Page 17 of Calling of the Crown

“Because it’s always true. You’re gorgeous. You’re gorgeous like this, half naked and spread out on a table for me.” He punctuated his words with a deep, agonizingly wonderful thrust. “You’re gorgeous when you’re in absolutely nothing.” Another deep-seated push. “You’re gorgeous when you’re in your favorite leggings and sweatshirt.” He groaned as he pumped hard and fast. “Always. Beautiful.”

I felt the familiar pulsing of a building orgasm, and my hips began to meet Rune on each thrust as I rode dangerously close to yet another rush of exhilaration.

“C-Cumming,” I gasped.

My muscles tightened as the heat flared between my thighs then exploded like a bomb detonating. Rune gasped and made shallow thrusts as he followed me into that place of satisfied contentment. I fell back onto the table, and Rune hovered above me on his forearms.

As we both fought to catch our breath, he pressed his forehead to mine. We stayed just like that—him buried inside me, my arms wrapped around his shoulders, our heads pressed together, breathing each other in—for several minutes. It was the safest and most at home I’d felt all morning.

I tilted my chin up enough to plant a small kiss on the tip of his nose. “I like this meeting much better than the other one.”

He chuckled, which only served to make my core spark with a fresh wave of desire since he was still inside me. It was that moment he pulled out, though. “Don’t worry. I plan to do this in every meeting room.” He paused. “Actually, scratch that. I plan to fuck you in every room here, period.”

He tugged his shirt off as he straightened and handed it to me to clean up with. Once I was done, he took the material to do the same.

“I’ll hold you to that,” I snickered.

I watched him wipe the cum coating his shaft, and I thought back on the handfuls of times we’d had sex—all unprotected and all after he’d discovered I was Water Fae.

“Is that why you’ve never worried about wearing a condom?” I asked, nodding in the direction of the hallway. “Because Land and Water Fae can’t have kids?”

He finished cleaning and adjusted himself back into his pants. “They can have kids. It’s just extremely unlikely. Us being different Classes of Fae is basically as good as a condom as far as preventative measures go. Since we’re both clean on top of that, I never saw the point.”

I nodded and let his words sink in. Kids between us were most likely not an option. I wasn’t ready for kids by any means, and Rune didn’t even want any. But having that option decided for us instead of being able to make it ourselves left me feeling oddly bitter.

Shaking the thought away since none of that mattered right now anyway, I placed my hands on my hips and glanced at the door. “This morning has already been productive as far as shitty conversations go. I think I’m gonna go ahead and knock out another crappy meeting while I’m on a roll.”

He cocked a curious brow at me. “What conversation is that?”

“One that will probably be more of an interrogation, honestly. I’m gonna go pay a certain traitor a little visit and finally get my answers from him.”

Realization dawned on him, and his jaw immediately hardened. “Ahh. Do you want me to go with you?”

I waved the suggestion off. “Considering you always end up beating his ass when you two are together, I’m gonna say no. You go hang out with everyone and see how they’re all holding up here. I’ll have Imani or Dallas go with me.”

He reluctantly nodded and followed me to the door. “Okay. I just hope you get at least one good swing at him.”

Laughing, I shook my head. I rarely ever resorted to violence, but I wasn’t going to throw out that possibility for this meeting. I mean, given our history, who knew what would happen.

Just as Rune and I started to part ways, he grabbed my hand and pulled me in for one final kiss. He smiled down at me. “While you’re there, tell Dax I said fuck off.”

Chapter Nine

“I CAN’T BELIEVE WE HAVE an actual dungeon,” I gasped disbelievingly as I continued my slow trek down the stone and sand hallways.

We were deep under the palace, and the windowless hallways were dim with only sconces lighting the way. The damp space got muggy the farther in we went, and I quickly decided I didn’t like it down here.

“We don’t really call it that,” Dallas said beside me.

“What do you call it?”

“Purgatory.”

I nearly tripped over my own feet as I whipped my head around to look at her.

She stared straight ahead with a forlorn look painting her face, but when she glanced sideways at me, she smirked. “That was a joke.”

“Not a very good one,” I mumbled.

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