Page 121 of Of Realms and Chaos

Squeezing him slightly, I forced his head to tilt up, making sure he was looking into my eyes as I spoke.

“Sometimes saving the world requires the villain, not the hero. But being the villain does not mean you are evil, it just means someone else is telling the story.”

***

We stayed in bed for the remainder of the day, my stress skyrocketing as I pictured all we could get done. But Bellamy was unwavering in his request that we remain in the room. Wrath joined us eventually, complaining that I did not kill The Elemental when I had the chance.

Bellamy and I stole sweet kisses but did not come together again, even after Wrath left at nightfall—calling us disgusting beasts as he did.

It was a clear night, the sky full of so many stars that I wondered if perhaps Stella was there and smiling down at us. Or maybe nightfall was a brief glimpse of Eternity, afforded to all who cared to look. A sign that the darkness was not something to be feared because everything shined brighter within it.

Sometimes, on my optimistic days, I pictured Eternity crafting Bellamy and I, making us specifically for the other. As wishful as that thinking was, I still smiled at the thought.

“One day, we will find a way to free ourselves from this mess,” Bellamy said, pulling me from my thoughts. I looked up at him, confusion pinching my brow. His eyes were already on me, the serious expression he wore making me suddenly far more alert than I had been.

“What do you mean?” Free us from what?

“There will come a day when we are free, Asher. To live, to learn, to love. We will see the world slowly, stopping to smell flowers and eat pastries and drink mead. The two of us will survive on the taste of each other and the fuel of adventure. I am going to give you everything you never let yourself dream of.” Nothing could compare to the doting surety in his voice, the absolute refusal of any other outcome. Despite the unrealistic nature of those promises, I loved to simply listen to him speak of such futures.

“Queens do not abandon their realm to travel. We will not have the luxury.” Even if we ended up side by side on the thrones, we still would have duties that forced our hand.

“A queen can do whatever she wants,” he argued, waving a hand nonchalantly. “I think I’ll take you through Betovere first. We can make it a celebration, a chance to officially meet their new queen—if you choose to rule over them, that is.”

“Why would I not?” I questioned, my tone embarrassingly defensive.

“Well, you do not have to, Ash. There are others qualified. You can even pick. The rules after war are murky, especially when you will be changing so much already. We could rule in Eoforhild or not at all. I would live in a hole if you told me to.”

My head fell back as my laughter split the air. He took the opportunity to bring his lips to my throat, peppering kisses from the base where my collarbones met and up.

“I will keep that in mind when you infuriate me in the future.” My voice was breathy, heart beating like a hummingbird. Oh, he knew exactly what he was doing.

“As long as there is a future where we are together, then I am more than happy,” he whispered, breath hitting my ear just as his fingers dipped between my legs.

“We should get up. There is a lot to do.” My muttered excuse was pathetic at best, seeing as there was nothing we could do in the middle of the night. Still, I felt the need to stop before he talked me into something I normally would not agree to, especially as his mouth began to drop lower.

“Tomorrow, we can spend the day saying hello to our family and introducing you to everyone. You have a horribly depressing whisp with a penchant for saying inappropriate things to reintroduce yourself to. Plus, there are a lot of mortals eager to meet a goddess.” He continued leisurely touching me, his tongue darting out to lick a small line down my stomach before biting down near my belly button. I moaned as his free hand began to palm my breast, pointer finger and thumb momentarily pinching my peaked nipple.

“I will give you one day. Then I leave.” Biting down on my lip, I stifled a groan at the feel of lips on my hip. “Without Maliha, we will need every mortal kingdom on our side.” Two digits slipped inside of me, slightly punishing in the speed and pressure.

“Fine. One day of joy before I have to get pissed off by a bunch of mortals,” he growled. And then his tongue swiped a line up my core, causing my hips to buck up as his fingers continued to dip inside of me.

“You are not coming.” He laughed against me at my word choice, but all I could do was resist the urge to cry out as he sucked my clit into his mouth. “You—you have things to do. Important things. You are needed here.”

My eyes darted down and locked on his as he shook his head, face still firmly planted between my legs. We both knew I was losing, but only one of us took advantage. A third finger entered me, curving upward as his mouth consumed me. This time, I did cry out, his name leaving my lips like a prayer. Without another word, my hands went to his hair, tugging and guiding as he brought me to the brink of tears from the pleasure.

“Come, Asher. Come for me now.” And I did, proving that the only place where I knew how to follow instructions was the bedroom.

He swallowed the latter half of my screams, getting to me so fast that his lips were still dripping from my satisfaction. When his tongue wrapped around mine, I knew I lost. I would give him anything, and he knew it.

For my pride, I tried one final time, my words coming out as pants between gasping breaths. “You are staying here.”

He pulled away, smiling down at me with those maddeningly perfect dimples. “Where you go, I go.”

Before I could answer, his length filled me, the delicious pressure enough to make even me agreeable.

In one night, Bellamy reminded me of all the ways I needed him.

***

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