When Day Turns Night (2 page)

“You are even
more lovely in person,” he spoke softly, and I could see his
eyes were still taking me in, noting the flick of my tongue. The
strange sensation that he too was feeling these odd and awkward
sensations rolled through me.

“But not what
you expected, my lord knight.” I smiled, laughter in my green
eyes, forcing myself to keep my tongue in my mouth.

“Most
certainly not, I expected you to be, well,” he paused and had
the nerve to blush which caused the laughter to bubble up and out of
me.

“The crown
prince, Conchobor and his lady mother, the Duchess Muirenn!”
The announcement echoed along the stone walls, interrupting my
laughter. We turned then, toward the great hall doors as the party
split around Trian and I.

I felt my back
automatically straighten, and the butterflies that had been dancing
stilled as though frozen by a chill wind. My mouth set in a firm
smile, as he entered.

Conchobor was tall,
thick in the shoulders and powerful, he just had more girth then the
man beside me. His smile was barely there, and looked more like a
gloat then a genuine smile. I saw it falter as he took in some of
the peasants and lesser born nobles. His dark hair hung loose about
his shoulders, mixing in his scraggly beard. His eyes told volumes,
quick wit, sober humor, anger.

Muirenn, well she
was vastly different from the stories I had heard. Her hair was as
white as snow, her eyes ice blue. She wore a long black gown, her
body still straight and beautiful, but I could see a frailty that
hinted toward the end of her years. She had a firm set to her mouth,
like she had spent many of her years glaring instead of smiling.

Artan was not with
them, and I marveled at that, he would not have missed this for
anything. I remained still, intimidated by their presence. A new
sensation for me. My father crossed toward me, though he was ailing
he did not show it in his thick shoulders, his happy grin.

“Muirenn!”
He laughed, spreading his arms wide.

He acted as though
he didn't see her smirking glare as he wrapped his arms around her.

I knew in that
moment that I was a means to an end. There would be no love in my
marriage, and I was not going to be ruling at my husband's side.

Conchobor had bowed
out of the hunting expedition, saying he and his mother needed to
settle into the guest chambers. We'd learned that Artan was ill and
unable to make the journey, though he'd sent his wishes that he
wanted the marriage to happen soon. Something about that struck me
as odd.

I skipped down the
steps in the early morning hours, predawn. I exited the side
chamber, next to the guard house and stables. I straightened my
heavy wool tunic over my dress, heading to the stables, and saw a
sight I wasn't meant to see.

Between the stables
and guard house was a well of fresh water for the horses and guards,
and standing beside it was a very nude male. I froze, watching as he
scrubbed at his naked body with a rag. He was washing his hair, his
back to me. I stepped closer to the stables. I knew a lady
shouldn't pry on a man, especially betrothed, but I couldn't help it.
His firm muscles corded down his back to a beautiful buttocks,
powerful thighs, round calves, he was slim and beautiful. And then
he turned.

My eyes wandered
the front of him as he poured a bucket of water over his face. I had
never seen male genitalia, but it wasn't as intimidating as my ladies
had told me. I should have turned away, but god if I wasn't curious.

In a few months, I
would be a bride and taking care of my husband and making him happy.
Surely this man wouldn't mind his princess looking at him in a
scholarly way. I knew that the length of him would harden and
stretch, becoming even bigger than it already was, and somehow would
insert into me.

He rinsed his hair,
water sluicing along his skin in the dim light, splashing over his
manhood. I wanted to touch those oh so tender balls hanging beneath
the length of his penis, feeling the softly haired portion and
discovering the texture. I wanted to make that softened member
stretch at my fingertips, engorging with lust and blood and heat.

Finished with the
rinsing, he shook his hair out, much like a dog after the rain, and I
gasped. Trian. In all his glory. We had met only a few hours ago,
and yet I had been desiring him, yearning for a few more sentences
from his full and teasing lips. Unfortunately that gasp alerted him
to my presence. He looked toward me, and our eyes met. He grinned,
turned, and blushed at the same time, though I knew that he would
have displayed himself for other women.

“Princess!”
He called softly, quickly wrapping a linen cloth hurriedly about his
hips. “Are you in need of anything?”

I knew I should let
it go, I should excuse myself and hurry away and pretend I had never
seen anything, but my heart hammered, and my belly-and lower-was
filled with butterflies.

“Actually, my
lord knight, my sister and I are about to head on an expedition to
hunt, would be best if we had an escort.” I paused as he
approached me, nude save that wet clinging linen cloth. I tried hard
but failed miserably to not look down at the way the shaft stuck to
the wet cloth. I also noted that it was changing, lengthening before
my eyes, hardening and growing erect. I fought with my eyes and
forced them back to his face, flushing a deep red.

“Are you
asking me or the barracks in general, my lady Princess?” He
asked softly, and I felt heat fill me to my core.

My thoughts argued
with my heart, but as oft does for a young maiden, the heart won out.
“You, Trian, please. Please come.”

I heard Ita's
racket as she exited the castle, and stepped quickly into the shadows
of the alley, secured from my sister's sight and bumping into Trian's
firm chest. He was damp still, his hair hanging unceremoniously
about his face and throat. I swallowed and looked up at him.
Fighting at the urge to look once again at his member as it pressed
into my belly through the thick wool coat.

His eyes explored
mine, and I felt certain they mirrored my own expression of need and
desire. There was most definitely the confusion in them I held in my
own. While the bards sing of love so powerful it erases all else, I
had been taught above all that respect and obedience to my husband
was first and foremost.

His hand raised and
I thought my virgin lips would taste their first kiss, as his hand
hovered beside my cheek. I could see the desire in his brow, in the
set of his shoulders, reading him like a book. The spell wound
between us, causing me to push gently into him, pressing my sensitive
breasts against his firm chest, begging for that member pushing in my
belly to be pushing elsewhere. His breath was minty against my face,
spiced with cloves.

My sister and Lassi
our nursemaid laughed loudly as they entered the stables, chattering
about the hunt, and it broke our spell. I looked toward them, my
heart beating faster at the thought of becoming caught, and Trian
stepped back.

“I should
prepare, dawn is just coming,” his voice said softly, his
breath along my cheek.

“Aye,”
I murmured, and without the command of my brain I set my hand on the
firm cool chest in front of me.

I dropped my eyes
to that offending digit as it once again wound that spell between us.
I could barely muster the thoughts that I shouldn't be touching him
so intimately. I slid my hand along his pectoral that my own chest
had been pressing against a moment ago, taking note of the battle
scars. Our kingdom was at peace, but it didn't mean that our borders
went without their fair share of skirmishes. My eyes followed my
hand as it traced his firm muscles, trailing fingers against him and
catching a few drips against his naked breast. I could see he was
fully erect now, or at least I hoped he could not grow more immense
than he currently was, stretching against the damp cloth. My hand
ached to grasp the wide girth of it, slide over the mushroomed tip.
I wanted to pull the cloth away and taste it as I had been told men
loved. I looked into his eyes, letting him see my desires there, and
he did touch my face this time, gently cupping my cheek, his lips
opening softly.

How many other
women had he bound with this spell? The thought was enough to cause
me to jerk back, wiping my hand against the heavy wool tunic.

“Anyone in
the barracks is fine, lord knight.
Any,
” I swallowed,
ashamed of myself, and hurried around the corner to the stables.

The sun was high,
arching toward noon, and the hunting had slowed. Trian had come and
so had one of his men, Niall.

My sister was up
ahead, stretching her bowstring, Niall was riding only steps behind
her, and Lassi a few steps behind him. I had allowed Trian and I to
fall behind, putting several horses between us, letting them weave
through the edges of the forest with some privacy. My bow, while in
my hand and strung, lay dormant. I had caught my fill for the day,
and I knew I had impressed Trian with his silent smiles as he looked
on.

“This
morning,” I began when I was certain we were out of ear shot
from the rest of our small hunting party, “cannot be discussed
again.”

Trian pulled his
horse up beside me, riding close enough that his leg brushed against
mine. Lightning cracked between us, sparking and tying us together.
“My lady Princess, it is not only you who would suffer at
indiscretion.” He looked into my eyes, as though he could
press his words in through them.

“Aye, my
future husband would no doubt have serious words with you.”

Trian laughed at
that, “Words that involved a knife and my balls. Begging your
pardon your highness, I shouldn't speak so boldly.”

I smiled at him,
“He would probably display them against all would-be bathers.”
I bit my lip, I shouldn't encourage his lewd comments, especially
against my future husband.

Trian chuckled
softly again, “Still, I should not have been bathing out in the
open.”

“And why were
you – other than the obvious that the well was easily
accessible.”

His mouth quirked
and he looked at me, then away into the forest, “I was having
dreams, I thought the best way to dispel them would be to freeze them
away with the blast of chilled water.”

“What were
your dreams about?” I asked, setting the bow along the saddle
horn as I looked about the clear forest of my home, attempting to not
notice that he was moving the horse to put our legs together as much
as possible.

“I...would
rather not say, my lady Princess,” his voice was deep, and I
knew that they were of me, and judging from how quickly his body had
reacted to me this morning they were of a sexual nature.

I blushed and
watched as my sister's bow sang and the arrow flew. There was a
sharp scream and I knew she'd caught herself a rabbit.

We stopped far
enough away that we were still outside ear shot as Niall's cheer
broke the silence of the forest and he dismounted to retrieve it.

I looked at Trian,
my heart pounding again. The entire morning I had been envisioning
his firm body, his flaccid member resting against his balls, the
stretch of him curving up toward his belly, knowing it had been
against me as I had stepped in close. His beautiful chest muscles,
the way his hair dripped and his skin was cold against my
outstretched hand. I had imagined him kissing me, over and over, his
lips soft against me, his muscled arms wrapped around me.

“It cannot
happen again. I know I should not have encouraged your nudity, nor
stared so boldly,” I was rambling now, attempting to scold, but
the words were lust-filled. I wanted him so badly I didn't know how
to forget him. I certainly was forgetting myself.

Trian's hand caught
mine, his gloved hand holding onto my bare one. The look in his eyes
showed that he understood, but as I did he
wanted
it to happen
again. He wanted to be with me.

The sound of
pounding hooves and a shrill whinny from a horse alerted our party to
an approaching person.

“Hail,
Highnesses!” I heard, and saw a guard break through the trees,
heading toward us.

“Yes, what is
it?” I spurred my horse softly, trotting up toward my sister,
putting Trian and Niall between us and the guard. Though he wore my
father's colors, I did not recognize him.

“Highness,
your father is gravely ill, your mother fears he may go before this
very night.”