31. Chapter 31

His arms shook, and a tremble rumbled through his body. Clinging to him the way I did, I felt each vibration as I bathed in the aftershocks of the most intense orgasm of my life. Three times, I had already come, but this one was the hardest yet. It shook me to my core as waves of undiluted pleasure quaked through me.

I gasped for air. My heart hammered wildly inside my chest. Had I been capable of any coherent thought, I would have worried about having a heart attack. But what a way to go that would have been.

Just thinking about how he had licked and sucked my clit sent more shivers through me and brought a wave of mini-orgasms that didn't help cool my overheated body at all.

Fuck, that man could go down on a girl!

Not that any man ever had, but… fuck !

And the noises he had made, as if he was drinking the most expensive wine in the universe… How wasn't that supposed to go to my head?

"I love you," I panted. Even if this love was only born from infatuation, I knew deep in my bones that it would grow from here.

He allowed himself to collapse on top of me as much as possible without squishing me and rested his forehead against mine. "I love you too."

"Good." I smiled idiotically.

My hands moved over the grooves of his khadahr markings and thick muscles, which still trembled under my touch, indeed making me feel like a goddess.

"You should try to get some sleep. There will be a big feast tonight," he warned.

"Hmm," I agreed. "I should." Closing my eyes, I drifted through happy land for a few minutes before reality caught up with me.

"A feast?"

"Sa, a feast to introduce the new khadahrshi and welcome the other gallies as well as celebrate my safe return," he mumbled, moving his head and nuzzling my throat.

"But, Tzar-Than, what will we wear?" I cried out.

He stopped his nuzzling, perplexed for a moment, before he threw his head back and let out bellowing laughter.

I boxed his chest. "That's not funny. All we have is—"

He stared down at me with his impenetrable eyes, shining with merriment. "You know what? "

"What?" I retorted a bit put off.

"That is the first gallis-like sentence I have ever heard you utter." He chuckled again.

I joined his laughter because he was right.

"Well, I am a woman." I pouted.

"Don't I know it." His cock twitched inside me, regrowing my desire.

"I'm serious, though." I tried to refocus my mind.

With a deep sigh, he pulled out of me. "It has been a long time since I spoke to a gallis or catered to her whims, but I do remember how serious your gender is about your clothes."

"Damn right we are," I agreed, already regretting the loss of the feeling of fullness when he was inside me.

"Come, we'll wash you up and do something about yours and the other gallies' wardrobes," he promised.

He was about to call the servants to refill the tub with warm water, but I shook my head. It seemed like an awful waste when the water was still on the plus side of cold.

I felt a bit of guilt for having indulged in the bath and Tzar-Than without even thinking of the other women. This whole thing about being responsible for others was still new to me. It was time to put on my big girl panties and get with the program.

To my relief, Tzar-Than's steward and Matt had already taken care of the women. They each had their own rooms, which Tzar-Than had ordered to be ready before he had left for his mission. I hoped he wasn't too upset that quite a few of them stood empty now.

"I'm sorry," I told him.

Perplexed, he looked at me. "For what?"

"I feel like these empty rooms are my fault. If I had—"

"Stop." He shook his head at me. "This is not your fault, and I'd rather be left with only a few gallies than have to worry about your queen bees."

My insides warmed at his words. He wasn't one for flowery admissions or compliments; his were more backhanded, but they meant so much more because I knew they were true.

Tzar-Than would always be honest with me. That was just one of the many traits I loved about him.

Shopkeepers from town arrived with hundreds of already finished dresses and materials.

The women and I were prodded and measured, and in no time at all we each were the proud owners of several dresses and more practical clothing.

From what I understood, Vandruk females didn't wear pants, but we weren't Vandruk-born, and the men had better get with the program because I wasn't going to hike about with a long dress. Neither would the others.

More clothes were promised to be delivered over the coming days, but for now, each of us had a dress for tonight and more informal clothing for tomorrow.

I was a bit apprehensive about how the women would be received at the feast that evening. I was worried they wouldn't be able to ward off all the attention given to them, but my worries dissipated when I watched how respectfully the Vandruks approached them.

They carefully ensured that the women didn't feel overwhelmed by their numbers as only one handful after another approached for a few friendly words.

The men couldn't disguise their hunger for the women, yet discipline ruled the night, even much later when dancing began. There was nothing that could be done about the women being up on their feet for the rest of the night, but they didn't seem to mind.

I caught a glimpse of Sophia dancing for the third time with the same man, gazing up at him adoringly.

"Your plan seems to be working," I said, leaning over to Tzar-Than sitting next to me.

"More than I dreamed of," he said, not looking at the dancing couples.

A blush made its way across my face, and his grin deepened. "I love making you blush."

"I love you," I retorted, caught up in the moment but meaning it from the bottom of my heart.

It might not have been how I had envisioned ever setting foot on Vandruk or being a part of it, but this was better—so much better.

Tomorrow, Tzar-Than had promised to take me on a tour of Farruk and show me more of Vandruk over the coming weeks and months. In time, we would have to travel to the other khadahrs or invite them to stay with us for a bit. But that night and for the next few days, he was all mine and I intended to take full advantage of it.