Page 57 of The Huntsman's Heart
It is a shame. I don’t tell her that, though. Instead I turn away and fasten my trousers. Or I try, until her small hand over mine stops me. With hope I let the front of my trousers fall open again, and in moments the damn thing is hard in her hand, throbbing with need once more.
Guinevere draws the ribbon from the end of her braid, letting her long hair fall loose over her shoulder. She quickly wraps it around my cock and balls, fastening a firm knot. “To remind you who this belongs to now.”
I pulse at the thought. It’s reckless. The bite and nail marks on my skin faded within minutes of our coupling, but this would be hard to explain if Melantha cares to look.
She doesn’t, though. She has never been interested in that part of me, and it long since refused to stand to attention for her. “Yes.” I close my hand around hers and thrust into her fist a few pumps, knowing she won’t take pity on me yet.
She lets me frustrate myself further, until I’m building up a steady rhythm, tip dripping with my need for her all over her pretty pale hand.
Then she pulls away. “Enough. I thought you were taking me to Blackthorn.”
With a sigh, I tuck myself away for good this time. Then I gather our things. “We are a few hours away now. We will arrive tonight. But you must stay out of sight.”
She sighs but doesn’t argue. We set off for the last nine miles we must cover, and with every step I feel her claim on me, reminding me, teasing me.
Signs of civilization are hard to spot through the thick woods, but eventually feeble trails of smoke become visible through the canopy. The scent of cut wood and animal manure and hay are the first signs the wilderness ends here. Humans have laid claim to this land. As the trees thin, we come upon the small swathe of open land that surrounds the walls of Thornvale, and I stop us just within the treeline.
“You can go no further, princess. No one can know you live.”
“And what shall I do? Wait on your pleasure like your servant?” She folds her arms across her chest.
I chuckle. “That you would never do. I have never seen you bend your will to any creature.”
The princess frowns. “Why do I have free will when you say you do not? What did you do with my heart when you made me like you?”
I pause, feeling a little silly. “I gave it back to you.”
Her eyes go wide, and her hand flies to her chest. Of course there’s nothing to feel. It won’t beat. “Prove it.”
“I cannot, unless you would like me to tear it out again?”
She blanches. “No.” There’s a pause, and I see her studying me. Eventually she says, “Why?”
I sigh. “Because I did not want you to share my fate.” It’s the simple truth. I’m not expecting her reaction.
Her red lips part and something in her expression softens in a way I have no words for. “You are… not what I thought you were,” she says eventually.
I start to say more, but just at that moment, a familiar tugging in my chest tells me Melantha is calling. Frustrated, I brush a hand over my face. “I must go. Promise me you will stay out of sight.”
She rolls her eyes but does not argue back. That will have to be good enough. Still, it is hard to drag myself away. I’m too conscious of her ribbon around me and the phantom flavor of her on my lips. “I will return as fast as I can.”
There’s a smile on her lips as I shoulder my pack. “I will wait for you.”
The fields are empty in the early morning light. As I hurry toward the imposing stone walls, the first of the villeins make their way from tiny cottages, hefting tools and setting about preparing the fields for sowing which will happen as soon as the harsh morning frosts let up. With so many layers of clothing wrapped around them, I can barely make out human features; in their browns and grays and greens they almost blend into the landscape.
There’s no challenge from the guard at the gate as I approach. I’m forced to call out to rouse them—not a good sign. “Hullo there! Open the gates and let me pass!”
A face peeps over the battlements in surprise. “Who goes there?”
“Sir Alaric.”
Eyes narrow under bushy eyebrows. “Alone? With no steed?”
“As you see.”
There’s another pause, but eventually the crank turns and the gate begins to open.
A younger guard calls out to me as I pass. “Looks like the monsters got the better of you this time.”
