A Prince's Pride

*Milo*

Before we make it to the door leading off the throne room, I tell Aaron and Oswald to go on without me and turn back to inform General Braid of Delgara and Olivia’s capture. This might be selfish, but I don't want Aaron to know about Olivia. Not yet. If he finds out she's in the palace, he'll want to speak to her. After almost watching him die, I want him all to myself. 

I've only just registered that I haven't seen Exavier and make sure to tell General Braid to find him, too. I know he was guarding my room the night before the Red Hand's attack. I just hope they didn't harm him, but I'm not going to worry about that tonight. 

When I enter our room, I find Aaron already getting undressed, but not in a sexy way. He moves slowly as he pulls his shirt off, wincing. 

"Are you alright?" I ask, moving to help him. 

"Yeah, I'm just sore. Fighting in the Lower Reach, then riding straight here, being captured and almost sacrificed…my body just hurts."

"Did we do it?" I ask.

He smiles as he looks at me, then nods. "King Zannir is dead. The Empire of Theo has begun to be established. We're emperors now."

That's still strange to me. Less than six months ago, I was a servant. Now, I'm an emperor. 

"Let's take a hot bath," I say as I drop to my knees and pull his pants down. Having his cock so close to me and not touching it is really difficult, but I know now isn't the time. He needs to recover. 

While I undress, Aaron walks into the bathroom and I hear the water running a moment later. 

"Don't forget to add some honeysuckle!" I call to him. He doesn't respond, but I'm sure he heard me. 

I undress and follow him into the bathroom. He sinks into the water with a sigh and I decide not to join him immediately. Instead, I sit on the small surface behind him, my legs on either side of his torso and start to massage his shoulders. 

Aaron lets out a moan of relief as I work his tense muscles loose. 

"That feels so good," he says as I bend forward and start massaging his pecs, then leaning forward so my hands are at his abs. I feel him flex them beneath the water as my fingers rake over them. 

He looks up at me, smiles, and then we're kissing. Both of us are injecting every ounce of passion and desire into the kiss as though we're trying to make up for lost time. It's gentle and loving, but hungry. 

"I don't think we should tonight," says Aaron. I don’t need him to elaborate. Our cocks are already hard, and we’ve barely done anything. "I want to, but I'm way too sore."

"Okay," I concede. "But first thing in the morning, I'm fucking your brains out."

"As you command, Your Imperial Majesty," he says, kissing me again. 

As we climb into bed, I'm more excited than I've been in a long time. Aaron slides into my arms and I curl them around him, holding him close. I nuzzle my nose into his hair and take a breath in, inhaling his essence. 

 

***

 

When I wake up, I immediately go into a panic. Where is Aaron? My mind flies straight into a vision of Aaron, tied up with a reincarnated Zelda plunging a sword into his chest or Phoebe ripping his heart out with her bare hand. 

"Aaron?!" I call out and wait. When there's no answer, I jump out of bed and hurriedly pull on a pair of pants before running to the door barefoot and pulling it open. I almost run into Aaron, who's carrying a tray with two plates of breakfast. 

As I close the door, I catch a glimpse of Oswald as he takes his place by the door. It's all I can do not to knock the tray from his hands and pull Aaron into a bone breaking hug as I follow him to our table where he sets our breakfast down.

"Are you alright?" he asks, probably noticing the look on my face. 

Now that the tray is out of harm's way, I pull him into a hug and squeeze. 

"I was just worried something had happened," I say. 

"It didn't," he says, wrapping his arms around me. "We're okay. Let's eat something."

I am hungry, so I sit down in one of the chairs and Aaron sits beside me. He's brought us eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, and orange juice. A small vase of honeysuckle sits on the tray as well, its sweet scent drifting up to my nose.

"Before you ask," says Aaron, forestalling my question, "I didn't pick the flowers myself. I haven't left the palace."

"That's a relief," I say. "But I do recall the first thing we were supposed to do is have crazy wild sex." But I know he knows I'm joking when I spear a sausage on a fork and bite off the end. 

"Mmm," I say. "We should have gotten food last night. Zelda barely fed me." But I don't really care about that. We have more important things to discuss. "Is Elaine back in the palace?"

"She is," says Aaron, starting to eat himself. "She's sleeping in her room. Riley told me she isn't feeling much better than last night. The drugs Zelda gave her are still wreaking havoc on her system. Thomas Rein is trying to make her better. I know he was Zelda’s right hand man for many years, but he isn’t quite as good as Zelda."

"What about Exavier and Delgara?"

"Exavier is alive. He tried to fight back when the Red Hands attacked you. He isn't seriously wounded, but he's in the infirmary with a head injury, but Thomas seemed frustrated about something. Until he’s better, Oswald can protect you, too. Though, come to think of it, you might not need it, after what I saw you do to Zelda."

My face scrunches in frustration. "I don't know how I did that. It was like…" I pause, trying to find the right words, "I was taken over or something. I barely remember any of it. I just remember watching you almost die and wanting, more than anything, to stop it from happening."

"I'm glad you were there," says Aaron. "If you weren't, who knows what would have happened."

"Yeah," I say absentmindedly, pushing a sausage back and forth on a plate. I'm not sure why, but now feels like the right time to tell him. "Aaron, the Red Hand captured Olivia Rendara. She's here, in the palace."

"I already know," says Aaron. "Delgara gave me a report this morning and told me about her. I haven't seen her yet, but I should probably talk to her at some point today." When I don't say anything for a few more moments, he says, "What's wrong?"

"I don't know," I say, though I do know. 

I don't want Olivia here. I didn't want her to be pregnant. I had hoped that, when we did find her, she wouldn't be. It feels childish to admit, but I wanted to be the one Aaron started a family with. I know Aaron didn't sleep with her on purpose. I don't even know how complicit she was in it. 

If she didn't know what she was doing either, if she had somehow been tricked by the Red Hand into sleeping with Aaron, she'll surely want to be part of the baby's life. With a child to look after, an empire to run, and Olivia in his life, where will I fit in? How will the people of Midoor react? Will they want me to be deposed, Olivia crowned empress?

No, Aaron wouldn't let that happen. I'm sure of that much. But I still don't know. Everything is going to change. 

“We should bring her on the honeymoon,” he says. I feel anger erupt inside me, but I know it’s unwarranted.

“Even if she knew what she was doing?” I ask. I try to keep my voice level, but I don’t think I managed it. We talked last night about taking a trip to Sandalia for our honeymoon, but I never imagined Olivia would come.

“Milo, even if she knew was she was doing, she’s much safer with us. We don’t know if it was just Zelda and the Red Hand that wanted the baby or if Phoebe will come after it. I’ll talk to Olivia today and find out what happened that night.”

I nod, but I’m still not happy and I know Aaron can see it.

"I know what will make you feel better," says Aaron. He slides out of his chair onto his knees and kisses me. In an instant, all my worries about Olivia and the baby vanish as I wrap my arms around him. 

I feel the longing and hunger that’s built up over our time apart explode inside me. Our kissing becomes instantly heavy as he pushes himself into me. I’ve missed him so much. Being in his presence, touching him, kissing him.

Our hands roam over reach other, desperate to touch every inch of the other person’s body. Aaron’s hands snake up my shirt, his fingers digging into my skin. Until this moment, I didn’t realize how starved I’ve been for his touch.

Aaron grabs the hem of my shirt and pulls it up over my head. His lips return to me, pressing into my neck. I let out a gasp as a shiver ripples down my body. My rock hard cock is screaming at me, begging me to let it out of my pants.

I gasp as Aaron bites into my neck and can’t help squeezing his head in my hands, his hair rippling through my fingers. Aaron pulls away from me and I want to pout until he pulls his shirt off over his head. In our months apart, his physique hasn’t changed at all. He flexes his abs as I gaze at him, but I can’t keep apart from him.

I slide from the chair and push him back onto the floor, then climb on top of him, straddling him. I can feel his hard cock pressing against my ass as I sit on him and lean forward. Our lips meet and I force my tongue into his mouth. I start gyrating my hips, rubbing my body against his cock through the fabric of our pants.

Aaron grabs my ass and squeezes, pulling me down to him. He starts pushing on the top of my head. I pause only long enough to give him a shit eating grin, then work my way down his body, kissing his neck, then his collar bone, and stopping at his right nipple.

I flick my tongue across it and feel it erect immediately as his cock twitches against my stomach.

“Oh, fuck yeah,” Aaron moans, his hands fingers still raking through my hair. I want more of a reaction, so I bite into the skin, forcing a gasp from him. He wraps his legs around me, and pulls me closer into him. I wrap my lips around his nipple and suck. Aaron starts rocking his hips up and down, pressing his cock into me.

I could lay here all day, playing with his nipple, but I want to move on. I kiss my way farther down his body, stopping at his abs. As I kiss and lick each ab, Aaron lets out a gasp of pleasure. 

I move on, stopping at his cock. I want to rip it out of his pants and immediately swallow it down, but teasing him sounds fun, so I rub my hand up and down his length, keeping the fabric of his pants between our skin. 

“You’re such a fucking—” he starts to say, but his words are cut off in a gasp when I run my tongue along the length. Aaron involuntarily raises his hips again, pushing his still covered cock into my tongue.

I stick out my lips and run them up and down the bulge. When I pull back, I see a patch of wet caused by my saliva and, just above that, a wet spot from Aaron’s precum. I lean over and lick the spot, tasting the salty liquid.

I think I’ve teased him long enough and, truth be told, I can’t wait any longer, so I grip the waistband of his pants. Aaron immediately lifts his hips, giving me room to pull his pants down and letting his cock flop out. I throw the pants to the side, then work mine off and throw them near his.

I make like I’m going to lay between his legs, but stop, looking at him.

“Don’t do this to me,” he says. “Please. I can’t stand it.”

“Get on the bed,” I order.

Aaron gets up and moves to the bed so quick, he may as well have teleported. I follow him and climb between his legs as he settles back onto the pillows. Laying on my stomach before him, I take his cock into my hand and look up at him.

Lust and eagerness fills his eyes as he looks down at me while I stroke his cock, sliding the foreskin up and over the head, then pulling it back down. Aaron lets his mouth fall open in a silent gasp as I work his shaft, precum dripping down the shaft and gathering under my fist.

“Do you want me to suck you off?” I ask, still teasing him.

“Yes…please…I want it so bad.”

“How bad do you want it?” I ask.

“Milo, please, I—oh fuck!”

I suck Aaron’s cock straight down into my throat, squeezing the muscles around him as I pull my head back. I work my head back and forth, sliding my throat over his cock. When I raise back up, I pull the foreskin over his head and stick my tongue in, swirling it in a circle.

“Yeah, keep doing that,” says Aaron, shuddering. So I repeat the swirl of my tongue a few times before pulling all the way back and looking up at him. His eyes are drooping and his mouth is slightly open as if he’s shocked something could feel so good.

I crawl up to him and push my lips to his, laying my body on top of his. He moans into my mouth as if this feels just as good as having his cock in my mouth.

He surprises me when he grapples me around my midriff and flips us over so he’s on top. He keeps one hand on the bed and pulls the other up under my head, pulling my face even closer to his. He gyrates his hips, rubbing our cocks together, his slick with my saliva.

He breaks away from the kiss and gazes down at me with reverence. In his gaze, I can feel every ounce of love he feels for me and I return it with verve. 

Aaron moves back and pulls my legs so I’m laying flat, then turns his body and moves up to my head. I open my mouth, making sure my throat is as straight as I can. He slides his cock in, resting his balls on my nose for a moment before he starts fucking my throat. He always makes sure to pull back far enough to let me get air in through my nose so he never needs to leave my mouth.

I reach up as he fucks my throat and grip his balls, giving them a gentle squeeze.

“Oh, fuck yes,” he gasps. 

I wipe my middle finger through the saliva dribbling down my cheek, making it slick, then snake my hand up to his crack, finding his hole instantly. I don’t tease him, I just plunge my finger straight in and twist my hand so my finger can find his prostate. When I press into it, Aaron involuntarily falls into me, shoving his cock all the way down my throat. He falls forward, hands on my thighs, and squeezes them as I massage his prostate.

He gasps with each press and I can feel his precum dripping into my throat. He starts thrusting again, gasping as I squeeze the muscles in my throat. When I start choking from lack of air, Aaron pulls off me and I reluctantly let my finger leave his ass. When he steps over my head and places his ass in my face, I’m not disappointed. 

I spread his cheeks and press my tongue to his hole, licking and slurping as he bends forward and sucks my cock into his throat. I force my tongue into him, making him moan around my cock as he works on me.

I lean my head back, stick two of my fingers in my mouth, slick them up, then shove them roughly into Aaron. He lets out a cry of surprise and pleasure as he lets my cock fall from his mouth. I start fucking fucking him, bending my fingers so they rake against his prostate. With every swipe, he shudders, his arms shaking as they try to hold him up on the bed. With my other hand, I push him forward and he crawls, his arms vibrating out of control, until he’s on all fours before me.

I get up behind him, my hard, slick cock praying to be inside him.

I pull my fingers out and he looks back at me, begging me with his eyes. I place one hand on his back, pushing him down onto the bed, line my cock up with his hole, and push it inside.

Glorious ecstasy overtakes my body as I push inside him. It’s been too long, I’m way too horny, so slow isn’t my plan. I start fucking him, sliding my cock in and out of his hole, slamming my body into him.

“Oh…oh…oh…” he moans with every thrust. He turns his head, pressing his face into the bed, but I want to hear him.

I feel a primal instinct take over as I grab a fistful of his hair and pull his head up. I lay into him harder, pounding away at his asshole as his moans echo throughout the room. I’m sure Oswald can hear us, but I don’t care.

“Your hole feels so fucking good,” I groan as I pound at him. 

He starts moving back and forth, sliding his hole over my cock, so I stop thrusting and let him pleasure me. He finds a good rhythm and is soon sliding on me as fast and hard as I’d just been punishing his hole.

I decide I want a different position, so I let his hair go and he falls to the bed, gasping. I place my hands under him and turn him over, only letting my cock leave him for a second. With him now on his back, I crouch down and slide in.

I lean forward and slow my thrusting as our lips meet. His moans subside into gentle gasps as we make love, his hands at my sides, squeezing with each thrust.

We look at each other, gazing into the infinite depths of each other’s eyes. Time has no meaning in this world, where it’s just the two of us. Where pleasure is happiness and love is contentedness. Wrapped in each other, merged as one, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. 

“Let me ride you,” says Aaron, but it almost sounds like a question. Like he needs my permission. Like I’m in charge.

When I leave his hole, my cock shouts its disapproval, but it won’t have to wait for long. I lay back on the bed and watch as Aaron climbs on top of me. He crouches over me, grasping my cock and lining it up with his hole before sliding down on it, taking it all the way into him.

Aaron leans back, planting his feet and legs firmly on the bed, then starts thrusting. Our bodies sing to each other as he bounces on my cock, slamming his ass into my body. His cock is still slick from my saliva, so I reach out and squeeze it in my hand. As Aaron thrusts up and down, his cock slides easily in my hand.

He moans without regret, without caring who can hear.

“Oh, fuck, oh, fuck,” he gasps.

“Fuck, yeah,” I say, “ride that fucking cock.”

Aaron rarely last very long and going weeks without having release, I can tell this is too much for him. His cock swells in my hand as he thrusts faster and faster.

“I’m going to cum!” he says. His thrusting becomes erratic as I feel the muscles in his ass squeeze around my cock, almost pushing me to the edge. He explodes in my hand, shooting his load into the air before it comes splashing down on top of us.

Completely spent, Aaron collapses on top of me, but I’m not done yet. 

I push Aaron back onto his back and lift his legs up. He obliges, grabbing his legs behind his knees and pulls up, almost collapsing himself together. I lean forward and start eating his hole again, making sure it’s nice and slick, then stand and point my cock down at him. I shove my cock into him and start pounding away at him, loving how every thrust makes a small, almost surprised gasp leave his lips, as if he isn’t expecting each thrust.

I can feel him squeeze his ass around my cock and know I’m close. The orgasm builds in my body, filling me up to the point of bursting. Before I do, I pull out and start jerking my cock. My body tingles with the excitement as the pressure builds and builds and builds and finally, with a groan that could wake the dead, I explode, shooting my load over his asshole. The force of my orgasm shoots some of my cum up over his ass and to his chest.

“Fuck me again, please don’t stop!” he begs.

I take my cock and wipe it through the mess of my cum, gathering it at his hole, then pushing it into him. With my cum adding a new layer of slickness, I slide in and out of him as if it were nothing.

When I fall back, Aaron still doesn’t seem satisfied. He crawls to me and sucks my cum covered cock into his mouth, cleaning it off, slurping it until it goes soft.

When he’s finally satisfied, Aaron comes up next to me and lays beside me. We hold each other, sweaty, exhausted, and covered in cum, but utterly content.

*Aaron*

Once we've showered and dressed, I decide it's time I officially meet Olivia. Milo doesn't want to, and the words of the old crone come back to me. 

 

The Heris line will continue with a child born out of wedlock and he will become the Crown Prince of Midoor and inherit your crown and your throne. The one you love most will be at odds with this one, but fret not, Your Majesty, for that person will come around and will stand by your side as long as you both shall live.

 

Everything that old seer predicted has come true, and clearly this part is now. I'm sure Milo isn't happy about the baby and a part of me can see why, but he has nothing to worry about. It's not going to change anything between us. 

Milo and I leave the room, heading in separate directions. As he makes his way toward the infirmary to check on Exavier, two Crown Guards in tow, I make my way to the room that's been set aside for Olivia. Two guards stand outside, ordered to keep her in. We aren’t taking any chances until we know for sure whether she can be trusted.

When I knock on the door, Olivia opens it and her face shows immediate fear. Olivia drops to her knees and looks up at me as if I'm brandishing a sword at her. 

"Please, have mercy, Your Majesty. I didn't know! I swear I didn't know!" she shouts. 

"It's alright," I say, dropping to a knee. "Let's sit and talk. I just want to hear your side of it."

Tears start leaking from her eyes, but she stands up and walks to the table in the room, then sits across from me. 

"Tell me what happened," I say. 

Olivia sniffs and I can't help but appreciate how beautiful she is. Dark chestnut hair that compliments her light brown skin, bright green eyes, soft features, and not a blemish on her face. 

"I was in the inn that night," she says. "Rosalind was my friend. I had no idea she was in the Red Hand, I swear it. She told me you had surreptitiously told her you wanted to enjoy the company of a woman on the last night you were to be single.

"It is not so uncommon for men to want this, and I had always harbored something of a soft spot for you, so I agreed. I had no idea you had been drugged, I thought you were just really drunk. I swear it.”

Me being drunk isn’t much better, but I believe she wasn’t in on the Red Hand’s plans.

“I believe you, Olivia,” I say, hoping it will stop her crying, but it doesn’t. Instead, she lets out a sob and dissolves into tears. I’m at a complete loss as to what to say to calm her down. Maybe it’s the hormones from her pregnancy. She should be about three months pregnant at this point.

“Am I a prisoner, Your Majesty?” she asks suddenly. I’m taken slightly aback by this.

“Not…exactly…” I say. “I don’t think it’s a good idea that you leave the palace, especially while you’re still pregnant. The person who was pulling the strings of the Red Hand, Phoebe Dylan, might still be after the child. Until it’s born, I don’t think you should stray too far from Emperor Milo and myself.”

“I understand,” says Olivia, wiping her face.

“I’m going to leave you now, okay? You should pack a bag. Let the servants know if you need anything. I will pay for it.”

“P-pack a bag, Your Majesty?”

“Yes. Tomorrow, Milo and I are going to leave for our honeymoon.” It’s something we talked about last night as we fell asleep. We don’t want to wait. If we delay, who knows what will happen next. “We’re bringing you along. As I said, I don’t want you too far from us until you’ve given birth. Plus, Phoebe is already after us. If she’s after the baby as well, all of us being in one place will make it less likely she’ll come back to the palace.”

“I’m not sure if that’s such a good idea, Your Majesty. I mean, this is your honeymoon. Maybe you should—”

“This isn’t up for debate. You’re coming. Don’t worry about it being our honeymoon. We’re already going to be surrounded by guards, so it’s not like we’ll get to be alone.”

“Alright,” she says, still sniffing from her crying, tears streaming down her face.

“I’ll come check on you later,” I say and stand to leave her room.

*Milo*

When I enter the infirmary, I find it fuller than I’ve ever seen it. A dozen assistants scurry around, helping soldiers that were injured when the Red Hand took control of the palace. 

It’s easy enough to find Exavier, lying in a bed near the door. Thomas Rein, the new Grand Physician, stands over him and I catch the end of his sentence.

“...we need this bed for people who are actually injured, Sir Cromwell.”

“My head still hurts,” says Exavier, his eyes closed and one hand on his forehead.

“What’s wrong with him?” I ask, making Thomas jump.

“Oh, Your Majesty,” he says, bowing to me. “Perhaps you can speak to Sir Cromwell. I believe he is recovered, but he is still complaining of head pains.”

“I’m not a physician,” I say. “What can I do?”

Thomas glances at Exavier, then leans toward me and whispers, “He’s faking, Your Majesty, I’m sure of it.”

“I’ll talk to him,” I promise. “You know, Piper could come up here and heal some of your more injured patients.”

Thomas looks shocked at my suggestion. 

“Your Majesty!” he says incredulously. “We are perfectly capable of helping these men and women. No need to bring magic into it. I have science!”

He bows to me with a quick, angry bend of his spine and walks away. I approach Exavier, who’s dropped his hand and looks at me sheepishly.

“Thomas says your head is still hurting? I thought they only knocked you out.”

“Yeah,” says Exavier quietly, “but if I go home, my wife is going to chew me out. She’s close to giving birth and this is the second time in two months the palace has been attacked and I’ve been put in harm’s way. She…” he pauses, looks away from me for a moment, then looks into my eyes, “she wants me to resign. She’s worried I’m going to die.”

“If you want to resign, Exavier, then—”

“I don’t, Your Majesty. I don’t! It really is an honor to serve you.”

“Well, how about this: Aaron and I are going on a honeymoon tomorrow. We’ll be gone for a few days. Why don’t you take the time off and spend it with your wife?”

“I appreciate it, Your Majesty, but I can’t let you leave Midoor without protection. I couldn’t protect you when the Red Hand attacked. I won’t let you down again. Sterris will understand.”

“Then perhaps you should get out of bed and get ready for the trip. We leave for Sandalia in the morning.”

“Right away, Your Majesty,” he says, standing as Thomas returns.

“Great job, Doc,” says Exavier, clapping a hand on Thomas’s shoulder. “I feel much better. Well, after you, Your Majesty.”

Barely holding back a laugh, I lead Exavier out of the infirmary.

*Aaron*

The next morning, Milo and I are ready to leave. He, Riley, Oswald, Exavier, Piper, Olivia, two dozen guards, and I are in the entrance square of the palace. My mother is there, too, wearing an elegant dress and her crown, Delgara by her side.

“Are you sure about this?” I ask my mother. I know the honeymoon was my idea, but leaving just her here in charge while we go on a honeymoon feels like a risk. I had tried convincing Piper to stay with her, but Piper agrees with me. If Phoebe is going to attack, she’s going to find me, Milo, and possibly Olivia. Her being with us for protection and to continue Milo’s training is more important.

“Aaron, I was ruling this kingdom before you were born. You’ve been a king for a few months. I’ve been a queen for over twenty years. I can handle it.”

“We’ll protect the Queen,” says Delgara, “and the kingdom. Don’t worry, Your Majesty. Just focus on enjoying your honeymoon.”

My mother hugs me and Milo, squeezing tight.

“I love you both,” she says, then kisses us both on the cheek.

As we ride out the palace gates, Milo turns to me.

“Do you think this honeymoon is a good idea,” he asks, “with everything that’s been going on?”

“Honey, with everything that’s been going on, we deserve to have something normal to do.”

“Do you think we can make it through this whole honeymoon without something bad happening?”

“Well, let’s ask the author,” I say, calling back to when we joked about our lives being part of a story. I look up into the sky and say, loud enough for Milo to hear but not loud enough for everyone else to, “Hey, Mr. Author? If you could let us have just a little bit of normalcy, that would be really great.”

“Yeah,” Milo adds, looking up to the sky as well. “Just a little while, please? I think we’ve deserved it.”

We ride on, heading west toward Sandalia, for what I truly hope will be a calm, peaceful honeymoon with the person I love most in the world.