Page 85 of Finding Love with the Fae King

“From a witch?” I spoke harshly while she nodded. “Fuck,” I whispered, looking at Alaneo. Love and seduction potions were prohibited in the Golden Light Kingdom. It was stated as plain as day once entering our lands for any merchants coming to sell at the local marketplace. The only coven that would dare go against that order would be the Blood Coven, the same one that was helping Cosmo and the Court trying to overthrow me. We had yet to deal with that issue of lack of evidence.

“Fuck is right,” Alaneo spoke louder. The Red Fury’s hands went to their swords and gripped them tightly. We weren’t done with this war yet. We might have had Cosmo and the traitors in the dungeon, but there were more people out there wanting the throne or to see me suffer.

Cupping Melina’s cheek, I left a chaste kiss on her forehead. The sweat was slowly drying, and her eyes fluttered as she went into a deep sleep. “Alec, Tulip, you are not to leave tomorrow with your pack. You are to stay here until further instruction. I will ask Melina what she would like to do, and then I will plan your punishment. You are both to go to your room, and two guards will stay in place to make sure you don’t leave. You are lucky you are like a sister to Melina. Otherwise, you would be in prison for harm upon the future Queen,” I spoke sternly.

Two guards who were posted outside the chamber door came in and led them back to their room while Lucca stood with his arms crossed. “Their fate should be death. She could have been raped, imprisoned, or even killed by one of those damn men. Her singing was only heightened because of the seduction potion. She reached clear to mid-dance floor, which was unbelievable.” Lucca plopped down on the couch with his elbows on his knee and his hands on his head. “Who knew having a sister would cause so much stress?” he chuckled.

“Wait.” His head perked up. “Why weren’t you four affected?”

Alaneo looked up and raised his hands in surrender. “I was passed out! I didn’t hear a damn thing.”

The red-headed brothers looked at each other and then looked away. Braxton mumbled something while Finley had turned bright scarlet. “Men, did you find your mate?” I asked hopefully. They had been without a mate as long as I had; they certainly deserved it and I had seen the mournful looks in their eyes when they saw Melina giving me loving looks.

“No, uh… um… well, we weren’t paying attention to her singing.” Everett rubbed the back of his neck while looking away from us.

“No, we weren’t,” Braxton shyly confirmed. Finley stepped away from the group and grabbed a glass of scotch from the table. If anyone was going to talk, it would be Finley. He was always honest and forthcoming, but I had a feeling I would not like what they were going to say.

“We were attending to… other things…” He cleared his throat while looking at me in the mirror.

“What things?” Alaneo sat cluelessly.

“Let’s just say Her Majesty had some moves that were pleasing to our eyes…” Finley choked as he pulled at his uniform collar.

“What?” I still didn’t understand.

“Oi! Don’t make us say it,” Everett groaned as he sat in the chair beside me. Alaneo’s eyes grew wide, flabbergasted, and he let out a large laugh, startling Melina in my arms while she continued to sleep.

“You didn’t…” Alaneo continued to laugh while slapping his knee.

“What are you talking about?” I growled, getting impatient, my fangs descending.

“Chill, chill,” Everett spoke. “We kinda got off while you both were… uh…” I cut him off.

“What? You did that out in the open? While watching my mate?!” I stood up with Melina in my arms, and Melina’s eyes opened wide. Her eyes were dilated as she squeaked in surprise. Realizing my mistake, I sat back down and rubbed her cheek.

“I’m sorry, darling,” I cooed. “Go back to sleep.” Her eyes immediately closed as I glared at the brothers and sighed heavily. “Listen, we all did things we regret today. I say we forget it and never mention it again, especially to Melina.” Everyone nodded in agreement.

Lucca stood up and punched a hole right in the wall. “Forgive and forget? What kind of king are you!? They have disrespected the Princess of Atlantis. You have put her in a terrible situation allowing her to give you a damn lap dance in front of a crowd. You are supposed to protect her! Not treat her as a sex doll!”

Calmly, I stood up and had Alaneo take Melina from me to put her to bed. Once she had left the room, I walked to Lucca silently as everyone watched in the room. “I am the King of the Golden Light Kingdom, ruler of this land. I don’t trust people easily, and the fae in this room are my brothers in spirit. They have risked their lives for their nation and me and given me nothing but honesty. If I had found out from another source that this was done without my knowledge, then I would have their heads. We are bound to each other as we are to his country. I will decide who gets punished.” My voice was low and unwavering as Lucca’s breaths also slowed.

“Ruling a nation is not about killing or torturing people. It is about understanding and trust. They have not broken my trust. They did not lay a hand on her like the others tried to do. It was my fault that I couldn’t get her to stop, but fuck, she is my mate, and I haven’t been allowed to mate with her yet, and I was under her spell. Of course, my primal instincts are going to not want her to stop. My finest men protected her as you saw them fight off the unmated males. Punishing them now would be cruel and unjust, and I would lose my best brothers. If anyone should be punished, it is Tulip and her mate.”

Lucca nodded his head. “Then good. Make sure she is punished. Nothing less than twenty lashes. If not, I’m sure our father will see he does something about it.” Lucca stood up straight, walked to the double doors, and marched out.

“Damn, who does Melina belong to?” Alaneo said with a laugh. Running my hands through my now messy hair, I sat back down and let out a frustrated sigh. This was supposed to be a celebration and had turned into a complete disaster. Now I had two more people under watch, including a full prison of ex-Court members, a traitor, and her mate that I had yet to meet.

Tulip was like a sister to her. I couldn’t just punish her, but Girard would come to find out and really put a noose around my neck if I did nothing.

We all said our goodnights, and I headed into the bedroom. Melina was still in her dress, lying on our love seat. Alaneo must have known I would want to bathe her before bed. Dirty bedsheets were a pet peeve of mine.

I stripped myself bare and gently took all the pieces of pearls and starfish out of her hair, along with the jewelry her father had gifted to her, and put them in a newly gained jewelry box I was going to show her today. If we weren’t interrupted so frequently, she would have been able to appreciate it.

Her naked body made me think wonderfully about our dance just an hour ago, but she was sick from the seduction potion and mixing it with alcohol. That could have been deadly if she really was fully human. Shaking my head, I pulled her to me, and she automatically clung to my neck. The bathwater was done running and was filled with rose and gardenia petals that the maids had left. I’d have to thank them later. We both emerged into the warm water and she let out a sigh. Her eyes fluttered open, and she gave me a small smile.

“You are so handsome.” She played with my face with her index finger. “So pretty too… such a pretty face.” She giggled again. I chuckled as I took the cloth and poured the washing oils on her body. The smell of vanilla and lavender filled the room as her eyes tried to defy gravity.

“We will have pretty babies,” she mumbled, and my heart grew ten times the size. Having children with her wasn’t on my to-do list, but we would have beautiful children one day. Once she was bathed and washed, I picked her up to dry her off and laid her on the clean sheets. My body was already tired, and trying to wrestle a barely conscious Melina was not something I wanted to do. She was just going to have to be naked. Climbing into bed with her, she immediately rolled over and pressed her naked body to mine.

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