Page 77 of Lady for Embers

He spun her, pressing her up against the wall. He bent down, speaking softly into her ear, “I want you to remember this moment, Scarlett. Tonight, when you are begging me to make you come, and I hold you right on the edge of bliss, my cock buried deep inside you, I want you to remember this exact moment in time. Because tonight, my Love, more than begging will be required of you and that tongue.”

He pressed a hot kiss to her mouth, nipping sharply at her bottom lip, before he pulled away from her and continued onto the main deck.

Fuck. Me.

Chapter 16

Cyrus

"Scarlett is coming,” Cassius murmured.

They sat on a bench that ran along a portion of the quarterdeck. Cyrus had his head tipped back, eyes closed, basking in the sun that had ?nally decided to shine on them. His legs were stretched out in front of him, ankles crossed, and his tunic was off. Because fuck, he just wanted to absorb some sun. He had ?re in his veins, sure, but he still wanted to feel as much of the sun’s heat as possible on his bare skin.

“It’s weird that you know that,” Cyrus answered. He understood it was part of the Guardian Bond and everything, but it still took some getting used to. He’d always known where Thia was because of their twin ?ame bond, but even that seemed different from Cassius’s bond with Scarlett. Maybe their Guardian Bond was enhanced by the fact that they were also soulmates.

Or maybe this was simply how a Guardian Bond worked. He kind of hated it.

He wasn’t entirely sure why, but it grated on him that she would draw from Cassius. That he was always at her side. That he was so quick to put himself in danger for her. Which was stupid really. He would do the same for her. Not only because she was his queen or his prince’s twin flame, but because she was family. It didn’t bother him when Rayner or Eliza did it. It didn’t even really bother him when Sorin did. So why did he get this irrational prickle of anger when it came to Cassius?

“See, they have their shirts off.” Scarlett’s words carried to him as Sorin and the queen reached the top of the stairs that led up from the main deck.

“For the love of Anala,” Sorin muttered.

“Anala would approve. She is the goddess of thesun,” Scarlett quipped. “She would understand my desire to feel the sun’s warmth on my bare ?esh.”

“No, Scarlett,” Sorin said, a low growl sounding in his throat.

She sighed dramatically. “And here I thought the Fae weren’t as prim and proper as the mortals.”

A shadow fell over him, blocking the sun they were arguing about, and Cyrus opened his eyes to ?nd the king and queen standing before them. “You’re blocking access to the bright and ?ery blessing of Anala, Darling. Move your royal ass.”

Scarlett scowled at him. “If I can’t enjoy the sun’s warmth, then it hardly seems fair you two get to.”

“For fuck’s sake, Scarlett,” Sorin barked. “You cannot honestly expect me to be ?ne with you walking around this ship without a shirt on.”

Cyrus blinked slowly. “Come again?”

“The sun is out,” Scarlett said, gesturing to the sky with her hand. “For the ?rst time in weeks it is not cold and dreary and godsdamn miserable. I just wanted to take full advantage of it.”

“By walking around topless?” Cyrus repeated.

Cassius chuckled beside him, drawing Cyrus’s attention to the male. He hadn’t even opened his eyes, clearly so used to Scarlett and her antics he just went with them at this point. “Imagine what he will do when he learns of your time at the beaches during the summers in Baylorin, Seastar.”

“I could never. They’d be scandalized,” she said with mock horror, bringing her hand dramatically to her chest before she plopped down next to Cassius on the bench. Sorin’s eyes narrowed on his wife. “Andno,” she said, her attention turning back to Cyrus. “I do not wish to walk around the ship topless. I simply wanted to lie in the sun for a while.”

Cassius chuckled again. “I am assuming you did not seek us out to discuss the matter of your being seen so immodestly on this ship?”

“No,” Scarlett sighed. Then she added, “We have several things to discuss.”

Cyrus and Cassius both turned to her at the tone of her voice. It had an edge of anxious nervousness about it, and she was worrying her bottom lip. He rarely saw the queen uncertain, butthen again, she had been making an effort to be more transparent with them.

“I hope the ?rst thing on that list is taking care of that fucking tracking Mark on Cass,” Cyrus said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“That is something we need to discuss, yes,” she said, the hesitancy increasing.

“What is there to discuss? Do you know how to remove it or not?” he demanded.

“I think I found the way to nullify it, yes. There are a few details to work out, but... ”

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