Blood Bond (3 page)

She watched the milk without really seeing
it. Her thoughts returned to the previous afternoon, when she had so nearly
given in to temptation. Part of her cursed her sense of responsibility—the part
of her thrumming with need. Her nipples chafed against the terry of the robe,
giving a low, constant reminder of how sensitive the buds could be to her
lovers’ touch.

The scrape of a shoe in the doorway broke
Starr’s thoughts. She turned quickly and froze. She bowed her head. “Your
Highness.” She sounded hoarse and felt guilty for her erotic thoughts. She had
no reason to think Anca would probe her thoughts, but still made an effort to
shield them as she straightened.

“Starr.” The queen wore a sated expression.
Her hair was mussed, and her lids drooped lazily over her eyes. It was easy to
infer what she had recently been doing. “I didn’t expect anyone down here this
time of night. Demi and I normally have the castle to ourselves during the wee
hours.”

She cleared her throat. “I, um, couldn’t
sleep.” She gestured to the boiling milk, realizing it was about to burn. She
lifted the pot from the burner. “I was making cocoa. Would you care for some,
Highness?”

Anca shook her head. “No. I just came for a
midnight snack.” Instead of going to the fridge, she walked over to Starr,
standing a few feet away.

Her hands shook as the queen watched her
every movement. Anca intimidated Starr, although she didn’t know why. The queen
was always friendly, but she couldn’t relax around her. Perhaps it was a
product of her upbringing and training under Ylenia. It had been drilled into
her from an early age to respect and revere the Protector of Corsova, to honor
their sacrifice for the people with diligence to her duty.

With clumsy fingers, she poured the milk
into the mug. She placed the pot in the sink, and it clattered against the
basin as her fingers released it prematurely. She felt tears pricking the back
of her eyes and didn’t know why. Her emotions had been in a heightened state
the last few months too. Could that be attributed to sexual frustration, or was
it a side effect of the more pervasive soul-deep emotional deprivation she
felt?

She almost yelped when Anca touched her
arm. Starr jerked away and took a step back. Shallow pants escaped her, and she
made a conscious effort to control her breathing as the queen watched her with
an expression of concern. “I’m sorry, Your Highness. I don’t know what got into
me.” She tried to laugh, but it emerged as a high-pitched choking sound. “I’m—“

“What’s wrong, Starr? And don’t tell me
‘nothing.’ You haven’t been yourself for the past few months.”

Starr forgot how to breathe. Was it so
obvious? “Your Highness, I’m fine—“

“You aren’t.”

The soft counterstatement, said so gently,
caused Starr’s control to slip. “The visions, Highness. I can’t sort them out.
The more I try, the more I—“ She clamped her mouth close, realizing she was too
close to revealing where her thoughts led her while meditating. “It gets
blurry,” she settled for saying. She tensed, wondering what Anca’s reaction
would be. In the history of Corsova, she didn’t know of any other spiritual
leader having failed in her duties. Would she be banished?

“You need a break. When I used to struggle
through Algebra—and that was quite a struggle, believe me—my mother would tell
me to take a walk. She was right. Physical exertion always cleared my cerebral
block.” Anca grinned. “You need to do something that’s just physical and stop
thinking. Have a little fun, Starr. You certainly deserve it.”

If only the queen knew what thoughts her
words inspired, she would probably order Starr segregated from Sorin and Lucian
for the rest of her life. A flush of heat swept up her neck, and only sheer
willpower kept it from invading her cheeks. “I don’t think that’s a good idea,
Highness.”

“Sure it is. I want you to take a vacation.
Go into the mountains or visit one of the cities.”

“I can’t abandon my duties.”

Anca waved her hand. “What is there to see
to? Helena’s Pledging Ceremony to Jon isn’t until next month.”

“What if Ezru’s baby comes early?”

“The midwives handle the delivery. The
Welcoming Ceremony for the baby can take place up to three months after its
birth, so don’t use that as an excuse either.” Anca touched her again, lightly
patting her arm. “You know she isn’t due for several weeks. I insist you spend
some time away from here. Forget about your duties for a short time and just
enjoy yourself.”

“I can’t go, Your Highness.” Starr tried to
be firm, but it was difficult to retain her resolve to stay when the idea was
much too tempting.

“You can’t go alone, that’s certain.” Anca
shook her head, no longer listening to Starr. “What fun would that be? No, you
must take Sorin and Lucian with you.”

“I couldn’t!” When she blurted that
half-hysterically, Starr choked. Once she caught her breath, she shook her
head. “They have duties.”

“If anything comes up, we will cope. I’m
certain they would appreciate some time alone with you. Demi tells me you’re
their blood-link. It must be difficult to be away from them.”

“I do miss them.”
I ache for them so
much I hurt.
She quickly blocked the thought, lest it be transmitted to
Anca.

“Good, then it’s settled. You’ll leave as
soon as you’ve packed.”

“No! I—“ Was this really happening? Was the
queen sending her away with Sorin and Lucian, giving her
carte blanche
to have fun, without thinking about her duties? Maybe she was still upstairs
and had fallen back to sleep without realizing it. She would awaken to learn
this was a dream.

“Of course, you’ll need to let us know
where you’re going. Unless there’s an emergency, we won’t bother you. You will
return by Helena’s Pledging Ceremony, won’t you?”

Starr nodded numbly, surprised she was
capable of moving. “Yes.”

“Do you know where you’ll go?”

She didn’t have to think about it. Memories
of lazy days spent in the mountains came back to Starr. “Yes. My parents have a
cabin in the mountains. No one has stayed there for years, not since they moved
to Bulgainia, but it should be fine, with a little effort.”

“Don’t spend too much time working. I want
you to enjoy yourself.”

A shiver seized Starr. She didn’t doubt she
would enjoy herself if she gave in to her desires, and it seemed unlikely that
she could resist Sorin and Lucian for an entire month. That was the reason she
had no intention of letting them accompany her on her imposed sabbatical,
regardless of what the queen said. Having them close would be more temptation
than she could resist and would defeat the purpose of taking time to gain
perspective and control her desire.

Chapter 3

The cabin had definitely needed some work.
Starr lay in the canvas hammock she had strung up between two gârnita
trees—similar to the smaller white oaks around the side of the property, but
with scaly bark—just hours after she finished cleaning the cabin and restoring
it to habitable conditions. It had taken most of the day to complete
everything, and during that time, she had been so physically drained that her
brain hadn’t found the time to obsess over her raging hormones.

She turned her attention to the stars
twinkling in the twilight sky. Complete darkness would come in less than an
hour, bringing with it a nearly full moon. She didn’t know why, but the
knowledge that it was the last night before the full moon caused her a vague
sense of restlessness, spurring her to finish restoring the cabin by tonight.
The air felt heavy with anticipation.

She almost thought Sorin and Lucian were up
to something, but refused to invade the privacy of their minds for answers,
even if she had been in close enough proximity to do so. Since they were back
at the castle, and she was here, she couldn’t reach them anyway. Still, she
couldn’t shake the notion that something was coming. Did they have something
planned? Her stomach clenched with nervous excitement. She trailed her fingers
lightly across the taut flesh, wishing her hand belonged to one of them.

She slid her hand lower to explore the
flesh under the waistband of the skimpy shorts she wore, before bringing her
hand higher. Starr skimmed over her stomach again and stopped her hand just
under her breasts. She cupped one of her breasts, rubbing the nipple through
the blue cotton tank top she wore,
sans
bra. She had forgotten how good
casual clothes could feel, having spent the last two years wearing the red robe
that symbolized her position.

Right then, she wanted to be out of all
clothes, to let the soft breeze blow across her hot skin, heated more by the
thoughts flowing through her mind than the exertion of the day.

She closed her eyes and allowed her hand to
slide lower, once more to the waistband of her shorts. She flicked open the
button and lowered the zipper with stealth, not certain why she was being so
discreet, since she was alone. Her pussy ached, and she couldn’t help but trace
the outline of her swollen lips through her panties. She moved her hand lower,
encountering moisture leaking into her panties.

Starr squirmed in the hammock, spread her
thighs wider, and slipped her fingers under the crotch of her underwear. She
recalled a mental image of being with Lucian and Sorin, and it stoked her
desire while she pleasured herself.

Sexual release had become an addiction. She
was convinced of that. Her pussy pulsed as she pushed a finger inside her tight
opening, stopping only when she encountered a barrier. She arched her hips,
causing the hammock to sway. A moan slipped from her, and she bit hard on her
tongue to keep further sounds of pleasure from escaping. Hiding her pleasure
had become so innate that she didn’t even think about the fact she was alone
and could shout about her gratification if she wished.

She should stop, but couldn’t. Her body
needed fulfillment too much, even though she knew her orgasm would only give
her empty satisfaction. She needed something more than her own hands to be
truly fulfilled.

When Sorin cursed and took a step toward
the door, Lucian touched his arm, attempting to restrain him. “She can’t know
we’re watching.”

“I can’t stand this. My cock is about to
explode. Look at her, touching herself. I think she senses our presence. She couldn’t
really think we would stay at the castle and wait for her to return after she
slipped away in so cowardly a fashion. She had to know we would come after her.
She must have planned for us to discover her in the act.” The last part emerged
as a growl, as Sorin’s eyes darkened and took on a wolf-like appearance.

Lucian knew Sorin was close to losing
control, but who could blame him? He was barely holding onto self-control
himself. Only the knowledge of what they had planned kept him from tearing
through the door and claiming Starr that minute. “Patience,
dragostia
.
She will be ours tonight.”

“What if she can withstand her desires?
This is our only chance to consummate our relationship.” Sorin ran a hand
through his shaggy hair, not bound by the leather thong right now.

The possibility worried Lucian too, but he
placed his faith in the belief that her desire for them was as strong as theirs
was for her. Their need for each other was building in intensity. Once she got
over the shock of having them show up and the surprise they planned, she would
have to give in. Surely, she wouldn’t be able to resist giving in. He clung to
the hope, and had done so for the last month, since he and Sorin concocted the
plan to lure Starr away from the castle and her constant duties.

It had taken some finesse to get Anca to
suggest the vacation without openly requesting she do so, but she had, much to
their relief. Now the only obstacle standing in their way was Starr’s sense of
duty. He couldn’t fault her for that, because his loyalty to Corsova and the
Protector ran deep. However, his need for Starr outweighed his strong sense of
obligation. It was the same for Sorin, and Lucian knew the self-perceived
weakness angered his lover.

Sorin stiffened and leaned closer to the
window. Lucian did the same, and his breath caught in his throat as Starr
lifted her shirt above her breasts and began rubbing one of her nipples. Her
other hand matched the rhythm as she pumped it in and out of her pussy. His
cock jerked against the fly of the worn jeans, and Lucian shifted his weight to
relieve the pressure.

His voice emerged as a husky croak. “Come
on, Sorin. Let’s wash up in the stream and prepare our surprise.”

It was a long second before Sorin tore his
attention from the view outside the window and turned to the back door of the
cabin. Lucian followed him, but couldn’t resist one last peek over his
shoulder. He groaned as a low sound of pleasure reached his ears. Starr’s body
convulsed, and she slowly relaxed into the hammock. Obviously, she had
climaxed. He hoped she had only whet her appetite, rather than curbed it.
Otherwise, the night’s events would do little to entice her, and their plans
would be for naught.