QueensQuest (13 page)

I refused to be distracted. “It is not appropriate for you
to discuss such intimate matters,” I said stiffly. “Politics, perhaps, but my
sex life—”

“Shadowlanders indulge in public sex,” Storne pointed out.
“Everyone knows what you like.”

“True.” I tried to let my trussed body relax beneath
Storne’s, but my heart hammered against my ribs.

He caressed my left breast, and I sucked in a frantic
breath.

“And he has never discussed Shadowland politics with me
without your leave.” He shifted, the hammock swung and I felt his rod push
against my mons, shooting jabs of need through me.

“A fine idea, this,” he said. He stuck a foot out of the
hammock and kicked the ground. The hammock swayed anew and we rocked together. “I
hardly have to do anything.”

Damn him. How could he remain so calm?

If he were cool, I could be also. “So he is not your spy?” I
managed to ask.

“Parron and Rall are your men all the way. They know I have
your best interests at heart.” He eased down my body and tugged off my trousers
so he could kiss my pussy.

I lifted my hips and his tongue pushed against my clit.
“Umm, tasty,” he murmured. “Your flavor is richer here, with the heat.”

Around me, I heard other lovers panting and groaning. The
sounds of their passion filled my ears. My moans mingled with theirs… I decided
I did not care if Storne was calm or even if he was not the right man to occupy
the throne.

I tried to open my thighs more so he could kiss me more
deeply, but my feet were thoroughly entangled in the rope mesh to the ankles,
and my wrists were likewise entwined. I was well and truly trapped and this
bondage was a new experience.

Did I like this or not? I tested my bonds again while
Storne’s tongue stroked my pussy. Was it my fancy or did my entrapment heighten
the pleasure? I could not touch him, caress him, but could only receive, only
enjoy.

I could focus entirely on my passion without worrying about
his.

I relaxed as I realized my helplessness in the face of his
sensual onslaught.

He parted my labia with his thumbs and sucked my clitoris.
Tremors seized me. I cried out in sheer delight, my body twisting as arousal
tore through me. He slid up my body, rubbing against me. I could feel the curls
on his chest abrade my thighs, my mound, my belly and my breasts before he
again lay atop me, his weight pressing me into the ropes, his cock pressing
against my clit. I squirmed against him, whimpering.

“Do you like this?” He nipped my earlobe.

I hissed in a breath. “By the three moons, yes, I do.”

“I could do whatever I want to you. Now.” He bit my neck,
and another charge of desire ripped through me.

I bucked against him. His cock rested against my slot. He
was almost inside me. I gasped in another breath. “But-but you won’t.”

“No, not until you ask for it.”

“I want to come.”

He kissed me, his tongue forcing its way inside, a
deliberate assault on my mouth. He thrust in and out, fucking me with his
tongue, a blatant signal of what he planned to do to my cunt very soon.

I bucked my hips against his and his knob rubbed against my
clit, then slipped inside. For one glorious stroke, he pierced me to the core.

I came hard and fast, screaming his name.

He jerked out and spurted onto my belly, breathing in hard
pants. His grip was hard, his unknowing fingers plowing into my flesh until he
relaxed, his muscles loosening. “Ah, Audryn, you are such a temptation…”

We lay together, quivering, and he reached up to release my
wrists, then my ankles. I happily curled around him, finally enjoying the
sultriness of the strange, bright night, our combined sex sweat sticking our
bodies together so delightfully, the musky odors of our loving.

Despite the pleasures of the night, our journey continued
arduous. I had not thought that the experience could grow any more unpleasant,
but as we advanced through the WestMarches, matters went from bad to worse, as
the Progenitors would have put it. We had left Shadow, left my realm for the
disputed lands, the Marches dividing us from the DesertDwellers. Every day grew
lighter, brighter, hotter.

Less water flowed, which was an improvement because the
treacherous swamps disappeared. But as we traveled eastward toward Lightside,
the very air heated, engendering dry storms and wind.

The land was flat, affording no cover from the cyclones. We
were fortunate to evade them but they were visible and threatening, gray
funnels rising from the dry, dusty land into the sky, which had become a
strange, bright blue color.

Kaldir and his folk were the only ones among us who appeared
to take pleasure in the heat and dust, the winds and sun. The DesertDwellers
and their lord seemed to draw energy from the stifling environment.

But he spared no resource to see to my comfort. A caravan of
DesertDweller traders approached, from which Kaldir purchased iced sweets and
feathered fans, presenting them to me that evening. Maia had bathed and shaved
me and I lay naked and panting in my tent, my only garb the ruby that lay at my
throat.

When Kaldir entered, his loose white robes swirled around
him, reminding me of the desert wind. The breeze they created cooled my skin
and I purred with pleasure.

“I have not seen you much lately.” I extended a hand to him.

Taking it, he kissed my fingers. “The closer I come to my
realm the more often affairs of state seize my attention. I am sorry if I have
neglected you, queen of my heart.”

Pretty words, I thought, but what political matter could be
more important than Shadow’s throne? He needed to order his priorities if he
wanted to rule effectively. No wise king allowed minutiae to distract him.
“What matters draw your attention, Kaldir?”

“Your impending visit, of course, and that of your retinue
and of the Darksiders. It is a tremendous logistical challenge, importing water
and food enough for an extended stay by so many people.”

“I am sorry you are inconvenienced.” I sat up. “I can
arrange for—”

“Oh no, no.” He waved off my concern. “We can manage it, of
course. But you may know the old Progenitor saying, when the cat’s away—”

“The mice will play,” I finished for him. “Yes, I worry
about what is happening in my realm also, in my absence.”

“Your team seemed to be most competent and loyal. Frayn,
especially, seems, um…how shall I put it?” His large brown eyes twinkled with
amusement. “Eager, even ambitious.”

“Yes, and I am sure you know why.”

“You sent him away. Why was that?”

I did not want to discuss the mystery surrounding my
family’s deaths. I did not even wish to think about it. “He had to placate the
Northerners. They were complaining about taxation without a royal visitation.
Well, they will get their visit.”

“Yes, I understand you plan to travel northward through the
desert and then re-enter Shadow. I must advise you against such a route. The
searing heat of the desert precludes travel through it, and the Marches are
also treacherous. There’s no water in the equatorial desert, only a dried
ocean.”

“A dried ocean? That which the DesertDwellers call the
Former Sea?”

“Yes. We believe that before the Progenitors stopped Janus
from spinning, there was water all over the planet. After Janus stilled, over
time, the rivers, lakes and seas of Darkside froze into glaciers. Lightside’s
water dried and there are few natural springs to supply our needs.” He cast a
jealous look in my direction. “The usable water on Janus is in the Shadowlands,
as you know.”

“It is a resource we are pleased to share,” I said, hoping I
didn’t sound defensive. I stood and wrapped a robe around my body. The silken
yellow fabric covered me to my knees. “I often plan for ways to meet the needs
of all Janusians, not only my citizens.”

“In any event, few have crossed the Former Sea and survived.
In a way, you have encountered it. Its remnants feed the vast swamps and mires
of WestMarch.”

“So we must return the way we came,” I said.

“You seem upset by the idea. Why? Windrush is a pleasant
home.”

I paced, wondering how much to tell Kaldir. “I am disquieted
by Windrush and Catura.”

“Yes, you have seemed unhappy lately.” He peered closely at
me. “I had wondered if I’d done something to bother you since we haven’t seen
much of each other lately.”

“No, it’s not you.” I hesitated, then plowed ahead. I did
not want to speak of my growing attachment to Storne. “My family died at Catura
and questions have arisen about their passing.”

Kaldir’s brows lifted. “Oh. You suspect treachery? Lord
Frayn?”

I turned, startled by the swiftness of his mind.

“He clearly wants the throne but you sent him away after
your visit to the lake.”

“Your spies are correct.” I rubbed my bare arms, uneasy.

“There’s an old Terran saying…uneasy lies the head that
wears the crown.”

I emitted a snort of laughter, abandoning decorum. “That is
certainly the truth.”

Kaldir’s glance was keen. “You won’t offend me if your visit
to the desert is brief.”

“I wish it need not be so, but we must make all haste.”

“Don’t worry about it.” He waved away my concern. “I have
received messages and gifts.”

He went to the opening of my tent and gestured to admit a
thin, dark man with extravagant moustaches and richly colored, flowing robes in
shades of green. I tried not to stare but he was virtually a dwarf, quite small
with peculiarly gnarled limbs. He carried a silver salver upon which rested a
shining bowl. Inside it was a large, soft-looking globe of a pale yellow
substance.

He bowed to me and presented the salver with a flourish.

Kaldir said, “May I present Leo al-Amarna, the mayor of New
Medina.”

“New Medina awaits the Queen of Shadow. All is ready,” the
mayor said. “And for the queen, lemon ice.”

I drew in a delighted breath. Lemon ice was a delicacy of
the DesertDwellers and a treasure for the rest of us. “I thank you for your
most gracious gift and I look forward to meeting the kind people of New
Medina.”

I took a spoon and tasted the dessert. Cold and tart, it
sent an enjoyable chill through me, as though every cell had been magically
transported back to my beloved Castle Remarck. Its tang puckered my mouth.
“Mmm.” I couldn’t repress my pleasure. “This is a wonderful gift. Thank you.”

Smiling, the mayor bowed his way out of my tent.

I beckoned. “Kaldir, will you share?”

We sat on my bed and gradually, pleasantly, sharing the same
spoon turned into kissing. Ah! I loved Storne, was irresistibly attracted to
him, but Kaldir’s soft, full lips enticed me like no others. Cooled by the
lemon ice, they traveled along my neck to the loose opening of my robe.

He pushed aside the halves of the garment and pressed the
cold spoon against my nipple. A chilly pleasure zinged to my pussy. Already
heated by the unnatural warmth of this place, it reached another level of
sultriness as I moistened. I spread my legs.

He cupped a bit of lemon ice in his fingers and reached for
my slit, sliding drippy, icy liquid into my notch. I gasped and fell back
against my pillows. My clit felt… Oh, I cannot describe the feeling, small and
chilled as well as hot, throbbing and ready.

He kneeled between my open thighs and began to eat the lemon
ice out of me, slipping his tongue up from my vagina to my clit, circling it,
then back down again to thrust his tongue inside me, scouring my opening to
lick away every trace. Cold turned to hot as my clitoris swelled, heated as his
lovely mouth caressed me.

I reached for his hand, kissing his fingers, licking away
the sticky sweet, taking each finger into my mouth as though they were cocks, sucking
each one.

He understood and, rising, pressed me down on my bed and lay
against me with his mouth at my pussy and mine near his cock. I ate another
bite of ice, rolling it around my mouth, enjoying its tart chill. I swallowed
before engulfing his turgid cock. I took him in all the way, enjoying Kaldir’s
gasp of surprise. I could imagine what he felt, his sensitive flesh enveloped
by a mouth that was both cold and hot, a tongue lapping against his hard
member, sucking, the chill dissipating, blooming into passionate heat.

And he returned my attention, impaling my slit with a cool
finger while he ate more lemon ice with his free hand. I squealed as he pumped
his finger in and out of me. When he withdrew his hand, he again kissed my
pussy with those wondrous lips, delicately licking my clit. His mouth was
chilly but he lit a fire in me, and I bent my knees, lifting myself higher for
him while I wrapped my arms around his muscular buttocks, pulling him in,
drawing him close so I could suck him better.

He began to fuck my face in earnest while I bucked my hips
up and down, pushing my clitoris against his tongue. His cock probed all the
way to the back of my throat, and I swallowed, closing my gullet against his
cock head, rubbing the ridge. He lifted his head away from my pussy and
bellowed when he came, shooting great ribbons of his spicy jism down my throat.

I slapped his bottom and he groaned, his orgasm spiking,
then resolving. He lay his head against my thigh and sighed, his warm breath
puffing softly against my pussy.

Releasing his now-flaccid member, I also sighed, then gave
him a quick, tender lick and a kiss.

He kissed my clit again, also tenderly. Slowly he nibbled
and caressed, circling my clit, then focusing on it with little, teasing flicks
of his tongue. His intensity built, as did my pleasure, and I felt myself
climbing toward a climax.

He thrust in one finger, then two, scissoring them apart as
he rubbed my clitoris. Bliss rushed through me like a cyclone, flinging me to
passion, and I cried out, my release leaving me limp.

Kaldir rose and stood, smiling down at me. “Feel better
now?”