Chapter 2: Be careful what you wish for...
NOTE: The character "Gabriella" has appeared in my other stories. Her cameo here will make more sense if you've read "A Dragon's Tale", but should make enough sense even if you haven't.
* * *
Shara thought that she must be dreaming. She hope she was because she would never be able to live with herself if she wasn't.
She was laying spread eagle on a massive bed inside a large room. The bed was surrounded by candles that were casting a soft, romantic glow. She was lying on her back completely naked, legs spread open and inviting for her husband. Kalus was also naked, standing at the foot of the bed with his cocking jutting out and pointing directly at her.
"Please come to me." She asked, moving her head to accentuate her rich amber hair as it cascaded down her shoulders to tease the top of her breasts. "Please?" She whispered, reaching down and parting her nether lips to entice him further.
He climbed up onto the bed, somehow spearing her as he wrapped his arms around her. She wrapped both her arms and legs around him, feeling so wonderfully full as he slid deep inside of her.
Except, it wasn't her.
Like when Kalus had taken her yesterday, she imagined she wasn't herself, but rather some blonde woman who he was about to breed. Her perspective suddenly changed and she was standing next to the bed watching her husband lovingly thrust into another woman: the blonde she had imagined the previous day at the field.
Shara reached down and put her hand on her stomach which had already swelled with his child; he had already impregnated her and now it was the blonde's turn.
"He feels so wonderful inside of me." The blonde cooed. "I'm going to carry his child, just like you."
The princess wanted to warn the blonde that he was the enemy, to remind her that his army had sacked her city and thus spreading her legs like that was a betrayal -- it was treason -- but she couldn't. For some reason, she couldn't speak.
Her mind went back to the field the previous day. Something had unlocked inside of herself when he had taken her. She could feel a primitive part of her brain screaming to be in the blonde's position. A tiny part of her wished that it was her amber hair and not the other woman's blonde hair that was rippling over the pillow as Kalus took her.
She shivered slightly.
"Come closer." The blonde said. "Watch him put his baby inside of me since you don't want to bear his children yourself."
Shara was drawn closer as if by some invisible force. She could feel the ghost of him thrusting inside of her and she wanted more. She wanted the real thing. Her body yearned for it as her mind recoiled at the thought. She tried to pull herself away.
With an almighty jerk, she felt her eyes snap open as she woke.
* * *
Kalus lay awake in bed, marveling that the woman who seemed to abhor him so thoroughly in the waking hours was now snuggling so close to him while she was asleep. It was still dark, though the pre-dawn hours were beginning.
His new bride was snuggled up against him in much the same position as she had been the previous morning when he awoke. She was lying against his left side using his chest as her pillow and her arms were tucked up against him. She seemed to have almost molded to his side in her sleep, and there wasn't an inch of her front that wasn't pressed up against his side. He had ended up with his arm around her during the night, probably having put it there instinctively. Her lips were slightly parted and her soft breathing was peaceful; serene.
He couldn't help but smile as he saw her there, despite how much she seemed to despise him when she was awake.
While asleep though...
He smiled.
She started moving in her sleep. At first he thought she was trying to escape from him, but she also seemed to be clinging tighter to him.
Strange.
She started mumbling something and it sounded like she was pleading for something. She did this for several minutes, alternately clinging to him tightly and seemingly trying to push him away.
Eventually, he noticed that her hips were rocking in a very specific way. He could feel his morning wood getting harder as she ground her hips into his left hip while at the same time trying to push him away. Judging by the slight panting and moaning coming from her lips and the grinding of her hips, she was clearly aroused.
He didn't know what to make of that.
Finally, her eyes snapped open and she looked wide-eyed for a moment.
"Kalus." She breathed, seemingly trying to clear her head. After a moment she seemed to succeed and then she stiffened. Suddenly she seemed aware of how close she was to him. She looked him in the eyes and for a moment he saw conflict and she didn't move.
Then the moment passed.
Her face went hard and she pointedly rolled so her back was to him.
"Why?" He asked.
"Why what?" She asked sulkily, then added in a more respectful tone. "Sir."
He let it slide. "Why do you dislike me so much? Have I not been good to you since the beginning? Haven't I done everything possible to make this as painless for you as possible?"
"Yes." She admitted.
"So why do you insist on treating me like I'm your enemy?"
She turned to look at him, incredulity covering her face. "Because you
are
--" She stopped mid-sentence and hesitated.
"Please finish." He said, not quite understanding where her ardor came from.
"I'd rather not." She said with an icy stare.
He looked at her for several seconds while her expression changed. Her icy glare slowly morphed into something a bit more hesitant, then she averted her eyes slightly and tucked her arms up almost protectively across her chest as if she was afraid he would lash out. He could still see the restrained edges of her temper, but it was controlled for now.
"That is your right." He replied after several seconds, wishing that she would explain but recognizing that he shouldn't force her to.
She bit her lip, still not looking at him. "I'm not in trouble?"
He shook his head. "I told you before that you are always welcome to voice your opinion if you do it respectfully. The same applies to holding your tongue, should you wish to do so."
"Oh." That was all she said.
Her temper seemed to fizzle out almost instantly. Whereas before she looked ready to pounce but was restraining herself, now she just looked confused and a bit surprised. He supposed the proper remedy for that was telling her how he saw things. He had always been blunt and upfront with his men and saw no reason to change that now.
"You might refuse to share your position, but I believe you should understand mine."
She seemed to brace herself.
He looked into her eyes as he spoke. "I would take an arrow for you."
She blinked and looked up at him. "What?"
"You are my wife. I am your husband. I have a responsibility to protect, provide, and care for you. From the moment I said 'I do', I agreed to put your life before my own and to protect you regardless of the cost, even if that cost is my life. You might see me as an enemy and wish me dead, but that doesn't change my responsibility before Illuminar Himself."
She stared at him.
He continued. "You might not like how I choose to protect you, nor how we live our life together. That is your right. But as long as I am your husband and draw breath, you will not want for provision, protection, nor a man to treat you with honor. You may view me as your enemy, but I will not view you as such."
She opened her mouth to reply, then closed it.
She cocked her head to one side, clearly confused.
"But..." She stared at him. "But what about..." She glanced down towards her nether regions.
"My goal was to protect my wife from the king's threat, not indulge a sensual appetite. There's a difference."
"Is there?"
He raised an eyebrow.
"Okay, there is." She conceded. She was silent for a moment before speaking again. "But our countries are still at war."
"Have you not learned our history? Our countries have been at war for centuries, though intermittently and not constantly."
"True." Her shoulder slumped slightly as she conceded that point too.
"It is the never-ending game of thrones." He added. "Our fathers and forefathers played it long before we drew breath, and I expect our sons and grandsons will play it long after we are dust. It's the way of the world, but none of that changes my commitment to you. You are my wife, and thus I will provide for you, care for you, and protect you to the best of my ability, even at the cost of my own life if need be."
She frowned, but nodded and then turned her back again. This time though, it seemed slightly less pointed. She partially rolled back to face him and opened her mouth to speak, but then seemed to think better of it and turned away again.
* * *
Shara lay with her back to him, uncomfortably aware of how close they were in the small bed. She could feel the heat radiating off of him and it felt nice on her back. Her front had been pressed up against him and it felt rather bereft.
She felt confused.
She couldn't understand his absolute conviction and determination to protect her. He had known her less than two days and yet he earnestly seemed ready to lay his life down for her. She would've found such promises empty and laughable from most men, but not from him for some reason. For some reason, his words held a strength of conviction that she rarely heard.
Why?
Why would he be willing to die for a woman who had admitted that she wished him dead? She supposed that she had heard his reason, but he couldn't possibly be that committed to Illuminar, could he? Could he
truly
be that committed to doing the right thing no matter what it cost him? She had already seen some evidence of that, but still...
Setting all that aside, she still clenched her hands into a fist whenever she thought about the events in the field the previous day.
"We will break camp soon." Kalus said, interrupting her thoughts. "Stay as close to me as possible while we travel; I would not have the men who aren't mine mistake you for someone else and then not treat you as they should."
"Whatever." She said in a resigned tone.
"Katia." He said sharply.
She turned to face him, feeling a bit worried that she had angered him. He looked stern, but not angry.
"When I give you an instruction, you
will
acknowledge it respectfully."
"How would you like me to?" She asked with a resigned sigh.
