Melis began to move, careful and slow with eachmotion, testing what felt best, what made Antero sigh or choke orsay his name. The third motion, up, then down, made him stop,shaking and wretched and trying not to come though Antero wouldhave let him. He tightened inside, helpless not to, and Anterogripped his hips hard.
Melis moved again without thought, no longerconcerned with his approaching peak or his husband’s painedpleasure. He threw his head back to moan to the ceiling, ridingwildly, nearly bouncing in a way that would make him squirm againlater to think of. Squirm, delight and beg to do it again. He hadno divine dignity in this bed but what good was that compared tothe glide inside him and the sounds his husband made?
Then Melis’ eyes were shut too, the better tofeel the flex of stomach muscles as his husband pushed up, theshiver as Melis slid down to meet him, the breeze from his wings ontheir damp skin, the deep, internal beat of Antero’s heart.
His hands landed, feather-light, on Antero’schest, then fell to the bed on either side of his ribs. Antero’spalms were callused and human over his back, at his hips, haulingMelis to him with every controlled fall. Melis dropped his head towhine, his teeth in his bottom lip. He didn’t want it to end. Heunderstood now. Desire unfulfilled could be beautiful.
“Love,” he exclaimed finally, voice rising as hecontinued to cry it out, “Antero!”
Then pleasure found him whether he wanted it toor not. He stuttered to a stop, Antero’s name in his mouth as hecame, spilling over the hand Antero had put to his cock to drivehim to it, his body tightening around Antero’s cock inside him.Antero groaned, pained, one hand squeezing the damp skin of Melis’hip over and over as he waited for Melis to stop shaking.
Finally, Melis opened his eyes. Beneath him, hishusband smiled to the air despite the shivering tension in hismuscles. He was entirely made of desire for this and for anythingelse Melis might do. He was trust and need and pure happiness. Hewas love itself.
“Antero,” Melis called softly, banishing anyaches and pain within his own body so he could move again. He wasslow and careful. The first roll of his hips made Antero moan andslide the hand wet with seed to Melis’ other hip to try to pushdeeper into him. “Beloved, I want…”
“Please,” Antero begged freely, unashamed.
Melis leaned down, stroking his beautiful face,touching his open mouth, thinking of kissing him but not allowinghimself to indulge yet.
“I believe I understand teasing now,” heobserved. He spread his knees wider, experimenting, and when Anterogripped him tightly again, he thought that good enough. Anteroought to mewl too. He didn’t squirm and delight over it as Melisdid, but he wanted it.
“I am yours to ruin,” Antero said breathlesslyas if he knew Melis’ thoughts. “Do not stop.”
“Mine,” Melis agreed, “but not to ruin.” Hespent a moment basking in Antero’s desperation, overjoyed to givehis husband the greater pleasure of desire delayed. Then he resumedthe deliberate motions of his hips.
They had the night, after all.
In the hour before dawn, when the envious moonpassed out of sight but the sun hadn’t yet woken with a lazystretch, the household of the king began to wake.
Today, I will ask to brush my lady’s hair. Ihope she will let me. That’s a small thing to ask, and she won’tpossibly know what it would mean to me.
“One more hour of sleep to make up for what Ilost talking until midnight and drinking that wine with you.”
“One less cup of wine last night would have doneus both better.”
Melis stood at the window, his head angled up tohear the stories brought to him by the wind, the rest of hisattention on the slumbering figure in the bed behind him. Anteroslept on his stomach; his spread legs tangled in the blanket he’dpulled over himself at some point in the night. There were marks onhis back, bruises from the fingers of a god clawing at him inecstasy. He would have to explain those to others if Melis didn’tremove them.
Melis had spent much of the night consideringit; he’d spare Antero any embarrassment, but he wasn’t certainAnterowouldbe embarrassed. He might just as easily walkthe lengths of his palace and declare himself the favorite ofMelis, and his people would know he had found some sort of belovedat last. Not the one they had imagined for him, and a worrying oneif they knew the tales of other gods and other mortals, which manyof them certainly would. Melis didn’t know how to reassure themwithout showing them that Antero had made Melis weak for him, thatAntero was more than Melis’ equal.
He had instructed Melis exactly as he hadpromised to do. He could not have been more suited to Melis. TheFair-Shaped had undoubtedly been the one to see to that. For somegreater purpose or simply to make Melis happy, Melis could not say,but Melis was no one to be trifled with now. If the elders thoughtto use Antero or hurt him in any way, they would face Melis’wrath.
A stirring from the bed drew his attention andhe turned to watch Antero roll onto his back and scrub his handsover his face. The noises outside the door to Antero’s chamberswere not loud, but Antero must have been used to them, and torising not long after his servants did.
Antero extended his arms in a long stretch onlyto freeze midmotion. He swept a hungry, searching look around thebed, then the rest of the room before falling back onto the pillowwith his eyes squeezed shut.
“Dreams again,” he murmured, his hand to hismouth like a human stifling a scream.
Melis scooted forward with one last glance tothe window to make sure the sun was not there to witness.
“I am here,” he announced himself, not quiteable to sayhusband. Inexperienced Melis had been, but heknew that words said during moments of physical passion were notalways true when the physical passion was over.
But Antero sat up and turned toward his voiceall in one movement, then threw the blanket to the side. Relief andcautious happiness emanated from him, turning Melis’ knees towater. “Melis? You haven’t left?”
“Not yet,” Melis informed him, hating the words.He couldn’t allow disappointment to take hold of his beloved, so hestepped forward again, stopping at the foot of the bed. “I havework to do, as you do. Your household stirs. Your people willexpect their king.”
Antero nodded, yet seemed to dismiss that at thesame time. “But you’ll return? Soon, if not tonight?”
Melis’ knees weakened further. He briefly clungto a bedpost, smiling and silly. “Yes.” He took a breath and thenpushed himself back to standing. “And I will keep returning, for aslong as you wish me to.”
