Page 14 of Winter Queen
"Wyn," she whispers, almost inaudible.
"I'm here," I say quickly before she exhausts herself further, and step around the bed until I'm opposite Crispin.
He's hovering one hand over her stomach, his eyes closed. He must be feeling for injuries or weaknesses. I don't even need to use my own magic to know that my mother isn't injured as such. Her energy is gone almost entirely, and it seems that it has a much bigger effect on her than it would on anyone else. As a Goddess, maybe she's more reliant on magic? Does it keep her alive? Sustain her?
I put my hands on my mother's pale arm, visualising tendrils of magic running from mine into her body. Before I can even send them through her skin, something stops me. An obstacle, a barrier, preventing me from reaching her.
"I told you, it's not like a blood transfusion where you can simply send magic to someone," Crispin repeats, but a lot kinder this time. "It's possible to syphon magic in emergencies, like we did with you during your first flares, but you can't give someone else your own magic. They're incompatible, it would create chaos and even death. She'll have to recover on her own."
"He's right," Beira whispers. "You can't help me in that way, but I need your help for something else. I can't rule like this. I will be bed-bound for weeks."
I stifle a gasp. My mother is the strongest person, being, Goddess, whatever, that I know. She's been a little weaker recently, yes, but for her to stay in her bed for that long... it doesn't make sense. Is that what summer is doing to her?
"Is this normal?" I ask, feeling very naive.
"No," Crispin replies in my mother's stead. "She's always weaker during spring and summer, before getting stronger again in the autumn, but even in the middle of summer, she still has more magic than she seems to have just now."
He clears his throat and quickly adds, "Apologies, Your Majesty, for talking about you like that. You need to save your strength, so it's better if you don't talk too much."
I'm amazed at how brazen he is with Beira. As rebellious as my guys like to seem in private, they all have enormous respect for their Queen, and they usually talk to her with reverence. For Crispin to speak to her like that, he must really be worried that she might expend too much energy on talking with me.
"She used a massive amount of magic to keep the Palace from collapsing while she rescued the people in the wing you were in. Normally, she conserves her magic during spring so that she has some to draw from in the summer. Now, she's left with almost none, and with winter almost gone, it will take longer to regenerate."
The enormity of it all is making me woozy. With Beira this weak, the Realm is virtually defenceless. The Morrigan is meddling in the shadows, Angus is moving his troops for all to see, and demon sightings are becoming a normality. We need Beira to protect us. If we only had one enemy, we might succeed without her, but we have several, and all of them strong.
"Wyn."
I turn to my mother who's looking at me with an echo of her usual piercing glance, her eyes heavy-lidded.
"I need you to take over. I need you to rule."
Chapter Five
My guys are waiting outside for me and I fall into their arms, letting them comfort me by their simple touch.
Crispin is staying with my mother for now. It's probably better that way; I don't know what to say to him. Sorry for almost killing you? Sorry for crushing your skull? I don't think that sounds very good.
Arc is hugging me tight, pressing me against his chest, while the other two are holding me from behind. I'm surrounded by them, and I'm tempted to just let myself go, let my feelings take over and have them hold me together. But I can't. My mother told me to rule. I'm the Princess and for once, I need to behave like it.
Still, I enjoy my men's touch and I don't push them away. On the contrary, I melt into Arc's embrace, snuggling against the soft fabric of his shirt, feeling the hard muscles underneath. I can't resist, I pull his shirt out of his kilt and slide my hands underneath, touching his bare back.
He grumbles softly, his chest vibrating against mine. I feel my nipples harden at the sensation. This really isn't the place, but I can't stop.
I lift my head and see that Arc has been waiting for me. His lips crash on mine. He doesn't even wait for me to open my mouth, already his tongue is pressing against my lips, ready to enter my mouth.
I squeeze his hips, pulling him closer, his crotch pressing against my stomach. He's getting hard, just like I am feeling tingles spread between my legs.
"Let's find ourselves a room," Frost suggests with a chuckle. I love how he automatically assumes that all three of us are going to be together. Maybe Crispin, if he wants to join us, but somehow, I doubt that.
With a pang of regret, I break the kiss, but Arc growls when I do.
"Dinnae stop," he mutters and lifts me into his arms at the same time as his lips meet mine again. I smile and return the kiss, my heart beating faster at the thought of what's about to happen.
This is the first time I'm kissing one of them since my mum died. Should I really be doing this? My mum is dead and my other one is lying in the room next door, too weak to even sit up.
But then I decide that yes, I should be doing this. I have a bond to reforge. Four bonds, in fact. I need my men for the days and weeks to come, and not just that. I need to feel alive again.
Arc carries me somewhere, but I have my eyes closed, all my senses tuned into our kiss. It's magical. Our tongues are dancing while at the same time, his hands are gripping my arse, kneading it while holding me in his arms.
