Crimson Flame ~ Book 1 - The Royal Blood Collection

Chapter 17

Standing in the dressing room, I looked at my nightdress and then to the closed door. I knew that Alaric was out there, pacing the floor. He was already in his bed pants, tired and desperate for sleep. Yet there was this thing hanging between us, this issue.

We could not walk into the meeting tomorrow night as we are right now. Silas said something about it, the wedge that was between us was obvious. Our body language was giving us away. We could talk pleasantly, kiss and smile at each other but when we were in those in-between moments, we failed.

Something had to give, we could break through the wall and return to being something better than this. What were my issues with him? He lied about wanting me but did kind of want me. There was a list but Nisha explained that it was more about finding the right woman for Alaric. They'd discussed it and had agreed that to persuade the leaders that Alaric had his queen, she had to be many things. There was a checklist and I was the only one that managed to get the majority ticked off. These three had a thing for lists, I'd seen several tonight and I was beginning to hate the sight of pens and paper.

With a huff, I quickly changed into the night dress and opened the door, turning the light off. Alaric stopped and waited, trying not to be obvious.

"You're tired."

"It's been a long day."

I nodded and sat on the edge of the bed, patting the spot beside me. He was hesitant at first but then relented.

"We're in this really weird place right now it's really confusing. Time heals all wounds, right?"

Alaric nodded.

"We don't have time. So, this is my suggestion for getting us through tomorrow and doing it successfully. We progress physically for tonight and then when tomorrow is done, we go back to now and fix this. I'm not going to spend the rest of my life with someone that,"

I looked up at him and sighed.

"You know."

He nodded, kissing the edge of my shoulder.

"We will get better, I promise."

"I hope so Alaric, I really do."

Moving onto the bed, I laid down and watched as Alaric turned onto his knees, crawling over to me. There was a playfulness to his mood, it was distracting in a nervous moment.

"Maybe under the top sheet."

Pulling the top cover back, he dragged it back to the end of the bed and then moved back to me. My body stiffened as his hand pressed to my stomach, sliding up over my ribs. It lifted, moving to the curve of my neck. Leaning in, Alaric took a slow and easy kiss.

The delicate touch scraped over my throat, his lips dragged over mine.

"How far did your mischievous play time extend?"

"Not very far. We were told to avoid sex until we were partnered to avoid getting pregnant. They warned us not to because we could inadvertently have sex with someone that was genetically similar to us."

"They've mapped out the lines?"

I nodded.

"Well, we are not related."

I laughed softly.

"Every single member of my family has been recorded."

"Do you have a lot of family?"

"In a distant kind of way."

Alaric dragged his finger down my sternum, when he reached the material, he popped the first button. As the second button was popped, Alaric shifted his hand over the swell. It was vastly different from the groping that I'd endured earlier. This was gentle and arousing.