Chapter 26

For the fourth time in as many days, I stood at the open window in my chamber and watched Ronan stride down the path leading to the forest. As always, he cut a striking figure, his black clothing a stark contrast to the snow.

He was going to check the frost on the trees. He'd done it every day since we returned from Nordlinga. The gesture was unnecessary. His frost was in no danger of melting. But Ronan didn't go to the forest to monitor the frost.

No, he went there to stop himself from going to Sigurn. The first day we returned, their arguments had threatened to spill from Ronan's bedchamber into the hallway. Sigurn had raged at Ronan, accusing him of holding Sigurn captive for spite. Ronan insisted he wanted to make sure I didn't fall ill again.

There was some truth to that. But the ultimate truth—and the real reason Ronan wouldn't release Sigurn—was something neither man wanted to acknowledge.

They loved each other. If it hadn't been obvious to me before, it was now. For one thing, they'd both been absolutely rotten to be around. Short-tempered and taciturn, they kept to their separate chambers and bit the heads off guards, servants, and anyone else who dared to disturb their sulking.

But they had stood on either side of me while knights lowered my parents to the frozen ground of the Winter Forest. Tall and solid at each of my shoulders, they had slipped their hands in mine while hoarfrost crept over my parents' faces and Winter reclaimed their bodies. Ronan and Sigurn hadn't argued that day. And when no trace of my parents remained, they'd walked me back to the castle, wordlessly guided me into bed, and climbed in after me. They held me in the quiet room, their gentle hands stroking my back and hair until I fell asleep.

I wanted them both. And they wanted each other. But it was impossible. Ronan's vow made it so. How could Sigurn stay in Ishulum knowing that he waited to die at Ronan's hand? He couldn't—and so the impasse continued, with Sigurn chafing at the bond and Ronan refusing to break it.

Cold air drifted around me, tugging at my hair as I watched Ronan move from tree to tree. I let my gaze wander past him to the spot where stones marked my parents' resting place. Smaller stones clustered around it. My parents had tried so hard to keep the throne from falling into my hands. They died for it—and now I'd given the throne to Ronan and allowed my father's name to die with him. That was the best decision I could make as a queen. I wouldn't fall into the same trap as my parents, fighting for a different outcome and hurting myself and others in the process. I wouldn't?—

I sucked in a breath as a single thought flared like cold fire in my mind.

I'd given the throne to Ronan and allowed my father's name to die with him.

Heart racing, I spun from the window and rushed from my chamber. Seconds later, I flung Sigurn's door open. "I know what we have to do!"

Sigurn turned from his window, a look of concern on his face. "Liria. Is everything all right?"

"Yes," I said breathlessly. "I mean, it will be." I went to him and took one of his hands in mine. "You have to become frostbound to Ronan. The minute that happens, you'll become Sigurn ap-Ronan. Your connection to Roddard and Erland will be broken. Once your name changes, Ronan won't have to make you nameless."

He stared at me with his mismatched eyes. Maybe it was my imagination, but the brown one looked lighter, as if Winter had begun creeping into it.

"Sigurn?" I prompted. "Did you hear what I said?"

"I heard." He stared at me for another moment, then squeezed my hand before releasing me and walking to the hearth. My excitement fizzled as he lowered himself into one of the chairs before the fire. He passed a heavy hand over the lower half of his face, smoothing his beard even though it didn't need it. The castle seamstresses had quickly altered shirts and jackets to fit him, but he'd insisted on keeping the leather pants that clung to his broad thighs. He lowered his hand to one knee, his posture stiff.

"You don't like it," I said. "I understand that it's a lot to ask."

He looked at me, a deep frown between his eyes. "Giving up my name? Everything that makes me who I am?"

Anger sparked in my chest. I crossed the room and stopped in front of him. Seated as he was, I could look him in the eye without straining my neck, and I let my anger leak into my voice. "What am I, then? House Ilymaris will never have an heir. When I marry Ronan, my house will become Morendiel. If I have a child, a Morendiel will sit on Winter's throne. But that doesn't mean I cease to exist."

"It's different for a woman."

"How so?"

He scowled. "It just is. And this is about much more than changing my name." He gestured to his eyes. "If I stay here and become frostbound, I'll never own myself again. I'll belong to Ronan, and I'll be under his control for the rest of my life. If he tells me to jump, I'll have no choice but to jump. He could tell me to throw myself into the Silver Sea if he wanted to."

"He would never do that."

Sigurn huffed. "You've clearly never been around him when he's angry."

"Yes, I have." I planted my hands on my hips. "I guarantee I've made him angrier than you have. But no matter how angry I make him, Ronan would never hurt me. Because he loves me, Sigurn." I stepped between his knees and took his beard in a gentle grip. "He loves me just as much as he loves you."

Brown and blue eyes blinked at me. Sigurn swallowed, his thick throat working. He spoke in a low voice, his brown eye as soulful as the first time I met him. "Even if he does, it doesn't matter. I'm not like you, Liria. I'm human. I'll live a long time but I won't live forever. Are you prepared to watch me grow old and die?"

I cupped his face in both hands. My skirts puddled around his legs as I softened my voice. "My parents were both from a long line of powerful elves. Their magic was unrivaled. They were strong and proud and deeply in love. And just days ago, I buried them. No one, human or elf, is guaranteed tomorrow. Only today. Only right now."

Sigurn closed his eyes, his long lashes sweeping his cheeks. His breath shuddered out, and my heart ached for my tender, melancholy giant who'd sacrificed so much and didn't seem to realize he deserved better.

"I've had a lot of time to think over the past few days," I said quietly. "And I think I know why you took the scepter." He blinked his eyes open, and I stroked his beard, feeling his firm jaw underneath the short hairs. "You didn't necessarily want power, my love. You wanted Ronan to come after you."

Sigurn stilled. He said nothing, but the truth of my words swam in his mismatched eyes. After a moment, he wrapped a thick arm around my waist and pressed his cheek to my stomach.

"Do you love him?" I whispered, running my fingers through his dark hair.

"Yes," he rasped, sighing. "I love you both. I can't seem to do anything like an ordinary person."

A watery laugh escaped me. But as I continued stroking his hair, my mirth settled into something deeper. "From childhood, I believed I would take the throne one day. My sense of worth was tied to it. Losing it meant losing myself somehow. But I gained something when I gave it up."

Sigurn straightened, his eyes meeting mine.

"Love." I pushed his hair off his forehead. "Ronan loves me. He loves you, too."

"He's never said it."

The door opened, and Ronan entered. Silently, he crossed the room and sat in the chair opposite Sigurn's.

Sigurn let his arm slide to my hips as he sat back in his chair. "I distinctly remember you saying eavesdropping is a bad habit."

Ronan plucked an imaginary piece of lint from his jacket. "I don't need to listen in Liria's tunnels." He leveled a cool look at Sigurn. "You're loud enough to hear in the hallway."

"You're an asshole."

"I know."

I waited, hope trembling in my heart as the men I loved stared at each other.

Sigurn's arm around my hips tightened imperceptibly. "If I do this, I want your word you'll never command me."

"I vow it," Ronan said without hesitation. "Na-sessni. I will never use magic to compel your obedience."

They stood at the same time, their gazes locked. Sigurn tangled his fingers with mine, and he took me with him as he stepped into Ronan. My breath caught as their lips met. Their kiss was slow and unhurried. Because they had time now. They didn't need to rush.

Ronan reached out and took my other hand, and he pulled me into him as he pressed his forehead to Sigurn's. "I love you."

Sigurn swallowed audibly. "I said it first."

For a moment, I had to fight the urge to thump him on the back of the head.

"Yes," Ronan said, "but you told Liria. I said it to your face."

All right, so I'd thump both of them at the same time.

"You heard me tell her," Sigurn said. "You were eavesdropping."

Someone who didn't know Ronan would have missed the tiny smile at the corner of his mouth. "Don't act surprised. False stupidity doesn't suit you."

Sigurn's smile was harder to miss. "What about real stupidity?"

As Ronan pulled away, his smile was unmistakable. "Much more believable."

I stepped between them, a palm on each of their chests. "If you two insist on bickering, I'm going back to my room."

"No," Sigurn said, lifting my hand to his lips. "Don't go. We'll be good."

My blood heated. The joy of having both of them summoned a tangle of emotions. "I'm not sure if I want to laugh or cry," I confessed.

Ronan's eyes softened. He brought my other hand to his mouth and brushed a kiss over my knuckles. "Would you be interested in a third option?"

I looked at Sigurn, whose eyes shone with desire.

"Yes," I whispered. "Take me to bed."

* * *

Sigurn and Ronanhad me stripped and tucked against the pillows within seconds. My heart pounded overtime as they stood next to the bed, pulling their clothes off with jerky, desperate-looking movements. Their gazes held, energy surging between them. Moisture flooded me as I devoured thick shoulders, taut muscles, and heaving abs. When their heavy dicks sprang free, I dug my teeth into my bottom lip.

I wasn't certain what they had in store for me, but I was ready for all of it. How could I not be? Their bodies were strong and perfect in the light pouring through the windows.

And I wanted them this way, I realized. Bright and open, with no secrets between us.

Finally, they were nude, their clothes strewn across the floor and their panting breaths filling the air. For one charged, shimmering moment, they stared at each other. Then they came together in a powerful, hungry clash. Their lips met, tongues darting and twining in a dance that had me sitting up for a better view. Lust seared me as they groped at each other, grabbing and grunting without breaking their kiss.

Sigurn slid his hands to Ronan's ass and gripped hard, his scarred fingers taut on the muscle. Ronan groaned and thrust his hips into Sigurn's. Their cocks slid against each other, and I couldn't stifle my moan. Sunlight slanted over them, lovingly caressing hard, round thighs and twitching biceps. Moisture swelled from the slit in Sigurn's cockhead as he tightened his grip on Ronan's ass, holding Ronan still while he rocked their hips together.

I crept on hands and knees to the edge of the bed, my breasts swaying and my clit throbbing between my legs. As I settled on my heels, Sigurn stroked the fingers of one hand down Ronan's cleft. Sigurn ended the kiss, his brown-and-blue eyes glazed with arousal as his fingers disappeared between Ronan's cheeks. I strained to see what he was doing, but I had an idea. The memory of Sigurn's wicked finger thrusting into my tight, sensitive pucker shivered in my mind.

Panting, the men stared at each other. The muscle in Sigurn's forearm flexed as he worked his hand deeper into Ronan's cleft.

Ronan's nostrils flared. He seized Sigurn's shoulder, his fingers digging into Sigurn's skin. When Sigurn's forearm flexed again, Ronan released a low whimper that sped straight to my sex.

"Yeah?" Sigurn asked, his voice rough.

Ronan gave a single nod. "Yeah."

Slowly, both men turned their heads and looked at me. Two pairs of predatory eyes worked their way down my body, lingering on my breasts and puckered nipples before dipping to my thighs.

"Spread your legs," Sigurn ordered in a low voice. "Let's see if you're ready for us."

My pulse pounded between my legs as I moved my knees apart. I knew what they saw. I was drenched, my sex damp and aching. Having their eyes on me wrenched my need higher, and I whimpered as the ache intensified.

"I can't tell," Ronan said. "Open yourself for us, Princess. Show us our pussy."

A groan built in my chest, his our tightening my nipples and making sweat break out across my body. With trembling hands, I reached between my legs. I was so slick, it took a few tries before I managed to grasp my swollen folds and pull my sex open.

Ronan and Sigurn stared, their heated gazes on my pulsing clit and exposed opening. Cool air bathed my passage. Moisture trickled from me. Sunlight spilled across the bed and illuminated everything between my legs. I'd never been more vulnerable. More on display.

"Gorgeous," Sigurn murmured. "So wet for us, sweetheart." He lifted his gaze to my face. "Do you want Ronan to fuck your pussy while I fuck his ass?"

Oh gods.I'd known it was coming, but hearing it spoken aloud was altogether different.

"Yes," I said, my voice emerging as a croak. "I want that. Please."

Sigurn smiled. Ronan's eyes darkened with lust.

Then they were on me, pushing me onto my back with an urgency that stole my breath. Sigurn claimed my mouth first, his tongue stroking mine as he tangled his fingers in my hair. As I arched against him, Ronan pressed open-mouthed kisses along my collarbone, tracing the edge of my sigils. At the same time, his hand closed around my breast and kneaded gently. Not to be outdone, Sigurn shifted his weight, angling his body so he could capture my other breast. Still probing my mouth, he flicked a thumb over my nipple.

As before, they caressed and stroked together, working me into a frenzy with their mouths and hands. I writhed beneath them, moaning and spreading my legs. I pumped my hips, desperate for one of them to touch me where I needed it most. Fingers found my clit, and I sobbed into Sigurn's mouth as sparks shot through me.

Sigurn moved his lips to my ear. "If Ronan gets to bury his dick in that hot little cunt of yours, it's only fair that I get a taste."

I nodded frantically, already pushing on his shoulders. "Yes. Now."

He moved down my body, pressed my knees wide, and buried his face in my pussy. At the first lash of his tongue on my clit, I bucked my hips, a cry catching in my throat.

Ronan went to his knees beside Sigurn, his own erection straining between his legs. "Get her ready for me," he said gruffly, grabbing Sigurn's head and holding it against my sex.

Sigurn obliged, thrusting his tongue into my channel. He pumped it in and out, spearing me over and over. My inner muscles clenched around his tongue. Moans spilled from me as I clutched at his head, my hands skimming Ronan's fingers. The telltale tingles of an orgasm built, nudging me closer to release. But the pinnacle remained just out of reach. And Sigurn knew it, damn him.

"Stop teasing me," I growled, my hips bucking involuntarily. "Put your mouth where I want it."

His chuckle vibrated my pussy. A second later, he sealed his lips around my clit and fluttered his tongue.

Pleasure exploded. My spine bowed, and my legs flung wider of their own accord. I pulled Sigurn's hair, probably hurting him, but he didn't stop. He continued licking and sucking, his growls joining my cries as the orgasm pummeled my body. In some dim corner of my mind, I registered Ronan moving away. The weight on the bed shifted, but I couldn't be bothered as the waves of pleasure swept me into another world.

When it was over, Sigurn was gone and Ronan loomed over me. He'd tied his hair back, the long strands bundled at his nape. But a few pieces had already escaped his makeshift bun, and the silvery ends trailed toward my breasts as he held himself above me.

"I like this," I said, my chest still heaving as I reached up and tucked a piece of hair behind his ear.

"Do you?" He bent and flicked his tongue over one of my nipples, wringing a whimper from me. When he straightened, his eyes gleamed with lustful promise. "I'll have to find other things you like, brat."

My core clenched. "I think you've found them all."

His lips curved. "Oh, I don't think so." Transferring his weight to one forearm, he trailed his opposite hand down my stomach and pushed two fingers inside me. I moaned, clamping around him as little aftershocks frazzled from my pussy to my breasts. "I think you and I have a lot more to discover, my love."

Love.I'd needed it for so long. And now I had it in double measure.

"Where is Sigurn?" I asked, lifting my head to peer over Ronan's shoulder.

Ronan raised an eyebrow as he pumped his fingers inside me, drawing wet sounds from my pussy. Ronan lifted his voice as if he addressed the room in general. "Where is Sigurn? Is that how this is going to be?"

Heat flooded my face as I let my head drop back to the pillow. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Sure you did," Sigurn said, striding to the bed. He grinned as he prowled onto the mattress with a little vial in his hand. "And let me just say, sweetheart, I wholly approve of you playing favorites." He aimed a smug look at Ronan's back. "As long as the favorite is me."

"I'm not playing favorites," I insisted. And how were we having this argument while Ronan thrust his fingers inside me?

"We're teasing you," Ronan said, dropping a kiss on my forehead.

Sigurn snorted. "Speak for yourself."

Ronan huffed against my brow, but he didn't quite manage to hide his smile as he lifted away.

My heart swelled, and my lust spun into something softer and sweeter as Sigurn ran a hand down Ronan's back, his expression blatantly admiring. Ronan had needed love, too—in double measure.

His breath caught, and his eyelids fluttered as Sigurn worked his hand lower.

"All right?" Sigurn murmured.

Ronan nodded. "Yeah. Just…let me…" He pulled his fingers from my sex, lodged his cock against my opening, and entered me in one smooth thrust.

I arched under him, my eyes drifting shut as pressure and pleasure mingled inside me. "Oh fuck."

The men laughed softly, and I opened my eyes in time to see Sigurn plant a soft kiss on Ronan's shoulder. "I think our princess likes your sword of the north."

Ronan groaned, the sound one of mortification rather than desire. I couldn't help but laugh even as I attempted to give Sigurn a stern look.

"Please, I am begging you, never say that again."

He winked at me. "I'll do my best."

"You'll repeat it at your peril," Ronan said, glowering at Sigurn over his shoulder. "I'm a much better swordsman than you."

I pressed my lips together, my shoulders shaking.

Ronan, obviously realizing what he'd just said, cursed under his breath.

Sigurn shook his head at me, his eyes twinkling. "He walks right into these, sweetheart. How am I supposed to control myself?" Abruptly, the twinkle in his eyes turned more heated, and he did something behind Ronan that made Ronan tense and then release a long, plaintive moan. Ronan's eyes slid shut, and he rocked his hips forward, the base of his shaft grazing my clit.

Sparks fluttered over my skin, and I moaned with him as another orgasm began to gather.

"Yeah," Sigurn rasped in a voice thick with satisfaction. Gaze fixed on Ronan's ass, he repeated the motion. "I think we both know I'm the better swordsman."

Ronan thrust again, his breath shuddering out. "Fine. Just get inside me already."

The command licked over me like lightning. I couldn't see much of what Sigurn was doing with Ronan's shoulders impeding my view, but I greedily drank in the few things I could see. As Ronan shivered above me, I watched Sigurn unstopper the vial and drip some kind of oil onto his hands, and I held my breath as he pushed one of Ronan's cheeks wide and did something with that oiled hand.

Judging from the way Ronan gasped and hung his head, I didn't have to guess.

The look in Sigurn's eyes grew more intense, and faint slick sounds drifted to my ears. "You all right?" he asked, flicking a glance at Ronan's nape.

"Fuck yes. Keep going."

Sigurn grunted. "So greedy for me." A low moan escaped him. "There you go, baby. A little more."

My breath seized, that roughly spoken baby reverberating in my head. I smoothed my hands up Ronan's arms, reveling in the hard muscle and the slight tremble in his shoulders. His sigils pulsed with power. Silver tendrils of hair stretched toward my face, as if they longed to reach me.

He gazed down at me, devotion in his icy blue eyes. "You're so unbelievably beautiful. Do you know that?" Before I could answer, Sigurn grasped Ronan's hips, his oiled fingers shimmering in the sunlight. Ronan held my gaze as Sigurn eased his lower body forward, pushing into Ronan and pushing Ronan's cock against my womb.

The three of us groaned. Ronan closed his eyes, a look of deep concentration on his face. Behind him, Sigurn clenched his jaw and held still. Ronan's cock throbbed inside me. I could only imagine what he was feeling, his dick lodged in my pussy while Sigurn's cock filled his ass.

"Is it…good?" I whispered, curiosity overcoming any shyness I might have felt. On the other hand, we were probably well past shyness at this point.

Eyes slitting open, Ronan nodded. "It's amazing. I just…need a second."

"Take your time," Sigurn said, rubbing Ronan's hip. He slid his palm up Ronan's flank and teased one of Ronan's flat, pink nipples, coating the peak with a sheen of oil.

Boldness seized me, and I plucked at Ronan's other nipple.

He jerked, his eyes flying open. "Fuck," he wheezed, and he rocked his hips, moving his body between me and Sigurn. "Fucking fuck, you two."

Sigurn gave a lusty moan, but he smiled as he clamped his other hand on Ronan's waist and began to thrust. "Congratulations, Liria. I think that's the most fucks anyone has ever gotten out of him."

I couldn't summon a response. Not with the way they were moving. Sigurn thrust into Ronan, driving Ronan's cock deeper into my pussy. I moaned, lost to sensation as they rocked above me. Inside me. After a minute, Ronan bent and claimed my lips in a fiery kiss.

The position changed the angle of his hips, and now his shaft rubbed my clit as he tunneled into me. I squealed into his mouth as pleasure spread from my sex to my nipples and everywhere in between. Ronan was inside me, but I felt Sigurn with every roll of Ronan's hips. Sigurn's thrusts drove everything, setting a punishing pace that spared no mercy.

The room filled with the heady sounds of our mingled pleasure—breathy moans, sharp gasps, and the slap of skin on skin. Lust simmered. Connection simmered with it. Tiny threads worked between us, binding us together as our bodies moved in a perfect rhythm. Wonder spread through me as I gazed at the dreadravens glowing on the men's shoulders. The soft blue light splashed onto the tangled sheets as Sigurn and Ronan continued fucking me, their handsome faces etched with ecstasy.

Two kings.They were mine now. We'd spoken no vows, but that would come. I wasn't sure how Ronan was going to get it past the Winter Council, but the three of us would figure it out. Whatever challenges arose, we'd conquer them.

"I'm going to come," Sigurn mumbled, his brow furrowing as he squeezed Ronan's hips. "Oh fuck, your ass is so tight. Fuck."

The words must have set Ronan off, because he cried out and pumped faster, alternating between slamming into me and thrusting himself backward onto Sigurn's dick.

Pressure built between my legs. The men worked together, shoving me closer and closer to the edge. With a final thrust, I slipped over it, my body flung into another intense orgasm.

The men were right behind me, their shouts coming almost on top of one another. Ronan shuddered, his fingers biting into my hips as he pumped his release inside me. My body convulsed, the waves coming hard and fast. Blinding, white-hot bliss consumed me, blanking my mind and leaving me formless. Nameless. I floated, buffeted by currents of raw bliss. Would it always be like this?

"I hope so," Ronan's amused voice said in my ear, and I realized I'd spoken out loud. Strong but gentle hands moved me, rearranging my sated limbs as my heart rate slowed. When I opened my eyes, my head was pillowed on Ronan's chest. He stroked his fingers through my hair as Sigurn cuddled me from behind, one of his legs thrown over Ronan's.

"It'll always be like this," I said firmly.

"No," Sigurn murmured, pressing a kiss to my nape. He threaded his fingers with Ronan's and rested their joined hands on my hip. "It will be even better."