The gentle, woodsy feeling of Kieran's imprint reached me just as my fitting with the seamstress ended, a Queen apparently needing a more elaborate outfit than just a tunic and leggings for her coronation celebration. Poppy, his whispered voice sounded in my head as I walked out of the small, informal meeting room. I need you to promise not to kill me on sight when you get back to your chambers.
I stopped dead in the hallway, nearly causing the seamstress to run straight into my back, and only after several apologies on both our sides was I able to respond. And why will I want to kill you on sight, Kieran?
You'll see, came his cryptic answer. Just know that this was all Casteel's idea and I don't know how I got talked into it.
Well. With that not-exactly-reassuring answer, I hurried on toward the east wing, which I still had trouble believing was all for me. It was certainly a far cry from my small, barren room in Castle Teerman. And everyone I passed here gave me a warm smile, or a wave, or a friendly "Good evening," rather than avoiding my eye, which was another pleasant change from my childhood in Masadonia. Hisa and Delano trailed behind me at a respectful distance, their presence mercifully unobtrusive, and as we reached the doors to the King and Queen's chambers I sensed them peel off, their watch finished for the day.
I passed between another pair of guards and through the doors to our chambers, following the faint sound of voices toward the bedroom. They trailed off as I drew closer, and my heart pounded in the sudden silence, my footsteps on the stone floor the only other sound as I crossed the sitting area. "Kieran?" I called as I approached the heavy wooden door. "Cas?" I stepped into the chamber and froze, all thoughts eddying out of my head as I saw my husband kneeling on the floor, Kieran holding a dagger at his throat. My dagger.
My jaw dropped as I took in their position, Casteel's hands bound behind him and Kieran's other hand fisted in his hair. My gaze swung rapidly back and forth between the two men, Kieran's face his usual mask of boredom, but Casteel was… grinning? I moved a step closer, and yes, both dimples were definitely on display. I blinked, and the other oddity of the scene suddenly hit me like a slap to the face: my husband was utterly, gloriously naked. Instinctively, I ran my eyes down his lean, chiseled body, watching him harden under my stare, and when I made my way back up to his face his eyes were molten pools of gold.
"Say it," Cas said, nudging Kieran's leg with his shoulder but never taking his eyes off mine. I tore my gaze away from my kneeling spouse to raise my eyebrows at the wolven, who gave a long-suffering sigh.
"I've brought an offering for the goddess," Kieran intoned drily, but I could feel the amusement rolling off him in waves. "I tried telling him that those offered to the gods are usually virgins, but he insisted," Kieran added, his lips curling up at the corners.
"She wouldn't want a virgin anyway," Casteel argued, his heated gaze still fixed on me, the smoky spice of his arousal settling under my skin. "They wouldn't know anything about serving a goddess."
"Whatever," Kieran replied, rolling his eyes. "Can I go now?" Casteel grunted an affirmative, and Kieran released his hair, lowering the dagger and stalking toward me. He flipped the weapon in his hand, offering me the handle, and as I took it he strode off toward the exit. "I have got to stop agreeing to this shit," he muttered to himself as he ducked out the door, and a smile worked its way up my face as I heard it click shut behind him.
"You want to tell me what all that was about?" I asked, sweeping an appreciative glance down Casteel's body once more.
His grin grew, the hint of fang sending a bolt of heat straight to my core. "Exactly what he said, my goddess," Casteel all but purred. "I'm offering myself into your service."
"And what kind of service would that be?" I wondered aloud as I stepped within reach of him, my voice lower and huskier than expected.
"If you would do me the honor of undressing, I would be more than happy to show you," he murmured, his pupils dilating as he looked up at me, his arousal nearly a tangible presence between us.
The reminder of his current position stalled the heady desire coursing through my veins, and I frowned down at him. "Why did you have Kieran bind your hands and hold you at knifepoint?" I asked, gesturing with said knife. I didn't miss the way his eyes tracked the weapon, or the way his cock twitched as he did. Demented, I thought fondly.
Casteel shrugged unconcernedly, still eyeing my blade. "A long time ago, the people of Atlantia used to make human sacrifices to the gods," he explained. "The gods could drink blood, so the victim's hands would be bound and throat slit so the gods could feed as they wished." I shuddered at the barbarity, the waste of life. "No one has done that for centuries, of course, but if I was going to be a sacrifice I was going to do it properly," he added with a wink.
"And the lack of clothing?" I asked, running a hand appreciatively down his chest.
"A calculated risk that there were better ways for me to serve you than bleeding out at your feet," he replied, his grin back in full force. "But I wouldn't be opposed to bleeding a little bit for you."
"You're incorrigible," I muttered, setting the knife on the bed and plunging my fingers into his dark, silken hair, hauling his mouth up to mine. His lips were soft and pliant as I kissed him hungrily, the taste and feel of him stoking the embers of my arousal back to a roaring flame. He let me lead and a thrill shot through me at the thought of my husband, my heartmate, my king, submitting to me.
Reluctantly, I pulled away far enough to meet Casteel's gaze again, noting with satisfaction that I wasn't the only one breathing heavily. "Will you untie me," he asked, his eyes bright, "so that I may show you my devotion, my goddess?"
A small, devious smile worked its way up my face as I stepped back and regarded him again, all golden skin and hard muscles, his cock jutting proudly into the space between us. "Not yet," I replied, toying with the hem of my tunic, and Casteel's expression became, if possible, even hungrier as I slowly pulled it over my head, his stare an almost physical caress as I tossed it aside and moved my hands to the waistband of my breeches. I took my time popping each button, reveling in Casteel's unblinking attention, my heart stuttering at the way he sucked in a breath through his parted lips when I finally reached the last one.
"I kind of like you like this," I admitted, kicking off my shoes before teasing the fabric of my breeches down over my hips. "You're usually so handsy."
"You've never complained about my hands before," he said, his honeyed amber stare inching down my legs, following the cloth of my breeches as they slid to the floor.
"True," I agreed, now standing before him in only a thin shift. I wasn't sure he even breathed as I pulled that off as well, and the way his eyes trailed down my bare body had me fighting not to squeeze my thighs together. "But you don't need hands to worship, do you?" I asked, raising one eyebrow.
"No, I do not," he breathed, leaning forward to press kisses around my breast, his tongue lightly flicking at the nipple before he switched to the other, my hands coming to rest on his shoulders as a barely audible sigh left my lips. I arched into him in invitation, and the scrape of sharp fangs against sensitive skin sent a shiver down my spine.
"Would you sit on the bed for me, my goddess?" he murmured against my skin, flicking his eyes up to meet mine.
I frowned. "Don't you want to join me?" I asked, but he merely pressed a chaste kiss to my sternum and shook his head.
"I told you I could spend an eternity on my knees before you," he replied as one dimple appeared, and I really did squeeze my thighs together at the smoky promise in his voice. I turned and backed up the two steps to the edge of the bed, not breaking his stare as I felt the backs of my legs meet soft linens and lowered myself onto them. My knees splayed wide as I sat, and Casteel wasted no time shuffling forward to settle between them.
With me seated and him on his knees we were exactly the same height, and I couldn't resist pulling him in for another kiss, nipping at his bottom lip before soothing the small hurt with my tongue. I ran my hands down the warm, firm muscles of his chest, enjoying the way they tensed under my touch, before traveling lower, until my fingers just brushed against the hard length of his cock. I grasped him firmly, drawing a low moan from him which I captured into my own mouth, and his hips thrust forward into my hand as I gave him a slow caress.
Casteel let me stroke him a few more times before he broke our kiss with a groan, pulling back to meet my eyes. My hand stilled but didn't release him as he panted, stark need written across his features. "Lie back," he ordered, and I raised my eyebrows at his command. "Please," he amended, and with one last squeeze I released him and settled back onto my elbows, drawing the bottoms of my feet up onto the bed. In this position I was splayed open for him, and he wasted no time before leaning down, placing gentle kisses up the inside of my thighs until he reached their apex.
The first press of his hot tongue against my center drew a high, breathy sound from me, which apparently was all the encouragement Casteel needed to slip said tongue through my folds, plunging it into me as his nose brushed against the swollen bundle of nerves right above my entrance. I relaxed into the bed, sinking fully onto my back as he swept his tongue up to replace his nose, flicking lightly against that most sensitive area before closing his lips around it.
My hips lifted of their own accord as Casteel dove eagerly into his task, and I bucked against his face as he redoubled his efforts, his tongue lapping obscenely between my legs. I slid one hand down to grasp a handful of his hair, pulling him lightly toward me as I ground against his mouth, and his groan only added to the wave of pleasure already beginning to rise within me. I gasped as he nudged the perfect spot, tightening my grip on his hair as I shamelessly rode his face, my legs falling even wider apart as sensation built and built until I was balanced on a knife's edge, ready to combust.
"Cas," I whimpered, sounding desperate to even my own ears, and as always he seemed to know exactly what I needed. All it took was a gentle scrape of his teeth to send my climax crashing over me, my entire body trembling as he worked me through it, each pass of his tongue prolonging my release and sending another shudder through my muscles. I relaxed my fingers, smoothing the hair that had been tangled between them as I gasped for breath, suddenly weak in the aftermath of such potent pleasure.
When I finally regained enough of my senses to look down at him, I found Casteel already grinning up at me. He held my gaze as one dimple, then the other appeared, and he dropped a last, lingering kiss at the apex of my thighs. "Have I earned the right to use my hands now?" he asked, shooting a look at the bloodstone dagger, which still sat next to me on the bed.
Fuck, his arms must have been aching. I sat up so abruptly we almost bumped foreheads, snatching the dagger and bending around him to saw at the ropes that bound his hands. "Shit, Cas, your wrists," I hissed, noticing how raw the skin beneath the bindings looked. Kieran had definitely not gone easy when he had initially tied them.
"I'm fine, look," he reassured me as the cut ends fell away and he brought his wrists forward. Indeed, the skin there was already smooth now that the rough fibers of the rope were no longer digging into him. "Besides," he added with a wink, "you know I like a little pain with my pleasure."
I rolled my eyes at him as I set the dagger aside once more but brought his hands to my mouth anyway, pressing light kisses to his inner wrists. His gaze softened as the rich taste of chocolate-covered strawberries burst across my tongue, and I placed his hands around my waist before drawing him close for a long, passionate kiss.
"Well, you certainly do know how to make your wife feel like a goddess," I said after finally pulling away to catch my breath, and Casteel raised his eyebrows.
"Surely you didn't think that was the extent of my devotion, did you?" he replied, slinging one arm further around my waist and hauling me with him as he crawled up the bed, depositing me on my back amidst a pile of cushions. "What would you like next, my goddess? Should I worship you with my hands or my cock?" His eyes gleamed as he settled his body over mine, my legs instinctively wrapping around his waist as he held himself up on his elbows.
I squirmed, rolling my hips as the tip of his hard length brushed ever-so-slightly against me. "Your cock," I panted, and he let out a low, desperate sound.
"Fuck, you know I love hearing that word on your lips," he groaned, reaching down to place himself at my entrance. "Look at me, please," he asked, and my eyes met his as he slowly pushed into me. I had to fight to keep them open as the solid warmth of him filled me, the pleasure somehow exquisitely perfect no matter how many times we'd done this. "You're so perfect," Casteel murmured, echoing my thoughts as he sheathed himself fully, then just as slowly retreated.
"I am in awe of you," he continued as he set a slow, languid pace with his hips that had me melting into the mattress. "Your compassion, your strength, your beauty." He punctuated each word with a thrust, drawing small mewling sounds out of my lips as I dug my fingers into the meaty muscles around his shoulder blades, trying desperately to keep myself grounded as he took me apart with his words and his cock.
"And somehow, even though I am so unworthy of you it should be a sin, you still chose me," he said, and through the haze of lust I felt his wonder, the amazement I hadn't been able to put to rest no matter how many times I told him he was worthy. My heart constricted in my chest, but he continued. "There is nothing I would not do for you, nothing I would not give, no oath I would not take." He started to speed up his thrusts, still never taking his eyes off of mine, and the familiar coiling sensation in my stomach started up again as he dropped a hand between us, circling his thumb at the apex of my thighs.
"With my sword and with my life, I would vow to serve you, my goddess" he whispered, barely audible above the sound of our bodies coming together and the keening moans accompanying my every exhale. "From this moment to the last moment, I am yours."
It was too much; between the naked adoration in his eyes, the firm thrusts of his cock and the way his fingers were applying the perfect pressure I shattered, my release barrelling through me as I arched up into him, pressing our sweat-slicked chests firmly together. My own eyes finally fluttered closed as I tossed my head back and shuddered, floating in a sea of bliss as Casteel fucked me through it. I vaguely registered his muttered "Fuck," as he too shook with his climax, his forehead dropping to mine as he gave a last few lazy circles with his hips.
We lay there for several moments, just breathing together as both of our heartbeats returned to normal, until Casteel rolled off of me, pulling me with him as he settled on his back. I snuggled into him, resting my head on his chest, and when I blinked up at him his lips pulled into a fond smile. "How was that for worship?" he asked, pushing my damp hair back from my face.
I returned his smile, idly tracing one of his scars with a finger. "That was..." I paused as my brain suddenly caught up to the rest of my body. "Was that… did you just say the same oath you took when you became my guard?"
His grin widened, both dimples winking into existence. "I did," he confirmed, and a giggle worked its way up from my chest.
"You are ridiculous," I laughed, and the sound made him hug me tighter, both arms banding around me.
"Perhaps," he allowed, his expression never wavering. "But I am yours."
I hummed in agreement. "And I am yours, Cas. Always."
His eyes gleamed bright as he leaned down to press a chaste, sweet kiss to my lips. "I love you, Poppy," he said, and kissed me again.
"I love you too," I replied, then wriggled out of his grasp to sit up and throw a leg over his hips, straddling him and resting my hands on his chest. "But I wouldn't mind if you wanted to worship me a little bit longer," I added, and his answering smirk was practically predatory as he surged up to meet me, running a sharp fang down the curve of my neck.
"As my goddess commands," he murmured, and I rolled my eyes even as his mouth closed around my pulse point, and my last rational thought for the better part of an hour was deciding that maybe I didn't mind him calling me that after all.