Page 53 of Dawn of Chaos and Fury
“More,” she whined, arching into him and guiding his hand back to her breast. “Touch me, Axel. Everywhere.”
No problem there.
His hands roamed, cupping breasts, sliding over hips, brushing along the crease of her thigh. Within minutes she was clenching around him, forcing him to follow her into the depths of ecstasy. She muffled her cry into a pillow while blinding pleasure ripped through him.
He waited a bit for them both to come down before he helped her clean up, and when they were back in bed, his naked body curled around hers, he dropped a kiss to the top of her head. Her breathing had already shifted, and he could swear she was asleep before her head had even hit the pillow.
He skimmed his hand over her belly, holding his palm flat. He could hear the babe’s heartbeat, the rhythm strong and steady.
And then there was the smallest of flutters beneath his hand.
“Kat?” he whispered.
“I know,” she murmured, clearly not as asleep as he’d thought she was. “You could have felt him a while ago.”
“You didn’t say anything.”
“I tried,” she said around a yawn, pressing back into him. “You were too…consumed. You wouldn’t talk to me.”
“Never again. I promise.”
She hummed, pressing even farther back into him as she slipped into a truly deep sleep. He meant those words. Meant that promise.
And as he slipped into dreams of his own, he made another promise. This one to his unborn son.
He promised him he would see the stars.
He kept his head held high as the doors of the make-shift throne room thudded shut behind them. Katya’s hand was clasped in his where she was to his left, while Theon stood to his right. But while Theon was dressed in his usual suit and tie, Axel had opted for something a touch more casual. He’d ditched the suit coat and tie, wearing only black pants with a black button-down, leaving the top two buttons undone. Something to show he wasn’t here as a Legacy to lord over them, but that he was still someone to reckon with. And the female at his side?
Gods, Katya was stunning in a black dress that hugged her figure and accented her belly, eliminating any possible doubt. Long sleeves and a high neckline that reached to her chin may have hidden flesh, but the deep slits of the sides that went tothe tops of her thighs made up for it. Her flat sandals were gold with various colored gems along them, and the band on her finger shimmered in the low lighting of the room. She’d piled her ebony curls atop her head, a few of them framing her face, and if anything, he wanted this meeting over with so he could take her home and have a repeat of last night.
None of them faltered as they strode to the front of the room, stopping before the chairs that were clearly meant to portray thrones. They stopped as one, none of them even so much as dipping their chins as they met the stares of the Alpha and Beta.
The Beta was the first to speak, her chin propped in her manicured hand. A nail filed to a sharp point tapped her chin as she said, “I don’t know if you are aware of this, Theon, but this is your brother. Not our missing Shifter prince.”
Without missing a beat, Theon said in a tone that betrayed nothing, “It appears I didn’t need your assistance after all. I always find a way to get what I want, Giselle.”
Giselle’s light grey eyes narrowed on him, her wine red hair swaying above her collarbone. “Here I thought this was going to be a cordial visit.”
“It certainly can be,” he answered, hands sliding into his pockets. “I suppose that’s up to the two of you.”
“Enough of this,” Kylian cut in harshly. “You do not get to disrespect us in our own house, Arius Heir.”
“I have done no such thing, and I won’t need to as long as we can have a…productive discussion.”
“About?” the Alpha ground out.
“Allegiances,” Axel said, taking over for Theon.
His brother was here as support, but these needed to be his negotiations. Theon had offered to take over, and Axel could tell it had taken all his self-control not to do just that. But Theon’s place wasn’t in the Underground; this was his domain now. He needed to earn their loyalty.
“We are loyal to the Arius Kingdom, of course,” Giselle said in her ever-sensual lilt. “Where else would our loyalties lie?”
“You are loyal to the Arius Kingdom because you are forced to be, but I am not speaking of the Lords and Ladies who leave us to rot in the dark,” Axel replied.
“Us?” she asked, her full lips tilting up into a wry smile. “I did hear a rumor you had joined us for good, young…vampyre, is it now?”
“It is,” he said without so much as a wince. “So now I ask again, where does your allegiance lie?”
