Fantasyland 04 Broken Dove (81 page)

When I got into the hall, I noticed Gaston was down at the other end and Lund was still at his position at the top of the stairs.

But as I moved toward my room, I also noticed one of the doors in the hall was cracked open.

It was Christophe’s.

I thought Apollo had left it open for some reason and was wondering why when I got closer and saw Christophe’s eye peering out the crack.

I looked quickly away, his position telling me he didn’t want to be caught peeking out, and made note to tell his father he was still awake and something was up as I walked by his door, pretending I didn’t know he was there.

I got two steps past it when I heard him call, “Miss Maddie.”

My heart jumped in my chest as I turned and saw he’d stuck his head out of the door.

His eyes were on me.

And he was addressing me.

Directly.

“Are you all right, Chris?” I asked.

His head turned to look toward the other end of the hall then he looked back to me.

“Did you talk Loretta into being with Hans?”

I stared at him, surprised at his question.

A question that laid testimony to the fact that Chris didn’t only watch his father, sister and me.

It would seem Chris paid attention to everything.

Then I forced myself to speak. “Um…well, no. Not exactly.”

He looked disappointed.

“She is…” I didn’t know what to share and decided on, “She has some issues.”

“Hans likes her,” he stated.

“Well, yes,” I replied.

“The handsome soldier is supposed to get the maiden he desires at the end of the story,” he declared and I felt my lips twitch as I fought back a smile.

“You’re absolutely right,” I told him.

“So what’s wrong with Loretta? She’s ruining the story,” he told me.

I again beat back my smile, doing it thinking that I wanted to walk to him. To get close. To crouch in front of him and hold his eyes when I spoke my next words.

But this was not small progress.

This was huge progress.

So I didn’t push it.

“Some stories have twists and turns, Chris. It could be that those twists and turns will lead to Hans winning Loretta. It could be he thinks she’s the maiden he desires but yet another is on the horizon and it will be her he seeks to win, and does. As with any good story, we just have to watch it play out and see.”

“She’s the maiden he desires,” Chris informed me authoritatively. “I heard him tell Remi he thinks she’s very pretty.”

“I’m glad to know that,” I replied softly.

“So she needs to stop being so stubborn,” he asserted.

“Well, hopefully I gave her a few things to think about in regards to Hans,” I shared.

“Hopefully you did,” he agreed.

At that, I let myself smile and said quietly, “But we’ll just watch it play out, shall we?”

He was looking at my smile. His eyes shifted up and he nodded.

“Now, do you want me to find your father and ask him to come and tuck you in, or are you good?” I queried.

His head (the only thing I could see around the jamb) lifted up two inches before he stated, “I can tuck myself in.”

“Of course,” I murmured. Then louder, I said, “Now you sleep tight, sweetheart.”

Something moved over his face at the endearment. Something I couldn’t quite catch before he called, “You sleep tight too.”

And without further ado, his head disappeared and he closed the door.

I turned swiftly, catching myself from twirling with glee.

I waved to Lund and Gaston as I rushed down the hall, catching myself from skipping.

I threw open the door and saw Apollo sitting in a chair in my room, tugging off his boot. His head came up, his face got soft when he saw me, I liked that a whole lot, and I closed the door behind me.

“Lock that, poppy,” he ordered.

I didn’t lock it.

I let myself skip across the room to him, watching him watch me as he dropped his boot and straightened in the chair.

When I arrived at him, I let myself twirl and I ended my twirl falling into his lap.

His arms instantly closed around me.

I instantly lifted my hands and slapped them against his chest.

“Guess what?” I asked.

He was grinning down at me as he asked back, “What?”

I pushed closer and when we were nearly nose-to-nose, I shared, “Chris just caught me in the hall and
instigated a conversation with me.
”

His eyes flared, his arms convulsed and his lips curled deeper.

“Good,” he murmured and I shot backward, away from him.

“Good?” I asked before I slapped my hands on his chest and leaned in again. “
Great!
”

“Yes, dove, it is great,” he agreed, his arms closing tighter around me, bringing me closer, his jade eyes dancing with amusement. The dancing stopped and warmth settled in before he whispered, “Happy?”

He wanted very badly for that answer to be yes.

He’d worked hard at making that answer yes.

So it was with deep gratification that I slid my hand up his chest to curl it around his neck and whispered back, “Very.”

He dipped his head so his lips were a breath away from mine.

“Now, let us see if I can make you happier.”

His words. His tone. The warmth that had heated in his eyes.

I squirmed.

“Okay,” I breathed.

“Go lock the door, my dove. But when you join me in bed, I want just you and not your clothes joining me.”

I could
so
do that.

So, without a second’s hesitation, I did.

* * * * *

God, he was killing me.

“Lo,” I breathed.

Apollo and I were under the covers, facing each other on the bed. We were naked. He had my leg draped over his hip, his thigh hitched between my legs, and his fingers were toying there as they had been for a long time.

A very long time.

“Look at me, Maddie.”

I lifted my gaze from an unfocused study of his throat, pressed my hips into his hand, and caught his eyes even as his fingers whispered away.

“
Lo,
” I breathed again, this time it was a plea.

His mouth came to mine, his eyes held mine, and his lips whispered, “Marry me.”

All my breath left me.

Okay.

Now that…

That
was a marriage proposal.

His fingers whispered back before they again slithered away.

“Marry me, Maddie,” he repeated.

Oh God.

“Apollo,” I said his name softly but said no more.

I couldn’t. His fingers came back, gliding over my clit then shifting back, one catching at the entrance to the core of me.

“Say you’ll marry me,” he ordered gently.

I bit my lip.

His finger circled.

I whimpered.

“Say it, poppy.”

“I’ll marry you, baby.”

His finger filled me.

I closed my eyes, pressed my hips down and arched my back.

Apollo moved his mouth to my neck as he slid his finger out.

On the inward glide, he asked, “You’ll spend the rest of your life with me?”

“Yes.”

His finger went out then in.

“Content at my side.”

“Yes, Lo.”

Out then in.

“On my arm.”

“Yes, honey.”

Out, in and then gently circling.

Yes.

God.

Killing me.

And I loved it.

“Always with me,” he went on.

“Absolutely.”

“Will you try and make a baby with me?”

My body bucked and my hands at his chest pressed deep.

But my answer to his question was, “
Please
.”

The second he got it, he lifted his head, caught my mouth in a deep, wet, searing kiss as his finger slid out and he pressed his big body into mine.

I fell to my back, Apollo covered me and his hips fell between my legs. He broke the kiss and braced on a forearm, his other hand going between us. I felt the head of his cock gliding where his fingers had been.

But not coming inside.

I lifted my head and shoved my face in his neck.

“Lo, please.”

He traced my ear with his nose before he did the same with his tongue as he rubbed the tip of his cock against my clit.

I gasped.

“Do you love me?” he whispered in my ear.

“Yes,” I whispered against his skin.

“Say it.”

“I love you, baby.”

He slid his cock back and it caught right where it needed to be.

But he didn’t go inside.

“Say it again.”

“I love you, Lo.”

He gave me an inch.

I strained for more and wrapped my arms around him, lifting my knees high at the sides.

“Again, poppy.”

“Love you, Lo,” I breathed.

I got another inch.

I bit my lip and slid a hand up his back to clench my fingers in his hair.

His voice was rough when he ordered, “Again.”

“Love you.”

Another inch.

“Love you, honey,” I repeated without his prompt this time.

And that was when I got it all.

Then again, I already had it all.

Apollo had given it to me.

He was just giving me more.

He moved and I moved with him, hearing his quickened breathing in my ear, feeling it tingle over my skin.

He moved faster, thrust harder, and I listened to his breathing as it turned labored, my body tingling everywhere, pressure building.

I clutched at him with my hands, pressing my thighs tight to his sides, and gasped, “Baby.”

“Take it, Maddie,” he grunted, driving deep.

I took it, holding tight, pushing my face into his neck, he kept pounding into me as my climax shook through me and I held on.

Then he sank his teeth into my earlobe, the nip of pain radiating down and becoming something else altogether, before he released it and groaned in my ear.

I held his weight, absorbed his warmth, his strength, as mine left me and his left him.

Then I felt him kiss the side of my neck.

Down, pulling out slowly, he kissed my shoulder.

Down again, he kissed my chest.

And down, he kissed my midriff.

And down yet again, where he kissed my belly.

Lifting his head, he caught my eyes and slid back up. He touched his mouth to mine, lifted slightly away, and reached to the nightstand.

He brought a cloth back and his eyes came back to mine as he gently pressed it between my legs, cleaning him away, before he tossed it to the floor at the side of the bed.

His arms going around me, he took me with him as he rolled and lifted to blow out one lamp, doing the same with the other.

Finally, he settled us with me on top of him, taking my weight, hopefully absorbing my warmth, but also pulling the covers up high over us.

I pressed my face into his neck as I wrapped my arms around him as best I could.

“Happy?” I whispered.

“Absolutely,” he whispered back.

“Hold tight to that, baby.” I kept whispering, and his arms went super-tight around me.

And against his skin, I smiled.

Chapter Thirty

The Plan Is in Place

“Oh my goodness,” Élan breathed. “Is that the Black Prince?”

I didn’t answer at first. I was too busy staring at the man and woman standing at the top of the steps of an a-freaking-
mazing
palace that was in an a-freaking-amazing city at the base of some, you guessed it, a-
freaking
-mazing mountains.

I knew the woman was Cora, the Gracious.

I also knew the man was Prince Noctorno of Hawkvale, ruler of Bellebryn, known as the Black Prince. I’d seen his pen and ink pictures in the papers from the Vale too.

They just did not do him justice.

In any way.