When I walked out of the bathroom and into the room, Erabella was laying on the bed naked, giving me a wicked grin.
My cock hardened underneath the towel, and I returned the facial expression. Then, almost instantly, guilt washed over me.
The love of my life was alive. She was alive and alone. It was hard enough moving on when I thought she was dead, but now that I knew she was alive, I just felt sick.
Era noticed the change in my expression. “What’s wrong?” she asked softy as she sat up. “The shower didn’t help?”
I exhaled through my nose. “Just…a long fucking day.”
She patted the spot next to her on the bed, and I sat down beside her. She gently ran her hands across my back over my shirt and began to knead my shoulders. I hissed from the pleasure it brought me.
“I’m happy you’re here,” I whispered.
She kissed my cheek and skimmed her hand down my chest, then grabbed my length under the towel, causing me to inhale sharply.
“Have you missed me as much as I missed you?” she purred.
Fuck.
I twirled around and cupped her face in my hands, kissing her passionately.
“Let me make you feel good,” she offered softly and hopped off the bed to kneel before me. Grinning, she removed the towel, took me into her mouth, and began to suck.
My head rolled back, and I let out a groan while running my hand through her hair, gripping her tight.
I can’t think about Lena. Not now. I’m a married man.
But I couldn’t stop myself from thinking of her lips, her eyes, her voice. Even those pointed ears of hers.
And I felt guilty for that, too.
I couldn’t sleep. After Era and I had sex, she passed out next to me, her short blonde hair lying cutely on her face. She looked so sweet when she slept, a contrast to her normal appearance of seductress. Her almond eyes always caught the attention of other men, but I didn’t mind. Her eyes never wandered.
I rubbed my temples.
But mine did. Not after other women—I was always loyal to Erabella, even though my sexually depraved years prior to our marriage would sometimes cross my mind. No, the only other woman I had ever thought of was Lena.
I bit my knuckle, resting my elbows on my knees while contemplating my fucked-up life as I sat in bed.
I scared the shit out of Lena. Let her see a sliver of the monster I had become. I put my hand on her throat. I was so damn furious with her and all I wanted in that moment was to make her hurt like she had hurt me.
Honestly, what I did scared the shit out of me, too.
I sighed heavily and hopped out of bed, careful not to disturb Era. I threw on black trousers and a clean pair of boots.
I needed to tell her I was sorry. I didn’t care if it made me a pussy. I would still get that information somehow. But I would not hurt her.
I quietly left my room, being mindful while softly shutting the door, and began my descent into the prison.
Sconces scarcely lit up the spiral staircase, and the temperature began to dip the closer to the bottom I got. I made it halfway down before I began to hear screaming.
A woman’s voice…what the fuck is going on?
Hurriedly, I ran down the remaining steps and followed the noise as the woman’s cries grew louder.
I reached the cell where the screams were coming from and flung open the door.
My eyes felt like they were going to bulge out of my head. Rurik, Jones, Daerin, and Geoff were towering over Lena. Her pants had been ripped off, her top torn in half, exposing her breasts. And Rurik—
