Ruled by the Princess

Chapter 3

Chapter Three

The fireplace in her special pleasuring chambers was unlit on her own request, but as Kit stood pacing, waiting for Eli to arrive, she thought perhaps she should’ve had a fire to take a bit of the chill out of the room. Wearing a robe over her thin chemise wasn’t quite warm enough with the autumn evening air slipping through the stone castle walls. Of course, she realized the room would heat up in a different way as soon as her Representative made his appearance, and she had originally thought that would be enough. Now, she ran her hands across her arms in an effort to keep from shivering as she waited.

He wasn’t late. In fact, she’d never known him to be late to anything in all of his years. But she’d come from her regular chambers a bit early because she wanted to be alone to think, and her ladies-in-waiting wouldn’t stop chattering about the joust. While much of the discussion was about how brave certain contestants had been, and how frightening it had been when accidents had occurred, especially Cassius’s unseating, the conversation had then turned to what ramifications might befall Eli for winning.

The thought had entered Kit’s mind as well, but she hoped her mother would be reasonable. It was just a game, after all, and it wasn’t as if Eli hadn’t already been with Kit before he won an evening with her. If Rona thought that Eli’s victory would make her look weak in the eyes of the citizenry somehow, that seemed ridiculous. Very few people knew how much she loathed the man. But then, it wouldn’t be the first time Rona’s thoughts or actions had gone stray of the reality Kit was able to grasp.

A knock on the antechamber door let her know she’d have to brush those thoughts aside, at least for the time being. She hoped she had the opportunity to speak to Eli about her concerns at some point, but not right now. And... she had a feeling he would make light of the situation, as he usually did whenever he didn’t want Kit to concern herself over a matter that was out of her control. But if she was to make any effort whatsoever in stopping Rona, he’d have to be more forthcoming with the truth and allow Kit to make her own decisions based on all of the information, rather than keeping her sheltered from the truth of the situation in an attempt to protect her. The time for ignorance as a safety net, if there ever really had been one, was long past.

The door to the bedroom chamber was open, so Kit called for him to come in, and a second later he was standing in the doorway, both hands resting on the doorjamb, taking her in. She could tell by the expression on his face that there would be no discussion, not now anyway, not about anything of substance.

The corner of one side of Eli’s mouth pulled up in a crooked grin. “You look beautiful.”

“I’m wearing a robe,” she said, pulling out the edges of the garment but feeling the heat rising in her cheeks at the compliment.

“You always look beautiful.”

Kit took a step in his direction, and he flew through the door, his hands landing on her waist as he pulled her tight to his chest. She grasped his face with both hands and his lips came crashing down to meet hers. When tiptoes wouldn’t quite let her envelop him the way she wanted, he lifted her off of the ground, and she slid her arms around his shoulders, holding herself in place.

He tasted of cinnamon, and his lips were warm and full, devouring hers with an urgency she hadn’t felt from him even their first time together, in the carriage ride back from the labyrinth maze a few weeks earlier. What it was that had him so impassioned, she couldn’t tell for sure, but she wasn’t about to slow him down to ask, not when the feel of his tongue against hers had her gasping for air and longing for more.

Setting her back on her feet, Eli pulled her along with him with one hand, his lips still attached to hers, as he pushed the door closed behind him and dropped the bar into place. Kit tried not to think about Merek and how he’d died just outside of that door at Eli’s hand when the brute had tried to attack her. The door had been replaced, the blood cleaned up, but the memory was still there.

Eli was doing good work at clearing her mind of anything and everything except for him. Once the door was secured, he had both hands on her again, backing her toward the bed. In the past month, they’d been together a couple of other times, and he never ceased to thrill her, but she could still sense something was different this time. There was an air of desperation about his movements she couldn’t quite place.

With one hand, he tugged at the belt around her robe, slitting it open, and Kit wiggled her shoulders in an attempt to free them. Eli reached up to help, pulling the garment off of her and tossing it aside. He couldn’t seem to take either hand off her for long as they came back to her quickly. His fingers worked their way down her sides, each touch igniting the flesh beneath her chemise as he caressed every portion of her he could touch.

When his lips left hers to trail along her neck, Kit gasped for air, holding onto his shoulder for balance. Her knees felt weak, and her neck began to burn from the heat of his kisses.

She considered asking him if everything was all right, but she couldn’t catch her breath long enough to formulate the question and knew he’d never respond truthfully anyway. Besides, she’d have to be a fool to interrupt him as his left hand came up to cup her breast, dragging the top of her chemise to the side so that he could finger her n****e which instantly hardened under his touch. Kit moaned, leaning into his palm, and brought her hand around to reach for his belt.

Eli paused long enough to rip his jerkin and tunic off, and Kit’s fingers left the uncooperative belt to rest against his chest. No matter how many times she’d seen him without his shirt, she was always captivated by the way his muscles rippled with each movement, how the clearly-defined muscles of his abdomen morphed into a perfect V that disappeared below his waistband. Her fingertips glanced off steel as she raked her hands back and forth until she needed to feel him on her again and wrapped her arms around him, pulling herself in tight against his chest.

Eli chuckled at her in the back of his throat, and she imagined she did seem a little humorous in her desperation, but he didn’t laugh for long. She lifted her head to meet his, and his lips were on hers again as he unhooked his own belt and somehow managed to work his way out of the rest of his clothing while his kisses sent Kit close to the edge of euphoria before they’d even come together.

Dropping her hands, she ran her palms against his firm backside, and he pulled away from her lips slightly in a sensual smile. Kit could never get enough of the feel of him beneath her hands, but she was also anxious to have him inside of her.

Eli must’ve felt the same way. He slid his teeth together to enclose gently on her lower lip and tugged at it as he released her mouth. Kit’s head tilted back in a deep sigh, and he pulled her chemise off over her head. When he realized she was wearing nothing else, Eli gasped. Her eyes met his as his grin widened, and he gathered her up and dropped her onto the bed.

His lips were on her once more, teasing her earlobe before tracing her neck as one hand kneaded her breast and the other nestled against her hip. Normally, Kit liked to take her time at this stage, letting her suitor explore her body with his hands and mouth, preparing her before he completely took her breath away, but with Eli, she was never patient enough to wait for him to tantalize her too long. She wanted him inside her, and she wanted it now.

Despite the fact that she slipped her knee around the outside of his hips, attempting to coax him further between her legs, he continued to take his time, running his tongue from her neck down her chest until he captured her n****e and rolled it around in his mouth for a moment before increasing the suction and causing her to arch her back. Her hand immediately went to the back of his head, and she tugged at his hair while simultaneously pressing him further into her.

His hand slid down to brush against her thighs, setting them on fire, and when he slipped a finger up to gently graze the slick surface between her legs, Kit let out a moan. His finger probed against her opening, teasing her, but he didn’t push in. Kit slid her hips down on the bed, hoping to persuade him to slide inside of her, but Eli only moved his hand down to match her. He let go of her breast and smiled at her mischievously.

Narrowing her eyes, Kit reached down and grabbed his wrist pulling it up as she brought her hips down.

Laughing, Eli finally complied. “Oh, is that what you want?”

Kit would’ve chided him back, but all of the air exited her lungs when two of his fingers thrust firmly inside of her. He pressed in, pulled out most of the way, and then went in even deeper, and her breathing became a heady pant.

Eli leaned down and found her lips, and Kit put her arms around him, holding onto him tightly as his tongue danced with hers, and his magical fingers continued to send shivers through her body. His kisses were slow, as if he was trying to memorize every curve of her mouth, every contour of her tongue, and Kit felt her heartbeat quicken as each kiss grew more passionate than the last.

Without releasing her lips, he pulled his fingers out of her, and Kit whimpered, not wanting the sensation to end, but she realized he was reaching for the sheath, so she let the short-lived disappointment settle.

Kit held onto his shoulders, not wanting him to stray too far, and Eli somehow managed to get the sheath on while still kissing her. Once it was on, the weight of him resting on top of her became a safe haven, a solace she’d come to crave. Just the knowledge that he was hers, that they were intertwined at the soul, was enough to send her soaring up among the stars.

Deepening his kiss, Eli pressed inside of her, and Kit brought her hips up to meet him. The feel of him inside her was akin to a weary traveler making it home at last, and she wrapped her knees around him, her arms locking around his back. Slowly, he drew out, dragging along her walls, sending tingles of pleasure in waves up her core, and then he plunged back inside of her again, leaving her gasping for air.

Eli took his time at first, going deeper and harder with each stroke so that Kit was having trouble knowing where he ended and she began. He continued to caress her breasts, teasing out her n*****s while his lips explored her neck, her ear, her shoulder, before finding her lips again. The more time he spent inside of her, the more Kit found herself carried away so that when he eventually increased his speed, her head seemed light as a cloud.

She didn’t want this to ever end, and she could tell by Eli’s pace that he wanted to stay inside of her for as long as possible. Kit reached her rapture point over and over again, and then he changed the tempo to keep himself from joining her. Time seemed to stand still, and Kit relished each moment, grateful for every second she had with this man she loved with everything she had.

Reaching her peak so many times left her trembling and her breathing stilted. As much as she was enjoying herself, she longed to hear Eli cry out in pleasure as well. Tightening her muscles around his shaft, she leaned in to his ear and whispered, “Your turn.”

He laughed and dropped his forehead to her shoulder, and Kit kissed his cheek, increasing her grip with her arms and the rest of her body. Eli didn’t protest, and a moment later, he quickened the speed and velocity of each thrust again until he finally went into spasm, and Kit felt the spark of his release.

Propping himself on his elbows, Eli smiled down at her. Sweat beaded his forehead, and when Kit reached up to brush back his caramel hair, droplets sprang up into the air. She slid her hand down his cheek and twined it back around him.

“I love you so much,” Eli said, bending down to kiss her forehead. “I am the luckiest man in the world that I get to be with you.”

Thoughts of the others entered her mind for a moment as she considered he might be with her, but he wasn’t the only one. Of course, he knew that. He even knew that when she said she loved him, that phrase wasn’t completely unique to their situation. But it was a special love, unique, like all of the others, so when she replied, “I love you, too. And I’m so fortunate to have you in my life,” she meant every word.

Kissing her again, Eli rolled off of her, removing the sheath and tossing it onto the table by the bed before he reached out and encircled her waist, pulling her to his chest. The chill she’d felt earlier started to return, now that her body was glistening with perspiration, but she felt warm and safe snuggled up against him. She slid her knee between his muscular thighs and lie there intertwined with him in pure silence reveling in the solace of his arms.

Closing her eyes and falling asleep would’ve been simple, but in the back of her mind, the thought that her mother had not looked so happy when she announced Eli as the winner of the jousting tournament kept resurfacing. Kit wanted to talk to him about it, but part of her also didn’t want to know. Pretending that her mother wasn’t a threat, that she didn’t want to make Eli disappear, the way she had so many of Kit’s other lovers, would’ve been much more comfortable. But when she thought about her recent discoveries—that the realm wasn’t quite as regal as she’d been led to believe, that many of the citizens were starving or going to sleep in hovels every night—she knew she couldn’t overlook the situation any longer. Eli was aware of much more than she could even imagine about the state of Yewforia, one other reason why he was a threat to Queen Rona, and the longer Kit lie there wrapped in his arms, the more she began to wonder what her mother might do to him.

His breathing had evened out, and his eyes were closed, but Kit had a feeling he was still awake. She imagined he was never completely asleep since he was always prepared to defend her or handle any situation that might arise. It seemed a shame to disturb him, especially since she thought he might not want to talk to her about it. He’d been more open with her recently, but when it came to speaking about himself, his safety, his life, he was much less forthcoming. Still, she had to try.

“Eli?” Her voice was a whisper, hardly detectable to her own ear, but he opened his eyes a slit and looked at her. “Do you think... there will be ramifications for this?”

He was fully awake and looking at her now, and she could see him contemplating how to respond. As vague as her question was, she knew he understood what she was insinuating. She waited for a response, hoping he’d be honest with her.

When he replied, his voice was raspy from sleep, and it sent a tingle through Kit’s spine even though she was spent and couldn’t possibly think of another round. Still, it stirred emotions within her and made her scoot closer to him. “Probably, but there’s nothing we can do about it.”

The answer itself wasn’t what she’d wanted to hear, although she was grateful he’d at least been honest with her. He leaned up and kissed her forehead, and she couldn’t help but confess, “I’m afraid she’s going to take you away from me.”

“I know.” He kissed her again and somehow managed to pull her even closer. Brushing back loose curls, he said, “Kit, she can do her best to keep us apart, but I will always make my way back to you, understand?”

“If she takes you from me, I will hunt you down.” Kit was looking him directly in the eyes now, her fervor up from thinking about all the others her mother had stolen from her life. “I will not allow her to keep us apart.”

Eli stroked the side of her face and kissed her again, gently, on the lips. “It will be fine, Kit. Let’s not worry on it now, all right? Get some rest.”

She nodded, but in her heart she had a feeling he knew something he wasn’t telling her, something that easily could’ve started a revolution if he did. Kit closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but there was burning deep inside of her soul, the sort that let her know she wouldn’t be able to manage her silence much longer.