Fates Fulfilled: Halven Rising

Lex tossed a grape into her mouth. Well, not exactly a grape. Some kind of Tirnan variation, but it tasted like a grape, except tangier.

She scanned the inside of Em’s new digs, previously the king’s quarters. “I don’t know. The gold accents give it a certain feel. You could be Em the Gold Queen.”

Em’s mouth puckered. “I’m not queen yet. And Casone Branimir had no taste.”

“I’ll give you that,” Lex agreed. The king had installed a pretty swanky bathroom for a castle this old, with a four-person bathtub that overlooked the now defrosted Dark Kingdom Garden, but the toilet was gold. Gold. Who installed a gold toilet?

Velvet drapes in emerald boasted hand-painted images of Casone Branimir. Talk about narcissism. Even the bed Lex lay on was draped in gold silk and could fit an entire soccer team. The Dark King didn’t do anything in half measures.

Lex looked around with her nose scrunched. “You really want to stay here?”

Em shrugged as she lifted down a Fae-sized painting of the former king. “Someone needs to protect the land.”

Lex was referring to the bedroom, but Em had a point. “Elena and Keen won’t attack Dark Kingdom now that your parents are in charge. They only came because Camille detected Garrin when he entered their land. It was more of a reconnaissance mission. And apparently Jas was putting up a stink to get me back.”

“It’s not them I fear. The queen escaped the king’s ice magic when you unfroze the land, and we are missing two alchemists. My father believes they are together in Tirnan or the Earth realm.” Em’s mouth twisted. “I do not trust the previous queen. She was most unmotherly in how she treated Garrin.”

Lex choked on her next grape. “Um, that’s putting it mildly. She was power-crazed.”

Em batted at the velvet drapes, looking at them sideways.

Lex lifted her finger. “As your stylist, I suggest you burn those.”

Em made a sound of agreement, then sat on the bed beside Lex. “My parents were handed the kingdom because we are the closest relatives to the Branimir line, though we don’t take the task lightly. I’ll make sure my court protects the land from the Dark Queen.”

“Former Dark Queen,” Lex pointed out. “She’s been stripped of her royal post, remember? And I suppose that’s an ignoble reason to hang around.”

Lex sat up and inspected a piece of cheese, wondering benignly what animal it had come from. “What about the king and prince’s harems? What will happen to the women?”

“The prince’s harem wishes to become a part of the royal guard, and my mother and father have agreed. The king’s harem wishes to leave this land.”

Garrin valued and trained his court females, and the king belittled his. The women’s decisions spoke to their treatment by the most powerful men in the land.

“And Amund, what will you do with him?” Lex sent Em a teasing grin.

“He is infuriating.”

“Please elaborate.” Lex rolled onto her stomach and rested her chin on her hand. “I must know why you hate the Fae beefcake.”

Em smacked her lips lightly as though searching for a flavor. “He is like the child that tugs on the girl’s ponytail.”

“Because he likes you.”

She made a face. “Or because he wishes to annoy me.”

“Same thing, right?”

“No, it is not!”

“So you’ll keep him around?”

Em let out a long-suffering sigh. “I suppose I must.”

Lex could see the corner of Em’s lip twitching. She liked Amund, even if she wouldn’t admit it outright. “I suppose if you need a head guard, at least make sure he’s attractive. Wait, that’s not right, because they’re all attractive. At least make it a guard who challenges you and possesses beefcake hotness?”

Em frowned. “Don’t you have an appointment with the prince?”

Lex smiled and rose. “Former prince, and indeed I do.” She fluttered her fingers. “Ta-ta. Good luck with your remodeling. Call me if you need spray paint for that gold toilet. Oh, and say hello to Amund for me.”

Em stuck out her tongue, and Lex felt a sense of pride. Her human crudeness was rubbing off on the new Fae princess of Dark Kingdom.

Lex entered Garrin’s quarters and heard the shower running. She snuck into the dressing room, not wanting to miss the show.

Sprawled on a massive chaise that could fit two football players, she waited impatiently.

A few minutes later, Garrin walked out of the bathroom rubbing his damp hair with a towel, another fitted precariously at his waist.

“Husband, your towel is loose.”

He strode over with a cocky grin. “Should I leave and properly cover myself?”

Lex snapped out her arm and plucked the towel from him. “Oh dear, it’s fallen.”

He tossed the towel he’d been using to dry his hair and covered her with his body. “Devil wife. I left our marriage bed not an hour ago.”

“I’ll have you know, I was very productive while you were gone. I helped Em redecorate your father’s quarters and grilled her for information on Amund.”

He rubbed his nose along her neck, seemingly breathing her in. “Did she admit to lusting after the Fae?”

“Not yet, but I’m wearing her down.”

He lifted and scanned her body as though considering round two of afternoon delight. “What else have you been doing?”

“Well, I stripped my husband and now plan to have my way with him.”

His silky hands slid her top up, and she raised her arms, giving him room to remove it. “I approve of how you spend your time,” he said.

“As if you have a say.” Her voice came out breathless as he kissed his way down her chest, his large hand covering her breast.

She looked at the top of his dark head. “As much as I’m enjoying our life of married leisure these last two weeks, I’m wondering if we should swing back into the Earth realm now that I’ve mastered my kick-ass magic.”

After she’d melted Dark Kingdom, effectively removing the magic that put their land in permanent winter, she returned their friends to their respective kingdoms in one swift megaportal hop.

Okay, fine, she had to practice a few times, but the third time was the charm.

Her breath caught on something he did with his tongue near her nipple, and she smoothed her fingers along the back of his neck. “We could pass through and check in on Elena and Keen before heading to the Earth realm to make sure your ex-mother isn’t wreaking havoc.”

He lifted his head, his damp hair disheveled. “We don’t know she is in the Earth realm.”

“Shouldn’t we find out? She was as diabolical as your father, controlling the alchemists and devising a plan to take over Dark Kingdom.”

He sent her a disgruntled look. “Must we discuss Ailith?” His gaze skittered down her body. “I had other plans.”

She grabbed his chin and kissed his full lips. “You’re right. We have business to attend to.” And she reached back and grabbed his bare ass.

Garrin growled. “Let’s not forget who’s in charge here.”

“Me?” She grinned.

“Only if you’re not putting your life in danger, which you tend to do.” He unfastened her pants and slid them down her legs.

Garrin rolled to the side and flipped them so she was on top. He unclasped her bra half a second later.

“I’m not thrilled you know how to do that. I’ve checked. Fae women don’t wear bras.”

“Don’t they?” he said, and caressed her breasts, making her eyes roll into the back of her head.

“Wh-what?” she murmured, distracted.

He looked at her innocently and positioned her above his hard length.

Lex ran her hands down the undulations of his muscular chest. “I can’t remember what we were talking about.”

“It’s just as well,” he said, and lifted her until she sank onto the length of him.

Garrin leaned up and grabbed her ass at the same time his soft mouth enclosed her nipple. It was triple stimulation, and it didn’t take long before she was rocking haphazardly, racing toward climax.

Stars burst behind her eyes and pleasure swept over her, incoherent sounds erupting from her throat.

In her lulled state, Garrin kissed her, flipped them, and pressed her back into the chaise. He continued a slow, torturous rhythm that had her thinking about orgasm number two.

Lex touched his strong cheekbone, treasuring the look on his face as he reached his pleasure.

“I love you,” she said after he’d caught his breath.

“Not more than I love you,” he said, and slid to the side, pulling her close.

She curled into the protection of his chest, and he lazily ran his hand up and down her spine.

He lifted onto his elbow and rested his head in his hand. “I spent hundreds of years believing you were a gift from the angels to save my people. Little did I know you were put here for me.”

When Garrin Branimir wanted to woo a woman, he brought out the big guns. “Who knew you were this romantic?” She leaned up and pecked him on the lips. “It’s a good thing you’re handsome, or I would have run like hell out of that Earth cave.”

His brow quirked. “I seem to recall you trying. And handsome, you say?”

She sent him an exasperated look. “I thought you were ridiculously hot the moment I saw you in my dorm. And terrifying. Very terrifying. Which was the reason for my sprint to the cave entrance.”

“And now?”

“You’re a big puppy dog.”

He bristled, but a smile caught on the corners of his lips. “I know to which creature you refer, and I find it mildly insulting. For the record, you nearly barreled over me inside your dormitory. I should have been terrified of the hooded female.”

She laughed. “I didn’t run into you. I was trying to avoid the big, bad wolf lurking my hallways.”

“You called me a puppy dog.” A mischievous glint shone in his eyes. “And perhaps the encounter was intentional on my part.” His face grew serious. “I sensed it before I measured your abilities—the draw to you. I knew you were mine the moment I saw you, every inch of your face hidden in shadow.”

She sighed and encircled his chest with her arms. “Pushy and possessive. At least I know what my future holds.”