Vision of Seduction (26 page)

muscular bare forearms where his tunic had been rolled up nearly to the

elbows. His dark trousers lovingly caressed powerful thighs, and, of

course, the outline of a very impressive cock she'd experienced firsthand

earlier.

Get a grip. The last thing I need today is another public orgasm!

Katelyn stepped fully into the hallway and steeled herself against the

attraction she knew would pull her toward Grayson even if they were on

Earth. She knew better than to think it was only the planet causing all this.

Maybe that accounted for her sudden penchant for kinky sexual encounters

with women. But one look at Grayson told her that he would rev her libido

into high gear no matter what planet they happened to be on.

"Look," she said with a sigh. "It's been a long day already, and, in addition

to you, the king, the queen, and a lady's maid have all seen me naked. I'm

feeling a bit... exposed, right now."

Grayson's expression turned almost sheepish. "I am sorry for embarrassing

you. I've never received a vision from anyone before, and when Stone and I

saw them at the same time ..." He shrugged. "We just found our way to the

baths."

Katelyn rolled her eyes and shoved her hair over her shoulder. "I'm not

saying I wouldn't have done the same exact thing in your place. I'm just

saying I need a few hours without anyone seeing me naked, with no public

orgasms, and without the pink crystals having their way with me."

Grayson raised his eyebrows. "What happened with the crystals?"

Katelyn sighed. She'd forgotten he didn't know about that yet. "It's a long

story. Suffice it to say, they liked me a little too much."

Grayson was making a valiant effort not to smile even through his

curiosity, but the corners of his lips quirked up anyway, which threatened

to make Katelyn smile back. "I thought we could take some dinner to the

hot springs—without Ryan this time. However, if you're still feeling

exposed ..."

A warm tingling fluttered deep inside her belly, and a happy buoyancy

filled her chest. "Are you trying to get me alone, your highness?"

His amethyst eyes darkened, sending the tingling into high gear. "Most

definitely."

***

"Queen Alyssandra, please see reason. The Seer is obviously unstable."

Alyssa clenched her jaw to keep from blurting out exactly what she

thought of Valen and his group of twenty or so Klatch who had asked for a

special audience. Their leader, Valen, was the same man who had spoken

out against the triangle at the council meeting. He also happened to be a

self-righteous pain in the ass, if Alyssa's limited exposure to him so far was

any indication.

She stood and waved Stone back to his seat.

The energy from her husband's anger vibrated along her back like small

electric shocks, and she took a deep breath to center her own emotions.

"Valen, reports of what happened at the hot springs already reached me

well before you requested this audience." She crossed her arms and

struggled for her most logical and diplomatic voice. "We have no other

Seers on Tador at the moment, so I'm sure you're not familiar with how

their gift affects them. Visions drain the Seer's energy, and some visions

will obviously cause an emotional reaction. None of that suggests she is

unstable."

"So we are to rely on someone who might break down at any moment, to

maintain a third of the planet's energy?" Condescension dripped from

Valen's words, and Alyssa bit her tongue to keep from lashing out in anger.

His eyes narrowed and his nostrils flared as he smacked a fist into his open

palm.

The rest of his group stayed in a close huddle near him, showing Alyssa

that not only was he the leader, but that most of the people with him

would let him do their thinking for him—a fact that only made them more

dangerous, in Alyssa's mind.

Jaseen, a petite woman with generous curves, whom Alyssa suspected was

one of Valen's consorts, snorted. "The queen has always maintained the

symbiosis alone on Tador, regardless of whatever fiction has been written

in the journals. We can't afford to dilute the bloodlines any further."

Again, Alyssa bit back the sharp reply that tried to spring from her lips,

and she took a deep breath to calm her emotions before she replied.

"Jaseen, show me proof that the journals are fiction."

The woman's mouth opened and closed like a fish too long out of water,

and Alyssa plowed forward, her point proven by the woman's pained

silence. "Think what you will, but the Klatch are not as pureblood as

everyone would like to think." She stared the little woman down until,

reluctantly, Jaseen dropped her gaze, allowing Alyssa to turn her attention

back to Valen. "And the Seer's emotional state is not at issue here. In fact, I

don't remember anyone asking me to submit to an emotional evaluation

before I ascended the throne as the sole provider of energy for Tador. My

show of power seemed impressive enough that no one asked any other

questions."

Valen's lips thinned into a hard line. "I know you are reluctant to admit

that your decision in the matter of the triangle was faulty, but a true leader

would consider the well being of the people before her own pride— I urge

you to consider that before you doom our entire race. How ashamed your

parents would be if they were here to witness your heresy."

Stone shot to his feet behind her, the energy from his rage nearly

suffocating her. At the same time, the four members of the royal guard

stationed around the room took several steps forward, their eyes narrowed,

their hands open and ready to cast spells to protect the queen.

Valen and his followers stiffened, their eyes darting toward the guards and

the angry king. All of them kept their arms at their sides, obviously

unwilling to show any aggression other than their barbed words.

“I’ll rip out his tongue, and if your father and mother were here, they would help

me." Her husband's angry voice sounded inside her head—telepathy

between the ascended queen and her king was one of the perks of this job.

"I appreciate the sentiment, my love, but after growing up with Sela, Valen

doesn't provide much of a challenge for me. I'll take care of him."

Stone's searing energy receded to tolerable levels, and he remained behind

her like a protective sentinel. Alyssa glanced toward Gavin, the head of her

royal guard, and with a small smile let him know she could handle the

situation.

Gavin nodded in return but didn't move back toward his original station,

and neither did any of the other three guards.

The queen smiled serenely at Valen and his followers, who still stood stiffly

as if expecting her to have them all put to death. "If you're hoping to shame

me into following the path you prefer, Valen, you're sadly mistaken." She

refused to bring her parents—the previous king and queen—into this

conversation. The fact that her parents had agreed that the triangle was a

necessity wouldn't sway Valen anyway. Instead, Alyssa lifted her chin and

pinned the man with her intense gaze. "I had nothing but the people's best

interests in mind when I made this decision. If I recall correctly, all of you

were content to let both my mother and the planet slowly deteriorate until

we were left with only the current choice. So you have very little room to

complain, now that I'm taking action to save our way of life."

Valen's jaw clenched, and his eyes blazed with fury. Several of his

followers' hands fisted at their sides, and a few low mutters drifted from

the group. "You refuse to see reason. With all due respect, your majesty,

you force me to rally the people against this folly. Mark my words, this

triangle will never happen.

Alyssa stepped forward, invading Valen's personal space. The air around

her crackled with her energy as her anger leaked through her calm facade.

Valen's eyes dilated, the black center nearly eating the outer lavender.

Otherwise, his expression remained defiant even as his face lost a little of

its normal color.

"You forget yourself, Valen." Alyssa kept her voice low, relieved it came

out sounding even and unconcerned, because her stomach roiled with

anger. "Tador is not and has never been a democracy. You have all

willingly entrusted the care of the planet to me. Tador attracts what it

needs—which includes the Seer and, eventually, a Healer. If you do

anything to endanger the successful completion of the triangle, it will be

considered an act of treason."

Valen's eyes widened, and a quick look of surprise flashed across his face

before his features settled into the previous angry mask. "You would

silence any dissenters by sentencing them to death? I caution you to think

of how you will be remembered, Alyssandra de Klatch. A queen has never

been asked to step down, but that doesn't mean it couldn't happen."

His group seemed to constrict into a tighter cluster; only Valen stood

slightly apart.

Alyssa's gaze bore into Valen's until the man flinched under her scrutiny.

"This is a free society, and dissenters aren't persecuted. However, those

who undermine the well being of the planet are terrorists and will be dealt

with as such. So, save your threats."

She shook her head, suddenly very tired with this entire conversation. A

few steps took her closer to the group, though they nearly flinched away as

she walked past. The way their gazes tracked her movements assured her

she had their full attention.

"Let me lay it on the line for you all. There isn't another royal princess and

prince pairing powerful enough to ascend the throne. Too many died in the

attempt before Stone found me, so now we're stuck with each other. I've

made the best decision for the situation and for the planet, and I'm done

discussing it." She sliced the air with her hand. "I've tried to be patient and

let everyone have their say, but now it's time for all of you to either jump

on the bandwagon, or go find a place to live on Earth where you don't have

to accept my decisions. Do we understand each other?" Alyssa made sure

her gaze touched each person in the group as a tense silence filled the

room. "This discussion is now officially closed."

Tension in the room mounted as the group digested the full import of her

words. Alyssa stood stock still, unwilling to be the first one to move. She

allowed her gaze to roam over the faces of the Klatch before her. Some

appeared angry, while others looked stunned, but without Valen's

guidance, none of them seemed to know what to do.

After several minutes, Valen finally spoke. "You have made yourself

perfectly clear, my queen." He gave a curt nod before he turned to leave.

After a definite pause, the rest of the group trailed after him.

One of the guards closed the door behind them firmly, and Alyssa slowly

blew out the breath she'd been holding. Her entire body began to shake as

the adrenaline flowed out of her like water down an open drain.

Stone captured Alyssa's hand to brush a kiss over her knuckles. His warm

tongue darted out to leave a hot, wet line across her skin, which pulled a

sharp gasp from her.

A small tendril of energy snaked from that point of contact to every

erogenous zone in her body, making her shudder.

"You're weak, beloved. Let me replenish your energy." Concern laced

Stone's words and a crease had formed between his dark brows.

Alyssa opened her eyes and smiled up at her husband. "Before you take it

upon yourself to distract me, we need to decide what to do about Valen

and his group."

"My queen." Gavin stepped forward, dressed in the dark purple livery of

the royal guard. "If I may offer a suggestion?"

"Please do, Gavin," Stone offered. "I don't think Alyssandra has much more

energy to spare for this right now."

Alyssa forced her lips to curve into a smile at her husband's

understatement. Her limbs felt as if they weighed a thousand pounds.

Stone laid a comforting hand on Alyssa's shoulder as he finished

addressing the guard. "You have more experience in security matters than

we do. As always, we appreciate any advice you can offer."

The man's expression didn't change, but she thought she noticed a glint of

appreciation in the man's eyes. "If we were to assign someone to follow

each of the ... dissenters ... we would most likely be able to head off any

threats before they happen." He pursed his lips. "We would, of course, be

discreet."

A short laugh bubbled up in Alyssa, even through her exhaustion, and she

let it free. "Gavin, if it weren't highly inappropriate, I would kiss you on the

lips right now." She sighed. "I would give you a raise, except for that pesky

part of Klatch culture where we don't use money."

Gavin grinned—the first actual grin she had ever seen from the stoic man.

"We require no recompense for performing our duty, my queen. As you

know, everything we could need is already provided for us. However,

perhaps when you are recovered we could discuss a few things that might

make the lives of the guards more ... pleasant?"