this under some sort of control for years. I now saw what happened when that wasn’t the case.

He caught sight of me immediately. Anyone in the vicinity stopped and stared, gaping up at the marvel of the prince, one of the last remaining dragons.

He stopped beside me, looking down. “It’s getting late. Time to go. Get your team, and let’s get out.”

“Oh, it went well, thanks for asking! Really good, actually. We got a ton accomplished.” I walked on, passing him.

He reached down at lightning speed and caught my arm. I squealed as he pulled me up and dragged me in front of him.

“You have revitalized them. Now it’s time for me to revitalize you,” he growled, kicking forward toward Hadriel and Hannon, who were walking down the way with empty mugs in their arms. “Hadriel, take Hannon back and head for the castle. Tonight is the lull. I’ll be spending it with Finley, as previously discussed.”

“Yes, sir. Of course, sir.”

Maryanne trailed after them, her eyes wide and mouth agape. She gracefully fell to a knee.

“Your highness, it is an honor. Thank you for bestowing your royal healer on us.”

“You have her to thank for that, not me. Take her pot. We must be going.”

“Yes, sir.” She rose and reached for it eagerly.

With a scowl, I handed it back, looking at Hannon. “I’ll see you soon, okay? The other villages will likely need looking after as well. Tell the others I said hi.”

He nodded at me, then tilted his head at Nyfain in hello.

“You will definitely see him soon,” Nyfain said as he kept the stallion moving. “The other villages are much like this one. I asked for a tour of the hardest-hit locations. It was…eye-opening. I hadn’t realized it was so bad. I’ve failed them.”

I leaned back into him, resting against his chest. He held the reins with one hand and wrapped the other around me.

“You didn’t fail them, Nyfain. You protected them from the monsters all this time, and you helped me find a cure. It worked again!” I put my hands on his strong thighs. “I have it, I really do. I brought one guy back from the brink of death. I helped several more who were a month or two out. It works!” I beamed, so relieved. “We used all the crowded plant I had dried. I’ll need to harvest more. I might need to pick from other fields, since we have a short supply of crowded plants.”

He squeezed me as we left the perimeter of the village and entered the wood. “You’re the miracle these people needed.”

“I couldn’t be the miracle alone. We did this together.”

He slid his lips down my neck and over my shoulder, applying pressure with his teeth, and a thrill arrested me. I groaned, wanting to be closer. Wanting his skin on mine.

“How did it go at the other villages?” I asked in a breathy murmur.

“I lost my cool a few times. At each village. I have a few triggers, it turns out.”

I smiled, rubbing my cheek against his jaw. “What are those?”

“I don’t much like when people call you common. Or when they say you don’t have enough experience to be valuable—it was the ‘valuable’ part that set me off. Or that you’re incredibly beautiful. Or that people from your village aren’t to be trusted—”

“So all your triggers involve disparaging remarks about me.”

“It seems so, yes.”

“Except the beautiful one…”

“His eyes flared with lust. I didn’t much care for it.”

My animal purred in delight, and it felt like she stretched out through the bond to connect with his dragon. I reached back and hugged a hand around his neck.

“That must’ve been the guy I met in the wood after you drugged me and left my house in the middle of the night.”

“Yes,” he growled, obviously remembering the exchange in the village.

my animal goaded me.

I rolled my eyes, pretending the little thrill was all hers, and relayed the message.

“The reactions varied relating to what they said. Tables were flipped, chairs were thrown, doors kicked in… I didn’t have a firm handle on things.”

“And the guy?”

He growled and raked his teeth down my neck and across my shoulder. Pleasure curled through me, and the thrill from a moment ago intensified. Suddenly my every nerve was firing electricity. It felt fucking amazing, like I’d just gotten a shot of adrenaline and energy and power and lust all at the same time.

“I threw him across the room,” he said, his power pulsing, taking on a keen possessive edge.

I fluttered my eyes shut and leaned my head back and to the side, exposing my flesh for another bite. His intensity curled around me, and a delicious feeling crept across my skin, like claws made of velvet.

“Why does that turn me on so fucking much?” I asked huskily.

“Because you want me to claim you,” he whispered against the shell of my ear. “You want me to dominate you and take you as mine. You want me to fill every hole you have and leave my mark all over that tight little body.”

I groaned as he said it, suddenly incredibly wet, my pussy begging for his hard shaft pounding into it.

His hand drifted up my chest and cupped my breast. He pulled back on the reins and let go for a moment, reaching around me and unbuttoning my pants.

“I’m not sure this is possible, but we’ll give it a try.” He pushed down the zipper before suddenly swinging me down from the horse.

I gasped as my feet hit the ground.

“Lose the pants,” he commanded.

I wasted no time, peeling off my panties as well. He laid them in front of him before undoing his fly and pushing it down as much as he could, pulling out his large, hard cock. He put out a hand, and anticipation and excitement tore through me.

“Face me, I think,” he said, making a circle with his finger.

I took his hand and let him pull me up, laying my legs over his thighs with my butt resting on my pants. Before I could crawl up onto his shaft, he grabbed my nape and pulled me forward for a bruising kiss. I moaned into his mouth, loving his taste, loving when his tongue tangled with mine.

He hooked his arm under me and lifted, pulling me tightly to his chest. I rose, bracing myself, while he ran his fingers across my wetness. His growl of desire coursed heat through me. His fingers entered me, plunging deeply and rubbing all the right places. He pulled them out and then guided me on top of him, his dull tip pushing at my opening.

I slid down onto that hard cock, sucking in a breath as it parted my folds and slowly filled me. My wet depths hugged him tightly.

“I think they did it the other way around in the book,” I murmured, sitting all the way down on him, grinding against his hipbones.

“How the hell would we manage that, though?” He let go of my back and grabbed the reins. “Hold on. If you fall off, chances are you’ll take my cock with you.”

“You might be able to lose one of those things, but it would be a pure travesty to lose them both.”

His kiss turned urgent, and he sucked on my tongue before nibbling my lips. He let go of the reins with one hand and grabbed my nape again, keeping me against him as he kissed me like a starving man. I lost myself to it, swept away entirely.

He moved his arm to curl under my butt and lifted me before sitting me back down, his cock sliding within me. He did it again, but then had to use both hands on the reins to guide us over a bit of rocky terrain.

“Maybe cantering in a field,” he murmured, his breathing labored.

“Or maybe I can get off, and you can just suffer…” I brought a hand between us and massaged my clit, moaning in delight.

He swore under his breath, directing the horse.

I leaned against his shoulder as I worked myself, not needing him to move to get where I was going. I licked and sucked his neck before running my teeth across his flesh. He shuddered in delight, his groan soft and tortured. My body wound up as I rubbed, my pussy muscles flexing and releasing as I took myself higher.

“Oh fuck,” Nyfain bit out, leaning forward a bit and forcing me to cling to his shoulders with one hand.

He kicked with his heels, and the stallion sped up to a trot, the trail flattening and widening for a stretch. I jostled on top of Nyfain, his cock driving up into me. It wasn’t entirely rhythmic, but the hard punches of his cock speared pleasure right through me.

My mouth hung open, the sensations so extreme they were almost unbearable. I worked my clit and slid up and down on Nyfain’s cock, my pussy so wet it leaked down his shaft and slicked his balls. Another hard jolt, and my climax tore me apart, blasting through me.

“Fuck.

,” Nyfain said as I cried his name, slumping on top of him. The horse slowed to a walk again, the trail narrowing up a berm between large trees. “Oh fuck, this is torture.”

I smiled silkily as I ran my lips along his jaw. “It was good for me. Pity about your blue balls.” I nipped his chin.

“You’re going to pay for this,” he wheezed, leaning hard against me. “Fuck, fuck, I can’t even hear myself think. My dragon is going absolutely fucking crazy. He wants me to pull you off this bloody horse, bend you over, and fuck you senseless.”

“That wasn’t in the book, though.”

“Whose stupid fucking idea was it to act out the sex scenes in those books? I just read one that faded to black. Let’s fade this to black, get off here, and then here.”

I laughed delightedly, tightening my legs around him. “It was your stupid fucking idea, so I think you need to pay the price for it. And what’s a lull, anyway? You told Hadriel it was a lull tonight.”

“I get two nights a month off usually. Sometimes one and a half. For whatever reason, nothing comes through the portal. It’s not always like clockwork, but it’s usually within a couple days of when I expect it. That’s tonight and maybe tomorrow. I am going to wine you, dine you, finally give you your salon treatment, and then pleasure you to within an inch of your life. We’ll fall asleep when we’re too exhausted to move, and lie together until neither of us can stand the bed anymore. Then we’ll get up, be fed in my rooms, and maybe take a bath, or something else luxurious. I’ve been craving you, Finley. I want more of you. I intend to get it.”

“And what if I don’t want to be wined and dined, bathed and pleasured?” I asked with a sensual smile as I started stroking my clit again.

“You’re my captive. You will do as you’re told.”