Page 25 of A Traitor Sister (Remnants of the Fallen Kingdom #2)

25

TARLIA

R enel stares at me in silence, his entire body stiff. I wonder if I can take back my words, pretend it was a joke, but I don’t think he’ll believe me.

“Not Astra.” His chuckle is maniac and bitter at the same time. He raises a shaky hand and points at me. “You know what’s the worst? The very worst? I knew it. It was this morning, wasn’t it? That you switched. You were different. I knew it. Why? Are you here to mock me ? Some prank sent by my brother?”

“I got to the castle last night. Marlak didn’t send me there. I only found out he escaped when you told me.”

He shuts his eyes as he takes a deep breath, then looks at me, his face raw with pain.

“Astra was my only hope. My last hope. Not for me, for my kingdom. For an entire city. You know what’s going to happen? Three more moves, and the castle will end up in the Fiery Gorge. That will create a fissure that will split the land in two. It will destroy the Jewel City, kill almost everyone there. Why did you do this? Why?”

He’s not angry; he’s desperate. I’m feeling almost… regretful. Ashamed. But I don’t think I did anything wrong.

“I thought Astra was in danger.”

“Let me guess; you thought I would cut her hands and send them to my brother.” He glares at me like someone capable of doing exactly that.

I don’t know what to say, and I suppose he assumes that’s an answer.

He snorts. “Right. That sounds like something Marlak would say. What else did he tell you? That I bathe in the blood of the lower fae?”

“I never had a conversation with him.”

Renel rolls his eyes. “Your excuse is absurd. If I were capable of torturing Astra to pressure my brother, what do you think I would do to an impostor ?”

I swallow. “I… thought I could escape if things got dangerous. Perhaps thought you wouldn’t figure it out.”

“Who sent you?” I’m sure his voice makes the walls tremble. “Give me the truth, or you’ll find out what I’m capable of.”

I don’t want to implicate Lidiane or her friends, so I pretend to hesitate, then say, “A fae called Stromplax.” Renel grimaces, and I think I might have exaggerated the weirdness of the name. Too late now. “He knows Marlak and was worried about Astra, then found me. I was in the fae territories doing some work for Krastel, pretending to be the princess. This fae found me, told me Astra had been kidnapped, suggested the switch, and I thought it was a good idea. Astra escaped.”

“You stayed in the castle to spy on me, didn’t you?” His glare is murderous and his voice is a terrifying hiss.

“What difference does it make?” I keep my voice level. “Astra herself could have spied on you. You knew the risk in capturing your brother’s wife.”

Renel gets up and wiggles a finger. “No. Oh, no. I was approached by her master, who told me she had been kidnapped by my brother—against her will. He begged me to rescue her. That’s what I was told. And then I learned she was Tiurian, and thought destiny was finally gracing me with luck. I didn’t set out to capture or steal anyone’s wife. She came willingly , or at least pretended to do so, and Marlak claimed over and over that he didn’t care for her.”

“And you believed it?”

His eyes narrow so much that they become slits. “You think I’m an idiot, right? That’s the joke.”

I’m so exhausted that I decide to be honest. “I just wanted to save Astra. She’s my friend. A sister, almost. And if I could get some information, that would be good too. I can’t go back to the Krastel castle. The truth is that they attacked my carriage on my way back, but I fought and escaped. But they attacked me. I have nothing to return to.”

“I’m sorry for that.” Much of his fury is gone, and he tilts his head and stares at me. “Why did you decide to tell me the truth?”

“I was tired.” That’s the truth, actually, or at least part of it. “Tired of being the substitute’s substitute. That’s what we do. We were raised to replace Princess Driziely, for safety, so we were substitutes, both me and Astra. And that’s what I was doing; pretending to be someone else. I’m tired of being nobody. Not that I’m anybody. I know that. And I’m useless to you, and maybe I wanted to hear it said to my face.” Yes, because then if I kill, him I’ll have no regrets.

“You saved my life, Tarlia .” The mocking tone he uses for my name makes me feel even smaller and more insignificant than I already am. “That’s the only reason I won’t put you in one of the cells downstairs to sleep on your own. You shouldn’t have played with me. There are bigger wheels at work. Bigger needs. Many lives in danger.” His tone has such a desperate edge that it makes me believe him more than the fact that fae can’t lie.

I sigh. “What is it you need from Astra? Because if it is something important, something that could save lives, you could ask her.”

He shakes his head. “If she’s in love with Marlak, she’ll think I’m a monster. She won’t do anything for me.”

“ I could explain it.”

He sits on the bed and rests his face on his hands. “A Tiurian can give magic to someone they love. She’ll obviously never love me. And yet she can give magic to my brother, my brother, who has more magic than anyone can dream of.”

“Is there another solution? To your problem?”

“Yes.” His voice is laced with bitterness and sarcasm. “I can get a unicorn’s horn. Do you think it’s even possible? And do you think I’d hurt Cherry Cake?”

“So that’s why Azur shouted? He thought you’d try to get his horn?”

Renel snorts. “Azur’s an idiot sometimes.” His eyes are misty with tears. “The only person I trust, though.”

“It must be nice to have somebody bound to you.”

“I didn’t bind him.” His tone shifts to anger, and I can’t even explain that I didn’t mean it like that because he keeps talking. “It wasn’t my choice. I was a kid too, and heard that a powerful fae boy wanted to be my guardian. Who wouldn’t be thrilled? I had no magic, Tarlia. You have no idea what it’s like to grow up like me, powerless, vulnerable, when everyone around you has magic, when your family happens to have an insane amount of it. When I heard I’d get a guardian, I was ecstatic. Who wouldn’t be? I’d have someone to protect me. I didn’t know it would tie his life to mine. I didn’t know that.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It was my stepfather’s fault. He’s dead and I still hate him, still hate him to this day. Sometimes I’m filled with so much hate that I think I’m going to explode, and yet I have to get up and take care of the kingdom, get up and hold meetings with the most despicable fae in this court. Every day. No respite for me. No running away. That castle is a shackle, that throne is a shackle.”

I don’t want to provoke him, but what he’s saying makes no sense. “You do know there’s someone else interested in your position, right?”

“Marlak thinks I’m a monster. The moment he becomes king, he’ll put me in a prison—or worse.”

“Didn’t you just do that to him?”

“And yet he escaped. Am I hunting him down? No. I let him live his life in peace. Does he let me live mine? Oh, no.”

“What has he done to you?”

“He wants to depose me.”

“I barely know him, and I’m not from your court, or even fae, so I have no stake in any of that, but my understanding is that he believes he should be king, and some fae agree with him.”

Renel snorts. “The problem is that he would kill me if he could. Oh, he would. That’s the issue number one. The second problem is that he wouldn’t know how to maintain the peace in the Crystal Court, wouldn’t know how to manage the powerful families. Zorwal has always told me?—”

“Wait. You mean the creepy man Azur beheaded and might or might not still be alive? The reason we’re here?”

“I have no affection for him, but he gave me good advice, made sure I kept the court united. There has been peace for years, thanks to me.”

I’m having trouble digesting what he just told me. “No, no. Hang on. You’re telling me that you get advice on how to run the court from the sinister man who almost killed Lidiane?”

“His advice is wise, despite everything.”

Oh, wow.

I don’t need any effort to understand why Lidiane, Nelsin, and Ferer hate Renel and why he must be a disgraceful king. I guess he deserves to be murdered in his sleep after all.

I nod. “Well, help is help, I suppose.” What am I going to say?

“I understand your disapproval, but the thing is, if you are going to govern a snake nest, you need to understand the snakes. You can’t act like a helpless little mouse. And I won’t give Marlak the throne. I won’t. He always had everything. And you know who appointed him heir? My stepfather, the same filthy fae who condemned Azur to be bound to me for life. You’re complaining that I get advice from Zorwal, but you want to support a decision made by my despicable stepfather. Does that make any sense?”

“I don’t know.” I think back to what he said about an entire city being destroyed. “What are you going to do now? About the castle? The city? Is there another solution?” Perhaps I need to know if he has to remain alive.

He pinches the bridge of his nose. “It wasn’t for lack of trying. I researched everything. Read all the books I could. I’m the castle master and need magic to steer it, but I don’t have it.”

“What if you named someone else as the master?” I know he dreads the idea, but if it’s the only solution, he should cast his pride aside.

“The castle can take five, ten, fifteen years to adapt to a new master. Meanwhile, it will keep moving out of its own will. I don’t have that time.”

“I’m sorry.” These are pointless words that don’t change anything, but I don’t know what to say. “If it’s any consolation, even if I hadn’t replaced Astra, your plan would still not work. She loves Marlak.”

He chuckles. “Incredible consolation.”

“I mean it’s not my fault.”

“It’s your fault you’re here mocking me, pretending I don’t know the difference between two very different women.”

I have to laugh. “I look like her! And I had glamour.”

“Glamour.” He sneers. “No, don’t tell me. Lidiane is your accomplice, isn’t she?”

I can’t compromise her, so I lie. “Not her. Another fae did it.”

He glares at me. “Tarlia, just because you’re human and can say any crap you want, it doesn’t mean I’m going to believe it. It’s obvious that it’s Lidiane.”

I had given up on killing him, but I might have a good reason now. “What are you going to do to her?”

“What do you think I can do? She’s Azur’s soulmate. Can’t you see it?”

“Of course not. I have no idea what I’m supposed to see. How do you know?”

“She sensed his lack of magic.”

“She also sensed the wards. Is the keep her soulmate?”

He shrugs. “You look at them and you know it.”

I suppose we’re back to you’ll know it when you know . But it also means maybe there’s hope for her. “Are you planning on punishing her?”

Renel closes his eyes. “ Tar , let me make one thing very clear: whatever horrific stories you heard about me, they’re not true. I wouldn’t dream of hurting the woman Azur loves. He’s like a brother to me. More than a brother. I’ll talk to them and we’ll find a solution.”

I exhale. “What are you going to do about the castle?”

“I’ll have to give evacuation orders to the entire area of the fissure. Everyone will hate me. I guess I’ll be deposed after all. Perhaps murdered. Who knows?”

“What if you don’t return? Can’t other people give those orders?”

He shakes his head. “Nobody believes me. Nobody. Not even Azur, in fact. But I know I’m right. I’ve predicted the trajectory of the castle for the last three years.”

“Why won’t they believe you, then?”

“I don’t know. Zorwal underestimates me, I suppose. Azur… he says there might be something I’m missing. He doesn’t believe a castle would self-destruct. I think he sees the castle like a person, and thinks that nobody could ever self-destruct, or choose death, but it’s not true. I myself, often considered… often wanted…”

He pauses.

“To die?” I’m not shocked or horrified. I understand him.

He looks away, looks down, then takes a deep breath. “Yes. But then my brother wins, my stepfather wins, everyone who thought I was a worthless burden wins. And Azur dies. So here I am. Very much alive, as you can see.” His honesty surprises me, and perhaps the way his words resonate with me. “To be fair, even before Azur came into my life, I decided I didn’t want to die—just because I wanted to spite them all.”

“I know what it’s like to cling to anger. They say it’s poison, but sometimes it’s a tonic. Keeps you going.”

There’s relief in his chuckle, and we stare at each other in silence for a moment. A moment of understanding. I can imagine this boy without magic clinging to anger, hoping to spite everyone who wronged him, and I respect that.

“Who do you hate?” he asks.

“My master, Otavio. The one who trained me and Astra, prepared us to be substitutes. The person who practically raised me. Every single day of my life, for the last ten years, I’ve been dreaming about killing him.”

“He doesn’t look hard to kill.”

“No. The thing is that killing him is easy, but surviving the deed is hard. I may not love my life, but I still wouldn’t want to waste it for him. I want to outlive him, kill him, and still come out of it alive. Come out of it… somehow… victorious. Dying after killing him doesn’t sound fair, when he took everything from me.”

“What did he take?” He looks at me like he truly wants to know the answer, which is rare. So many people talk over each other, or just ask questions to keep the conversation going, and he’s here, interested in my past.

I don’t know if I want to stick a knife into those memories and feel that pain again, don’t know if I want to become vulnerable, and yet the words flow.

“I was just a little girl. They think children have no memory, but we do. I saw him visiting my house, then leaving. At night, someone came and killed my family. I watched them, and yet I ran away, like a coward.” Coward, coward, coward. “The guilt still gnaws at me. Otavio found me running and took me to the castle. I was only five and thought it was curious. Little as I was, I felt there was something odd about it. Only years later, the sequence of events made sense. He wanted another substitute, and I happened to look like the princess—or like Astra, I’m not sure. He killed my family, then took me to the castle as if to protect me. The worst is that I had to grow up under his protection. I was an orphan, a child. What was I going to do? Where was I going to go? I still have nowhere to go. I walked away from the prison where I was raised, and yet without means, without a family, I haven’t found any freedom.”

And won’t collect any prize, since I obviously can’t kill Renel. I can’t. I was deceiving myself thinking I could murder anyone.

“If Astra’s your friend, she’ll help you, won’t she?”

“How much? Until how long? She’s married to a fugitive, and has to worry about her own neck. What can she do for me?”

He runs a finger over his bracelets, then looks at me. “Is that why you replaced Astra? You were trying to gain some favor with some rebels or something? Find out some big secret, then sell it?” His guess is close.

“I wasn’t sure. I just wanted to do something. Otavio always said that people will keep you alive as long as you’re useful to them.”

“Otavio.” He snorts. “The one you want to murder. So you follow his advice?”

I hope he’s not implying my situation is similar to his . “No. Almost everything he says is imbecilic. It doesn’t mean that a drop of wisdom can’t fall out of his mouth from time to time. But most of it is nonsense. I don’t even understand what his plan is.”

“It sounded like he wanted to protect another Tiurian.”

I shake my head. “People don’t kill families just to protect someone. I’m not even thinking about the morals of it, but the logistics. It’s too complicated, risky, laborious. Everything he’s done with the substitutes in Krastel is too complex. Nobody puts that much time and effort into a plan if they don’t hope to get something out of it.”

True that I know part of his plan; he wants Astra to marry Renel or at least seduce him. But that still doesn’t explain his end goal.

“If Astra’s gone, then his plan will flop. It should give you some satisfaction.”

“A lot. Deceiving him is quite satisfying.”

Renel nods.

I wonder if he’s assuming I enjoyed tricking him too, and say, “I took no pleasure in deceiving you . And I didn’t even deceive you that much, considering I was too busy trying to survive. I even forgot to act like Astra.”

He has an amused smile. “What would she act like?”

“Hopeful, sweet—not sarcastic and bitter.”

“I don’t think you’re bitter.”

I laugh. “I’m sweet?”

“You’re practical.”

“I’ll take it as a compliment.”

He pauses, then sighs. “I appreciate your honesty. I exploded just now, but it has nothing to do with you. It’s not your fault that some strange magic controls the castle, or that I can’t steer it. I suppose you were just helping your friend, and Marlak, to a certain extent, but I can’t fault you for that. Anyone in your place would keep the charade, would perhaps use it to try to gain some advantage, perhaps even try to seduce me. You did none of that.”

I chuckle. “So I wasn’t seductive?”

“You know you weren’t.”

“Ouch.” I laugh. “Straight to the heart. What about you? If you needed Astra to fall in love with you, shouldn’t you try to… romance her? Me?”

He stares at his hands, then looks at me and smirks. “It sounds vile, right? Of course it does. Despicable, perhaps. I wouldn’t trick her. Not too much, at least. I’d just try to get some magic, and then I’d explain everything. That was my plan.”

“But you didn’t try.”

He blinks. “I… did? I was terrible, I know. I tried to tell you jokes.”

“Oh.” I can’t believe he thought that was in any way seductive. “Is that how fae flirt?”

His laugh is warm and relaxed. “No. I don’t know how anyone flirts. How am I supposed to know? When I went to revels, women tugged at my clothes, and if I liked them enough, I took them to a corner and let them take it all off. I don’t think that counts as flirting.”

“I suppose not.” He’s too good-looking. Of course he needs no effort. “I had classes on seduction.”

“Really? I would never have guessed.”

I laugh again. “I wasn’t trying. You were all weird in the only time we had alone, with the berries, and then… I mean, how do you try to seduce someone and run through a dangerous landscape at the same time? It doesn’t work. And if I were to try to seduce you the way I learned, it would take weeks. I don’t know if I could do it. There’s a lot of manipulation involved in it.”

“How do you flirt? When you’re interested in someone?”

Ziven comes to mind. “I suppose when it matters, I don’t know what to do.”

“There’s someone who matters, then?”

“Maybe. You? Anyone special?”

“I think people need someone to pull them out of their pits of pain, make them forget their agony, but I cling to it like a lifeline. I don’t think I can love, even if I could be kind to someone in love with me. I would try not to hurt Astra, if by any chance she ever… But now that I think about it, even if she hadn’t escaped, even if she wasn’t in love with my brother, I’m too deep in my own agony, in my own anger. I can’t pull anyone up, rescue them from their misery. I would never have seduced her, and the reality is that I had a witless plan from the start. That’s what desperation does to you.”

“Desperation can do worse than addling your minds.” I think about my stupid plan to kill him, my willingness to do something despicable just for money.

He looks at me. “And you’re desperate.”

It’s as if he’s reading my mind, and the thought fills me with shame. “No. I… I’m confused, maybe. Lost, perhaps. Certainly lost.”

“Like a leaf in the wind? Will go where it takes you?”

“No. I want to take charge of my life. I just…” I can’t finish the sentence and sound even more pathetic. The truth is that I don’t know what to do and I am lost.

He strokes his chin, his expression thoughtful. When he stops and looks away like that, when I can look at him without his accusing or astute eyes peering into me, I’m stunned by his beauty. Of course, he’s fae.

He turns to me. “I have a solution to your desperation. You could live in the castle, be my human guest. As yourself, not Astra. I’ll figure out a way to get rid of your master. And you can live there.”

It has to be some kind of trick. “After I deceived you?”

Renel smirks. “I’m not being nice, Tarlia. I’m being strategic. If you have somewhere to go, you’ll have no need to deceive me, sell my secrets, perhaps even kill me.”

“Kill?” My mouth makes a bizarre noise that barely sounds like laughter. “I saw you fighting with your sword earlier. Killing you would never be possible.”

“There are thousands of ways to kill someone, and most of them don’t involve sword fighting. Now, I can make a vow, a promise. It can’t be broken. I can’t make a deal with you or give you employment because of the treaty, but you can stay as a guest, and do whatever you want, except betray or murder me. You get along with Lidiane. No need to worry anymore.”

Why is his offer squeezing my chest? Can everything be that easy? Can I be saved like that? And then, it makes me want to crawl into a hole to hide away from my shame.

Before I say anything, he grimaces. “I mean, until the castle falls into the Fiery Gorge. I suppose I do not have any solution for you, other than even more desperation.”

My shoulders sag. Of course nothing can be that easy.

Still, I smile. “Look at the bright side; I don’t think I’ve discovered any scandalous secret about you. The issue with the castle will soon be public knowledge. No need to fear any betrayal.”

“No.” His eyes are unfocused, distant. “And yet all that lies ahead of us is uncertainty. Still, for now, you’re welcome to remain in the castle—if you want. You can tell me tomorrow what you decide.” He gets up. “I’ll let you rest now.”

I watch as he climbs the ladder to the bed above me. I know that his offer might not last long, and yet it felt sincere. He wants to help me, asking absolutely nothing in return. The thought warms my heart, the idea that someone can do good just for the sake of it, with no ulterior motives.

He claimed it was so that I didn’t betray him, but he could put me in a cell. That would be much easier—and much safer.

“Renel,” I say.

“Yes?”

“I really appreciate that you don’t even want to have sex with me.”

“You appreciate that?” He sounds puzzled, even perhaps offended for some reason.

“It’s refreshing. If any other man were offering me a place to stay, it would be because they’d want to fuck me. Sorry for the word. I’m tired and I’m crude.”

“You’re practical.” His voice is quiet, coming through the mattress above me. He’s silent for a moment, then asks, “Would you be upset if I did?”

“Did what?”

“You’re beautiful and quite brave. Of course I’d have sex with you—but only if you wanted it, and since it’s not the case, it’s not the case.”

Oh. He would have sex with me. The image then crosses my mind; his chest against mine, the feel of his hard cock inside me, his hands caressing my skin. Those hands.

I recall him fighting those ghouls, recall his skill and speed with that sword. I think about the sweat dripping down his face. I didn’t even know fae could sweat, but he looked majestic doing it. I imagine him sweating above me, looking at me with desire in those beautiful eyes. I wouldn’t mind having sex with him either, and now that I planted the image in my mind, I might even crave it.

Ziven comes to mind. Ugh. Why does Ziven have to show up in my thoughts now ? Ziven, who rejected me. Ziven, who asked me to return to him—but made no promises. I could have died today. Who knows if I’ll be alive tomorrow?

“Are you tired?” I ask.

“I’m feeling better. We don’t tire as much as you.”

“Is it true that fae love fiercely, be it for a night or a lifetime?”

He’s silent for a moment, then says, “Yes.”

“I’d like to try it—if you’re not too tired.”

He jumps from his bed and sits by me. “There’s no need for that. Unless you’re saying the truth.”

“But I want it. And I realize this is sudden, perhaps too straightforward, and not at all seductive, but I don’t want to be seductive. I don’t even want to be sexy. I almost died. I’m tired. My body hurts. And if your body hurts too much, we can leave it for another time, or for never, but if not… This is perfect. We don’t feel anything for each other, nor will we start getting clingy, jealous, or emotional. It’s freeing, you know? To simply have sex, without any expectations. I suppose fae do that, but humans don’t. When humans do, the man acts as if he’s using the woman, taking something from her. I have been in that position, knowing well that the man saw me as a thing being used for his pleasure, knowing well that the morning after, he’d call me names and laugh behind my back. And yet when that gloomy darkness came over me, I just wanted a cock inside me to appease my anger, to make me forget my family, my past, the life I never had. Not that I want to forget anything now. The day was too hard for unwanted thoughts to get hold of my mind—for any thoughts, in fact. I just want to experience you. Tomorrow you won’t laugh at me, and none of this will bother us or change anything. And I suppose I talk too much.”

He chuckles and shakes his head. “Can anyone ever talk too much? When we voice so few of the infinite thoughts that cross our minds? How many people dare to speak their minds? And yet you do. Fearlessly.”

The fervor in his eyes makes him look even more stunning than he already is.

There’s none of the tense king I saw this morning, none of the anxious fae who spoke to me just now. All I see is confidence and grace, like when he fought out there, when he didn’t hesitate even for a second, when he showed no hint of fear.

His hand touches my thigh, deft fingers sending a rush of desire through my body, while he looks straight into my eyes, with the kind of look that can bare one’s soul. Such incredible eyes.

I’m not sure if I’m truly fearless. I’ve been bold before, but never like this, never with someone like him.

My heart is beating faster and faster while my core is getting warmer and warmer.

RENEL

S he has wild, playful eyes and a look that drives me mad.

Tarlia. An impostor.

A beautiful, bold impostor. A fearless woman who held her own against a horde of monsters. A beautiful woman who gave me the strength to keep going, keep fighting. How long would I have resisted if it weren’t for her?

Tarlia. A solace in this moment, a respite from my dread and pain.

I want to get lost in the feel of her body, forget my past, ignore my future. Soft as a feather, I run my hand over her thigh. The skin is so smooth, inviting, and her body quivers in response, while her lips part. I keep moving my hand and find nothing under her dress, just bare skin.

She smirks, giving me a challenging look, her eyes pure fire. Beautiful, fearless Tarlia.

From light, my touch turns heavy, a squeeze, and she gifts me a soft moan.

What we’ve been through together tonight might equal a lifetime, but I still don’t know her well, know her body very little, and she’s human, so I ask, “On a scale from extremely gentle to brutally rough, how do you want it?”

She gives me the prettiest smile ever and chuckles. “I can choose?”

I caress her face and look into her gorgeous eyes. “Always.”

“I’m not made of glass.” There’s a lovely playfulness in that smirk. “But I’m also exhausted. Other than that, as long as neither of us gets hurt, anything goes.”

Not gentle, I suppose. I grab the hem of her dress and pull it all at once, ripping the straps, revealing her naked body. Her breasts are round, perky, with taut, inviting nipples.

I lie on top of her, then give her light, fast bites, first on her neck, then on her breast. Her back arches, her lips part, and her moans are better than any song.

I’m rock-hard already, and we haven’t even started. It’s as if she knows it, as she caresses my chest, then brings her hand down, under my trousers, her soft fingers seizing my cock. Her touch is just right, and I gasp as she caresses my shaft, her eyes brilliant with desire, her smile mischievous.

“I want this,” she says. “You know what? I wanted it since this morning, when I first saw you.”

I trail a hand from her face to the plain between her breasts. “I wanted you too. You. Not your friend. That’s why I said you’re two completely different women.”

She tilts her head. “How did you imagine fucking me?”

I trail my hand down until I’m caressing her inner thigh, then I move slowly to tease her core. “I’d spread you on the table, then taste you like the berries until you screamed my name so many times my ear hurt.”

“Ouch. Poor ear.” Her chuckle is light, lovely. There’s no sound more delightful than her voice, her laughter.

My finger reaches her entrance, and I feel my cock quivering. She’s so wet. So, so wet. “How did you imagine fucking me?”

“You’d push my head against the table, lift my skirt, then fuck me hard from behind, so hard that I’d whimper in pain.”

“And yet you said you didn’t want to get hurt.”

She narrows her eyes, teasing me. “Imaginary pain is not pain, Renel.”

I caress her entrance, and then, slowly, find her sweet spot.

Her entire body arches and trembles.

“You like that?” I ask.

“Yes,” she moans.

“Then say my name.”

“Renel,” she whispers.

I caress her there again, and she closes her eyes, biting her lips. Such lovely lips. I move back, away from her hands’ reach, and unlace my trousers, then remove them.

Her eyes sparkle when she sees my erect cock. Her eyes are so amazing already, they look incredible with that glint, that desire.

I get out of the bed, then pick her up and put her on the table.

“The table’s hard, Renel,” she complains even as she laughs.

“So am I. We can imagine we’re back in the castle, back to this morning. And now we can do what we wanted. But tell me to stop, if I do something wrong.”

I lift her legs, press her gently, then harder, my finger half inside her. I adore the sound of her moans. It’s like an instrument I’m playing. With deft strokes, I create the most amazing sounds. Her body is already quivering as I kneel, then trail my tongue around her entrance. My reward is her loudest yell yet.

She’s all mine in this moment. Mine to please. Mine to tease. Mine to lick and taste and adore. Mine, if only for a night.

For now, all I want is to see what I can do with her body, hear her different moans, make her tremble under my touch.

And yet I haven’t forgotten what she said she wanted. When I feel her body trembling the hardest, when I hear her moans peaking, then slowing down, I get up.

“What now?” she asks, her brilliant eyes staring at me with expectation.

I take a moment to admire her body, the curve of her breasts, her navel, her waist. I take another look at her entrance, so wet, so ready.

The corners of her lips lift in an adorable smile as I caress her body slowly. Then she closes her eyes, her mouth in an adorable o shape, her back arching again.

I pull her up, push her legs down, then turn her around and press her face against the table. I feel her entrance with my finger, then enter her halfway. She’s warm and tight and wet. It’s as if I’ve always belonged here. In another stroke, my entire cock is inside her. Her moan is a half whimper. At first, I move back and forth slowly, delighting in the feel of her inside, delighting in the sounds she makes, caressing her lovely, round ass.

I caress her neck and grab a handful of hair, then enter her hard, harder, faster. I want to hear her scream all night. Even if I know we can’t do this forever, I wish we could. When I feel she’s about to have a second explosion of pleasure, I finally yield to mine, and fill her with my seed.

My body feels weightless, free, all my muscles relaxed.

I carry her back to bed, then lie beside her, wrapping her close to me, her warm skin against mine such a comfort.

“Was it all right?” I ask.

“It was quite terrible, Renel.”

“You’re a horrible liar, Tar.”

She laughs. “Fair. It was a little more than all right. What about you?”

“Same. More than all right.” Unlike her, I can’t lie, but I don’t need to say all the truth either.

I kiss her neck, and she giggles softly. Holding her tight like this, I can believe my life’s not doomed, I can believe I’ll find a happy ending.

It’s a magical, perfect moment.

I know it’s not forever, but then again, nothing is, so I might as well enjoy what I have now. Is there even anything other than now?