Draven made time to spend with her away from the pressures of his kingdom when he could, even if it was only their sneaking away at night to sit at the river’s edge. The phoenix would follow in the shadows, only appearing out when she would speak to it. Draven knew everything about his forest. Every tree, every flower, every creature. He would pick some of them, showing her medicinal properties and even telling high stories of sorcery he swore to her that some possessed.
It amazed her how much she didn’t know about the land.
At night, they would occasionally sleep on the high roof, Aydra desperate to see the stars she knew her youngers would also be looking at. She missed them. She wondered how Dorian had done with the Bryn and Blackhand Elders, whether he’d helped them actually vanquish the Infi in their streets or if he’d made it back to Magnice in one piece.
As happy as she was, she couldn’t get the thought of Nyssa being back at Magnice alone out of her head, wondering if she and Dorian were okay, wondering if Lex was okay… Aydra had sent the Orel out with a letter to the castle that morning, but had heard nothing back yet.
Aydra’s hands wrapped around the banister of the roof as she stared at the moons above her on that night, and she felt a tear trickle down her cheek.
“—finishing up dinner if you’re hungry—whoa.” Draven slowed as he reached the top of the steps, and he crossed to her quickly. “What’s wrong? Did Bael say something out of turn?”
She almost laughed, and she shook her head. “No. Nothing like that,” she promised.
His weight shifted, and he swallowed hard. “Is everything okay?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she whispered, reaching out to place her hand over his on the banister. “Overwhelmingly perfect.”
He eyed her. “And that made you cry?”
The comical confusion on his face made her sink into his arms, and she sighed heavily as she laid her head against his shoulder. “I cannot express how grateful I am for you. For your people… they’ve treated me as nothing less than their equal. I wish my youngers could feel such an equality and love.”
His lips pressed to her forehead, and he squeezed her against him. “We can bring them with us after the meeting in a few weeks,” he insisted. “Have them stay for a time. They deserve the travel.”
She pulled back and looked at him, her chest once more filling with the look he gazed at her with. “Have I told you how fucking much I love you today?” she managed, leaning closer.
His brows raised, and his hands curled around her waist. His eyes darted from her eyes to her mouth, and she watched as the smoldering smile rose on his lips.
“You haven’t,” he rasped, nudging her nose with his.
An urgent hunger filled her from her stomach up and into her extremities, She curled her hands in his hair, gently tugging on the roots of it. A deep groan vibrated his throat, their lips grazing, but not touching. His nose traced her jaw, and she felt his tongue on her skin.
“I have a request,” she breathed.
He pulled back slightly, head tilting at her. “Demanding, but go on,” he replied with a raised brow.
She grasped his hair between her fingers, standing up taller to move her head beside his ear. “Put on the skull,” she requested.
She felt the goosebumps rise on his flesh, the shudder wash over his body. She pulled back just as a low growl emitted from his throat. His fingers dug into her hips as he looked down at her with dilated eyes that made her thighs squeeze.
“You don’t know what you ask for with that,” he told her.
“I know I want you to fuck me without this restraint you’ve been putting on the last two weeks.”
His brows narrowed just slightly. “I told you restraint lives poorly in my core.”
“And you’re a liar,” she accused.
The smirk that rose in his eyes made her weight shift. They danced with sadistic delight that she melted for.
“You think I’ve been treating you as fragile?” he asked.
“I think you didn’t want to scare me.”
The smirk met his lips then, and the darkening of his gaze caused a chill run down her spine. “Careful what you wish for, my Queen,” he growled against her cheek.
She leaned in, her lips barely a breath from his. “Put on the skull… my King.”
CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE
“NADIR WILL BE here in an hour,” Draven told her the following morning.
Aydra paused in sharpening her sword, and she frowned up at him. “Why? Is something wrong?”
“He says you agreed to help him with the water serpent,” he replied. “And… another ship came in, further west this time, not by the reef. He wants a second opinion on what we should do.”
She could see the nervousness in his eyes, and she sat her sword on the ground, standing up level with him. Her hand reached up to his cheek, and he covered it with his own, kissing her palm.
“They’re ready,” she told him.
“We’re not fighting this time, remember?” he said with a raised brow.
“Oh, right,” she mumbled, almost rolling her eyes. “Diplomacy.”
He huffed amusedly under his breath, and his arm wrapped around her. “You’ll get your chance to behead them when they inevitably piss you off. I’ll have my men sharpen an axe.”
“We should bring it with us,” she insisted. “You know, just as a precaution.”
He grinned, head leaning down towards her. “Wouldn’t leave here without it.”
A shadow passed over the sun then, quickly diverting her attention.
Aydra
