Mina blinked. Not only did she remember how big his cock was but she could feel him under her and wondered how he would fit in her mouth. “What if I don’t do it right and you won’t like it?”
Jayden kissed the tip of her nose. “When you had your hands on my cock, it made me feel very good. Your mouth will be even better.”
A lot of curse words came out of Jayden’s mouth when Mina had her fingers around him. Mina wondered if Jayden felt as she did when he touched her and made her reach a climax—as if her heart would fly away from her chest while her legs turned into jelly. “I don’t know what to do,” she said.
“I will guide you,” Jayden said and moved up the pillows. “How about we get in a more comfortable position?” Mina nodded and Jayden sat against the pillows. “Get between my legs, little lamb.” Mina did as Jayden instructed her and folded her legs under her. She looked at Jayden. “Wrap a hand around my cock and before taking me in your mouth, lick it,” he said, his voice husky.
Mina put her fingers around him and bent her head. She tucked her hair behind her ears before flicking her tongue on the tip of his cock. Jayden grunted and swore under his breath. Mina lifted her eyes, and looking into his eyes she licked him again, feeling his taste on her tongue—sweet and something else. Her tongue circled his tip, trying to get more of his taste.
“There’s a vein under my cock,” Jayden said. He sounded as if he was tortured. “Lick it!”
Mina looked at his cock and when she saw the vein Jayden told her about, she traced it with her tongue.
“Like that!” Jayden grunted. “You are doing great.” Mina kept licking him, enjoying the sounds he made. “Take me in your mouth!”
Mina parted her lips and took as much of his cock in her mouth as she could.
“Fuck, little lamb!” Jayden grunted and grabbed the bars from the headboard. “Bob your head while you suck me, Mina. And keep your eyes on me.”
Mina moved her head up and down while staring into his eyes. She sucked him, and his hips bucked, pushing more of his cock into her mouth. Jayden gripped the headboard harder and growled.
“Keep doing that, Mina! While you suck me, move your hand up and down,” Jayden said. She kept licking and sucking him and used her hands on him until he came into her mouth. “Drink all my seed, Mina,” he said. Mina sucked and swallowed every drop.
Jayden sat on the bed, took Mina in his arms and she rested her cheek on his chest and listened to his heart. He murmured some words and kissed the top of her head. “Did you enjoy it?” she asked.
“Very much,” Jayden replied without hesitation. He ran his fingers over her arm while they lay on the bed.
A life with Jayden would not be bad, Mina thought. He treated her well and seemed to enjoy her company and took time to listen to what she had to say. Since the day Mina went to the Royal Palace, she had little time to think about Prince Liam. While she still loved him, she hoped that one day her heart would forget about him. She felt bad lying in bed with Jayden while thinking of someone else.
“Are you hungry?” Jayden asked after a while.
Mina felt famished. “A little.”
“How about I prepare a bath for you and while you bathe, I will ask Caesar to prepare something for us to eat?” Jayden asked and put Mina on the bed.
Mina gripped his hand. “Caesar, does he know what we have been doing in this room?”
Amusement shined in Jayden’s eyes. “By how loud you screamed my name last night, little lamb, I am sure half of the city knows what we have been doing in bed.”
Mina groaned and let go of his hand. Jayden rose from the bed and went to the bathroom while Mina wondered how she would face Caesar again. She grabbed a pillow and buried her face in it. What would people from the high society think of her behavior? Mina was not usually a shy person, but she didn’t like to be noticed by others because people always had something bad to say about her skin color. That’s why she wore men’s clothes when she was in the poor part of Athea, because no one noticed a young man entering the sewers.
Jayden returned to the room, grabbed a pair of pants from his wardrobe, and put them on. Next, he took out a shirt and was about to put it on when Mina groaned again. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
Mina sighed and lifted her head. She kept her eyes on the pillow as she spoke. “The way I acted last night, what will people say about me? I tried so hard to make sure Rosalyn did not bring shame to the family and I am the one to—”
Jayden growled and Mina looked at him. “How will those prudes find out about what’s happening in this room?” Mina frowned. “I hate how the rich men from this town think they are better than everyone else, because of their money and education, but at the same time, they treat women like garbage. They expect women to lie in bed, open their legs and say nothing while their husbands fuck them as if they are nothing more than some piece of meat.” Mina’s eyes went wide. “What we did last night or a few minutes ago was beautiful, Mina. I love how you screamed and how you bit my shoulders,” Jayden said.
“I bit you? Oh, Gods! If someone hears about this!” Mina groaned.
Jayden went to the bed and picked Mina up. “Hear what? That I make you feel so good you forget about everything?” Mina opened her mouth to speak, but Jayden frowned. “Enough, Mina! You have been taught from an early age how to behave, speak, or think. Your family made you believe the high society would keep her eyes on you because you are half gypsy. If you knew half of the things that happen down at the port, you wouldn't be this worried.”
For a moment, Mina was tempted to say she knew men went to the Red Lantern and had cheated on their wives, but she kept her mouth closed. She didn’t want to explain to Jayden how she knew these things. When he took her to the port to eat, she had been surprised he hadn’t asked how she knew Essy and Marty. She would have to visit them soon and tell them she got married. Marty had been waiting for a long time to drink his rum.
Jayden started walking, taking Mina to the bathroom. “While you are in this room, I want you to be yourself. Like you were last night when you danced for me. For one moment, while you were not thinking about the high society or the family name, you looked so free. I want to see more of that side of you, little lamb.”
Mina had always been Duchess Minerva Castex. How could she learn to be only Mina? “Who you see is who I am,” she replied.
Jayden put Mina in the bathtub. The warm water smelled of roses and jasmine. “I have seen glimpses of the real Mina, but your fear of bringing shame to your family keeps her hidden. Maybe in Ora Dorei you will forget about your fears and learn how to be yourself,” Jayden said before leaving Mina alone.
Mina leaned on the bathtub and thought about what Jayden had said. The Castex family was one of the oldest from Nodor. Her ancestors have fought for the kingdom, gaining fame and money for the family. Women before her had married Arch Dukes or Kings from Nordor or other kingdoms. It had been her father who first brought shame to the family by marrying her mother and then by having her. Each act Mina made or any word she spoke brought more shame to the family.
Mina picked up a sponge and started scrubbing her skin. Many times Rosalyn had called Mina a filthy gypsy and never let her touch her dolls. When she was a child, she spent a lot of time in the bathtub, trying to make her skin look white, but no matter how much she tried, her skin was still brown. She scrubbed every inch of her skin before taking care of her hair.
When Mina felt clean, she dried herself, got out of the bathroom, and picked up her bathrobe. Jayden had put it on the bed for her. She put it on, opened the door to the room, and listened before getting out. The house was quiet and Mina rushed to her room. She chose a light blue dress from the wardrobe, and before entering her bathroom to apply some lotions and oil to her hair, she put some shoes on.
Mina was brushing her long hair when she heard Jayden and Aksel talking in the garden. The doors that led to the garden were opened, but the thick red curtain made it impossible for her to be seen by someone that was outside.
“Commander,” Aksel said, his voice worried,” it’s not my right to say what you should do, but if you are not careful, the title of Uzgaia will be taken from you. The Lady gave you one chance to prove you are worthy of the title and your bloodline.”
Mina moved closer to the curtain, wanting to hear the conversation.
Jayden growled. “I did what she asked—proved that I am strong enough to be Uzgaia and to lead our people. She asked me to find a mate. I did that. What else does she want from me?”
Aksel was silent for a moment. “You have passed all the tasks she gave you, but you are still to pass the most important one—to refrain yourself from mating with Andarra until the Litha festival. If you make her yours, the title will be taken from you just as she took it from your father.”
Jayden cursed under his breath. “Different from my father, I married Mina and I will make it to the Trials of the Land without mating her.”
“I hope you do, Commander, because last night it sounded as if you mated with her many times.”
Mina covered her mouth with her hand, preventing a gasp from getting out. Did Aksel and the other men know what Jayden and she did in the room?
Jayden growled loudly. “What I do in my bedroom is my problem! She said I can’t fuck my mate, not that can’t enjoy her!”
“I hope you remember what’s at stake, Commander,” Aksel said.
For a few minutes, Mina didn’t hear Jayden or Aksel speak and she assumed they left. She went to the curtain and pulled it aside, wanting to let the light enter the room when she saw Jayden standing close to her room with his arms folded.
He studied her for a moment. “I never took you for the type of person who likes to listen to other people’s conversations.”
“I didn’t want to listen but—” Mina stopped to think for a moment. “Who is this Lady?”
“She is the one that guides the Uzgaia. You will meet her soon,” Jayden said.
Mina bit her lip. “We should sleep in separated rooms until the Litha festival. I don’t want you to lose your title.”
Jayden growled before eating up the distance that separated them. “I already told you last night that you belong in my bed.” His eyes were golden.
“But what if—?”
Jayden cupped her cheek. “When I was seven years old, my mother, she didn’t have enough money to buy food for us. I was hungry and my mother tried to earn some money, but she—” Jayden swallowed hard before continuing. “She had an accident a few days before and—I could see the desperation in her eyes, so I went to the market to find a job. I asked around, but no one seemed to notice a little bastard boy. I was about to give up when a baker told me he will give me some bread if I move some flour sacks for him. He had me carry around thirty heavy sacks from the general store to the bakery. It took me hours to do it, but when I finished, I was so proud. I went to the baker and asked him for my payment. He was busy with something and told me to pick up two loaves of bread from the table and go. All of them were a little burned, and I knew my mother loved the white ones. The baker was making a new batch and when I was sure he wasn’t watching, I put my hands in the oven trying to get one.” Jayden stopped talking for a moment. “I burned my hands badly. The baker noticed and threw me out in the street with no bread. I was angry and in pain and I remember started running and running until I fell to the ground. A Fire Mage found me and heald me. Before leaving, the Fire Mage asked me what happened. I told him the truth. He taught me about being patient and gave me a silver coin. That coin kept my mother and me fed for a month.” Tears rolled down Mina’s cheeks and Jayden kissed them away. “I learned each act has a consequence, little lamb, but more importantly, I have learned my lesson. Even if we sleep in the same bed, I won’t take your virginity until the day of our mating.”
Mina hated how Jayden’s history kept repeating all the time. She wished there were more things she could do for the children from the sewers.
“Oh, Jayden. The things you've had to endure,” Mina said, her voice cracking.
“Made me into the man I am today,” Jayden said.
“Your mother? I think you mentioned she died.” Mina asked, wanting to know more about Jayden.
His eyes turned sad. “When I was twelve.” He inhaled deeply. “The day is lovely, and I thought we should spend some time outside the house. I have asked Caesar to prepare a basket for us. How about we eat in the garden?”
Mina smiled. “That would be lovely.”
Jayden kissed her forehead. “I will go see if Caesar has everything ready. Wait for me here.”
Since Mina moved with Jayden, she hadn’t explored the garden. She loved spending time outside and was excited to spend time with Jayden outside.
Jayden returned a few minutes later with a basket in one hand and a blanket in the other. Mina grabbed a shawl before they left the room. They walked around the garden, Jayden showing Mina the flower beds and the fruit trees. Mina loved the garden and was looking forward to stitching next to some rose bushes, close to the water fountain.
A swing bench sat close to a walnut tree, and Jayden spread the blanket between the two of them. Mina took out the food—different types of pies, little cakes, sandwiches, fruits—two goblets, a bottle of mead and one of wine from the basket and she placed them in the middle of the blanket.
Jayden put some mead in the goblets and gave one to Mina. “I am not used to drinking,” Mina said. “A goblet would probably get me drunk.”
“Hmm, I wonder how you act when you are drunk,” Jayden said and picked up a strawberry.
Mina shrugged. “I get sleepy.” Jayden bit from the strawberry and took them to Mina’s mouth. He ran the piece of fruit on her lips. “What are you doing?” Mina asked, snapping her head back.
“Feeding my mate,” Jayden said.
Mina found it strange, but she said nothing and looked into his eyes as she accepted the food from his hand. Jayden kept feeding her fruits and cakes as she looked at him.
They spent the rest of the day in the garden, eating and talking.
When the food was gone and the basket and the blanket were gathered, Mina and Jayden sat on the swing bench.
“My lovely mate,” Jayden said softly and kissed her. “Will you dance for me tonight?”
“Yes,” Mina breathed.
Jayden kept kissing and touching Mina. She surrendered to him, to her husband. As the sun set, the garden filled with their sounds of pleasure. Somewhere in the distance, seven wolves howled.