Page 32 of The Stolen Kingdom

Yet, it had been months since she had been this close to the other woman. There was no trace of blood on her clothing. It was clean and pristine. It was almost the Valda she knew; except she couldn’t tell if her eyes were honey or not.

“I am afraid to ask something,” Valda said, her warm breath brushing over Maris’s face. “Will you lie to my face again if I ask you a question?”

Maris’s frown deepened, a soft, pained whimper escaping her lips as Valda leaned in, pressing her warm forehead against Maris’s damp, sweat-covered one. She wouldn’t admit it to anyone, not even to herself, but Maris missed Valda.

Fuck.

She missed her roughness and felt her absence in the pit of her stomach.

Gods,she missed her so fucking much.

Without meaning to, Maris released a ragged moan from the very center of her chest.

Valda’s parted lips stretched into a smile. “How many nights have you touched yourself while thinking about me?”

Maris closed her eyes tightly. This was a dream, wasn’t it? There was no way Valda was here. She must’ve fallen asleep at some point, and if she willed herself, she would wake up, and everything would dissolve into the night.

But Valda wouldn’t release her. Her free hand moved to Maris’s nape, her fingers threading blue strands of her hair. Blunt nails scratched her scalp before she formed a fist and pulled. Another moan escaped Maris as liquid lust settled in her lower stomach and the junction of her thighs.

Valda moved close until she bumped her nose to Maris’s temple. The other woman closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. “And here I thought that you hated me, but you are desperate for me to touch you further, aren’t you, Seashell?”

Valda’s grip loosened when Maris whispered, “I don’t hate you. I never did.”

Valda exhaled through her nose and opened her eyes. The honey was back in them, making Maris sob. “You don’t?”

She shook her head and grabbed Valda’s thick forearm. “I don’t.”

Maris tensed when Valda grabbed her jaw again. Instead of pain, Maris was surprised when she felt the softness of Valda’s lips on hers. Before she could react to the tendercaress, her lover’s tongue slipped to taste her. The fire, once ignited by anger, was replaced by pure, unadulterated need.

Maris opened her mouth to welcome everything Valda offered. In the confusion of touch and gasps of air, Valda settled her on the bed, the cold bedsheets pressed to her naked back.

Valda’s mouth was all over her, tasting her chest, taking each nipple into her mouth, then she moved to her stomach and her thighs. Those same rough hands spread her apart, and then Valda’s searing tongue was on her wet skin. Maris grabbed Valda’s hair and kept her in place, crying out into the surrounding darkness.

Until she opened her eyes and saw the dimming lights of the candles in her room.

A cold drop of sweat ran down her temples, her hand moved from between her thighs, her fingers wet with arousal. Maris sighed and looked around the empty chamber. She was alone…

It was all a dream…

7

Every time Valda opened her eyes to darkness, her heart clenched in fear, convinced she had been blinded again. But then, Cerberus would appear. The small feline would press her head against Valda’s face, her yellow eyes steady and reassuring as she settled on Valda’s chest.

The loud purring vibrations against her breast soothed her, yet the tears still found their way down her cheeks.

For months now, it had become her nightly routine to search for a way to reach Maris. But every attempt ended the same—an impenetrable wall barring her path. She had begged the gods to grant her an audience with Maris, prayed for some loophole that would allow her to slip through. But there was nothing.

In the darkness and suffocating silence, she called out to Maris.

There was never an answer.

The days were easier, though the sickness lingered. She busied herself by traveling with Isen, distracting her mind as best as she could. Yet, whenever the nausea struck, her thoughts inevitably turned to Maris. She pushed those feelings down, burying them in the void within her chest.

The emptiness consumed her.

Though Isen offered words of comfort, Valda couldn’t shake the gnawing thought: did Maris feel as hollow and miserable as she did?

The ride to Caliban, the city nearest to Umbriel, was filled with strategy and planning. At first, Valda dominated the conversation, outlining their next steps while Isen listened intently. Their goal was simple: to settle in the city and find as many defected soldiers as possible. They would build a new resistance, letting the world know their queen was still alive—albeit in hiding.

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