Page 94 of The Barbarian King's Assassin (Magic and Kings 1)
He rolled me onto the bed and rose, his body a muscled sculpture of perfection. He went to the wash basin and dipped a cloth into it. He returned and knelt by the bed.
“Spread your legs for me.”
I complied, leaning up on my elbows to watch. He proceeded to bathe me, dragging the cloth over my swollen, sensitive flesh. I sighed and my head dropped back as he replaced the cloth with his finger.
Then his mouth.
He licked me and did things to me, wonderful things, with his tongue that had me crying out again and then losing all breath to speak, as that orgasm kept going and turned into an even bigger one when he penetrated me and rode me fast. I didn’t even know that was possible.
This time when I collapsed, I remained wrapped around him.
And in the morning, when he woke me with gentle strokes, I saw the advantage to spending the night with a lover.
I lost my smile at breakfast when his mother took one look at me and said, “I knew you’d change your mind about my son.”
CHAPTERTWENTY-EIGHT
I’d said one night.One to give in to the desire he made me feel. It wasn’t enough.
We left the inn the next day with me swearing I’d had my fill. But the longer we rode, him casting me smoldering gazes that had me eyeing the woods and wondering if we could sneak off, the more I understood one wouldn’t cut it.
When we camped that night, he held out his hand. I followed him into the forest and let him swallow my cries of pleasure as he took me hard by a stream.
Then again in the middle of the night when we took our turn on watch.
By morning I told myself I’d had enough of him now.
Nope.
We snuck off during a rest break, claiming we’d seen some berries. I don’t think anyone believed us. Jrijori certainly glared daggers at Konstantin. At least we’d left his mother behind. I could just imagine her gloating, thinking Konstantin had abandoned his plan to marry the zariina.
On the contrary, we cemented it. It made the most sense. Go through with the wedding, get rid of the grand vizier and the emperor, take over the country.
There was just one problem with our plan.
His soon-to-be wife.
I think the only thing that made the idea bearable to me was knowing how little interest he had in actually marrying her. Every day he asked if I’d changed my mind.
Every day I said I had no interest in being with him.
Every time he pulled me somewhere private, he proved me a liar.
Our last night on the road, we stayed at an abandoned farm. The loft was our bed, and it almost collapsed under our activities. I thought Jrijori would kill him when we emerged the next morning, plucking moldy hay from our hair.
My father wanted to say something but couldn’t. After all, he’d been the one to suggest I should be sleeping with the king.
I got four nights in total before we arrived at Frothy Falls, a splendid city unlike any I’d ever seen. Perched atop some falls, it was the northernmost point of the ravine and the spot where east and west met.
It belonged to no country but rather a religious sect that worshipped some kind of water god they claimed lived in the falls.
On each side of the temple, a town had sprung up. Weztrogian on the west, Jaamanian on the east. Despite the skirmishes between the countries, the people in this particular location got along quite well. What better place to have the two countries forge peace than here? It would be a shame if a war tore it apart.
I eyed the stone-cobbled streets, swept clean and in excellent repair, like the buildings. Several stories with actual glass windows. The people appeared happy and prosperous. Hopefully we weren’t about to ruin that.
As honored guests, we were settled into the western wing of the grand temple set atop the waterfall. The view from the windows as we were led to the second level was incredible. The unexpected came in the shape of a woman waiting for us in Konstantin’s assigned quarters.
We entered and couldn’t miss Zariina Zasha, standing framed in the afternoon light coming through the window. Her blonde, silken hair spilled over the form-fitting gown she wore. A filmy veil hung across her face and clipped to her hair. Her eyes were huge with the thickest, darkest lashes. A single female servant in a dark gown, her hair hidden under a wimple and veiled like her mistress, attended her.