Anatoli
I'm sitting naked on the balcony outside my room, stargazing while I smoke a Cuban cigar.
The starry sky is perfect for sailing on a long voyage like the sea captains did in the past to unknown lands.
I used to be obsessed with the sea.
Now I'm obsessed with a woman, and I don't want to stop being obsessed, even if I know the crash will be mightier than the burn if I fall.
I take a long drag on my cigar and savor the memory of how Avrora gave herself to me.
She became mine officially the moment my cock sliced through her maidenhead and her virgin blood coated my length.
The feeling that came with knowing I was the first man to have her was euphoric but more than anything, knowing she chose me and not Mikhail was something else I don't know how to describe.
Avrora might have loved him first, but she gave her body to me and told me she wanted me.
I had her all night. Over and over again. We went from the bed to the hot tub, to the shower, and back to the bed again, where she practically passed out.
Unable to sleep, I left her there in a deep slumber. That was hours ago. It's nearly four a. m. now.
There was too much on my mind to allow sleep to take me. The number one thing being her.
As fascinated as I am with her, part of me feels as cursed as the ancient mariner did on his haunted ship.
Mikhail said enough to pique Avrora's interest, so I know she'll have more questions than she already asked.
There's too much to talk about that I'm still not ready to discuss. It feels harder now that I've been with her. In ten days' time, she will be my wife, and I'm sure my struggle will feel even worse.
Then there's the matter of the vineyard. It's bad enough to keep my secrets about the past from her, but withholding information that essentially constituted a plot to steal from her makes me no better than Mikhail or her father.
Still, it's in my best interest to keep hold of that information a little longer. Just until I think she really needs to know. I don't want to worry about her confronting Mikhail or her father about it.
Although I told Mikhail to stay away from Avrora, there are going to be situations I can't control where he could pop up. There will also be events in the upcoming weeks where they'll see each other.
None of what happened last night between Avrora and me means she hates Mikhail. And she's never said she doesn't love him. That's a threat I can't ignore for more reasons than the obvious.
So far, that vineyard is the only heads-up I have in regard to Mikhail and Uther's plans. All these long weeks of watching and investigating haven't turned up anything else. That doesn't mean they're not planning a vicious backlash to my attack.
That means I still have to be ready to counter whatever they throw at me and use the resources I have. Even if it's as small and as simple as silence.
It's bad enough I'll see Mikhail again in two nights at the leadership meeting.
I'm not looking forward to that in the least. I don't know how he's not dead after saying the things he said to me, and I don't know how I'll be able to restrain my temper when I see him.
My skin is as tough as dragon scales, but that fucker pushed me to a place I didn't even know I could go.
Maybe it's because I've never met a motherfucker who thought it was okay to make fun of the way a guy's mother was killed.
The soft pad of footsteps draws my attention away from the sky, and I look at the platinum-haired beauty walking out onto the balcony as if she just strayed out of one of my dreams.
Avrora has the cream bedsheet wrapped around her decadent body and when the silver moon kisses her long, flowing hair-which I fucking love seeing down-she really does look like a Valkyrie. If she is, then I think Odin loaned me his finest.
Like the weary sailor I am, I'm lulled into her ethereal beauty and, just like that, my thoughts slip away. It's understandable that her beauty is more than enough to make a man fight for her, and fight even harder to keep her.
Nerves take over when she looks at me and it's not because I'm naked.
Uncertainty hangs heavy in the air, but so do all seven deadly sins.
Her beauty is her pride, and I'm greedy for her. We're both lusting after each other enough to indulge like mindless, gluttonous fools who would sloth around all day, fucking. But my wrath will keep that line between us. So will my envy, because nothing will change the fact that she loved my brother first.
"Missed me already?" I smirk, looking her up and down.
She presses her hand closer to her chest, where she's gathered the ends of the sheet. "I wasn't sure if you were here. Or if you left."
Left and met up with Gytha, I mentally fill in, reading into what she's not saying. I can see why she'd think that.
I made a big choice earlier when I chose her. I wasn't quite aware of the weight of that choice until I carried her up to bed and buried myself deep inside her again. I still don't think I'm fully aware. All I know is I want her again.
"I'm here." With one last drag of my cigar, I blow out a ring of smoke and put it out, then straighten so she can see my cock is hard for her once more. She swallows hard when she realizes it. "Come here to me."
She glides over and when she stops before me, I take off that sheet, exposing her naked body.
"What if the guards see us?" she mumbles, looking around.
"I pay them enough not to see anything." I pull her into my lap, slipping my arm around her tiny waist.
"But-"
"Shhh, just kiss me. I need you again." I lean in to gently kiss her lips and suck on her tongue when hers tangles with mine.
It's best if we don't talk. Definitely not now. I don't want to think about anything else besides being inside her.