Might not be able to update too quick over the holiday weekend...but I will when I can. Merry Christmas to those that celebrate it and Happy Holidays to the rest.

I make no claims to Voltron or any other WEP characters.

Enjoy Chapter 25

Mertz

A week later, Keith is sitting at his desk looking over the documents Coran had given him that morning when there is a knock at the door. Looking up, he says, "Enter." The door opens and the head of the Arusian Council along with a few members enter his office.

Standing up, Keith looks them over carefully, noting that some are unwilling to meet his eyes before he moves his gaze to the Head of the Council, Sir William to ask, "What can I do for you gentlemen?"

Sir William steps forward, "Majesty…" and performs a short bow before continuing, "We are still concerned with the Queen's mental state. We understand she has made great strides to overcome the illness but we feel uncomfortable with her making decisions that will affect all of Arus in her current condition."

Studying the men intently, Keith turns his hard gaze on Sir William as he responds, "I'm not sure what you are looking for…"

Taking a step closer to the desk, Sir William interrupts him to state, "We wish you to take over making all decisions for Arus until the Queen is fit to rule. In the event she is unable to ever resume her duties, we know that Arus will grow under your careful tutelage."

Anger unlike anything he has ever felt before fills Keith and he glares at the men as he states, "Let me make myself very clear to you gentlemen…Allura, as the daughter of King Alfor, is the ruling monarch of Arus, I am only King by marriage. I will not now, nor ever, try to take that right away from her. When and if she comes to me for advice on a matter, I will share my opinions with her, but any decisions will come from her."

Sir William growls in response, "Surely you of all people can understand our concerns!"

Keith glares at the man but doesn't say anything as the door to his office opens and Allura walks in. She starts to smile in greeting but stops when she notices the gathering. Turning her gaze to Keith, she arches a brow as she asks, "What's going on?"

He watches her closely before holding a hand out to her. Allura walks around the desk to stand next to him as he states, "These gentlemen were just asking me an opinion on something, nothing to worry about my Queen."

After placing a kiss on her forehead, he turns his gaze back to the men in front of him, "If there was nothing else gentlemen?"

Sir William eyes him a moment longer before shaking his head and leading the group out of the room. Allura watches them go before pulling back from Keith enough to look up at him again, "So what's going on?"

He searches her eyes for a moment before stating, "Something that shouldn't happen, won't and you don't need to worry about right now."

Her brow furrows as she begins to open her mouth to question him further. Pulling her tight against him, Keith holds her close to him as he whispers, "I'll always protect you."

Allura's worries melt away as she feels a kiss in her hair and pushes her nose even more into his neck, inhaling his spicy scent. Pulling away again she asks, "When will you treat me like your wife?"

Arching a brow at her, Keith asks, "What do you mean?"

Flushing slightly, Allura fights not to look away as she states, "You never kiss me…"

An amused look crosses his face as he replies, "I just did Allura."

Irritation fills her eyes as she retorts, "Like you would a child."

Pulling her tighter into his arms again, Allura looks up at him as Keith tilts his head down and kisses her forehead before looking in her eyes and asking, "Better?"

Resisting the urge to snort, she crossly replies, "No."

She notes a brief look of humor in his eyes that he quickly hides before he moves his lips to her eyes and kisses each one, then down to place a light kiss on her nose. Keeping her eyes closed, she feels his lips move over to her cheek to linger there before moving to the side of her neck.

Shivering slightly when he nibbles on her, Allura opens her eyes again when he stops. Her eyes lock onto his as Keith smiles, "My wife…always in such a hurry…"

He tightens his hold on her even more and lowers his head so his lips are a breath away from hers before continuing in a low tone, "Some things need to be anticipated and savored Allura…" His lips touch hers in a feather light kiss for the briefest of moments before he pulls back an inch to add, "The anticipation heightens the pleasure…" then his lips press firmly to hers.

Eyes closed, a soft whimpering sound escapes her as Keith moves his lips over hers before he pulls back to look into her face again. Allura opens her eyes slowly to find him smiling at her, "Don't always be in such a rush sweetheart…sometimes it is the journey that is more worthwhile instead of the destination." He kisses her lightly again before pulling away to turn back to his desk.

She watches him for a moment before sighing deeply and turning to walk out of the room. Keith looks up at her departing back and smiles broadly before sitting back down at his desk to work.

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That evening Allura sits at her vanity brushing out her hair when Keith walks in. Her eyes follow his progress closely as he walks with panther-like grace across the room and stops behind her. Raising her eyes she meets his gaze in the mirror as he smiles at her then leans down to kiss the top of her head as he murmurs, "Ready for dinner?"

Allura sighs, Once again I'm like a child… as she nods and stands up. She is shocked a moment later when Keith pulls her into his arms and moves his lips across hers as he holds her body tight against his. He lifts his head to smile at her and Allura feels her heart flutter then melt at that smile. It held promises of future delights before he moves his lips along her cheek to whisper into her ear, "Dinner tonight is just you and me…in the ballroom."

A shiver of delight passes through her as she pulls back to ask, "A date?"

That smile is back again as he nods at her then releases her to step back, offers his arm and asks, "May I escort you to dinner Mrs. Kogane?"

Allura returns his smile as she reaches out to take his arm and he walks them out of the room. As they walk down the hallway, Allura notices the smiles on the faces of the guards and maids they pass in the hallway until they reach the ballroom. Keith releases her arm to open the door for her with a slight bow in her direction, "Ladies first…"

She smiles at him as she walks past him into the room then stops at the sight before her. Most of the room is dark except for the table for two that is lit by the roaring fireplace. Allura's eyes move to the window across the room and to find snowflakes landing against it. Moving her gaze back to the table, she walks forward to find her favorite flowers floating in a crystal bowl full of water and two lit candelabras on either side lighting up the table. Soft music plays in the background, completing the romantic setting.

Feeling a hand on the small of her back, Allura turns her head to look at her husband, who is searching her eyes as he asks, "Do you approve?"

Nodding, Allura turns back to the table as she replies, "Very much…" She feels his hand caress her back as he takes her arm with the other hand to lead her to the table. He stops before her seat and pulls it out for her. Smiling, she sits herself down as he pushes the chair into place then takes his own.

Keith smiles at her as he inquires, "Shall we?" and lifts the lid off of the plate before him. Allura removes the lid from her own plate and gasps in pleasure as she asks, "You got Nanny to make the Alfredo?"

He smiles as he nods at her while saying, "I remembered how much you liked it when we got Nanny to make the recipe that one time…" He pauses to take a bite of his and swallows before adding, "She's been stubborn about making it since then…"

Allura nods as she replies, "Because she thought it too rich and hard on the stomach." Allura rolls some noodles onto her fork and adds, "I love it…" before putting them in her mouth. Keith forces down a laugh as he watches his wife dig into the food on her plate with a relish he hasn't seen her eat with in quite some time.

Several minutes of comfortable silence pass as they eat their dinner before Keith looks across the table and finally does laugh out loud. Allura looks up with a questioning look in her eyes and Keith finally manages to stop chuckling long enough to say, "Allura…you have Alfredo going down your chin…"

Horrified, Allura grabs her napkin to wipe her chin off and is thankful for the dark room to hide her flushed cheeks as she turns her gaze back to her plate. Picking her fork back up, Allura picks at her noodles, but her enjoyment in the meal is gone.

Keith watches her pick at her food and sighs as he says, "I'm sorry Allura…I didn't mean to embarrass you and ruin it for you." His eyes turn a bit sensuous as he adds, "I was looking forward to cleaning your chin off for you later…"

A questioning look enters her eyes as Keith smiles at her while standing up. He bends over her as she raises her face to look up at him and he places a soft kiss on her lips before moving down to first kiss her chin, then lightly licks it.

Allura gasps as he raises his head to whisper, "There is still some flavoring there for me to enjoy…"

As her stomach flutters, Keith smiles at her again before asking, "Would you like to dance?"

At her nod, Keith grasps her hand and pulls her out of her chair. She watches him closely as he leads her a bit away from the table and pulls her tight against his body before moving to the music playing over the speakers. Allura sighs as she rests her head against his shoulder and inhales his spicy scent.

Soon curiosity gets the better of her and she sighs before asking, "What base is this?"

Keith's brow furrows in confusion as he pulls back enough that Allura turns her face to him as he looks down into her eyes while asking, "What are you talking about?"

Allura flushes again and fumbles for an excuse as she remembers her promise to Lance, "I was looking up Earth dating customs…and a book used the analogy of running bases in baseball to dating. I was just wondering what base this is?"

Relieved when she watches his eyes fill with humor, Allura gasps as Keith pulls her tightly against him once more and moves to the music before he responds with his lips near her ear, "This qualifies as first base…since we kiss." then moves his lips to hers and presses them firmly against hers, leaving her breathless.

Once he breaks the kiss and holds her tight to him as he continues to move, Allura gathers her courage to ask, "What's second base?"

His soft laughter fills her ears then he whispers, "Why do I think you know the answer to that and are trying to see how far I will go?"

Allura doesn't answer him as he continues to move her across the floor but sucks in a deep breath seconds later when his hand slides down her back to caress her bottom as he whispers to her, "This is between first and second I would say…"

She turns her face back to his as he dips his head and seals their lips together again. His tongue gently teasing her bottom lip has her opening her mouth slightly only to have his tongue slide in and caress hers gently.

A soft moan escapes her and Keith pulls back to whisper, "We're getting closer to second base…" He stops their dancing entirely as he asks, "Do you want to reach second base Allura?"

Allura shivers in his arms before breathlessly answering, "Yes…" Keith's mouth dips back down to capture her lips in another kiss, his tongue sliding into her mouth and stroking hers as he shifts one hand from her back and moves it up along her side before covering her breast.

Gasping, Allura breaks the kiss to look up into his dark eyes as his thumb moves across her nipple, teasing it into a hardened point. A soft smile slips across his lips as he whispers, "Enough baseball Allura…there will be no home runs tonight." then bends down to kiss her once more before pulling back to ask, "Do you want dessert?"

Allura can't think clearly as his thumb continues to tease her nipple but manages to murmur, "Yes…" and Keith stops teasing her to guide her back to their table. She slides into her seat still feeling flustered as he takes a cover off of a dish in front of him.

Leaning over, Allura looks at the dark top then lifts her gaze to his to ask, "What's that?"

"Tiramisu…" He dips a spoon into it then holds it out to Allura, "An Italian dessert from Earth…" She opens her mouth and Keith guides the spoon into her mouth. Her lips close around the spoon as he pulls it out of her mouth and her eyes close with delight as she digests the mouthful.

Opening her eyes again, she swallows before saying, "Wonderful…what is it? I detected a coffee flavor…"

Keith nods as he places a spoonful within his own mouth. Dipping back in, he holds the spoon out to Allura again as he finally responds, "A type of cake is soaked in coffee…the rest is a custard and cocoa powder sprinkled on top."

She savors the flavors in her mouth and watches as Keith takes another bite then laughs. His dark eyes look at her in askance as she rises from her seat. His head bends back as he turns his face to look at up as she bends over him to whisper, "You missed some…" and kisses the custard on his chin.

His eyes close as she gathers her courage and lets her tongue gently lick up the remaining cream on his chin before she pulls back, "There…all gone…"

Allura watches as he opens his eyes while asking, "Are you sure?"

Nodding lightly, she pulls back slightly as he raises a finger full of custard back to his face and smears it over his lips while whispering, "I think you missed some…"

A quivering need starts low in her belly as she leans back over him and tentatively licks at the custard on his lips until he pulls her onto his lap to deepen the kiss. His tongue gently laps at hers for several moments as one of his hands moves along her back, down to caress her bottom.

When he pulls away from her breathing heavily, Allura stares into the dark eyes that are shining with the flames of the fireplace as he whispers, "We better stop…"

Disappointment spreads through her as she turns her face into his neck while whispering, "Do we have to?"

She listens to him breathe in deeply and release it before she feels his lips along her cheek as he whispers, "Yes…" His grip loosens on her as he forces her to rise from his lap as he states, "Why don't you sit back down…we will enjoy some more of this dessert that Nanny worked so hard on today then head back to our room so you can get some rest."

Allura sighs as she moves back to her chair and Keith hands her a second spoon and moves the dessert between them so she can reach it. Her eyes stay on him as she eats a bit more of the dessert while wondering what he is thinking and how he could just stop like that.

Keith sighs as he licks the custard off his spoon while thinking, God help me if she ever figures out how to fully seduce me… His eyes watch her closely as she licks her own spoon and he can almost feel that tongue licking at his lips again as he shudders slightly.

Watching as she puts the spoon down, he asks, "Finished?" At her nod, he rises and helps her out of her chair as he says, "Let's head back to our room…" He kisses the side of her head as he adds, "I'll read a few more Greek myths to you if you wish."

Allura sighs as she agrees and spends the rest of the evening lying against Keith's side, listening to the comforting sound of his voice as he reads the stories of Artemis and Apollo to her as she falls asleep.

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"Oh God Lance...YES!" Alex takes a deep gasping breath as she reaches climax and feels Lance thrust into her twice more before she listens to his groan while feeling his release inside of her. His mouth rests beside her sweaty neck as he breathes in deeply for a minute. A moment later, she feels his lips move against her, lightly kissing her neck, before he slides out of her and moves down her body, settling himself along her belly.

He smiles at her softly as he raises a hand to touch her nipple, teasing the tight little bud until Alex whimpers. His eyes find hers as he whispers, "Is it just me or are your nipples more sensitive?" He blows at her nipple and watches her shudder as it stiffens more before he asks, "Is your period coming?"

Alex doesn't answer him...instead she tries to shift sideways. Lance sighs before he lifts his weight off of her and turns them both over in the bed. For several minutes, Alex lies with her head on Lance's chest, listening to his heart rate slow back to normal as his fingers move over the skin of her back. The thoughts that have been disturbing her for the last day or two return as she looks up to find his eyes half closed with sleep.

Gathering her courage, she whispers, "Lance..."

He opens his eyes and smiles at her softly as he responds, "I can't go anymore tonight sweetheart...have some mercy on me."

When she doesn't respond to him and only puts her head back down on his chest, Lance forces his eyes open even more as he asks, "Alex, what's wrong?"

He feels her hand move lightly across the skin of his chest before he hears her soft voice inquiring, "Do you love me Lance?"

Not knowing where this line of conversation is going, Lance lifts a hand to tangle his fingers into her hair as he replies, "You know I adore you Alex...what's going on?"

He watches as she lifts her head, her face full of her irritation as she retorts, "I adore chocolate Lance, it doesn't mean I want to sleep with it the rest of my life."

She pulls away from him and starts to get out from under the blankets. Lance quickly sits up and grabs her arm to stop her, "Alex...please, would you tell me what the hell is going on? We just finished making love and all of a sudden you are angry with me and I don't know why."

Alex fights back the tears she feels rising to the surface as she sits beside Lance on the bed. Her voice is barely audible as she whispers, "I'm late..."

"Late? Late for what?" Lance sits up more and pulls on her until she turns toward him, "I don't understand..."

"My period is late Lance..."Alex cuts him off then turns away from him as she utters, "I should have had my period last week."

"Oh..." Lance becomes silent for a moment before asking, "It could just be late and not..."

"Lance...I'm like clockwork. I always have been, since my period started when I was thirteen." Alex lies back against the bed while throwing an arm over her eyes.

As Lance lies down beside her, he listens to her mumble, "It must have been from our first time in my office. I've been...covered...since then."

Lance releases a sigh as he sits up and reaches into his bedside drawer. Taking out a little box, he turns back to Alex, "I was going to wait to give you this...but now seems like just as good of a time as any."

Her arm falls away as she looks up at Lance curiously. He smiles softly at her as he places the box on her belly. Her eyes stay on him for a moment before she looks down at the box and picks it up. Her fingers deftly remove the small ribbon on top before she takes the top off. Alex takes turns the box over and a smaller ring box falls out onto her hand.

As her eyes fill with tears, Lance reaches over to take the ring box from her shaking hand and opens it while asking, "Will you marry me Alex?"

"Lance...but...when? How?"

Lance smiles at her as he leans down to kiss her lips. Lifting his head he whispers, "Is that a yes my love?"

Alex smiles through her tears as she sits up in the bed and wraps her arms around him, "Yes...yes...my answer is yes."

"Once would have been enough love..." Lance smiles as she hits his back with her hand. He pulls back from her long enough to whisper, "I love you Dr. Alexandra Killian...you are my answer." and leans down to kiss her passionately.

Alex clutches him close to her as she kisses him back. When the need for air becomes desperate, she pulls away breathing heavily as she whispers, "I love you Lance McClain..."

"About time you told me that..."Lance grumbles as he pulls her tight to him in a fierce hug.

Laughter escapes Alex as she hugs Lance back then feels him pull away as he takes the ring out of the box then takes her hand to slide the ring onto her finger. His warm eyes meet hers again as he whispers, "Shall we continue the honeymoon?"

Smiling as she nods at him, Alex feels Lance push her back onto the bed as his mouth molds to hers.