Page 80 of A Crown of Lies

Ieduin kicked his pants aside and turned around to undress Rowan.

“Green for go on,” Rowan said as Ieduin helped pull his tunic over his head. When Ieduin reached to undo Rowan’s pants, Rowan caught his hand. “Yellow for a warning to move on to something else or to check in. And what’s the stop we use, boy?”

“Red,” Ieduin repeated.

“Very good.” Rowan let go of Ieduin’s wrist.

She frowned. “What if he can’t speak? Like if he’s gagged or…”Or his mouth is in use, she thought, but didn’t say it aloud.

Ieduin turned his head, giving her a surprised look.

Rowan laughed and turned Ieduin’s head back to him, using his chin. “We’ll get to that in due time. You’d better finish undressing me, boy, before I get bored.”

“Yes, sir,” Ieduin said and went back to work, unlacing Rowan’s pants.

The way he worked reminded Rixxis of the ladies that sometimes helped Eris dress. Rixxis and her father had never been wealthy enough to have such staff, but if she did, she would’ve hated it. Being dressed and undressed would have made her feel like a spoiled child, but maybe that was part of the draw for Rowan. He did like to have his ego stroked.

The ties finally came free and Ieduin knelt, tugging Rowan’s pants down to his knees. Rowan’s cock sprang free and Rixxis felt her face burn again. Ieduin had bragged that he was more interesting to look at, and indeed, he was the more beautiful of the two. He’d always had a sort of beauty about him that was difficult to categorize as strictly masculine or feminine, though she wasn’t sure he’d want to hear that. He was soft and smooth in places most men would be hard and hairy, with more curve in his hips than most men—or even most elves.

Rowan was built differently with broad shoulders, solid muscular arms, and wiry hair on his chest and legs, just a shade darker than what was on his head. His cock was just like the rest of him: big, hard, thick, and masculine. He washandsomewhereas Ieduin wasbeautiful. Seeing them together in the fading light was almost like looking at two opposites.

“Come, boy. Let’s get you cleaned up.” Rowan pulled Ieduin toward the water, backing carefully down a set of wide stairs. Once they were in the water, Rowan set himself to undoing the braids in Ieduin’s hair.

Rixxis quickly undressed while they were busy paying attention to each other. She wasn’t shy about being naked in front of other people. Life as a sailor and then a mercenary left little room for privacy. Still, crowded bathing rooms and changing areas weren’t the same as being naked with two men she was attracted to. Even if she had been naked in front of Ieduin before, it’d been dark, and it felt safe to do that in a bedroom. Out there, it seemed so exposed. Anyone could walk out there and see what they were up to. What if someone needed something from the king and saw her?

Or worse… What if Rowan finally got a look at her and decided he’d changed his mind about marrying such an unfeminine beast?

“Oh!” Rowan exclaimed. “Two more rules. Rule number two is that in this place, and the room we’re moving into next, I don’t allow negative self-talk. And the related rule? Assume nothing. Ask. Speak your mind. Whatever you must say, whatever you must feel, you may do that here without judgement.”

I like that. She relaxed a little and finished undressing. There was still a part of her that worried, but there was nothing Rowan could say about her body that someone else hadn’t already said.

Rowan smiled at her as she slid quickly into the water. He reached to take her hand, guiding her closer and bringing it to his lips. “My queen.”

“Not yet,” she reminded him, and pulled her hand away. “You owe me a proper proposal.”

“My cruel queen then,” he corrected with a wicked smile. “I’m wounded. Will you not let me address you by that title? Name another, then. Whatever you choose. My lady? My darling? My—”

“Goddess,” Ieduin interrupted.

“Goddess,” Rowan mused. “I like it. For you, boy. And I look forward to watching you worship your goddess. But not for me. I think we shall have to settle on something else if we are to be equals, no?”

Rixxis crossed her arms. “Why do you call him that? Why not just use his name?”

“Many, many reasons,” Rowan murmured, and went back to combing his fingers through Ieduin’s hair. “We enjoy a bit of power play, don’t we, boy? You like being subservient to me, and I enjoy being served by you.”

“Yes, sir. Very much so.” Ieduin grinned at him, almost stupidly.

Rowan put his hand to the back of Ieduin’s head and pulled him to his chest to work the last of the braids out of his hair. “Second, it makes it easier for us to fall into various roles without the attachments that come with those names. Outside of this place, I am Rowan Sullivan, King of Greymark. I enjoy being him, but sometimes it’s nice not to have to worry about the thousands of people I must care for and only focus on one… or two. Life places many titles upon us. Son, friend, king, Lord of Potatoes… I got to choose this one. This one makes me feel respected, powerful, and loved by those exclusive few who get to call me by sir. For him,” he said, practically petting Ieduin like a cat, “being my good boy makes him feel safe, loved, taken care of. The titles are a part of the game.”

“Game?” She thought of all the painful looking equipment she’d seen in the dungeon and frowned.

“Yes, my dear. It is supposed to be fun and the moment it isn’t, that’s when we use our safe words.”

“But what about the whips? The floggers and the paddles? That doesn’t sound very fun.”

“Because,” Rowan said, gripping Ieduin by the hair and pulling him back, “sometimes, he’s very naughty and breaks the rules, and that has to come with consequences, so he’ll remember next time to respect me. I make my rules for a reason, don’t I, boy?”

“Yes, sir,” Ieduin whimpered.

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