Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 121008 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 605(@200wpm)___ 484(@250wpm)___ 403(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121008 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 605(@200wpm)___ 484(@250wpm)___ 403(@300wpm)
A cheer goes up when I walk into the yard.
“Welcome, Queen Meg,” they say as I pass.
I plaster a stunned smile on my face as they welcome me. Then there’s only one person in the whole world as Cian Finn walks up to me. He’s so beautiful that I feel my heart seize.
“My queen,” he says, bowing. He holds out his hand. “A dance for your poor husband?”
I let him lead me. When I’m encircled by his arms, my head against his chest, I realize that Cian Finn might be even more dangerous than his brother.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Meg
It’s the horrible sound of the rooster crowing that wakes me the next morning. It sounds like the damn thing is right outside my door. I try to burrow under the pillow to escape the dreadful racket, but there’s something attached to my pillow, and it won’t move an inch. An arm wraps itself more tightly around my waist and pulls me closer.
“Damn it,” I curse as I try to get out of bed. I’m tangled in a quilt, and it’s difficult to orient myself. I’m definitely not where I should be. Where the hell am I? Oh, yes. A bit of the evening before comes back. I’m on the little cot in the barn, but I quickly find myself on my ass in the middle of the cold, dirt floor.
“It’s too early, lover.” Cian’s Irish brogue is even thicker when he’s drowsy. His hand comes out seeking me once more, but he doesn’t open his eyes. “Get back in bed. We’ll eat the rooster for dinner tonight, I promise.”
This is exactly what I’ve been trying to avoid. “You aren’t supposed to be in my bed, damn it!”
I give my clothes a once-over, grateful I appear to have retained enough I’m fairly certain I didn’t do anything I shouldn’t have. The princess gown I’d worn to the party is draped over the lone chair in the corner of the room. I have on the thin shift that went beneath it, and my undies are right where they’re supposed to be.
All good signs.
Still, I’m not sure how I ended up in bed with Cian when I promised myself I wouldn’t. And there’s a gold band on my left ring finger that wasn’t there the day before.
Cian rubs his eyes, yawns, and stretches his big body. He, on the other hand, doesn’t appear to be wearing anything. His glorious frame is on full display. “You told me you refused to sleep in the big bed. You told me you needed independence, and the only way you could have that was to live in abject poverty, with not a single comfort to your name.”
“I doubt I put it quite like that,” I complain.
I remember last night, up to a point. There had been dancing and singing. I met Flanna’s family and all the rest of the brownies. I laughed and said that we eat brownies on the human plane. And then I spent the better part of an hour explaining that I won’t be coming after Flanna’s grandchildren. Sweets might not be a big part of Fae life, but ale sure is. It was the ale that did it. It had been slightly sweet and had a hell of a kick. Every time I finished a mug, someone put another in my hands.
Cian scratches his belly. It shouldn’t be sexy, but it is. His gray eyes open fully for the first time. “No. You took a lot longer to explain it. It was quite the lecture. There was something about making your own way and roaring because you’re a woman. I didn’t understand it at all, and I consider myself a smart man. The only part I really got was when you told me we had to live here.”
Cian shows no ill effects from the enormous amount of ale he downed. He had to have doubled my intake. The boy can drink.
“No, I said I needed to live here,” I correct. Now I remember that I kissed Cian. I was slightly drunk, and everyone urged us to kiss. I meant to placate them with a little peck, but Cian dipped my back over his arm and overwhelmed me. His tongue slipped into my mouth and had its way with mine. He rubbed his body against me, and I felt every inch of his intent. He got me so hot I might have done him right there.
I need to stay away from him. He’s always touching me. The night before, he held my hand or had his arm around my waist all of the time. There hadn’t been a single moment I wasn’t aware of him.
Cian’s face is sweet as he sits up and crosses his legs. He pays no mind to his nudity or to his morning friend. “I know. You think living here will prove something to Beck. I don’t think so, but I’m willing to go along with what you want. Can we get a bigger bed, though? It was cramped last night. I have no idea how we’re going to fuck on that.”