Cursed by Darkness (Once Upon A Curse)

35. Bodin

THIRTY-FIVE

Bodin

Wanting to be free of it all, Ronna took to the stars. She gave the humans their world to do with as they wished.

For she no longer cared what happened.

“I

said no.” Bodin grabbed the pile of clothes Juniper just placed near her bag and stomped toward the armoire. “Absolutely not.”

She ignored him and, not missing a beat, pulled another pair of pants from a drawer, and stuffed them into the bag instead.

Giving up, he dropped the clothes and reached for her. “You’re not going.”

“Yes. I am,” she said.

He put his hands on her hips and guided her backward until she bumped into the bed. She grinned at him, placing her palms on his chest. Despite how determined and angry he was in this moment, there was a heated tension between them. There always was, it seemed. One he wanted to explore. Leaning down, he kissed her hard. Against her lips, he whispered, “No, you’re not. You are going to stay here, where you’re safe.”

The sun was just on the brink of the horizon, and they were due to leave soon. They had been arguing about this since she first brought it up yesterday.

Tilting her head back, she raised a brow. “Because that worked out so well before.”

“Maybe if you listened to me and didn’t go snooping?—”

“Bo, I’m going with you. If you leave, I’ll just follow later,” she said, twisting her arms behind his neck as he groaned in frustration, knowing that, given her history, it wasn’t a threat. It was a promise. “You know I will, even if you have guards with me day and night. So, which would you prefer? Am I going with you or alone?”

Gritting his teeth, he lifted her to sit on the bed and pushed her legs apart with his knee to step closer. He had no intention of letting her go with them to war, but he admired her desire to help. “You are infuriating, you know that?”

“Mhmm.” She pulled him down for another kiss. “But you said we were in this together, that I would stand at your side.”

“I need you here ruling in my stead.”

“Your advisors would do better. I wasn’t raised to lead, in case you’ve forgotten. I don’t know what I’m doing, and they’ve had to walk me through each step anyway, basically doing the job without any need for me to be there.”

He sighed then kissed the side of her neck. “June…”

“These are my people now; this is my kingdom,” she whispered. “It’s my fight too.”

She was right. He hated it, but she was.

Bodin grabbed one of her thighs as he pressed his growing hardness against her core. The soft moan she let out made it impossible not to want more. He slid his other hand up into her hair and kissed her deeply while she lay back, pulling him down with her. Covering her body with his, he rocked into her, needing all of this perfect woman.

Breaking apart, he stared down at her. His heart felt on the verge of bursting. How had he ever thought he’d known this kind of love before? “I love you, June. So fucking much.”

“I love you too.” She trailed a finger along his jaw, down his chest, and finally to the top of his pants.

“I feel like you were brought to me by the goddess herself,” he whispered. “Like we were always meant to find each other and that everything we’ve been through in the past was so that we could get to this point.”

Her gaze softened. “I’ve always felt as if Ronna was with me in spirit, guiding me, protecting me. Maybe it really was her bringing us together. A union of light and dark. That’s what she always wanted, according to the stories.”

Bodin wasn’t particularly religious, but he’d been thinking about that more and more the past couple of weeks. That was why he’d shared that book with June, which now sat in the bag she insisted on packing. His wife worshiped the Goddess of Unity, and that specific story showed just how badly Ronna wanted the two sides to live harmoniously.

And here they were. Proof that light and dark could not only coexist but could love each other deeply. It didn’t have to be a battle for power when they worked together, balancing one another.

As June started to unbutton his pants, he said, “Which is why I need to know you’re safe at home. You have very little training.”

“I never said I wanted to fight on the front lines.”

He stilled. He hadn’t even considered that. When she chuckled, he straightened and shook his head before shoving his pants to his ankles. Thanking the gods above for her short nightgown, he pushed the fabric up and out of the way, pulling her undergarments off too. Bending forward, he didn’t hesitate to lick along her seam, finding her already wet.

“Oh gods,” she hissed. “Bodin.”

He knew they didn’t have time, knew they should be preparing to leave, but there was no stopping this, no denying this need they had for each other. Pressing his tongue into her, he relished in her gasps. The taste of her, the sounds she made, sent his blood rushing south. He was painfully hard and needed to be inside her. Thankfully, she wanted that too.

“More. Bodin, please. I need you.”

Standing, he grinned and pulled his shirt off before sliding his tip up and down through her slickness. “Are you going to be a good girl and stop trying to make me mad on purpose?”

She bit at her lower lip. “Never.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle. Entering her slowly was tortuous in the best way. Once he was all the way in, he paused to let her adjust and reveled in how good she felt around him. He tugged the top of her nightgown down, slipping it off of her shoulders to expose her breasts. As he squeezed them, he said, “You could have just told me from the beginning that you didn’t plan on fighting.”

“I thought it was obvious,” she said, pulling him back down over her. “I’m not foolish enough to think I could stand beside you in a battle. But I know how to tend to the wounded, and I could be there for you at the end of the day.”

“You want to be…” He began thrusting, slowly at first, unable to stay still any longer. “Waiting for me to—” Her moan cut him off as he started moving faster, harder. “Gods, you feel so good.”

Juniper kissed his scruffy cheek, the scars marring his face, making his chest feel even fuller. Her fingernails scratched into the backs of his shoulders.

“You’re going to be in my tent,” he said, “waiting for me to fill you each night?”

“Yes!”

He stood straight to hook his arms beneath her legs. Bringing her knees to her chest, he used the leverage to pound into her, going even deeper. She screamed in pleasure, loud enough that he was sure half of the palace heard her. Sounds of their skin smacking filled the air.

“Bodin, I-I’m… Oh fuck .”

Spreading her legs wider, he leaned forward to cover her mouth with his once more. He needed to feel her body writhing against him, bucking against his hips, matching his tempo. “Come for me, love.”

He released one leg to reach between them and rub her clit. Her breathing grew ragged, and she moaned over and over with each thrust. He was so close; they both were.

“Come, Juniper. Let go.” To Bodin’s absolute horror a knock sounded on their door. It started to open, and he shouted, “Go away!”

Her back arched and another scream escaped her swollen lips as she came, light bursting from her skin. It was enough to send him over the edge. He groaned as he released inside her, twitching as she clenched around his cock.

“Your Majesty?”

“Get the fuck out!” He didn’t bother looking up at whoever had come to check on them—he was glad they did since she was screaming, but he was simultaneously furious that they had barged into the room. Burying his face into the side of his wife’s neck, he covered her body and continued to rock against her as they slowly caught their breath.

When he eventually stopped and they fought to catch their breath, she brushed her fingers through his hair and started giggling. Her soft laugh was contagious. “Someone caught us.”

Bodin smiled and kissed along her glowing jaw. “I don’t think they saw much.”

They better not have seen much. For their sake. He didn’t share. Juniper was his. Just as he was hers.

She let out a snort—a noise he’d never heard from her. Pulling out, he went to grab a cloth and wet it in the basin before returning to gently clean them both up. Once finished, he climbed onto the bed properly, grinning as she moved with him to curl against his chest. He wrapped her in a hug and pressed his lips to her forehead as her Lumen magic faded.

“Please don’t leave me behind again,” she said after a few peaceful minutes of silence, placing a hand over his heart. “The uncertainty of whether you were alive or not was agony, Bo.”

He brushed his fingers through her long blond hair. She had spent so much of her life alone; it wasn’t difficult to understand the lasting effects that had on her.

A knock echoed from the door again, and he sighed. “I might murder whoever that is.” Before getting up to answer, he told his wife, “You’ll stay near the tents the entire time. You won’t go to the front lines.”

“Promise.”

Bodin kissed the end of her nose and stood to grab his pants. As she worked the top of her nightgown back up in place, he pulled the skirt down. Once she was covered, he went to the door and ripped it open. “What?”

On the other side, Laurent smirked. “Are you two about done? You seem to have frightened off one of your guards.”

Sure enough, only Samuel stood outside the door. He lifted both hands in front of him in a gesture of innocence. “I told him not to open the door, but he was convinced you were in there torturing her.”

Laurent laughed. “Gods above, does our sweet little Juniper like it rough?”

“I’m not answering that.” Bodin scowled at him.

“The other guard was a young one, new to the job, Your Majesty,” Samuel said. “I doubt he’s had experience with such… passion. Let alone hearing it from his monarchs.”

Sighing, Bodin crossed his arms. At least Richard wasn’t there. But then, it hit him. “Where’s Richard?”

“He, um, went for a walk as soon as we heard the thumping and moaning begin.”

Thank the gods. Richard hadn’t been standing guard at night, so hopefully he hadn’t heard much. Bodin had only been back for a day, but he and June definitely took advantage of their time together. He was trying to think of anywhere things might have escalated during the day when Richard was on guard, but other than the portal library, it had only been there bedroom.

They should work on that if they made it home…

And that was another reason Richard shouldn’t be their guard. Bodin didn’t want to constantly be concerned about being quiet because he was nearby.

Laurent was clearly biting his cheek to keep from laughing, and Bodin wanted to smack the smile right off of his face. Instead, he asked, “Did you need something? Why are you here?”

“The horses are ready,” Laurent said, instantly switching into a serious tone. “And the princes are gathering the volunteers from the village to join us. They’ll be ready to march within the hour.”

Bodin had never wanted to force his people to fight. Fighting Umbra on that was what led to so much devastation. But if things didn’t change soon, he wouldn’t have another choice. Yesterday, he’d asked Laurent and the others to send out notices requesting that if anyone was able and willing to fight, they should join them this morning. He didn’t expect many to show up, but he was desperate. They all were.

“And searching for those hiding Lumen magic?” he asked.

“We haven’t been able to find any yet, but if the guards do, they promised to try to send them our way. They are also spreading the word that the prosecution law has been repealed.”

“Thank you.” Bodin sighed and ran a hand over the top of his head. “All right, we’ll meet you down there.”

As Laurent walked away, Bodin waited, taking a deep breath and preparing to face Juniper. He didn’t want her going. It was too dangerous. But a small, selfish part of him was glad to have her with him. Leaving her again would have been nearly impossible.

Before heading back in, he turned to Samuel. “When Richard returns, please have him prepare to travel, and send a message to the stables to ready a carriage.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” There was clear confusion in his eyes, but he didn’t question the orders.

After everything, however, Bodin wanted to keep him updated. “He and the queen will be coming with me.”

The man dipped his head. “Then, I wish to as well, sire. If neither of you are remaining here for me to protect, perhaps I could serve you best by joining the fight.”

Bodin agreed. “Thank you.”

He meant it. Every person they could get on their side would help.

With that, he went into his rooms to find that Juniper had changed out of her dress and into pants and a tunic. She’d also braided her hair into one long plait and was currently trying to put a belt and scabbard around her waist.

Since meeting her, she had appeared soft, kind. Now…

She looked like a warrior queen preparing for battle.

“It’s just for protection,” she said, meeting his gaze. “I still don’t plan on fighting.”

He crossed the room to assist her. “Actually, I have something for you.”

Going to the bedside table, he pulled out the dagger with the ornate silver handle.

“How?” Her eyes snapped up and widened in horror. “Tell me you didn’t go back in?—”

“No.” Bodin shook his head, grabbing her empty thigh sheath from where she’d left it in the armoire. “While you were sleeping, I went down to one of the other portals and recreated it for you.”

“Bo…”

He knelt and strapped it to her thigh. “You need a smaller blade than a sword, one that’s easier to maneuver. Trust me, this was a selfish move. I wanted you to have a way to protect yourself while I was gone. Now, I’m even more glad I did it.”

“Thank you,” she whispered. She played with his hair before tying it up for him. “I’ll try not to lose it this time.”

With a chuckle, he said, “I’ll make you as many daggers you want, Sunshine.”

When they finished helping one another, he stood, grabbed her face, and planted a hard kiss to her lips. They would do this together. Side by side.

Forever.