Page 82 of The King's Omega
“And it’s going to be such sweet torture.”
Tarn
Ihad never been one to share a woman, or anything else for that matter, with anyone other than my twin. After a childhood of dividing up what little food I had with Lorn—and after our parents died, most of what we ate were things I pilfered—I determined that there wasn’t enough of anything to go around.
So, I learned to steal and to hoard. Eventually, between what I stole, and what Rigol gave to me and Lorn without so much as a blink, I had enough to get Lorn schooling and decent clothes, and he shared his eventual rise in society with me.
Although Rigol had been the machine for that as well if I was honest. His library, his willingness to share knowledge as well as food and clothing, and his constant friendship—even if he did make some truly boneheaded decisions on a regular basis—were all the foundation of the men Lorn and I had become.
I knew I owed Rigol the life I lived, owed him anything I had if he needed it. But I had been loath to share my little thief with him, and when she had admitted she would have him, I had barely suppressed a curse. I knew she was Axe’s first, and after all he had endured to save Rigol and to protect our kingdom, I couldn’t begrudge him any solace. As for Lorn, I could share the woman I loved—yes, loved—with my twin, if he treated her as the goddess she was.
But Rigol, and Vilkurn as well? Before this moment, I never would have said I could be that generous.
Somehow, this little Omega had changed me. Her selfless, immediate generosity inspired me to respond in kind. She made me a better man, I realized. A better friend, as well.
As Vilkurn bent over her body and lavished her with gentle touches and filthy words, I found myself not jealous, but appreciating the gorgeous tableau.
Over the years, I had seen masterpieces that were both beautiful and valuable, but never had I felt the depth of emotion I did watching her come apart under Vilkurn’s hands. Watching her dissolve as he thrust into her, knotted her, and made her cry his name.
Somehow, he refrained from giving her a mating bite. I hoped I could do the same. She had said nothing about Axe’s bite, although she had noticed it. It was possible she didn’t understand that it meant their lives were bound together until death, but Lorn and Vilkurn and I had all agreed to refrain from biting her until we all had time to consider the ramifications.
The possibility that we could all be linked, and that the death of one of us would be the death of all, existed, though none of us had ever known anyone with more than one mating bite. I was the only one who had even heard of it, and that was only because of my addiction to the old stories.
It was these stories that ran through my head as I watched Vilkurn pull away from her at last, cleaning her with a damp cloth and pressing kisses and soft words of praise to her cheeks and lips. His eyes glowed golden, as did hers, and the golden nectar that fell from her was like something from a strange fairytale.
If this part was true, that she could bestow gifts on her lovers, which other stories might also be? Could she tame dragons, heal the land itself? If she could, she would always be sought out, chased, her time and attention a commodity any thief would try to steal.
I understood that desire; even now, a part of me wanted to steal her away from the world, from my brothers, and make her my own. But who was I to claim even a small part of her? She was the most glorious creature in existence, a miracle, a country’s salvation. I was a common thief who had ridden to some fame by virtue of being my brother’s twin.
As if he had heard my thoughts, Lorn glanced at me, then at Vali, raising one eyebrow. I almost laughed and waved him on while Vilkurn slipped out to help Axe in the tunnels. Vali blushed as Lorn spoke prettily to her about the new dresses he was planning for her. In minutes, she was melting in his hands.
Of course she was. Lorn had the skills of diplomacy; he could talk a queen out of her crown and a king out of his treasury. My missions were to steal the treasury without being caught… or to ride a queen hard enough she never noticed her missing crown the next morning. I’d ridden more than my fair share of queens and had never regretted it until today. Lorn had learned to be faithful, in his own way, taking a single lover at a time. My sexual history was a running joke in Turino’s pubs; some insisted that Lorn had been the one to bed some of the women, as no one man could have that many lovers.
At one time, I had bragged of my prowess. Now I was ashamed. Vali had come of age in a brothel, but I was the whore. I did not deserve her.
I ignored her cries of pleasure, and retreated to the farthest corner of the room, sinking down to the floor to wait—not for a chance to lie with her, but to admit to my unworthiness. She would offer out of pity, or sheer generosity—she could forgive Rigol, already proving her kindness knew no bounds—so I would have to clarify that she needn’t share her gifts with someone like me.
I was so mired in my dark thoughts I didn’t even notice when Lorn left the room until Vali’s hand was on my arm. I closed my eyes, wondering how I would be able to turn her away. “Tarn?” She crawled around to my lap and stilled there, crossing her legs inside mine. “Will you just hold me?”
“Of course, Peaches.” I let my head drop so I could inhale her incense, marveling at how her scent had deepened, gaining fresh notes of musk and spice. Perhaps her mating mark with Axe…
“Tarn, I have a slight problem I hope you can fix.”
“Yes?” I might not be worthy to lie with her, but I would serve her to my last breath. “Anything for you.”
“I know we’re supposed to… you know, have sex and all. But it feels peculiar to me. I haven’t even kissed you yet.” She swallowed. “I don’t even know if you want to kiss me.”
“Oh, Peaches,” I said, turning her so she was looking up into my face. “It feels peculiar to me as well. But rest assured that I want you. I would die happy with one kiss from you. But we don’t have to do any more than that.”
She smiled, but the wrinkle in her brow betrayed her nervousness. “That’s the thing. If we don’t, um, have sex, you might die. So it feels like we have to, doesn’t it?”
“I’m not worthy of you. I think we should wait.” My balls ached as I said that; I hadn’t been with anyone since I met her. In Mirren, a duchess had promised covert military aid in exchange for a night of passion.
She had thrown me out of her bedroom when my cock couldn’t rise to the occasion. As far as I could tell, only Vali made me hard now, but that didn’t matter. “Yes, little thief. You’ve done so much, you healed me already. You don’t owe me anything.”
“Owe you?” Her brow wrinkled even more. “Wait, what did you mean you aren’t worthy? Tarn, you’re much more important than me.”
I grimaced. “Really? Look at you, a girl being fought over by two kingdoms, married to one king, and planning to perform magical acts to save another. The only known Omega in existence. I’d say you were pretty important.”
