The Child of Destiny

[Nouh_Bdee]

Tarilon held Shianni as they drifted off, wondering if he could talk her into sharing his tent for their whole journey.

***

“I’d like that, elf,” Angus said right before he kissed Aubree deeply. Seamus agreed while his brother’s tongue was deep inside the elf’s mouth.

They fell asleep just like they had fucked, with Aubree sandwiched between the two hulking minotaurs.

***

When Talia’s fingers squeezed his side, Darian sucked in a breath. He was painfully hard, his balls hurt, and he wanted nothing more than to reach out and pull Talia to him. He would wrap his arms around her body, press his lips to hers, and kiss his religion goodbye. But, he knew that he couldn’t do it now. Even if he was ready to make this decision, he couldn’t do it in a moment of tortured passion. He needed the princess to know that he was choosing her with all of him. He needed to choose her with a clear mind, in the bright light of day.

He was glad that she was good. He wasn’t. His toe was tapping, fingers fidgeting, pain crunched into his crotch. He forced himself to lie back and look over at her. She was so beautiful. He couldn’t sleep right away, and he also didn’t know when they would next get a moment to themselves.

“Did I ever tell you how I joined the Order?”

 

[Emstar303]

Talia sighed in contented pleasure as her orgasm subsided. She tried to hold onto it as long as she could, the tendrils of pleasure, because it has been so weak, nothing like the divine sensations she’d experienced with Darian, but it faded quickly.

The Princess didn’t realize just how badly Darian was hurting. She could see the longing in his eyes for her yes, but she could not see his hardness and just how painful it was, just how difficult it was for him to resist touching her. The look in his eyes only conveyed a fraction of that desperation. He was disciplined; he was used to controlling his urges.

“Did I ever tell you how I joined the Order?” he asked all of a sudden.

Talia turned her attention more fully to him, her breathing slowly coming back to normal. “No,” she said simply. Damn, how badly she wanted to touch him. She’d pulled her fingers away after grasping him as she rode out her orgasm, but that didn’t mean she didn’t want to return them to his side. Now that she wasn’t lost to the waves of pleasure, she had a better handle on herself, however, so Talia kept her hands to herself as she awaited his response.

 

[Nouh_Bdee]

Darian wanted to reach out for her hand, but he was worried that it would end with him touching something else. His eyes were half-closed, half looking into hers as he spoke.

“Sometimes I think I remember my parents, but I was barely two when they were killed. What I know I remember is the orphanage at the Abbey in Albutia. The nuns and monks there were not indulgent parents, but they were kind. They taught me my letters, natural philosophy, and the words of Elise, Emmaryn’s prophet. It was—it was a good life, Talia.”

He caved. She felt miles away, on the other side of the bed. He reached out to gently squeeze her fingers between his own.

“When I was eight, there was a pack of wolves that moved into the area. They killed two of the village children, and the Abbess sent for the paladins. When they stopped at the Abbey, they looked to me like messengers of the gods, in their gleaming armor, and with their giant blades. What made up my mind, though, was the people in the village. Before the paladins came, they were scared. They locked their doors at night, and told their children not to play outside even in the day. Then, the paladins killed the wolves, and it was like a cloud had lifted. They weren’t afraid anymore. I told Brother Ferdinus that I wanted to join the order, and since I was big for my age, and I was so adamant, they let me join a year and a half early.”

He squeezed her hand again, but he broke eye contact. He just couldn’t look at her. His eyes watered.

“That’s what I wanted to do with my life. To make people safe, to help them live their lives free of fear.”

He gulped, his voice nearly breaking.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t do that for you… maybe I’m not cut out to be a paladin after all.”