Page 51 of Crowns of Ice
Fuck.
I grew even harder and began pulling her faster onto me.
Only minutes passed before she cried out in ecstasy when an orgasm ripped through her. Satisfaction barreled through me, and feeling her channel tighten as her moisture coated my cock tipped me over the edge.
I roared when she seated herself entirely on my length, rubbing my cock deep inside her as she rode the waves of her pleasure.
She clung to me the entire time and never complained as my hands gripped her hips tightly.
When the aftermath of our lovemaking calmed, I savored her scent as our panting breaths mingled.
Heart pounding, I gathered her closer to me, then leaned down and inhaled her scent. “Never in all of the winters that I’ve walked on this realm have I ever felt anything close to the love I feel for you, Ilara.”
She tenderly brushed a lock of hair from my face, then kissed me. “My king. I love you just as fiercely. You were made for me.”
I growled low in my throat before enclosing her in my embrace.
She was mine.
My eternal mate.
My warrior queen.
And one day, if it was the last thing I ever did, I would ensure she wore the crown of the Court of Winter.
“We’ll have to be fast.”I eyed my guards as the six of us stood outside of Ilara’s childhood home. An entire day had passed in which we’d allowed ourselves to rest and our magic to recover. The night sky shone above us, the three moons visible as the galaxy created a cloudy strip against the stars. “If my father hears that we’ve returned to Solisarium, he’ll demand Ilara’s capture.”
Nish sneered. “Over my dead body.”
Haxil nodded and crossed his arms. “He’s not getting her again, Nori. I’ll go down fighting to keep that from happening, even if my life ends with a sword through my heart.”
“I as well,” Ryder said with a gleam in his eye. “He’s not taking her.”
“We’ll keep our queen safe, my prince.” Sandus’s nostrils flared, and he clapped me on the back. “We won’t fail you or her again.”
“None of you failed us.” Ilara’s wings spread out behind her, blending into the winter landscape as the wind howled. “You were doing as your prince commanded when the king forced me into the dungeon, as what we both wanted. The king would have shaved your wings or had all of your heads if you’d defied him in the throne room.”
Ilara’s worry pulsed toward me on the bond as she stood at my side. She’d never been one to ask others to sacrifice themselves for her, but she also didn’t grasp how much of an impact her journey had made on my guards and those who’d been with her along the way.
It was obvious yesterday that the fae in her village loved her. And all four of my guards were now fiercely loyal to her. Servants in the castle were as well.
According to Balbus, Daiseeum had asked about her daily, usually multiple times per day, when she’d been locked in the dungeon. Patrice and Haisley had been just as involved, and I’d even heard Murl had inquired about her well-being.
Even when I’d been locked within my chambers forthree days, I’d heard the mutterings among the staff. Their anger and discontent at what had been done to Ilara had floated through the halls. Everyone had stated it wasn’t justice. It was cruelty.
“Ready?” I asked my mate and guards.
They all nodded.
In a blur of mist and shadows, air and wind, we all disappeared as we ventured back to the castle—back to the heart of it all.
Back to where our destinies would ultimately be decided.
CHAPTER 17 - ILARA
We mistphased to the wing where archons and nobles stayed while they were at court, to the same area we’d been at previously when we’d confronted Michas in his private chambers.
When we reappeared, my jaw dropped at what surrounded us. As before, the hall lay in ruins. Cracked stone. Shattered windows. Dust on everything.