CHAPTER 26

It took little persuading for Queen Lyra and King Thallan to agree for Father to be put under the Oakstorms' protection. I knew it from the moment I saw their mortified expressions as we interrupted their dinner, covered in his blood. There was no room for disagreement, nor did Tarron allow for any. Clearly Aurelia was no longer safe. They had no grounds to argue against that fact. So, to my relief, it was agreed Tarron would arrange proper protection for my father – away from here.

Tarron had split the air in two with no more than a swift slice of a hand, much like he had the first time I'd seen him, creating a portal we could step between without walking a great distance. It was easier to pull Father's body through it and allow the swarm of the queen's personal guards to enter and obtain the bodies of the attackers whom Tarron had discarded in a pile beyond the room's door.

Everything happened so quickly. Father was still unconscious as Tarron took him away, promising that he would give me time with Father before they left for the Oakstorm Court. In a blink, he'd stepped through another spindle of light, Father's unconscious body draped over his shoulder as though he weighed no more than an empty satchel.

Queen Lyra tried to engage in conversation, but I was unable to say much. She likely told me what we waited for, yet I couldn't focus on anything but the storm in my mind.

My father might have been a Hunter. I wasn't sure what it meant to me. Beyond my suspicions, the marking across his skin suggested he was an enemy to everyone in Wychwood. And after what had happened to Orion, I didn't doubt the Cedarfall's were still looking for someone to blame.

Those questions, and more, haunted me with each laboured breath.

"I should never have left you." Erix stormed into the room, which had turned out to be the king's own personal quarters. It was a bedchamber, but one he never used as he shared a bed with his wife. It made sense because it was richly decorated, with a lavish covering of food across the table in the living section of their rooms.

I'd not long climbed out of the bathtub, leaving the water almost black from father's blood and grime.

Erix's hands found my arms, gripping hold of them as though a sudden, threatening gust would blow me away in a moment. "Are you hurt?" His silver eyes searched every inch of me. "Tell me what happened."

I hung my head, so relieved to finally see him. "It was horrible," I admitted.

"I knew I should have continued to refuse leaving you. It is my duty – you are my fucking duty, and I gave in to a command I did not feel comfortable with."

"Please…" My voice was a whisper, it was all I could manage. "Not here."

Erix snapped his attention upwards, surveying the room and those who filled it as though it was the first time he realised where he was. Guards and serving staff looked at Erix as though he was the most frightened man in the entire world. He noticed, softening his voice. "Forgive me for my intrusion, but I have it from here."

"Forgiven." Queen Lyra's voice was blunt but coated in a false softness to dull the sharpness hidden within it. She parted from the shadows, unannounced and yet blooming with authority.

"Permission to take Robin to his room, my queen?"

"I cannot grant you that," Queen Lyra said, pacing the room. "This room will do. It isn't being used by my husband, or anyone else, for that matter. I have had every shadow and corner searched for threats. I fear this palace is no longer safe to stay at all. For any of us. If my sister's poisonous influence has spread further than my investigation can reach, then I cannot ensure Robin's safety… no matter the company I believed I could trust."

My body felt numb, my mind the only part of me alive like a bolt of lightning had crashed across my skull.

"He needs to rest." Erix's tone matched that of the authority of the queen; he was both demanding and pleading.

"And he shall. Once we reach Farrador, we will all be welcome to rest knowing we are far from the threats faced here."

Farrador, the capital of the Cedarfall Court, where Orion's body was travelling to, where Althea had grown up.

Erix flinched, stopping himself from wrapping an arm around me. I almost urged him to do it, to not hold back and take me in his arms.

"What is to say yet another assailant does not wait for me in Farrador?" I questioned. Every head in the room turned to me. Perhaps it was the surprise that I had finally uttered a word or the frozen touch my statement left upon the room.

"I can only give you my word," Queen Lyra declared. "And know that every possible power I have will be exhausted, ensuring another hair on your head is not threatened."

What about the people around me? I dared not speak it aloud for fear it would become too real.

I wanted to remind her that the word of her family had yet to mean anything, but then I remembered my father with the mark of a Hunter across his ribs, and I felt I was in no position to say anything with the secret I kept from everyone in this room.

"When do we leave?" I asked, hands clenched into fists so tight that my nails marked crescent moons across my palm.

"As soon as our means of travel allows. Until then you can stay in this room. We will send for you when we are ready to leave."

I drank from the bone-carved cup slowly, not because I was thirsty, but because I needed to keep my hands busy. I didn't long for the water that passed my lips. It was a stronger substance I desired, something that would warm my chest and make my mind hazy.

As I took the short, uninterested sips, I couldn't take my eyes off the elegant, green, glass bottle full of a honey-coloured wine waiting patiently on the table before me.

"I will drink from it first if it makes you feel more comfortable," Erix offered, noticing my hesitation.

Erix and I had been left in the King Thallan's personal quarters whilst the plans for our quick departure were underway. It was clear the room had never been used, but that didn't make me any less comfortable.

Erix had done everything to ensure my comfort, offered to fetch warm water for another bath, even to rummage through the clothing provided to check for something – anything – that was hidden or could harm me. But most of all, he ensured he took the first sip or nibble of food before he gave them to me.

Although his attentiveness picked at the corners of my annoyance, I also didn't complain. It was calming knowing I could trust Erix without him giving me a reason to. Unlike Tarron, who hours before I could never have shared a secret with, nor longed to converse with a person of his personality type. That had changed now, as he had my father, and I could only pray that he kept his word, even though he had many reasons not to.

"You don't have to do all this," I replied, truly wincing at the thought of Erix trying anything; I didn't want him to be bedridden like Briar had been.

"I want to. It is not a case of if I have to or not. It is the least I can do."

I looked up to him, focusing on keeping my hands steady as I gripped the cup. His wide, silver-clouded eyes were wide with concern. He hardly blinked as he studied me with his unwavering intensity. His skin was freshly washed, but his underlying scent hadn't wavered. He'd dressed in his usual dark leather trousers and form-fitting top. This time his sleeves didn't hide the outlined muscles of his arms. The material had little room for movement, as though the shirt was made for someone with a lesser build.

I distracted myself with the vision of him, tracing his features as a silent game to keep my own dark thoughts at bay. But it was failing, lasting only for a moment of reprieve. I needed something more as a distraction.

"Back home," I began, "when days were equally as draining, all I would want was the burn of a homebrewed ale to wash away the stresses. Since I cannot imagine this pretty little city has anything so hearty, why don't I crack open that bottle of wine and not let it go to waste?"

Erix lifted an eyebrow in surprise, turning in his seat to follow my gaze. "I am not sure that would be a good idea… it is best you have a clear head."

"Erix, I am sitting on the edge of a bed made for royalty, dressed in clothes meant for a king. I don't imagine drinking the wine is going to make much of a difference to the wild storm in my mind right now."

"Well, you do look rather handsome in that oversized tunic." Erix turned back to me, narrowing eyes looking across my body. My legs were bare, the shirt falling below my undershorts.

"So, is that a yes to the wine?" I held up my cup, sloshing the water over the sides until it splashed upon the bedding beneath me. "Or are you going to make me say please?"

For a moment, his stare became serious. Anyone else might've felt threatened. But to me, it only made my longing for a distraction burn hotter.

In moments the downed cup of water was refilled to the top with the golden-hued liquid. Erix didn't pour himself a glass, instead he took the bottle in his large, closed fist and sat back down before me.

"You have done a masterful job at dancing around the topic of what happened with Tarron," Erix said, lifting the rim of the bottle to his full, parted lips.

Because you made it clear that any mention of Tarron irked you.

"I visited Father, someone attacked, and he was hurt. Tarron healed him and promised to protect him under his own care. There is nothing more to the story." I took a long swig of wine, letting my tongue melt beneath the beautiful, unworldly taste that followed. I kept the liquid in my mouth, behind closed lips, allowing the flavour to rock around every possible inch of my tongue, before swallowing.

"I do not want to be the one to darken the mood even more so, but Tarron is not to be trusted. We should petition for your father to stay with us. Queen Lyra would not decline if you asked for him to travel to Farrador. Gods, I would feel better even if he was left in Aurelia." Urgency made Erix speak quickly, hardly breaking for breath until he got every last word out.

"Dare I ask what Tarron has done to you that you hold such dislike for him?"

The question hung between us. I could see Erix contemplating my question as he lost himself to his thoughts, gaze drifting to some forgotten spot on the headboard behind me.

"It won't change matters."

"Maybe not." I reached a hand for him, placing it softly upon his knee. "But you can tell me. At some point, you are going to have to open up if you keep expecting me to do the same."

"Fair enough, little bird." Erix loosed a sigh, took a rather large swig of wine, and relaxed back in the chair. "My family were from the Oakstorm Court. Tarron and I are of similar ages and had been forced together, in social events, from a very early age. You see, my mother was a lady-in-waiting, helping and aiding Tarron's own mother for years. Far more years before Tarron and I came into the world. I have known him for a long time and can see through his cracks. Believe me, there are many. He…" Erix shook his head and took yet another swig of wine, tipping the bottle back and inhaling the liquid. I watched, enthralled by the rhythmic bob of the lump in his throat. He came back for air, clearing the remnants of glistening wine from his lips and chin with the back of his hand. "Tarron once took someone I cared dearly about. To prove a point. Or just for a game, I still am not certain who won. It was one of the reasons I left, to get away from the unfair games between us that I had found myself entered into without a choice. There is far more to the story, but nothing that cannot wait for another day."

A twisting of emotion thrummed within me; it was not a nice feeling but a familiar, bitter one that soured the wine as I drank it. "Who was it?"

I didn't need to elaborate on my question for Erix to know what I asked. Part of me didn't want to know the answer either, but I found myself craving the knowledge.

"A girl. Someone I once knew from my past that I try extremely hard to forget. It was many years ago, and her memory is no more than a closed chapter. But to Tarron, she was a trophy. A prize to be won. And it broke her beyond the point of…" Erix trailed off, words dying on the tip of his tongue.

"Of what?" I sat forward, longing to know more.

"It is not for me to say." There was something thunderous behind his stare; it came on as fast as a storm, darkening the mood in seconds. "Not now, please. That part of my life means nothing now. Forgotten. And I would very much like to keep it that way. Although it may seem therapeutic to peer through the crack in the door, I would like very much to keep it closed."

The version of Tarron that Erix saw was far different to the man who promised my father's safety, someone I had shared the greatest secret of all with. "Perhaps he has changed."

Erix looked at me, lip curling slightly. "For the better or worse, it is too soon to tell."

I regretted speaking of Tarron. It only conjured an image of Father's bleeding body and the mark that had engraved itself into my very brain; it waited for me in the dark behind my eyes with every blink.

I needed a distraction.

My eyes glanced back to Erix, who stole gulps of wine from the bottle again. What he spoke of had troubled him to the point his hands shook with anger. A bottled emotion that he struggled to keep caged. I almost felt the tension he wrestled with.

"How long do you think we have?" I asked, voice no more than a whisper.

Erix slowly lowered the bottle, eyes wide as he regarded me. "Why do you ask?"

Was that hope I caught in the lift of his voice? I hoped not. Now, more than ever, I was not in a position to commit to someone's feelings when my own was uncontrollable, but his ability to take my mind away was a blessing, and I didn't want it to go to waste.

And I could see that he too required a distraction. One I was willing to become.

"It's just…" My words tapered off.

Erix scowled, leaning in as he no doubt tried to work me out. Good luck with that, my mind was a maze. "You are making me nervous with your questioning, little bird. And your silence."

"Was it just a one-time thing?" I asked, ignoring his use of my nickname. "Or, I mean, should it be a one-time thing?"

Silver eyed widened, lips parting. "Is that what you want?" He threw his question at me, dodging my own as though it was a sharpened blade. "Because if it is, I will respect your answer."

What did I want?

Him .

I stood from the bed, nudging his knees apart enough for me to stand between them. He looked up at me, fist gripped around the elegant neck of the bottle. I was surprised it did not crack beneath the strengthening of his grip. "I know it should be. Deep down, I'm screaming at myself to dismiss it and move on. But–"

"But?" Erix echoed.

"Maybe I don't want it to stop. Not completely."

"I'm good at many things, little bird, but reading between the lines is one skill I haven't mastered. Tell me what you want from me, and you can have it. Be clear with your words."

The tension between us thickened, growing serious in a matter of seconds. Erix didn't smile as he looked up at me. I felt like a delicious meal that he was being kept from, although he was starved.

I reached for his face, pressing a hand to his cheek. His skin was warm and welcoming. His hard, straight and tall posture relaxed into my touch as I told him what I thought. "I want to stop thinking. I want peace in my own head for just a moment."

"And you need my help for that?"

I nodded, fighting the urge to grin at the thought of using him for my own peace of mind. "It may make the process of what's happening, and what has happened, easier to organise from chaos to clarity."

"And how," he murmured, his deep voice sending a lightning bolt through my spine, "can I help with that?"

"Distract me."

Those two words were all that was holding Erix back. He sprang from the chair, wrapping an arm around my back and twisting my body towards the bed once again. Air whizzed past my ears, my stomach jolting under the impact.

I giggled as my back hit the soft cushioning of the bed. Erix prowled above me, wide arm sweeping the many decorations from around us until pillows and blankets softly plopped onto the floor, forgotten.

His lips were on mine, tasting like fruit and spice. My tongue moved, lapping up the remnants of wine which exploded within my own mouth, tastebuds as alive as the skin his rough touch brushed over.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him down upon me. All I could think of was keeping him close, preventing him from stopping.

My lips tingled when we finally broke away from one another. I took the moments he trailed his mouth down my cheek, along the curve of my jaw and onto my neck to catch my breath. He slipped from my hold, his hands lifting the bottom of King Thallan's oversized shirt and exposing my stomach. No matter how many deep inhales I took in, I couldn't seem to catch my breath. Not as his kiss moved from my neck to my chest, to the tensed muscles of my lower stomach, all the way to the band of material that signalled the start of my undershorts.

Then Erix stopped. It was so sudden I craned my neck up and looked down at him.

He was staring up at me, his grin turning the corners of his glistening, full lips up at each corner. Mischief made his silver eyes glow from within. "May I?"

It seemed words were not an option. Instead, I flopped my head back down onto the bed, closing my eyes until all I saw was star-speckled darkness. It wasn't what I could see that thrilled me, but what I felt. And his hands had not stopped moving, fingers inching closer to the cock that throbbed within my undershorts, all I did was feel .

It was enough of an indication that I wanted what Erix had to offer. The feeling was strange but welcome. It sent burning nerves through my core, but his touch seemed to smother those embers.

I was usually the one on my knees until my jaw ached. Never had it been me on the receiving end; by choice, maybe, or the fact that the others I'd been intimate with were more worried about their own ending than mine.

Erix didn't seem to think of himself, not once. Even when he rode inside of me, it had felt as though each movement was a gift or treat meant for me.

This was no different.

Erix gently tugged at my undershorts with one hand, the other scooped beneath my back until he lifted me from the bed. Enough to pull them from me and discard them on the pile of pillows. A breeze dusted across my cock, making a shiver cross my skin, but then it was gone, warmed by the touch of Erix, who wrapped his fingers around it.

"You asked for a distraction, and it is my duty as your personal guard to provide you with one."

"Erix," I exhaled his name, arching my back until the flat of his hand pressed down on my stomach and I was lying once again. I looked down at him, expecting to see him staring back, but his focus was on the hard cock that waited in his hand.

"You want this, don't you?" he asked.

I gasped as his hand began to move. Up and down, slowly twisting at the wrist with each stroke. "Yes."

"Let me hear you say my name." His hand quickened in pace.

"Erix."

"Again," he demanded, hand quickening in pace yet again.

"Eri – Erix!"

I tumbled into the thrill of pleasure, unable to think of anything but his touch.

"Good," he breathed slowly. "I do love it when you say my name."

The feeling that followed was unlike anything I'd ever felt before. Erix placed me within his mouth, swapping his hand movements for the upwards and downwards dance of his head. I'd done it many times before but never realised what it felt like on the receiving end.

Now I did; I scolded myself for never having it done to me before.

I gripped at the sheets. Pleasure had me making sounds with each exhale. It urged Erix on, his pace changing and altering without warning. I felt as though I rode atop a wild stallion, not knowing if it was trotting, cantering or galloping. The unknown was thrilling as I gave into it. If this was like riding a horse, I was ready to be thrown from the saddle.

A pressure was building within me. The more it grew, the more sensitive I became. Erix's lips tightened, his tongue moving in quicker and more frantic circles around my cock. I wanted it to end, but in the same way, I didn't. This feeling was one that I wished would last forever, but I knew the sensation that was waiting to happen was pure divinity, and the promise of that release, with Erix at the helm, almost sent me over the edge.

I looked down at Erix's bobbing head. His mouth was busy, and so was the hand that aided him. But his other hand, the one spare, couldn't be seen as he gripped onto his own cock. His arm moved, pleasuring himself just as he did me.

And it was that sight that threw me over the chasm, knowing he shared in the feeling made it impossible to control it. My breathing laboured, my moaning increasing in volume and pace. The feeling crept from the pits of my stomach, warming my groin as his wet mouth worked on me. I tried to pull back at it, but it was impossible to control. Erix made noises, deep huffing as his own arm jerked wildly at his cock.

Then we finished. Together – again .

I closed my eyes but felt it as though that sensation was all that mattered. Our breathing entwined into one thread, our bodies tensing in the same overwhelming waves.

For one long celestial moment, we were united as one, and that was a feeling I would never forget.

My head spun as I lay back on the bed. I felt every touch as Erix peeled his hand from my length. I was too enthralled in the reoccurring spasms of joy that took over my body to care about what occurred in the room around me.

"Thank you," I murmured, revelling in the peace and quiet of my mind.

"I do not expect you to thank me for anything, little bird." Erix was at my feet, pulling the undershorts over them and up both my legs. He dressed me with sure fingers, just as he had undressed me. "For another, careless night, the thanks may have been nice to hear. But you do not thank me for something that is quite literally my pleasure."

I sat up, reaching shaking hands to help him as I pulled the undershorts back into position. "Do you need me to finish too?"

Erix shook his head. He knew what I asked before I even had finished what I had to say. "I am more than satisfied, trust me."

I looked at the bulge within his trousers. He was still large, but I knew that he had shared in that climax. The splash of liquid staining his undershorts confirmed as much. Just seeing the imprint had me ready to go again, a feeling that usually returned after a good sleep and a meal, with previous lovers.

It was Erix's turn to walk between my legs, nudging them open with his knees. He placed both his fists on the bed beside me, leaning down until his face was inches from my own. "I hope that helped clear your mind."

I blinked slowly, not wanting to take my eyes off him. "It did."

Erix puckered his lips and placed a small, kind kiss to the tip of my nose. "If I cannot do anything but take your mind off the world, then I sacrifice myself to the cause. Willingly, of course."

"I–"

"Are you both done…?" a voice yawned at the edge of the room.

I snapped my head to the door, just as Erix did, our noses a splinter from cracking into each other. Althea leaned against the doorframe, inspecting her nails in the dim light as though she hid gold within them.

Erix bolted from me. I couldn't move, I was frozen to the spot. Damn. Her father's spare bed.

"Oh, Erix, no need to act so bashful now." Althea hardly spared us a glance, her entire demeanour screamed with her lack of care.

"It is not what it looks like," I uttered, snatching Althea's attention from Erix before she truly had a chance to look at him.

"Is it not?" Althea pouted, hand landing upon her hip as though it were a walking stick. "Well, that is very disappointing. Do not get me wrong, you would not be the first story of a royal falling for their personal guard. Even my own father has had those rumours linked to his name. But to do it in this bed, how very…" I readied myself for the mortifying dread that was coming to bury me alive. "…repetitive."

I glanced at Erix, who shared the same look of embarrassment, but confusion about what Althea said.

Althea sighed heavily. "Oh, boys, come on. Do you think you are the first to spoil those sheets? My father doesn't sleep here, so someone better get the enjoyment out of them. Please, welcome to the club. As the leading member, I should likely hand out badges or create a banner to unite us, but perhaps that would be in bad taste."

"I don't get it…" I said, noticing Erix as he stared at his boots with a knowing smirk.

"Apologies, Althea, we did not expect your presence," Erix said, looking up at her through his lashes.

"I am only sorry to be the one to interrupt. Erix, how about you clean up the mess, and I will get Robin something more suitable to wear."

I sprang from the bed, skipping on light feet for Althea, who waved me to join her. Her father's shirt fell back down to my knees, hiding what little modesty I had left.

Althea hooked an arm around my own and patted her hand on mine. "Forgive me if I am wrong, but I am starting to understand how you both kept warm during your night in Berrow." My cheeks flushed red. "And do not worry, I hardly saw a thing. Your secret is rather safe with me. And believe me, I am excellent at keeping secrets."