Shadowborn Queen - G. Bailey Page 0,18

answer on behalf of him. "No matter what it takes, Your Majesty, I promise that will never happen."

Julius merely scoffs, but the queen and her children nod, respectively. The little girl across from me grins as she hangs a silver spoon off her nose. I return the smile, wishing more magics were like her. Perhaps then the Enchanted Forest wouldn't be such a dark place to live after all.

“If you’ll excuse us,” Gold says, rising from his chair.

I rise with him, my stomach growling. Everyone at the table hears it and I feel my cheeks flame.

“I will have your meals sent to your chamber,” the queen says, smiling at me.

Gold takes my hand and we leave the hall. A muscle ticks in his jaw as he leads the way back to my room. I don’t push him until we’re safely inside, and then I take his other hand and pull him forward to look at me.

“Talk to me, Gold,” I whisper.

For a moment, he doesn’t, his jaw clenching even harder. Then he reaches out and brushes a finger down my cheek. “I’m proud of you, Izora. What you did tonight took courage not many in the forest possess.”

My heart jumps at the look of adoration on his face.

“I’ll do anything if it means stopping Eva and protecting my mates. And the Forest, of course,” I add with a wink.

He chuckles, but his smile fades. “I had been worried about the meeting. The king is a stubborn dragon. To think that you persuaded him to reconsider his decision… that is a feat in and of itself.”

“Then why do you look so sad?”

His eyes narrow into golden slits. “It’s my son.”

“Zander,” I whisper, nodding. “Does he know who you are?”

Gold shakes his head. “I didn’t want him to know. Not with everything going on.”

“Isn’t this a perfect time? I imagine a lot of magics need a light at the end of the tunnel right now.”

He hesitates before shaking his head again. He doesn’t say anything, so I decide not to press the matter. It’s unfair for me to expect him to do what I would do. If he doesn’t want to tell Zander he’s his dad until after the war, I need to respect that.

However, the pained look on Gold’s face unsettles me deeply. I push up onto my tiptoes and kiss him hard and passionately. Gold pauses before he lifts me and hooks my legs around his waist. Sex is a great distraction, but making love is an even better one.

I moan into his mouth as he carries me over to the bed. He lays me down gently and drapes his body over mine. His hands trail down my legs and lift my dress up, then his fingers slide into my panties. With a growl, he pulls them down and yanks them off my feet, tossing them onto the floor.

The cool air brushing my sex sends a shiver through me. That shiver turns into a moan when Gold’s cock breaches me and I clench around him. I tangle my hands in his hair and pull him down, crushing our mouths together. His moan vibrates against my lips and I kiss him harder while squeezing my legs around him, desperate to hear more of his sounds.

“You mean everything to me, Izora.” He groans, looking deeply into my eyes as he pinions into me. “You’re all I need.”

Tears gather in my eyes and I smile, unable to hold them back.

He stops and frowns at me. “Why are you crying?”

“I’m just happy.”

His frown disappears, replaced with a look of utter adoration. “I always want to see you happy.”

I lean up and kiss him, and squeeze my legs, pulling him in deeper. “Then don’t stop making love to me.”

Gold smiles and thrusts his hips. We’re just two bodies entwined with each other, two souls, our moans filling the silence of the room with sounds of our pleasure. I’m floating, captured in his arms, as we soar through the clouds together. When we both let go, Gold kisses me and stars dance over my line of sight as all thoughts of war and destruction disappear entirely.

Chapter 9

When we leave the next morning, the farewell is fond and emotional. Queen Valessia cries as she embraces Gold. While he says goodbye to the other royals, King Cyrus takes my hand and kisses my palm.

"Good luck in your quest, Princess."

I bow to him. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I promise not to fail you or the Enchanted Forest."

The king inclines