C. 11 Unbridled Tension

Wild was the only thing I felt currently from the forest to my side. The ogre of a man didn't help the foreboding feeling that crept into my shoulders. There was something about it that offered a sense of peace but they draped it in something much darker and even more inviting than it should have been. I walked along the tree line, slowly and in no hurry to get any closer to the castle or further from the emerald landscape before me.

Looking over my shoulder at Ayon, I tilted my head toward the wall of trees. Curious as to his willingness to venture in so soon after his assignment.

"We don't have to go back inside, right?" I asked as smoothly as I could the closer I crept to the trees.

Ayon wasn't stopping me, and I was glad about that. Crossing into their shadow, despite the warm late morning light, my breath seemed to frost. A giddy feeling prickled at my fingertips. A branch creaked, making me snap my attention forward once again. It could have been a trick of light but the creature I saw in the beams that broke the canopy was massive. His large ears twitched, tail and back bristled as cold blue eyes looked at me. It wasn't more than several seconds, but it felt more like an eternity as I felt pulled into the creature's gaze.

"My lady." Ayon spoke, his voice heavy and muffled in my ears. "My lady, please. They do not prepare you to enter the forest the same way they trained us to enter."

Feeling a jerk on my arm, my eyes widened, and I turned to face him. We held one another's gaze as I fought the urge to scream at him. I wanted to see how far my status went here, but I also didn't want to test the elite guard of the king. If he wanted, I could very well see Ayon hefting me up over his shoulder and dragging me back to the castle this way should I become too unruly.

"That is your job, isn't it? To make sure I am safe in there."

He nodded. "Aye, that is true, however," he looked at me slowly, raising an eyebrow as he continued. "I don't think you would want to ruin another dress and instead dress more practically, but this is your request and I am simply made to obey."

"We could always say you accompanied me when we go out." I smirked, thinking of the adventures I would be privy to if he wasn't breathing down my neck every minute. "You could go hunt or do whatever and I can explore."

Ayon's eyes narrowed as he took a step closer to me. He was massive, dangerous and made my heart pound in my chest. What more was he capable of with those strong arms and rough, calloused hands? Not wanting to shy away from him, I took my step forward, so we were only a breath apart.

"You think I was serious?"

His eye twitched as a smile played on his lips. "I could leave you to the forest, to the monsters that lay deep within. The rogue bands and makeshift villages filled with horrors of people, I am sure they would like a fine noble woman like you."

Huffing a laugh, I ran my tongue along the inside of my bottom lip. "Then come with me. If you think I will stick to basic hunting trails and fishing holes, you are mistaken, sir."

"Sir?" Ayon broke into a smile now, his shoulder twitching as he raised his hand and brought it to my face. Jutting his arm past my right ear, he leaned down with burning embers where his eyes should be. "You have every right to venture out there when you please, I can't stop you. Don't take any of the warnings that you might hear and ignore the things you see, but your attitude toward it all will land you visiting the village only. If I can't accompany you, I will assign my men to you. The king might have granted you the right to explore, but you are now my ward and I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe. My lady."

My jaw popped with tension. So he was just as crass as he wanted when speaking with me. He did not differ from the others, my brothers or the king. Ignoring the fire it seemed to ignite in me, I shrugged and pushed his arm down so I could pass. Walking parallel to the forest, I tried to glimpse the creature I saw earlier, but it was gone.

Looking at the sky, I could see some birds flying high above us. They were so small though that I couldn't make out exactly what they were. Judging by the height, they might be hawks or eagles. My chest tensed as I thought of my father sending out his pair and having them return to him with my progress. I never heard them but the trio seemed to have communication know only to them. It would make sense, as kids we could never get away with much and if we did it didn't go undiscovered for long.

Turning my attention back to where we were walking, I heard the shrill whinny of a very familiar horse just as a gust of wind nearly sent me head over heels. Out of nowhere, a windstorm kicked up, pushing branches toward us in a matter that reminded me of grasping fingers in the dark. Gasping, I reeled back, hearing the ancient trees groan under the force. After each gust, there lingered the sound of a distant rumble like rolling thunder. However, when I looked at the sky once again, it was clear just as it had been moments before.

"Nyx!"

I heard my name but just turned off time. Feeling something smack against my cheek, my hand instinctively shot to cover the area as I bent over to avoid any other flying objects. Then I was off the ground, arms holding me tightly against a wall as the warmth of blood registered in my palm. Wincing, I pulled my hand away, my tongue coated with copper when I saw the bright red that painted my palm.

I wasn't sure where we were running to, but wherever it was; he was impossibly quick about it. His feet barely seemed to slam into the ground as gusts of wind beat at Ayon's back.

Then we were inside a building and safe from the hurricane that raged outside. When he was sure I was safe, Ayon put me down and tried to use one of the smaller windows in what looked like a barn that housed mostly horse stables. When his thumb pressed against my flesh, I winced and pulled from him.

"We need to get that taken care of."

As though to protest this idea, the hurricane outside took a breath and exhaled more furiously than it had since starting. The entire structure shook, hay and feed swirled around, stinging my face and eyes.

"Forgive me, my lady."

Ayon spoke so quietly that I almost didn't hear him. Turning to ask him what he had said, it resulted in a mouth full of soft armor and the strong after scent of pine. Tucking his head into my shoulder, his cheek rested against mine as the sound of windows ripping open, panicked horses and shrill shrieking continued just outside.

Then, just as quickly as it had arrived, it disappeared. Everything was calm and still once again, the horses, though still spooked, stopped beating the confines they were secured in and instead retreated to pacing in their small enclosures.

In my panic, I had gripped Ayon close, and now my fingers refused to release his clothing. I could hear that things were back to normal, that it was just a freak windstorm and nothing else. However, the way he had covered me without a second thought was shocking to me, but I didn't want to let go.

Then, suddenly, everything was bright once again as he pulled away from me and began inspecting my cheek once more.

Shaking his head, Ayon sighed angrily to himself but then chuckled. His shoulders shook as he tried to confine the action.

"What is so amusing?"

Shaking his head, Ayon looked at me before making sure I could stand on my own and went to one of the tack closets as he answered me with humor in his tone, even though he tried to play it down.

"It's nothing. Just an old story that I thought of just now."

Tilting my head, I looked at his back curiously. "What story?"

A harsh whinny followed by pounding on a stall door turned my attention and made Ayon freeze. Another release of irritation and I knew the source. My chest lifted as I lifted my dress and ran as fast as I could to Wraith. Sticking his head out, he tried to jump the stall door. If only his chest wasn't in the way, I would have been trampled.

Grabbing hold of the bolt that held him inside, I made to pull it open when a firm hand stopped me. Looking angrily from it to the source, I nearly stomped on his toes. Ayon stood there, his lips in a thin line with a look of warning.

"He is mine."

"I understand that, but this isn't a time to go riding, my lady."

Narrowing my eyes, I looked up at him with distrust.

"Is this due to the story you mentioned?"

Shaking his head, Ayon gestured to the rest of the horses that were still spooked and pacing in their stalls.

"If it still worked them up, how can you trust him not to throw you?"

Shaking my head, I held Wraith's massive head in my hands. Scratching his jaw and cheeks, he leaned into my touch as he asked to have his favorite spot scratched as well. Just under his left eye and extending to his ear, he pushed my forearm into the top of the door as he counted happily.

"He would never do that. He never has." I prided myself on having one of the most relaxed horses that had come across any of our paths.

My brothers had been thrown, my father as well and, from what I was told, my uncle nearly had his back broken from being thrown, then trampled by one of the lot he chose his beast form. Wraith was a gift and while he was almost a yearling when I was gifted him, there was an understanding between us I couldn't explain.

An hour later and Nicolaus still wasn't back. Not that I cared, it left me time to explore and not be squeezed to death. Though I felt some heat coming from more than a few of the servant girls. Discarded playthings of the prince and possibly the king before that. Shuddering at the thought of who he didn't impale, I thought of how inexperienced I truly was. Alex had been the only man I had been with and while he could remind me of his passionate touches even now, I still wondered how Nicolaus would be. Would he be rough or gentle or a mix of both? Was he a quick finisher or would he allow me to explore his body while I welcomed him to my own?

Shuddering once again at the thought of his strong fingers on my body, palms able to form me into puddy if he only allowed me to stare into his stormy ocean.

Then there was Ayon. Twice now, he had forced himself against me with no regard for how I felt about it. While it had all been in innocence, bystanders wouldn't think the same. I was in a form lucky that he had killed the men last night. Otherwise they could have run to the king. Did anyone see us? There had been the feeling of being watched. Nicolaus' attitude shifted and resembled that of a jealous lover when before he had seemed almost curious.

Taking a deep breath, I stopped my journey along the long hallways, ignoring the looks of the other nobles. They didn't address me any differently than they would a commoner. If they saw me as their equal in the king's eyes, it didn't reach them when he wasn't around. Not that it mattered, I didn't want to get wrapped up in the gossip and backstabbing that no doubt ran rampant at Sobell court just yet.

Turning to Ayon, I met his impassive stare. Honey, golden orbs now shone back at me in comparison to the burning embers that were housed in them earlier. Standing this close, if I concentrated on it, I could smell the pine and the faint smell of dirt. It was fresh and inviting, just as the forest had been.

"Ayon," I finally broke the hold that I put myself squarely in. I had to find Eryn. "Where is your library?"

His eyebrows shot up. "The library, my lady?"

Gritting my teeth, I hated how he tried so hard not to say my name again. I hadn't brought it up, and he hadn't mentioned it either. I wanted to hear him say it again. Whisper it in my ear as he pulled me close. His strength, his smell. They seemed to bring back a hunger that I had forgotten and that needed to be sated.

Do that and you die, dumb ass. I thought to myself, my jaw going slack as I tried to form words, but only nodded.

"This way."

Taking the lead, his scent flooded over me, making my core erupt. Inhaling deeply, I followed him to what I hoped was a nice library and not something that Eryn would have a fit about. I had to see her, even if I just sat on the edge of her ring of lamplight, it was better than being alone on this mountain. A mountain that had an ass that you could bounce a coin off of.

Shaking my head, I drug my eyes forward and pinched my pinky between my fingers. Twisting the first knuckle, I tried to take deep breaths, but it seemed useless as every step he made in front of me wafted his scent my way. I could feel my chest clench and reaching for him, I didn't bother to look around.

As I reached out, he stopped at the door. Turning to me, he didn't have to say it for me to reach past him and seize the handle. Pushing my bodyweight against it without losing momentum, I smashed my face off of the door frame. Heat covered my body in sheer embarrassment, though the snicker that Ayon tried to hide made it fade. Turning to him, I giggled and shoved him in the chest. Either catching him off guard or just to make me feel better, Ayon took a step back and clutched his chest.

"Are you alright?" His voice was light, laughter dancing behind every syllable.

Rubbing my nose, I nodded. Trying the handle again, making sure it wasn't just stuck, my heart sank at the fact it was locked.

"Is there anywhere else you would like to go, my lady?"

"Please call me Nyx." I muttered, keeping my eyes on the floor as I turned past him and back the way we had come. Call me Nyx, say my name and I will fall at your feet.

"Nyx, there you are."

My knees nearly buckled until I registered the voice. Clenching my jaw, I turned to Nicolaus and faked a smile. He looked wary, his frosty blue gaze shifting to Ayon before he embraced me with the same passion lacking kiss as before. I didn't bother closing my eyes, and it seemed he didn't bother either. Even as he kissed me, his stare bored into the guard on my shoulder.

"Nicolaus," I pulled back and looked at him with the same fake smile. His suspicion only grew as I lifted my hands from his sides and tried to take a step back. "How was the meeting with the townspeople?"

Shrugging, he looked at me fully. His thumb brushed just under the small scratch that had been covered with a strange salve.

"What happened here?"

Without thinking, I put my hand on the back of his and pressed my cheek into his touch. This seemed to bring him back and keep his attention off Ayon completely.

"Nothing, just a rock or something when I experienced my first windstorm. That was insane, we had to take refuge in the stables until it died down." I widened the smile I plastered on my lips, feeling Ayon bore his own hateful glare into my back. "I could see Wraith and explore the castle a bit."

Nodding, Nicolaus twitched a smile on himself before pressing a kiss on my cheek where the scrape was. He didn't seem to mind the salve applied but knew the source. His shoulders tensed once again before he straightened to his full height. He was still shorter than Ayon and Alex but I could comfortably put my head under his chin while standing, so I did this.

Trying to bring the innocence into my voice, I clutched his baggy shirt he still wore from the morning and pulled my body close to his. I felt him cup the back of my head and wrap an arm around my shoulders, however; I felt the malice that nearly poured off of him the longer we stayed in Ayon's company.

Taking a deep breath, I pushed back from Nicolaus, turned to Ayon and nearly froze in place. He had his eyes cast to the floor, keeping as much privacy as he could between the two of us as he stood there still obeying his orders given.

"Thank you for your help today, Ayon." I tried to give him the same fake smile, but I felt it strain at my cheeks. "I hope we will venture outside the walls soon. Until then, you can go about your usual business."

            Bowing slightly, he dismissed himself without a word, though I could feel the electricity that shot from his own shoulders. Keeping a hand clasped to Nicolaus, I tugged him back when he tried to follow Ayon.

            "Walk with me?" I asked him as sweetly as I could. I didn't want to be in the castle any more, though I wanted to know where Eryn was and the only other place I would know her to be in a new place would be outside. Just as I wanted to be. The castle was suffocating and the looks I received after Nicolaus had joined me were so fake that I nearly smacked every single one of them.

            Definitely, I laced my fingers in his, gripped him as he did earlier, and pulled him to the nearest exit I could find. It wasn't where I wanted to go but it led outside and the gentle breeze that brushed my skin was welcoming against the obvious whispers of protest. Nicolaus didn't seem to mind at all. Looking up at him, he had a smile on his face that only widened when he noticed my looking.

            "So, tell me, how are the people?" I was genuinely curious, the idea of joining him next time as well even played in the back of my mind.

            "They are fine. Enjoying my father's rule, or so they say. Crops will be fine this year and in hopes of a mild winter, we will enjoy an early spring." He shrugged at this before adding; "that is always the hope every year at least. Our neighbors to the north fair the worst of it could devastate our next round of crops if it doesn't give way to the summer long enough."

            Looking down at me, Nicolaus leaned in and kissed me the way I had wanted from the start. His cool touch, the passion that flooded from his touch and the way things had seemed to nearly stop. Pushing back against him, I slid my hands over his shoulders, up his neck and holding him there, my fingers grasping his neck only amplifying the growing excitement in his pants. I could feel him press against me, my pussy tingled at the sensation of his gentle thrust.

            Nicolaus pulled back first, they evaded every attempt to contact his soft lips as he tucked his chin in and gripped mine. Giggling, I looked up at him, giddiness filling every fiber of my being as I was ready to offer myself to this man.

            "You seem rather willing," gripping a handful of hair in his fist, he didn't tug but held me there as I did to him. "Is there a reason behind it?"

            My cheeks warmed as I felt embarrassed. He was rejecting my advances, and it took the wind out of my sails in a heartbeat. Lowering my eyes to his shoulder and chest. Anywhere other than his eyes, I tried to push away from him.

            "Nyx, stop."

            My back went rigid as I listened obediently to his command.

            "I am happy to go along with this but only if you wish, not because of what my father said earlier."

            Shrugging, I shook my head. It didn't matter; the mood was gone, and my blood ran in frigid bursts with every beat of my steadying heart. Putting my head against his chest, I listened to his breathing as he smoothed my hair and simply held me there with him.

            "When you are ready."

            "I am ready and not because of what the king said earlier." I swallowed hard, keeping my head against his chest. "I want- well I don't know what I want. To be honest with you, I am terrified of being married and what that means for me in the future. To be married to a prince that will one day be king. What if I am not a good queen? If the people don't like me now, why would they grow fond once I am ruling over them?"

Nicolaus shook his head, caressing my right cheek as he allowed me to stand against him. Pressing a kiss to the top of my head, I felt him take a deep breath and let it out slowly.

            "That is a fear that we will face together then, trinket." He admitted, squeezing me tightly.

We stood there for some time before we moved on from the growing number of prying eyes that thought they were all so inconspicuous. If they wanted to sabotage our relationship, they were doing a poor job. If they were trying to glimpse what I was sure what we both wanted, I cringed. Being watched was something I could never understand, even to make sure the marriage was complete, I couldn't do it. I had meant what I said earlier and I would remove such a request as soon as I was queen.