This story was inspired by what I wrote in His Undoing in which I mentioned that Stella and Riven have secret meetings, which - let's be honest - I doubt they spend innocently chit-chatting.
The story is set after the events of Apocalypse and has links to His Undoing but it is not necessary to have read either of these stories. All the background you need to know is this: Riven has come to Solaria with Stella and the two are in a secret relationship.
Warning: some steaminess.
Rapture
"May I leave the table?" Stella asked, dabbing at the sides of her mouth with her napkin.
She looked expectantly at her father, King Radius, who sat across from her at the head of the table. Between them there sat at least a dozen nobles, speaking softly to one another as they enjoyed their evening meal. Some of the nobles Stella recognized as her father's friends and advisors; the rest had arrived from outside the Capital and she hadn't failed to notice that they were all male and around her age. They had been arriving for the past few weeks to supposedly attend court, but Stella knew why they were really here even if her father wouldn't admit it. She was fed up of talking to them and smiling demurely at all their compliments. She wanted nothing more than to leave, and besides, she was expecting a visitor.
King Radius looked up from his plate and raised his eyebrows. "Are you not going to finish your dessert?" he asked, eyeing her barely touched plate.
"I'm full," Stella said firmly. "And I'm tired. It's been a long day."
"Very well." Radius sighed and gave his daughter a slight nod, dismissing her.
As Stella rose from her chair and curtsied to the nobles, she noticed her father did not seem pleased with her early departure. She knew he wanted her to stay and get to know the young noblemen who had come to seek her hand, but what was the point? Her heart belonged to someone else. And if she didn't hurry, she'd be late for their rendezvous.
She rushed to her room, the skirt of her dress bunched up in her hands to allow her to move faster. As she turned into the corridor at the end of which her room was located, she noticed there was a guard stationed outside her bedroom door. She slowed her pace, groaning inwardly.
The guards on night duty had a rotation: every night they'd be stationed at a different location in the palace to ensure a change of scenery to keep them alert. Tonight, the location was Stella's least favourite. Not because the guard standing outside her room would mean risking getting caught, but because she'd have to give up a piece of jewellery in order to get him to relocate – that was the standard deal.
She smiled as she approached the guard. He wore the standard orange and blue uniform, a guard-spear held loosely in his hand. The corridor was dark, illuminated only by the moonlight coming through the windows, so it wasn't until Stella was an arm's length away from the guard that she recognized him. His name was Durin, she remembered, and he knew all about her secret middle-of-the-night meetings. That meant she didn't have to part with one of her beloved rings or bracelets; Durin moved to keep watch elsewhere without any trouble.
"Good evening, your highness," Durin said, bowing.
"Good evening," Stella replied.
"I assume you want me to relocate tonight?"
Stella nodded, ignoring the knowing smile playing on his lips.
"As you wish, your highness," Durin said. "And as always, this will be at my discretion."
"Thank you, Durin," Stella said and waited until he had stationed himself at the other end of the corridor before slipping inside her bedroom.
She was surprised to find that she was alone, that no figure sat on the bed ready to scold her for being late yet again. Where was Riven? He had never been late before. She had been expecting him at nine o'clock sharp, the time she'd stated in the message she'd sent him two days prior.
She waited a heartbeat, standing by the closed door, hoping he would emerge from the shadows. When he didn't, she strode over to the glass doors leading to the balcony and peered outside. It was raining, water coming down in sheets from the storm clouds, splattering noisily against the stone balcony. Lightening flashed; in the brief moment of illumination, Stella looked towards the royal gardens. But there was no sign of him coming towards her room and she couldn't see far enough into the distance at the barracks to see if he was still there.
For a moment, she thought to go ask Durin where Riven was, but then she heard the trellis on the exterior wall rattle. Opening the glass doors, Stella stepped out onto the balcony to get a better look, keeping under the shelter of the stone overhang above. Through the rain, she watched as Riven climbed to the top of the trellis and then jumped onto her balcony.
He straightened, pushed back his wet hair, and gave her a smirk.
"You're late," Stella said, having to raise her voice to be heard over the rain.
Riven checked his watched. "Only by fifteen minutes. Besides, you're late all the time."
The way he sounded, so unapologetic, so indifferent, made Stella bristle with anger. But then lightening struck, lighting up the night, and she beheld Riven standing in front of her, wet clothes clinging to his body, rivulets of water running down his jaw, hair matted onto his forehead, and her anger dissolved. He looked ridiculously sexy, drenched from head to toe. Stella felt her mouth go dry.
She could see the outline of his abs through his soaking wet shirt, the cords of muscle in his arms. His skin glistened under the moonlight, and there was a glint in his eyes which made her knees go weak. Then in the next moment as Riven stepped forward and bent down to kiss her, she forgot she even had knees.
"I'm sorry," Riven murmured. "I got caught up at dinner."
"It's fine," Stella said. "Just kiss me."
His lips were wet and cold from the rain and his hands cupping her face felt like ice against her skin. But Stella couldn't feel anything but heat.
"Tell me you want me," Riven said, shaping the words against her lips.
"I want you." She sounded breathless, needy.
Grabbing fistfuls of his shirt, she pulled him inside. She backed up until she hit the frame of her four poster bed. Riven pinned her in place and kissed her harder, tongue stroking hers in earnest. She could taste the rain on his tongue, slightly bitter. She could taste him too, a mix of flavours she couldn't quite place.
His hands dropped from her face, moving down to skim over her chest before grabbing her rear and drawing her hips to his. He ground against her then, and she gasped into his mouth. Wanting more friction, Stella began grinding back against him. The rain soaked into his jeans seeped through her dress onto her skin as they continued grinding and the heat between them mounted.
After a while, Riven couldn't take it anymore. He stilled Stella's hips and detached himself from her.
His gaze was dark with lust as he stared down at her. Rainwater clung to his lashes and water dripped from his jaw. "I think you should remove my clothes before I catch a cold," he said.
Stella smirked and seized the hem of his shirt.
The water made his clothes clingy and heavy but she managed to peel them off with his help. It was too dark to see his unclothed body, but she felt every inch as she undressed him, her hands gliding all over him unhurriedly. Riven's breathing was shallow, his eyes shut. Stella dropped to her knees, kissing down his sculpted chest to his abs. She stopped above the line of coarse hairs running down from his naval; he groaned in frustration.
She stood up, pushing him back onto her bed. He landed on his back and in a heartbeat she was on top of him, straddling his hips.
"Durin was on guard outside my room tonight," Stella said as she struggled out of her dress.
Riven groaned. Durin was his friend and fellow guard, who knew about his relationship with Stella and teased him about it relentlessly. "Did you ask him to go stand somewhere else?"
"I had to," Stella said, earning another groan from Riven. "I didn't want him to overhear anything."
"You know he's going to mock me tomorrow now that he knows I came to visit."
Stella smirked at the thought, slipping her dress over her head and throwing it aside. "You'll just have to ignore him."
"You don't know Durin," Riven began, irritation colouring his voice. "As good as I am at ignoring people, Durin is one of those– " Riven didn't finish. His breath caught at the sight of Stella sitting on top of him, clad in nothing but a matching set of pale pink underwear.
She leaned down and kissed him, and all thoughts of Durin fled his mind. She nipped at his lower lip as he ran his hands greedily over her body, fingering her lace underwear. His hands trailed down to her thighs, then upwards to her bottom. He grabbed her rear firmly and ground her down hard against his groin. He groaned at the feeling; Stella broke their kiss and sighed.
As Riven brought her hips down for another drawn-out grind, Stella grew annoyed with her panties. She rolled off him, tugged them down her legs, and then straddled him again, barely ten seconds later.
She rested on her knees, not allowing their bare lower halves to touch, and held his gaze. Then slowly she reached behind her back and unclasped her bra; she left it hanging on her shoulders, still covering her chest.
His eyes bore into hers, smouldering, sparking with impatience. Stella laughed, the sound drowned out by a sudden clap of thunder.
She revelled in the effect she had on Riven, in the way he looked at her. It wasn't like him to say out loud that she looked enticing or like a goddess, but she saw it in his eyes and it made her heart flutter.
His hands moved to caress her inner thighs and she finally dropped his gaze, shutting her eyes tight. He sat up, nipped her earlobe once, and then took her left bra strap between his teeth and pulled the bra off her, leaving her completely bare.
The breeze stirred up by the thunderstorm outside came through the open balcony doors, but Stella could not feel its chill. She was ignited by his gaze, his touch.
She was ablaze.
She felt his hands glide over her curves, his mouth descending, following in their wake. She felt a white-hot current coursing through her, making her head feel clouded and clear at the same time.
Moaning, she let her fall back. Her hands traced the hard planes of his back; his skin was cold from the rain but she could sense that he was ablaze too. She combed back his damp hair, mildly surprised at how long it was now that it wasn't gelled up but falling around his face.
Riven moved his mouth from her bust, kissing up her throat and along her jaw to her lips. He kissed her softly, wanting to convey what he found difficult to say out loud. She seemed to understand, kissing him back just as softly, holding his head steady.
Stella drew back after a moment and pushed Riven down onto his back. Eyes closed, she positioned herself over his hips and joined their bodies.
It was rapture.
The sounds of thunder and the pouring rain outside mingled with their heavy breathing. Riven lay still, his eyes shut, pulse pounding in his ears. Stella had cried his name as she had come undone. The sound of it falling from her lips, strained and husky, was a sound he would not soon forget.
When he opened his eyes, he found Stella staring down at him, eyes hooded. She was a vision, bathed in moonlight, her skin aglow. He reached out to trace her jawline, almost unconsciously. He wanted to say something but there were no words fit for the moment. He just stared at her, a deep serenity washing through him.
He couldn't remember the last time he had felt this at peace. What they had been through on Magix with the creatures had kept him stressed for so long, his mind and body taut like a bowstring, full of tension. Constantly he had been afraid of losing her, of losing his own life. But now…Now there was no danger, nothing to worry about, except being on time for their meetings. He had her, finally, and there was no threat that could take her away.
Riven pulled her to his chest and she buried her head in the crook of his neck and entwined her fingers with his.
They stayed like that as the storm raged on outside. Riven listened to the rain pounding against the balcony, to the howling wind, to Stella's breathing. She was asleep, he realised, her breaths even and calm. He kissed the top of her head and pulled the sheets over them.
What did it matter if Durin teased him the following morning? If he got moments like these with Stella, he didn't care if all the guards mocked him.
He squeezed her fingers and gave into sleep.
Hope you enjoyed the visual of rain-soaked Riven ;) Also, I know it doesn't rain on Solaria but the rain was necessary for the story.
Please leave a review. Any feedback and critique is much appreciated.
Guest/anonymous reviews welcome.
Until next time,
xxxMusarockz