Chapter 49

By the time we headed back to our room, I was dragging on my feet. Kal’s wings flapped steadily, his arms tight around me. My eyes were already closing, and I was being lulled to sleep by the steady beat of his wings, the temperature of his scales, and the gentle thrum of his heart.

Kal landed, knees flexing. “We’re in our quarters.”

“Hmm,” I muttered. Kal laughed. Fuck, I loved that sound. It was so deep and rumbly. One of his arms went behind my knees and the other stayed around my back. He scooped me into his arms, and my eyes popped open.

“What the hell are you doing?” I asked, my voice higher pitched than normal.

“Carrying you to bed.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re tired.” I opened my mouth to protest, but Kal continued, “Relax, Husband. I have you.”

Exhausted, I snaked my arms around his neck. “Don’t make a habit of it.”

Lucy meowed at our arrival.

“Yes, Lucy,” Kal said, moving in an odd pattern, probably trying to avoid stepping on her. Kal set me on the bed, and then began stripping me.

“Seriously?” I asked when he tugged my shirt off.

“I wasn’t thinking about sex, mostly. I was trying to get you ready for bed.”

“Sure.”

Kal continued to take my clothes off, then draped the blanket over me. Lucy settled against my side as I watched Kal remove his clothes, taking in the width of his shoulders, the tapering of his hips, and the way his muscles moved. His wings unfurled, stretching, and his tail flicked, drawing my focus to his firm ass. Kal strode back to the bed, naked.

He settled under the covers next to me. With his head propped up on his hand and his other arm over my waist, fingers stroking me, he asked, “Tonight wasn’t awful, was it?”

“No, it wasn’t,” I said. “I like your family.”

“They like you too. All my brothers said so.”

I needed to tell him about the emperor wanting to see me, but Kal was not going to like it. “Your father spoke to me tonight.”

His fingers stilled. “Was he mean?”

“No,” I said. Kal’s brow furrowed. “I promise. He does want to see me tomorrow. Alone.”

“No,” Kal growled. “Not going to happen.”

“Babe.”

Kal shook his head, tail thrashing and wings spreading. “He’s going to take you away or try to convince you not to stay.”

“That will never happen.” I kissed him, rolling on top of Kal and pinning his wrists to the bed above his head. He groaned, tail coiling up my leg.

“Trust me,” I whispered against his lips.

“I do.”

“Then meeting with your father shouldn’t be a problem.”

“I can’t lose you.”

I kissed him again, my tongue brushing his scaled one. “You won’t.”

Kal tugged against my restraint, and I let him go. He held my hips, rocking beneath me. My lips moved against him, the kiss growing more passionate and wet by the moment as our tongues clashed. My dick twitched, swelling. Kal so easily stirred me. I wanted him like I’d never wanted anyone else.

“Kal,” I whispered.

He ground against my hips, his hard dick rubbing against mine. “Fuck me, Seth.”

“I can do that.” I kissed him as my fingers traveled down his body, tracing the lines of his muscles. I would distract Kal from tomorrow. Maybe my touch would soothe his worries? Even if it didn’t, it would put all thought out of his mind.

“Seth.”

I groaned, pressing closer to Kal, and tried to go back to sleep. His arms tightened around my back, as did his tail holding my ankle. Sighing, I felt waves of sleep drawing me under.

“Seth.” An old human woman’s face floated in the monitor.

“NAID,” I croaked.

“Hello,” she said, grinning. “The scientists successfully integrated me into Prince Kalvoxrencol’s system.”

“I’m glad,” I whispered to not wake up Kal. “I thought it would take longer, but I’m glad it didn’t. I missed you.”

“And I you, but we’ll have plenty of time to speak later. Emperor Kontolmakqilnen is on his way.”

“Shit.” Sunlight filtered through the sheer curtains, but I couldn’t guess the time. We must have overslept.

I slipped out of Kal’s grasp. His tail remained firmly around my ankle. With slow movements, I unwound it. Kal rolled, reaching to my side of the bed. I stroked his head, his hair sliding through my fingers.

Eventually, his breathing evened, and he fell back into a deep sleep.

When I stood, my eyes went to NAID who watched me with a blank expression. I blushed. “Some privacy please?”

She chuckled. “I will leave you to it. When Prince Kalvoxrencol wakes, I will tell him you’re with Emperor Kontolmakqilnen.”

I rushed to the bathroom to piss and shower. I pulled on a pair of pants and one of my hoodies. Dressing formally was probably the wisest thing, but I needed the comfort of my familiar sweater. Slipping on a pair of shoes, I stepped back into the bedroom. Kal still slept, sprawled on the bed. Lucy was on her back, pressed against his side.

I tip-toed out of the room.

A few seconds later the door dinged with someone’s arrival—Kal’s father.

The emperor was casually dressed in a pair of black trousers and a red sleeveless tunic that showed off his bulging arms. “Seth Harris.”

“It’s Seth.”

He smiled; the expression was friendly, but it reminded me heavily of Kal’s polite smile, not his true one. “Seth, then. Where is Kalvoxrencol?”

“Sleeping.”

“He must have been tired from last night.”

“You could say that.” A blush unfortunately seeped into my cheeks. Damn my inability to control it.

Laughter spilled out of his lips; the deep rumbling sound was so similar to Kal’s. “Come. Let’s go somewhere so Kalvoxrencol doesn’t interrupt us.”

It hadn’t occurred to me that we would leave the room, but once Kal woke up, he wouldn’t let his father talk to me. “We”re not going far, right?”

“We’ll stay in the royal wing. There is a terrace with a lovely garden that Zoltilvoxfyn tends. We’ll go there.”

We wound through the palace. The few servants who passed by us tilted their heads to the side. Kal’s father, whose name I really needed to learn, greeted each one by name. I remained silent, trying to smile, but I couldn’t seem to get my muscles to respond correctly. My heart pounded against my ribs, threatening to break free, and sweat dripped down my spine. The temperature was too hot for my hoodie, but nerves, not heat, made me sweat. I didn’t want to be here. I wanted to curl in Kal’s embrace, where everything was simple.

Grass intermixed with small white flowers covered the entirety of the terrace. Trees swirled with vines stretched far into the sky. Flowers of all different kinds and palm bushes rustled in the constant wind. A path formed of dark brown bark wound through the jungle-like garden. Birds chirped from their nests, and smaller animals skittered from our presence, hiding in the underbrush.

“It’s lovely,” I said.

“It is.”

I nodded, arms swinging at my sides, not knowing what to say.

Kal’s father gestured into the treeline and moved to the path, his feet crunching on the loose bark. I followed him. The humid air made it feel hotter than it actually was. I fluffed the front of my hoodie, then paused when a bug buzzed right in front of me. The insect was the size of a butterfly, but it resembled a bee with a wicked, barbed stinger on its butt. The bee-like insect paid me no mind, settling on a fragrant pink flower.

We wandered under the trees, not speaking. The emperor did not even glance in my direction, and I didn’t want to be the one to break the oppressive silence. After several minutes, he stopped in front of a particularly tall tree with grayish-green bark, dark green leaves, and red vines winding around it. He plucked a green flower from the vine and presented it to me.

I accepted it, the petal velvety soft.

He faced the tree once again. “Kalvoxrencol is my youngest child.”

“I know.”

“He is passionate, troublesome, and too much like me. I knew the moment he stole a vekren and raced around the capital that he would be a handful,” he said. I tried to focus, but the words horse, cow, and buffalo flashed through my mind. What in the world had Kal ridden? “He struggled to fit in. To find his place.”

Kal had said as much.

“His older brothers’ shadows were too great, so he acted out, repeatedly. I cannot tell you all the messes I fixed. The nights I and his mother went without sleep. I thought joining the military would help, but it didn’t. He broke in a different way, isolated by his birth. Finally, Hallonnixmin suggested he seek the Crystal for his soulmate, but I wouldn’t allow him to.”

“Why?”

“Because I feared he would squander it, not caring for his soulmate. But Kalvoxrencol is unable to let go of an idea when he latches on. He fought hard to meet you. Cleaned up, behaved, and became productive, restoring his shaky, blemished honor in an attempt to prove to myself and his mother that he deserved you.”

“And you let him seek the Crystal?” I asked, even though I knew the answer.

“I didn’t want to, but his mother and Hallonnixmin convinced me Kalvoxrencol simply needed direction. He simply needed someone to love and who loved him in return.”

“I love him,” I said fiercely.

“I believe you. I knew it from the moment you defended him.”

“Kal loves me as well.”

His eyebrows raised at the nickname, but he didn’t remark on it. “I know, but I worry.”

“About?”

“That he will return to his old ways eventually, and you will be injured. I cannot only think of his happiness, but I must think of yours as well. I am not sure Kalvoxrencol deserves you.”

“I’m no one.”

“That’s not true,” he said. “You matter as much as my son. Every person has their place and worth that is equal to one another. No one person is greater than another.” He stared at me for a moment before he asked, “Do you truly believe he has changed?”

“Yes,” I said.

His expression was blank. “Do you believe you will be happy with him?”

“I can’t imagine my life without him. I think even if you sent me back to Earth and I lost my memories, I would search for him.”

“You will not be able to change your mind in the future. We mate for life, unlike your kind. You will be stuck with Kalvoxrencol whether you want to be or not.”

Suddenly, everything made sense. “You’re worried I will change my mind and hurt Kal.”

“I am.”

I stepped closer, fighting a wave of unease. “I won’t. I love Kal. That’s never going to change. I want this life with him.”

A smile, a true one, stretched over his lips. “I believe you.”

“You won’t oppose us, right?”

“I want to speak with my son first, but no. I will allow the bond to continue.”

I grinned. “Thank you.”

His tail wrapped around my wrist. “You’re welcome. You’re my son now as well.”

“I’ve never had a father.” For some odd reason, a burning sensation started in the back of my eyes.

He held my face in his hands. “You do now, Seth.”

I paced in front of the couch, waiting. When I’d woken up, Seth was with my father. Seth had asked me to trust him, trust his love, and I did, but I worried about what Father would say. Would he chase Seth away? Would he not agree to our bond? I wanted to reaffirm my bond with Seth more than anything.

It was afternoon when the door chimed. It couldn’t be Seth; he would come inside without a preamble. Father stood in the hall, but I didn’t see Seth anywhere.

“Where is my Seth?”.

He raised his eyebrows at my tone. “In the garden. Zoltilvoxfyn was showing him his projects. He’s perfectly safe.”

“Sorry,” I said, motioning him inside.

His tail wrapped around mine. “You’re protective. I already knew this.”

“Did your conversation go well?”

“Yes.” Father headed toward Lucy on the couch. She arched her back, hissing, and darted to the bedroom. He lifted his eyebrows.

“She doesn’t like new people,” I commented. “What did you and Seth talk about?”

“What do you think? You. Your mating. Him.”

My tail whipped, and my wings struggled to break free. “And?”

“I have some questions for you.”

“Go ahead.” I motioned for him to continue, unable to sit down.

“Do you love him?”

“Yes,” I snapped. “I love him. He’s my mate.”

Father continued, unperturbed by my tone, “He is.”

“And?”

“He’s sensitive.”

I bristled. “There is nothing wrong with my Seth.”

“I didn’t say there was.”

“Then what are you saying?”

Standing, Father placed a hand on my arm to stop my rapid movements. “I don’t think there is anything wrong with Seth, but he does require patience and love, like anyone, but more so. Can you provide the support he needs?”

“I will give him whatever he needs, and he does the same for me.”

“You know his kind doesn’t mate for life?”

“Yes, but I believe Seth when he tells me he loves me.”

“I am worried.”

“About?”

“That when the fire of this new relationship ends and your normal routine returns, you will revert to how you used to be.”

“I won’t.”

“How can I be certain?”

“You can’t.”

“This time,” he said, “you won’t only injure us, you will injure Seth. He doesn’t deserve that, and he will be inexplicably tied to you.”

“I would never hurt him or return to how I was. I promise. I fought so hard for him and for your and mother”s opinions of me to change, I won’t compromise that. Not ever.”

“I believe you.”

My pulse thundered in my ears. “Does that mean you’re accepting our mating?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you.” I threw my arms around him. “Thank you.”

He patted my back. “Your mother would never let me hear the end of it if I didn’t, and I like your Seth. He clearly makes you happy if evidenced by what I stumbled on.”

I jerked away. “You need to stop bringing that up. You illegally transferred into my bedroom.”

“Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

I ran toward the window. I had to find Seth.

Zoltilvoxfyn was a restful companion, who didn’t talk much, though he named the different species and variations of plants in his extensive garden. I was examining a pink and blue flower he had crossbred when arms surrounded me, whirling me around.

Squeaking, I tried not to vomit as the arms spun me around and around.

“My Seth,” Kal practically shouted in my ear. “We can reaffirm our bond.”

“My congratulations,” Zoltilvoxfyn said, setting a pot down and dusting his hands off. “But you might want to put Seth down. Are humans supposed to look green?”

My feet connected with the ground, and I was jerked around. Kal hovered in front of me. “We can reaffirm our bond.”

“Your father told me as much.”

His breath was heavy, and his hands held my hips tightly. “Can I kiss you?”

“We have an audience.”

Kal looked toward his brother who watched us unabashedly. His arms came around me and his wings snapped open, lifting us into the air. Quicker than I thought possible, we were in our room. Alone.

“Now can I kiss you?”

I tugged his lips down to mine, not bothering to answer.