A Queen of Ruin (Deliciously Dark Fairytales 4)

“Weston, does everyone have their demon-be-gone elixir?” I asked as we neared our wing. There were more staff here, standing by in case anyone needed anything.

“We’re set,” he replied, his tone back to professional. “Our guests are separated between the various rooms on cots.” He meant Govam and his demons. “We’ve arranged for them to be guarded by equal parts wolves and dragons at all times.”

“And the castle staff?”

“I kicked them out of the area, as you asked me to.”

“Good. Be ready for anything. War starts now. Hannon…”

“Yes, sire?” Hannon responded. When he went formal, he knew he was on duty. I’d finally found a way to incorporate him in our kingdom—one that fulfilled him. He was no longer just the money man. He needed to use his animal to help protect his home.

“Don’t feel like you need to keep watch. Get sleep. We have someone watching your family. I want you fully rested if something happens.”

“Yes, sire.”

As Weston had said, the hallways were bare of any staff except ours.

“Finley,” I said, my mind churning out all the ways Dolion might come for us tonight. “Hadriel knows to consistently check in with our people and make sure no one has turned informant, correct?”

“Definitely. He’s also learning the details of every single letter that goes out and comes in. If he can’t beguile the information out of people, he makes Vemar shake it out of them. Literally, I think. Hadriel and Leala are also on a mission to make friends with the staff.”

“Good. We’re set.” I turned back and nodded to Weston, leaving him at the mouth of our wing.

Hannon continued on with us, even after we passed his suite. At our rooms, Finley frowned at him, and then sighed dramatically and let him enter our suite first.

“This has already gotten old,” she said as Hannon had a look around. “I’m the knife-wielding one, Hannon, not you. I don’t like this change in dynamic.”

“In times of peace and when you aren’t pregnant, I won’t be so overbearing, I promise.” He checked in the washroom and opened the closet.

I’d told Leala and Urien to take the night off. I wanted them well rested in case we had to flee in a hurry.

“Isn’t this annoying you?” she asked me. “You’re an alpha dragon—surely you don’t need my brother mollycoddling you.”

I laughed. “I’m protecting you while he checks out our rooms. His animal is driving him, just like mine is driving me. Suck it up.”

She rolled her eyes, watching Hannon work. “You’re not even really checking!” She walked into the room but stopped when I put a hand on her shoulder.

I pushed my body up against hers, sighing softly at her warmth and her soft, feminine scent. I ran my hand down her back, fluttering my thumb over her scales. She shivered.

“I don’t need to see,” Hannon called from beside the bed. “I can feel if someone is there by their emotions.”

“What if they don’t have emotions?”

“Everyone has emotions. Some people just choose not to express them. Soon people will figure that out, and I’ll have to use my eyes.”

“Or a wolf’s nose,” she replied.

“Yeah, or that. They can die, though.”

“Hannon…” She threw up her hands in exasperation. “You can’t be a bodyguard for everyone for the rest of your life just because you can’t die. That’s unreasonable.”

He met us back at the door and nodded at her. “When you’re not starting a war with a demon king, we’ll talk about it, okay? Until then, I can keep you safe, so I will keep you safe.”

He nodded to me as he slipped by. She watched him go down the hall, her eyes narrowed.

I laughed and gently pushed her into the room. “Let him baby you. His animal must be riding him hard to do it, and it also attaches him to the kingdom.”

She held up her finger as I locked the door behind us. “Don’t talk about the best ways to trap my brother. I won’t let you use him. I’m the only one who can use him. If you try, I’ll just get mad, but since you won’t let me properly fight you, I’ll have no way to expend my rage.”

“Sure you will.” I ran my hands up the sides of her hips and dragged my teeth along one of her marks. The tension quickly left her body. I pulled the straps from over her shoulders and let her dress slide to the ground. I growled when I saw her lack of underwear. “You’ll just have to ride me hard until you come all over my cock.”

“Not the same,” she whispered as I ran my lips down her flesh before turning her around and licking across a budded nipple.

I sucked it in as I undid the buttons on my shirt before pushing that and my jacket off. I worked my way down, kissing and licking while running my fingers down her scales and then over the swell of her ass. I undid the buttons on my pants with one hand as I licked her clit and ran my fingers through her slick folds. She spread her thighs, allowing me more access. Her hands curled into my hair.