Page 16 of The Bride Contract (Princes of Xaavia #1)

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Chapter 16 - Niska

I sit there a moment, letting my mind absorb everything Prince Kiahn has just told me. No wonder his aunt is wanting to push him to start making babies. The way Vel had explained it, although their lands are divided up into principalities, the real power still lies in the capital, with the King. If the only way you can get heard by the king and his court is to prove that your ‘Bloodline Venom’ is strong, then you need to start having these super special kids with super special venom.

Internally, I cringe at the situation. Part of - no, scratch that - all of it reeks of ‘blood purity’ bullshit. Why should some people be inherently more important and influential than others?

But, I have to remind myself that this isn’t my culture. These aren’t my people. Who am I to judge? It’s not like Earth has it all figured out - far from it.

“Do you have an active venom?” I say, curiosity getting the better of me.

The question makes Prince Kiahn go very still. “Yes,” he tells me, and suddenly, I feel stupid for even asking. Of course he does. He’s a prince . He probably has the ‘purest’ of pure bloodlines.

“What does it do?”

Kiahn’s brows rise on his forehead, and it kind of gives me the feeling that maybe my question isn’t one that he’s used to receiving. Maybe it’s impolite to ask. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut. But, when the look of surprise on the Prince’s face subsides, his eyes go hazy, and his gaze drops to my throat as he asks, “would you like me to show you?”

What does he mean by that? Is he going to bite me? I thought that was forbidden? I swallow thickly, but don’t say anything under the prince’s ardent gaze. Kiahn takes a slow step forward, watching me, and it feels like he’s assessing for signs that I’m going to bolt. Whether he’d back off, or chase me down if I were to try to get away remains to be seen.

I don’t know why that makes butterflies erupt in my stomach.

Keeping his movements slow, Kiahn lifts a hand to his mouth. He parts his lips wide enough for me to see how his sharp canine teeth are smoothly descending from his gums, turning them into predatory fangs. It reminds me of the holographic image Vel had shown us of the couple who were biting each other while making love. Beneath the water, my hands move up my body, and I realize I have the urge to cover my neck. I don’t, though. I find myself keeping very still instead, as I watch one side of Kiahn’s face tense with effort.

Something seems to well at the tip of his left fang - something silvery.

He’s forcing his venom out.

Kiahn catches the single drop of what looks like molten silver on the tip of his charcoal gray forefinger before he looks to me expectantly, and takes another step forward, his legs brushing with mine beneath the warm water. I suck in a breath, tipping my head up to look at him. “Open,” he commands, his voice rumbling and smooth while his hand moves slowly toward my mouth now.

Without thought, my body obeys him, my lips parting, allowing Kiahn to gently push his finger into my mouth. His intense gaze is fixed solely on where my mouth closes around his finger. And, I will admit, I very much enjoy the ragged pull of breath he makes when I lick and suck on his digit.

I can feel a coolness where his venom hits my tongue - like the kind of cold that comes along with an intense hit of menthol. Except, there is no flavor to his venom - none at all.

Kiahn’s forefinger slowly slips from my mouth, dragging the pad down the center of my bottom lip, leaving a feeling of moisture there, like he’d just anointed me with his venom.

I take in a breath, and it feels as though my lungs have tripled in size. The air feels so pure and fresh. When I look into Kiahn’s green eyes, everything stops. All the buzzing and chatter in my mind is silenced, and I feel overwhelmed with the urge to close the distance between us.

Tentatively, I reach forward, my fingertips brushing the firm expanse of his toned abdomen. His muscles jump beneath my touch, and I swear he stifles a groan, smothering the noise by clearing his throat. “The-uh-… the effects do not last long this way. They are stronger when administered with a-” Kiahn tenses his jaw and his throat bobs with a swallow before he finishes in a raspy voice, “… a bite .”

I stare up at him, my body flooding with a warm, cozy feeling, like it knows something I don’t. Like it senses that everything will turn out ok if I just… let it be. Lean into everything that’s going on. “What does your venom do?” I ask. “Is it a relaxant?”

Kiahn’s brows raise again as he tilts his head to look at me with curiosity. “No, it-…” he pauses, his lips twitching into a minute smile. “It gives the recipient clarity of mind. Helps them sharpen their focus to their thoughts and feelings of the moment. It is… not an impressive venom, but it is a gift from our Goddess of Wisdom.”

Clarity of mind? I just feel… at ease.

He’s right, though. All that background noise has melted away like it had never existed at all. “It feels like-” I start, standing up, forcing Kiahn - the gentleman that he is - to take a slight step back, with how close he had been positioned in front of me. I tilt my head to look up at him. My fingers are still connected with his taut stomach, and I find I can’t help but softly skim my touch across his skin, the movement feeling natural and almost unconscious as my fingers glide slowly from side to side.

“Wh-uh-” Kiahn chokes, catching himself as he rocks forward, towering over me. He clears his throat before he tries again. “What does it feel like… for you?”

I smile up at him. “It feels like… like I know with absolute certainty that my intuition is right. Like doubts no longer exist.”

Kiahn’s brows pinch, and his voice is low and strained when he asks, “and what is your intuition telling you right now, Niska?”

It’s telling me that I can trust this huge guy not to hurt or abuse me. It’s telling me that despite the fact that I’d be deceiving him by actively trying not to get pregnant, this breeding contract would be mutually beneficial; I want to secure a safe space for me and my friends, and his people need him to start entering contract after contract to make those super special venom babies.

It’s telling me that whatever misgivings I have about all of this, everything’s going to work out.

Everything’s going to be ok.

Everything will be alright.

And I feel a real sense of peace with that as I continue to smile up at the guy who swooped in to save me when I was in real danger only a few days ago. I don’t normally like that. I’m used to saving myself, and not relying on anyone else. But I liked it when he did it somehow. My fingers stop grazing back and forth across Kiahn’s abdomen, only to start reaching higher, flattening my palm to his heated skin. I glide my hand up his chest, watching the droplets of lagoon water well and run down the muscled planes of his toned torso. “My intuition is telling me that I trust you not to hurt me,” I tell him. “And that you need to start trusting yourself.”

“I-”

I can see the hesitation in his eyes as he searches mine. His heart is thumping erratically beneath my palm, so I drop my hand from his chest and take hold of his own under the water, guiding it up to cup the side of my face. Kiahn’s eyes widen as I lean into the cradle of his palm, enjoying the sheer size of him, along with the feeling of certainty that I am safe with this guy who could so easily hurt me.

With the flick of his wrist, this man could end me if he chose to. And there would be no repercussions for a Prince. He is so much more powerful than I could ever imagine, and I am so much more vulnerable than I am used to being for the majority of my life.

And yet, I feel blanketed in a feeling of safety with Kiahn.

I wouldn’t still be here; naked and alone with him if I didn’t.

“I think this contract will be a good thing,” I tell him. “For me, and for you.”

“You do?”

“Yes.”

Both my hands feel small in comparison to his as I press them to his giant one currently cradling my face. Slowly, I move his touch past my jaw, and down my throat. Kiahn’s mouth goes slack as he watches the descent of his hand with rapt attention. I leave him there a moment, his fingers wrapping around the very place he so clearly, desperately wants to bite.

Kiahn wets his lips. “You know, I could just grant you protection in my court without the contract. If- if that is what you’re worried about. You don’t need to let me touch you at all for that.” His eyes flick briefly up to mine, but they can’t help but fall back down to where I’m guiding his hand lower still.

I’d mulled this thought over before. But now, with the clarity of Kiahn’s venom on my tongue, I can clearly see the problem with that line of thought.

I don’t belong to him, I belong to his aunt.

And I was bought for one purpose, and one purpose only.

Would she make sure me and my friends are safe if I don’t uphold my end of the bargain?

I can’t guarantee that.

So, my hands continue to urge his slow descent, until his large palm engulfs my left breast. This elicits a choked-off sort of groan to escape the prince, and I can’t lie; that noise makes little ol’ me feel quite powerful right about now.

“But, I want the contract,” I tell him, pressing his touch more firmly to my flesh. “And you want to breed me . Don’t you?”

“ Fuck ,” Kiahn hisses, biting out the curse. “Uh-” he stalls, his big chest starting to rise and fall more visibly now. “ Yes ,” the prince admits with a strained voice. His gaze flits from meeting my own, to being drawn beneath the waters where he starts to gently knead my breast with my encouragement. “I want that.”

“Well, then… don’t fight it. I trust you.”

Kiahn still looks torn, and almost… guilty.

And, it’s then that I get an idea. “You know, I think your venom has helped me to see clearly that I really am comfortable with your earlier suggestion.”

Kiahn’s brows crease together while his eyes keep darting to where he’s still cupping me, oh so gently. “My earlier suggestion?”

“Mm-hm,” I nod, tugging him forward as I step back before turning us, and urging him to sit on the ledge of the pool. He sits without much prompting, the warm waters swirling around us as he watches me carefully. I finally push his hand away from my breast, as I climb onto his lap. Straddling Kiahn’s thickly muscled thighs, I feel somehow powerful in my vulnerability. I don’t know if this is some kind of high from taking his venom, but it feels like he’d do anything I’d ask of him with the way he’s looking at me right now. I’m still mostly covered by the lagoon water, but I can feel the movement of the water’s surface play around my nipples, so I know he’s getting a peek every now and again. “I think we should try your suggestion from before,” I repeat, using one hand to keep myself steady, propped against his chest, and slipping the other lower, and lower down my body. “I think we can prove that you can control yourself.”

Kiahn drinks me in, and I see the exact moment he realizes I’m touching myself again. His head falls back and he lets out an almost pained groan. “ Nissskaahh ,” he rumbles, dragging out the sound of my name like he’s caressing each syllable with his husky voice. “You have too much faith in my restraint, little female.”

I laugh then. I can’t help it. It was Kiahn who came up with this whole idea in the first place. His head pops up again and the look on his face is almost incredulous, like he can’t believe I’d find any of this amusing. “You’re not even wearing a collar,” he protests weakly with a tone to his voice that is definitely related to a whine. “Do you know how easily I could bite that pretty little exposed neck of yours right now? You wouldn’t be able to stop me.”

His eyes are fixed on my throat, so I reach out and take his hand, placing it right around the center of his focus. “Cover it yourself, then,” I challenge him, his palm cupping my neck and his long, thick, dark gray fingers curling around one side, his thumb resting at the hinge of my jaw, right below my ear.

Kiahn’s fingers flex where they gently hold me by the throat, and I never thought I had this particular kink, but I’m starting to see the appeal. Besides, with the clarity of his venom still running through my mind, I know I need this man to trust himself with me, or he won’t go through with this contract.

And anyway, this thrills me .

It thrills me to let him be in such a dominant position with me, and yet knowing, deep down, that I still have power over him. I can see it in his eyes. He’s desperate for me to let him take me, but he’s equally desperate that I come to no harm.

It’s a delicious dichotomy that does nothing but wind me up, and urge me on.

“Touch yourself, too,” I tell him, my voice much more breathy than I had intended.

The muscle in Kiahn’s jaw ticks as he stares at me, but he carries out my instruction. His bicep bulges where he moves to take his cock in his hand, the other flexing around my throat. I keep my fingers gliding around and around my clit as I watch his slow movements. I can’t see anything clearly beneath the water, but with the way the surface starts to slosh around us in a particular rhythm, I know he’s obeying my request.

“You will wear the finest of collars when we arrive at Xaavia, little human,” he proclaims, his gaze devouring me as his thumb slowly swipes back and forth along the line of my jaw. His eyes quickly flit down to where my nipples sometimes peek above the water’s surface with our movements. Groaning, Kiahn’s head drops back again, but he continues talking. “It will be designed with gold, the newest systems in breeding technology,” he pauses, taking in a ragged breath, “and… encrusted with Goddess gems…. the highest grade glowstones from the capital… everyone will know you are my bride.”

“Is this normally how you do dirty talk?” I ask, grinning when his movements beneath the water pauses, and his head pops back up to look at me again, “by telling the girls what you’re going to buy them?”

Prince Kiahn blinks at me, his gaze dropping briefly to my chest and then back up again. “Is it working?”

I can’t help but smirk at that. Once again, I never thought I’d be into that kind of thing, what with normally being pretty damn independant, but…well… yeah . “Kinda,” I admit, jerking my chin at him while my eyes fall to the distorted view of him touching himself below the water. “Keep going.”

His bicep starts to move rhythmically again, and I start matching his pace with my own touch between my legs. “You want me to tell you of how I am going to spoil you, little Niska?” he asks, his voice low and raspy. God, why is he so hot? He’s so big, and powerful, and dangerous. His black ridged horns sweep back along his head, ending in two, sharp looking points, only serving to remind me how different we are.

And I like it.

Maybe more than I should.

“Tell me,” I nod, my gaze boring into Kiahn’s like a challenge.

He huffs out a breath through his nose, his lips parting, showing me a hint of his sharp fangs as he stares right back while stroking his cock.

“Are you gonna look after me, Kiahn?”

“Yes,” he chokes out. “Let me. Let me provide you with everything you would ever wish for.”

Why do I like this so much? My tongue rolls out to wet my lips, and I’m pleased to witness Kiahn’s eyes catch on the movement as he watches me, raptly. “And what else do you want to do?” I ask, shifting my body closer in his lap, our busy hands bumping into each other while we pleasure ourselves. Kiahn pauses again, sucking in a breath at the contact - the back of my hand to his knuckles. So I press closer still, giving him a look and a nod that I hope conveys to him that I want him to match my movements.

He flexes his grip around my throat, and I wonder for a moment whether this is the line that he won’t cross. Is he going to put a halt to this just as that deliciously tingly feeling of oncoming bliss starts to build between my thighs?

Instead, he shifts beneath me, moving forward a little so that I can wriggle further up his lap in return, my thighs now bracketing his hips and our individual pleasure now pressed more firmly together. His eyes flash as he starts stroking himself up and down again, his knuckles moving in time with where my fingers press to my clit in tight circles.

“ Kiahn ,” I breathe, getting myself all wound up because watching him want me so Goddamn much but holding back is really doing it for me right now. “Tell me what you want to do to me.” And, because I have a hunch about what might make him snap, I add, “do you want to breed me?”

“ Fuck! ” he jerks beneath me, the hand around my throat moving lightning-fast to cover my mouth, smothering my gasp with his warm palm. Kiahn’s strokes become erratic, the water sloshing more viciously around us as he groans, his eyes shut tight. “If you keep talking like that, I’m going to spill my seed too soon,” he grits out.

I match the tempo of his strokes with my own, moaning into the hand covering my mouth. Those green eyes of his flash, and the desperation I see in them damn near sets me off. “ Niska ,” Kiahn pants. “ Let me watch you come first … Come for me. Don’t make me beg.”

And it’s the very thought of this big, powerful prince begging for me to come for him that sets me hurtling toward that pique before I plummet right off of it. It turns out I’m quite grateful for Kiahn’s hand smothering down the squeal-like noise I breathe into his palm. My hips jolt, and I think I even moan his name with the pleasure that’s spreading all over my body. I almost don’t notice the way my orgasm seems to finally set Kiahn’s off too, as he grunts and jerks, his hips thrusting, bucking up to me like we were really doing this and not just touching ourselves together.

With the last wave of bliss cascading over me, my body suddenly seems heavy and light at the same time. I slump forward, pressing myself to his front as I try to catch my breath.

Incredibly, Kiahn stiffens as I lay on him - like I didn’t just watch him jerk it and come in the pool. “Is this making you uncomfortable?” I ask, though I’m so tired, I don’t move from where I’ve collapsed on him, my cheek pressed to his warm chest. I can hear his heartbeat thundering beneath my ear.

I can also feel my own heartbeat still throbbing between my thighs.

Kiahn’s hand - the one that had been doing said ‘jerking it’ - slips out from between us, but he doesn’t wrap it around me like a lover would. “I-” he starts, his breathing still ragged, “I’m just not used to females willing to be so vulnerable and… affectionate this way.”

I shift a little, suddenly realizing I’m sandwiching his very large, and still very hard cock between our bodies. But, it’s then that his arms come around me, holding me to him. “ But I do enjoy it ,” he hastens to add as he holds me tentatively, like I’m a fragile little bird. “I-… you are showing me many things I am not used to, Niska.”

I can’t help but chuckle at that, my breath huffing along the skin of his chest, creating goosebumps right in front of me. “You and me both, big guy.”