Page 2 of A Kingdom of Lies

To many, that wasstillall they could see when they looked at me.

“Then I should get in my practice, since my list of enemies seems longer than it needs to be,” I said, drawing a picture of a man in my mind’s eye.

King Doran Oakstorm – the man who used my father like a pawn to keep me in line.

Erix had a way of seeing the inkling of emotions I fought hard to hide from him. A frown creased his sweat-glistened forehead as he closed the space between us. His frame was so broad that he blocked the sunlight out entirely, bathing me in cool shade.

He pressed his hand to my cheek, holding it carefully in a cupped palm. My skin was clammy and wet, but it did not matter; I enjoyed his touch in whatever variety it presented itself to me.

“Must I remind you, little bird, that you are one of the most powerful creatures on both this side of Wychwood and beyond? Do not worry yourself with the likes of scum who wish to cause you harm. Your enemies are my enemies, remember that.”

Erix wasn’t wrong. My enemies certainly were his. King Doran’s petition for Erix’s head had only intensified in the past weeks. It was part of the reason we’d not yet left the safety of Farrador’s boundary walls. Doran’s soldiers waited beyond for the moment Erix stepped free of his sanctuary of blessed protection by the Cedarfall Court.

I dropped Erix’s stare, unable to hold it as flashes of my father cursed my mind. It had been weeks since I last saw him, suffering from a sickness brought on by poison, a stab wound that had been inflicted by one of the Children of the Asp as they had tried to take my life under Tarron’s orders.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Erix asked quietly.

I shook my head as his finger found the base of my chin and held it softly.

“There is nothing to say,” I replied. “No words that will get my father back. Only action.”

Father’s abduction by the Oakstorm Court was the sole reason why I filled my days with training and my nights with Erix.

Distraction.

Distraction was the only remedy to stop me thinking about him. Not the promises from Althea, who’d taken it upon herself to counterpetition for my father’s return. Nor her mother, Queen Lyra, who swore to see him back in her lands even with his past as a Hunter common knowledge across the Courts. Only a distraction, whether training in combat and magic, or spending those mindful moments before sleep, entangled in Erix’s strong limbs.

“Hewillbe okay,” Erix said, his tone almost promising. “Doran would truly be a fool to kill someone important to you. Your father would have been dead long ago if that was the case. But he is not, and that will be for a reason. That has to stand for something.”

I gripped Erix’s hand and squeezed as my mind suddenly raced, making me dizzy. “Erix, please. I – I can’t think about this right now.”

He moved swiftly until the tips of his boots pressed into my own. Taking my face in both hands, Erix pressed a kiss to my lips.

Like butter over an open flame, I melted. Melted into him as his tongue parted my lips and enticed my own to join its dance. This was what I required, and he knew it. Part of me felt guilty for using him when I knew it clearly meant more to him, more than just a way of taking one’s mind off another matter.

But I couldn’t burden myself with such worries. I gave in to the tidal wave of calm that always greeted me when Erix and I became intimate. Like a leaf down a stream, I allowed his tidal force to draw me away from my thoughts.

I wrapped my arms around his back, feeling his muscles tense in reaction. He released a groan as I gently scraped my nails across his skin, something that had him purring with pleasure during our nightly entanglements.

“Keep that up” – Erix broke away breathless with lips tainted pink – “and I will take you right here and now.”

“Here?” I giggled, pulling back to survey the castle’s outer wall and the many arched windows across it. Even now someone could be looking, watching, and that was likely since there was always a host of guards shadowing me, even if Erix commanded them to give us space. “What do you take me for, Erix?”

“Do you truly wish for me to answer that?” His mischievous grin flashed for a moment before he dove into the crook of my neck. I leaned back as his teeth grazed my skin, kissing and sucking until I couldn’t tell if it was pain or pleasure that I felt.

My fingers clawed across his head, holding him from escaping. His hair had grown slightly since I’d first seen him riding into the Hunters’ camp encased in silver armour. It no longer scratched against my skin but felt smooth. And I’d discovered that his hair was a warm brown with the faintest hint of amber.

“You will get us in trouble with those sinister thoughts you harbour,” I warned with a wink.

“Sinister?” Erix broke away, silver eyes glowing from within. “You do know that the fey are not bashful and shy when faced with the promise of sex. No one would care if I tore the clothes from your body and you sat atop me like I am your throne. In fact, they would celebrate it.”

“Well, believe it or not, but the humans hold some dignity when it comes to sex. I would prefer not to have an audience.” A tingling chill spread up my spine. My mouth grew wet and cheeks puckered as though he held a sour cherry before me, and I pouted.

“As you wish. Then, shall we retire to your chambers?”

Heat unspooled in my belly like unravelling thread. Knotted and tangled around Erix. “I am beginning to believe you don’t ever tire or grow bored.”

“Bored?” He scoffed, pressing his crotch into me until I felt the outline of his very hard, very interested cock. “I have a storm within me, little bird, and I am ready to unleash it.”

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