Page 47 of Cruelly Fated (Princes of Avari #1)

Epilogue

KYON

I watched her sleep, her head nestled on my arm. Her long mahogany hair, free from its usual braid, spilled across the pillow and down her bare shoulders and back. I brushed my fingertips along her arm, sweeping the strands aside to reveal the delicate curve of her neck.

I couldn’t help myself—I pressed my mouth to her skin.

She moaned my name in her sleep.

I stiffened. Every part of me did, including the one now pulsing with need. The dragon stirred too, fully alert and just as fixated on our petite mate. I held my breath, listening for the rhythm of hers. Steady. Peaceful. I couldn’t…

Then her breathing hitched, just slightly.

My cock twitched in response.

Once a douchebag, always a douchebag.

I pressed my cock between her cheeks, sliding slowly until I nestled against that sweet spot. She mumbled something in her sleep and stirred. I gripped her hip, steadying her.

“Shh…I’ll make you feel good,” I whispered.

With my tip at her entrance, I flexed my hips and sank in, inch by inch, until I filled her completely.

She gasped, melting into my arms, her fingers clutching the sheet.

Sitting inside her like that felt like heaven.

If we didn’t need food to survive, I’d bury myself in her every damn minute of every damn day.

My cock swelled, stretching her velvety heat.

She blinked open those innocent eyes and glanced back at me over her perfect shoulder.

I cupped her chin and captured her mouth with mine, kissing her deep and hard.

My hips began to move—slow, gliding thrusts that coaxed soft, broken sounds from her throat.

I didn’t release her mouth until I pulsed deep inside her with a groan that echoed through my chest. She arched against me with a gasp.

Still buried, still throbbing, I kissed along her neck and collarbone while she trembled, riding the last waves of pleasure.

Her mating mark peeked through the curtain of her hair, and just the sight made me hard again.

Resisting the urge to bite it remained the hardest test of this new bond between us.

I nosed the mark anyway and smiled when she shivered.

Then I pulled out before I did something reckless—we needed to have the conversation first. My release spilled from her, warm and slow between her thighs. I placed my hand there, thumb tracing gentle circles as she yawned and stretched like a satisfied cat.

“If you also bring breakfast to bed, this will officially be the best morning ever. Oh, wait, you did that yesterday,” she giggled. “How long has it been since we actually left your bed?”

“Good question…” I murmured, brushing a kiss against her swollen lips.

Fae gods, I was already hard again and ready to bury myself inside her all over.

But after days of covering my mate in cum and feeding her like a man possessed, my other head—the one on my shoulders—finally cleared enough to think straight.

I drew back slightly, gazing down at the woman who had given herself to me completely and unapologetically. No more barriers. No more secrets.

The dragon wanted to cage her in the penthouse and never let her out of our sights. I confronted the beast daily, reminding him Allie was a free woman. I, however, felt increasingly like her prisoner. Surprisingly, I didn’t mind it either. I was a prisoner of her heart.

“Would you be open to…having my children?” I asked, my gaze sweeping over her face, searching for the answer in her eyes .

She blinked. “I-I’ve never really thought about that. I assumed we couldn’t. I mean…you’re a powerful dragon, and I’m…” She shrugged.

A low growl rumbled in my chest. “Don’t ever put yourself down in front of me again. You took control of my dragon with nothing but a whisper of magic. There’s more in your blood than you know—than any of us know. Except maybe your father…and gods help me, if he ever shows up, I’ll tear him to—”

She pushed up on her elbows and kissed me, slow and sweet, silencing the storm rising in my chest.

“Yes…” she whispered against my lips. “If we can have children together, I want three little rascal boys just like you—and three little princesses to keep them in line.”

My eyes rounded. Six? She wanted to bear six of my offspring? I leaned in, more than ready to start working on the first little rascal right now, until she pressed a slender finger to my lips.

“But…before we have kids, I want to go to art school. And maybe travel a little? With you,” she said softly. “I’m only eighteen; I’d like to see the world first.”

That was fair. My cock had other opinions, but she wasn’t saying no to fun—just not yet to mating marks and babies.

I could live with that. I just had to restrain myself from biting the mark while we fucked.

Easy. Sort of. I gulped. The act triggered a female mate’s ovulation, and resisting it felt like going against my nature .

From the corner of my eye, I caught the tempting swell of her breasts beneath the sheets. I yanked the blanket higher, tucking it snugly around her, then hopped out of bed before I lost my mind.

“Come,” I said, reaching for her hand. “I want to show you something.”

She raised a brow. “O-kay…” She stood, gloriously naked at my side. I coughed, snatched a T-shirt off the floor, and pulled it over her head. It swallowed her whole—my shirt hit just above her knees. Perfect.

With her hand in mine, I led her out of the bedroom to the sliding barn door near the kitchen. I slid one side open.

She gasped, covering her mouth with both hands as she stepped into the room, eyes sweeping over everything like she couldn’t quite believe it. She turned in a slow circle.

Blank canvases of all sizes leaned against the back wall. Two easels stood in the center, flanked by a long table covered in neatly organized paints, brushes, pencils—everything she might need.

“I’ve finally figured out what this space needed,” I said.

She brushed her fingers over the luxury paints atop the table, chewing her lip, eyes shimmering with unshed tears. I crossed the room in three strides, lifted her off the ground, and plopped her perfect ass down by the paints.

I hated seeing her cry—but these were the good kind, right? Two silent tears slipped down her face. She cupped my jaw in her small hands and whispered, “This is perfect. How could I ever repay you?”

My brows shot to my hairline. Repay me? She’d saved my life, freed my dragon, taught me what real love and freedom felt like—and wanted to bear my children.

Fuck me.

I shook my head. “I owe you more than you know. And I plan to make it up to you every single day of my life.”

Then I kissed her—those salty tears first—before scooping her into my arms and carrying her toward the kitchen. As much as I loved fucking her senseless and spoiling her silly, I also lived for the way she moaned over food I cooked. That was a dragon thing…

I settled her on a barn stool, stole a few more kisses from her mouth, then headed to the fridge.

“I like watching you cook naked,” Allie said in that sinful bedroom voice of hers, and I nearly dropped the carton of eggs.

I scowled at her over my shoulder and she grinned.

Adding “cook naked” to the list of things that make my mate happy.

My phone buzzed with a horror movie-inspired ringtone—Valor. I ignored it.

“Aren’t you going to get that?” Allie asked.

“If it’s an emergency, he will call back—” Valor’s ringtone blasted again.

Shit . I loped back to the bedroom and grabbed the phone off the nightstand.

“I was robbed,” Valor said instead of hello.

“You want me to smoke his ass?” I asked. I didn’t want to leave my girl alone, but I’d make it quick.

“Here’s the thing…it’s a she.”

Silence. I frowned at the phone, confused. Valor could handle one girl, couldn’t he?

“I went to a blood donor auction last night,” he went on. “There was this girl who looked too sweet to be there, so I tried to help her. Slipped her some cash. She thanked me—and walked off with my wallet.”

I rubbed my chin. “You sure it was her?”

“Yeah, man. She had this glint in her eye. I thought…never mind.”

I bellowed with laughter, doubling over. Valor had been grifted by a little blood donor.

“Not funny,” he gritted out. “I called for advice. Clearly, that was a mistake.”

He sounded tense, and I doubted it had anything to do with the missing wallet. Knowing him, he’d already replaced it and everything inside.

I glanced into the kitchen. My beautiful mate stood at the stove, cooking our breakfast, and something about the simple sight clenched my gut.

I cleared my throat. “You want my advice? Find your girl and teach her some manners.” I hung up .

Allie stirred a full dozen eggs in the pan. The scent of toasted bagels drifted toward me—and was that jelly on a plate? I’d forgotten I even had jelly.

“How much salt do you like?” she asked, a little crease forming between her brows.

I slid up behind her, arms wrapping around her waist, and kissed the top of her head.

“How much do you usually add?”

“Just a pinch, for flavor.”

“ Perfect."

Valor's story is coming up next!