Page 41 of Of Blood & Bone: The Young Queen

“Be true to yourself, Queen Elinor,” he says, his voice a low rasp. “You have a bold heart, one which I never thought I’dsee in a woman again. You let it lead you to me in Ellerban. Let it lead you now and take what you want from me. Take it.”

His last two words are more of a command and they jolt me from my mesmerised state and into action.

I take my hands and place them on either side of his head and pull his face to mine. I place my lips on his and kiss him like I’ve always dreamed of kissing a man, at least a man I desire, such as him.

His response is instant. He pulls me to him and presses my body against his so that my curves are flush against the rock hard length of him. A fluid heat flows through my veins as I twine my arms around his neck and answer the hunger which I now realise has been building in me since his kiss the night before. This was the cause of the strange tension I was feeling all day – a primal need he sparked in me with that kiss. I’ve never wanted a man before, much less needed one, so I didn’t know what it was, but he has awakened something in me that I now recognise and understand on a primitive level.

I press myself against him and deepen the kiss. He releases a guttural groan into my mouth followed by the plunge of his tongue. The heat in my veins explodes into a flame and I open my mouth to him, offering its inner recesses for his pleasure and connecting my tongue to his in an erotic dance of desire. His large hand cradles the back of my head and he holds me there as he plunders my mouth.

Every stroke of his tongue and shift of his lips only serves to stoke the flames coursing through my body, and soon I find myself writhing against him in an effort to discover some form of release from the need building within me. His lips move from my mouth and travel across my cheek to my neck, each kiss searing my skin like a branding iron. I’m breathless from his kiss and gulp some much needed air into my lungs. He continues toplace hot kisses along my neck, and I arch backwards so he may gain more access to my willing flesh.

As I do so my womanhood presses against his groin and a low growl of feral need escapes his lips and vibrates across my burning skin. The effect on my body is instantaneous, I feel a stirring deep within my womanhood and what I can only describe as a heaviness between my legs, but it’s a heaviness that is building at a dangerous pace. I instinctively know I’m going to need relief from it but I’m not sure how to achieve that.

The prince’s lips continue to make their way down my neck and he places a kiss on my décolletage which sends tiny lightning bolts of need along my veins and into my breasts.

“Oh, my Queen, you are everything you promised to be and more,” Prince Ronan whispers into my skin as he brings one of his hands around to fondle my breast, almost as if he seeks to ease the ache his kisses have brought there. However, the feel of his fingers on my sensitised flesh causes a lightning bolt of need to flash to my core and I cry out as his fingertips connect with my nipple.

He stops instantly and looks down at me, his voice raw as he speaks. “Are you all right, Queen Elinor?”

I gaze up at him and am unable to form words. My head is spinning, my breasts are aching, my skin is on fire and the heaviness between my legs has turned into an almost unbearable pressure. On top of all this I feel an unfamiliar moistness between my legs and I don’t know if all this is normal. I don’t recognise my own body and part of me wants to rejoice in this new me, but another part of me feels like crying.

“Elinor?” The prince, says my name and his voice is full of concern. “What is it?

I look at him and am touched by the worry etched across his handsome face.

“I… it’s just… I... it’s…” I stutter, trying to formulate a reply.

“It’s all right, take your time,” he assures me, and the calmness of his voice is like a balm to my jangled nerves.

I take a deep breath. “I’m feeling so many things. So many things I’ve never felt before… it’s...its…” I falter, unable to find the word I’m looking for such is the jumble of my thoughts right now.

He smiles. “Overwhelming?”

I nod. “Yes. Yes, that’s it, I feel overwhelmed.”

“I’m sorry,” he says and a look akin to shame shadows his features. “In truth, I simply meant for you to lie with me tonight on my bed and for nothing to happen between us, but you are too enticing a prospect. I haven’t felt anything towards a woman in a long time and I feel this spark with you, this connection that tonight I found impossible to resist. I apologise. I got carried away and it’s too much, too soon. Come. Lie with me. I promise I shall not kiss or caress you for the rest of the night, but I would ask that you lie with me, if that is acceptable to you?”

A slight panic rises in me at his words and I realise I don’t want him to stop. I need him to bring some relief to my body, not in the final sense, as in taking my maidenhead, but I believe there must be a way to release the pressure that has built in me to such an extent I feel almost sick with the need for relief.

“No,” I gasp, “please, I need you to bring me some relief. I ache so and feel almost feverish with desire. There must be a way to bring me release without taking my maidenhead. I believe you are the type of man to know such things, Prince Ronan.”

He smiles and an emotion I don’t recognise shines from his eyes, but it’s much the same way one would look at a beautiful sunrise.

“Oh, my young Queen, you are quite the revelation,” he says, and if I’m not mistaken there’s a note of reverence in hisvoice. “I can certainly bring you the relief you so desire, but you need to trust in me totally as the pressure you feel now will become almost unbearable, but I promise to bring you the sweetest release.”

“Please,” I whisper, unable to believe what I’m asking for.

He smiles a deep smile and sweeps me up into his arms. He lays me carefully on the bed and leans over me, his muscular arms on either side of my head, instantly making me feel safe.

He looks into my eyes. “Relax, my Queen and give yourself over to me and the pleasure I can bring you.” Then his lips descend on mine and he proceeds to plunder my mouth as before. My body's response is instant and primal. I pull him to me and savour the intoxicating feel of his body on mine as my breasts are crushed under the weight of his chest and I feel the heat of his manhood against my leg. I tangle my fingers in his hair and kiss him as if he were the oxygen to my flame. I feel him smile into my mouth and knowing he finds my kiss pleasurable only serves to make me feel more desirable.

He rolls to the side and brings me with him part of the way, still kissing me like I was the last woman in all the realms. His hand moves across my tummy, dips into my waist and slowly and ever so tantalisingly moves closer to my breast. I'm shocked to realise how much I want his touch and how desperately I want him to cup my breast in his hand. Then he does so and takes my nipple between his thumb and forefinger and rolls it like a bead. All rational thought leaves my brain and my body bucks involuntarily against him. Tendrils of fire spread out across my skin and a wanton hunger wells up within me.

His lips move to my neck and he leaves a trail of hot kisses as he moves further down my chest. His hand leaves my breast and moves to my shoulder where he tugs my smock down, leaving my naked breast exposed.

“By the gods, Elinor, but you are truly beautiful,” he says before descending upon me and taking my nipple into his mouth.

A feeling of pleasure so intense it takes my breath away shoots through me and I cry out in shock and need.

---