The Reluctant King (The Star-Crossed Series) (29 page)

              “You need to throw Lilly and Talbott an engagement party,” Amelia announced casually.

              “What?” I laughed at her subject change after the thoughts that had been rolling around in my head.

              “You do!” she defended her position.

              “That’s what Eden’s for,” I explained as if she forgot I had a sister and a co-ruler to do that kind of dirty work.

              “Yes, but everyone will expect that because Eden is her best friend,” Amelia argued.

              “Exactly.”

              “No, wait. This is everything you want. Talbott and Lilly will change everything for our people, they will break the invisible barrier keeping others from doing the same,” Amelia explained gently.

              “I know all this,” I smiled down at her. She was adorable when she was trying to prove a point.

              “Ok, good. Then you should also know that our people don’t think of Eden as their Queen. I mean, they do. They know that she’s the Queen. But they think of you as the King that makes all of the important decisions and runs things. Eden and Kiran have basically been on vacation for the last several years. You have been behind the wheel of the machine and the people associate you with the actual power of the Kingship.” I opened my mouth to argue, but she shushed me by placing one of her irresistible fingers over my lips. “If you really want their marriage to make an impact then you have to be the one to endorse their union. You already let Kiran announce their engagement when it would have been much more profound coming from you. If you want real change then you’re going to have to buck up and play benevolent King.”

              She giggled when I chomped down playfully on the finger that had silenced me. “Are you always this good at diplomacy?” I pounced on top of her, loving that her point made sense. I tickled her sides so that she squirmed and writhed underneath me. It wasn’t the easiest thing for me to admit that I was wrong and even more so that someone else could be right…. but somehow the fact that Amelia had her head wrapped around this whole….. Monarchy thing, made me fall for her all the more.

              “It’s easy to be good when you’re so bad at it,” she giggled, gasping in between words while I attacked her relentlessly.

              She wiggled her arms from underneath me and pulled me down to her mouth with her hands tightly on my collar. It was a move I was very quickly becoming fond of.

              “Mmmm,” I murmured against her, trailing kisses along her jaw and ear. “You’re so unbelievably sexy.”

              “That reminds me,” she declared in a tone that was not so much sexy but attention grabbing. I lifted my head reluctantly from her soft skin to look her in the eyes. “While we’re on the subject of diplomacy….”

              “We’re not on the subject of diplomacy,” I argued, dipping my head back to pay her neck some much needed attention while she let out a soft sigh of approval. “We moved on to a new subject.”

              She laughed and her chest moved against mine. “Have you thought about filling the rest of the Kingdom in on Terletov?”

              “Mood killer,” I moaned grumpily and plopped back down next to her. I lied though. Even Terletov could not stop me from wanting this girl. I pulled her close to me and thought over her words. “I’ve thought about it.”

              “And….?” she started drawing those circles again, but this time they were on my wrist.

              I focused.

              Ok, I really, really tried to focus, but damn this girl would get me to agree to anything at this point.

              “I’m not sure it’s such a good idea.” I breathed out unsteadily.

              “The people need to know, Avalon.” Amelia reasoned, but did not stop with the circles. “You can’t protect them if they are not protecting themselves and right now they don’t even know if there is a threat.”

              “I don’t want to cause hysteria, or plant doubt in our fragile infrastructure.” I had a valid point, but it came out not even close to confident.

              “Why not give them a chance to strengthen our framework? Give them a chance to trust you completely by you trusting them.” Her voice was so sweet, so wise, she was every single thing I needed in a girl….in a wife. And she was going to make me fall completely in love with her, body, mind and soul before I even let her out of my bed. How could I have ever overlooked her? Even as a younger version of herself she had to have been captivating.

              “Any more points you want to make before I agree to this plan of yours?” I asked dryly, relenting to her idea.

              “Yes, actually,” she laughed. “If you don’t make a claim for your people, Avalon, Terletov will. Without full disclosure, he is more than welcome to swoop in and take over. He doesn’t have to share what he’s doing to Immortals to gain their following. He is working against you around the clock. We don’t know what he’s doing with these…. experiments, but he obviously has a following. And unless you are upfront and honest about what is going on that following could potentially grow and organize until you have no Kingdom left. Your silence could land our people right back under another tyrannical rule and get yourself, along with your friends and family killed.”

              Her serious words immediately sobered me up. I pulled her against my chest, losing my fingers in her thick hair. I had a long list of people I loved and cared about, but suddenly the one I was most scared of losing was lying in bed with me and she didn’t even know the depth of my feelings for her.

              “You make very good points,” I grumbled pathetically into her hair.

              “I know,” she agreed smugly.

              “Don’t go to your conference or summit or whatever,” I begged.

              She stiffened next to me, surprised by my change of subject. “What?”

              “Don’t go. Stay with me. It’s dangerous and I’m a complete selfish bastard for not sending you away somewhere safer. But I need you with me. I need to know where you are and that you’re safe,” I paused for a moment and when she didn’t respond, I pleaded like an idiot. “Please, Amelia, stay with me. I promise I will protect you.”

              She cleared her throat as if she didn’t know what to say and I waited a full, tense minute, crushing her stiff body to me in fear that she was going to leave me.

              Finally, she relaxed into me and breathed out a whoosh of air, “Alright, Avalon, if that’s what you want.”

              “It is,” I agreed. I looked down into her face and stared straight into her eyes as if I could see into her heart, as if I could tattoo my words onto her soul. “You’re exactly what I want.”

              She didn’t respond. It was like she couldn’t respond. I had wanted to relay the intensity of my feelings for her, but I didn’t mean to take the words completely out of her mouth.

              But then her expression softened and she filled with light, that was the only way I could explain it. Her magic blossomed around me, taking flight in the room and her face lit up with the sweetest, most loving expression I had ever seen.

              She was mine.

              Finally.

              She didn’t have to say it; she didn’t have to verbalize her feelings. She would soon. And I would soon. Her face, her expression, her body, her magic said it all for me. I didn’t need to hear the words. I
felt
them.

              She belonged to me in the same way that I belonged to her.

              And in that thought there was freedom and hope and joy all at once.

              “Ok, now it’s time for you to get out,” I ordered. I hopped up to my knees and pulled her up by her hands.

              “Um, what?” she asked, uncertainty flickering in her eyes like a candle about to be blown out.

              “Yep, come on,” I was serious. She had to get out of my room. Like now.

              “Where are we going?” she asked, seriously confused.

              “I’m walking you to your room,” I explained, pulling her off the bed and walking backwards with her hands in mine. I had to gently tug her along while her feet kind of stumbled in obedience.

              “Oh, I uh, I guess I thought you would want me to stay,” she mumbled, giving a longing glance back at the bed.

              I smirked. I couldn’t help it. “I do want you to stay. I really, more than anything in this world, want you to stay. But that’s why you have to leave. I promised I would protect you and if you stay even a minute longer I won’t be able to.”

              “Who are you protecting me from?” Amelia asked, still absolutely confused.

              “Me,” I growled and then pulled her to me. I kissed her in a way that would erase any doubts that I wasn’t still obsessively into her. I also erased any confusion about what I was protecting her from. I held her body against mine, my hands possessively on her back to keep from breaking my promise. My lips moved against hers hungrily, desperately. She gasped against my lips when she realized what I was protecting her from and it made me want her all the more.

              When I finally pulled myself from her she was winded and dazed. I smiled down at her and her wide eyes were both surprised and heated into liquid pools of dark brown. She was breathtaking.

              “Do you see why it is imperative that I walk you to your room now?” I asked, struggling to catch my own breath.

              She nodded as if she was only agreeing because I asked her to and it made me smile. She could still walk away from me at any time, but I was determined to make it the hardest decision she ever made.

              I opened the door for her and when she walked through it I smacked her on the butt so that the sound reverberated in the echo-y hallway. She jumped at the contact and gave me a stern look over her shoulder which only made me smile like an idiot and my hand itch to do it again.

              We made it to her door where I resigned myself to a reserved kiss on the lips, quick and subtle.

              “I will see you tomorrow, Amelia,” I looked down at her and realized this was the happiest I had ever been. And she was the reason.

              “Goodbye, Avalon,” she smiled coyly at me. I think we both realized she held all the power now, but she took it easy on me by opening her hotel room door and walking backwards into the obscure darkness.

              “Goodbye, Amelia,” I say to a closed door.

              I stood there for a few more wistful seconds. Her magic was separated from mine now, and I hated the feeling of loss that came with it. I need her in my arms again, completely wrapped up and tangled together with me and everything that entailed.

              “Finally!” Xander called from across the portico that led to the elevators.

              “It’s about damn time,” Jericho agreed.

              “You’re lucky I didn’t make a move first,” Xavier called seriously.

              Good, I was glad there had been an audience. Now Xavier’s threat would go unwarranted. Amelia was officially off the market.

              “Goodnight gentlemen,” I called over my shoulder as I all but jogged happily to my room.

             
Stop whatever you have planned. I’m throwing Lilly and Talbott an engagement party
. I announced to Eden the minute the door was closed behind me.

              I woke her from a deep sleep and she mumbled something in return that sounded like a bunch of strung together curse words.

              I laughed at her and tried to explain.
It’s important that I put all of my support behind them. The Kingdom will respond to my endorsement more so than yours and Kiran’s.

              Whatever, Avalon.
She finally got out
.

              And while I have you here, I want you to invite the Regents to Omaha. We need to hold a meeting about Terletov. It’s time to trust our people with trusting us.
I finished sternly.
 

              This couldn’t have waited until morning?
Eden groaned.

              Oh, right. Go back to bed. Love you sis.
I laughed.

             
Love you, too.
I knew that she was smiling now.
I’m happy for you Avalon. You couldn’t have picked a better girl.

              She admitted right before she rolled over and went back to sleep.

              And as much as I would have liked to believe Eden’s blessing wouldn’t have mattered, I couldn’t. Because it did matter, her opinion mattered. Which made Amelia all the more amazing, because Eden loved her too.

              Hell, it was time to be honest.

              I loved her.

              I loved Amelia Cartier.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

              “Good morning,” I smiled down at Amelia the next morning while we loaded into rented vans. This time we were condensing our travel to two vans until we reached Gabriel’s home town of Urubamba.

              “Good morning,” she whispered in a small voice.

              We were alone on this side of the van, but only because I had handed out menial tasks to everyone else and followed her from the lobby. I was apparently a stalker as well as her boyfriend.

              So that was good….

              “Miss me?” I asked, my lips turning up in a smirk. I knew she missed me. It was a bit arrogant, maybe, but I had missed her in the short hours of the night we had left after kissing through half of it. I shouldn’t have been so pleased with how empty and lonely my magic felt without hers, but knowing hers felt the same way filled me with some kind of possessive pride. Besides that her magic jumped and clung to mine the moment I met her in the lobby of the hotel, reminding me of the power two Immortals had over each other.

              “No,” she grumbled and rolled her eyes.