"That's not what I meant. I-I can't do this," she admitted.
His eyes narrowed, nostrils flared. He was a prince. Who was she to deny him? She could see the thoughts just floating through his mind. "You can't do what? Consummate our marriage? You are my wife, Amaka. You have a--"
"Duty. I know. You and my father will never let me forget who I am." She sneered. "I'm sorry ... who you are. Ruling prince, with none to oppose you. Your word is law, and all must obey you lest they suffer the consequences." She moved to stand near the doors opening into the garden. The scent of flowers reached her, and helped somewhat to calm her racing heart.
She heard him move up behind, but he didn't touch her. "Do you think I'm an unfair ruler, Amaka? Do you feel any of my laws have been too harsh or for my own selfish gain?"
Amaka closed her eyes and blew out her breath noisily. "No, I didn't mean it that way."
"Yet I hear resentment in your voice."
"You don't understand." She whirled around to face him. "You will never understand, Ryethen."
He took her hands in his. She let him for what use was it to fight him off. He was her husband now. "Amaka, arranged marriages have been happening for centuries within the Tyngdor family. Not one of them has failed. You must trust me; trust your father to know what's best."
She shrieked, yanking her hands away. "Trust you? I don't know you! Our traditions--for which I should be used to by now, but I am firmly not!--don't allow me to get to know my husband. Oh no, correction, the woman selected to be the princess doesn't get to know her husband before their wedding day. Every other common person enjoys first choosing the person they may eventually want to spend the rest of their life with, and then they get to know each other. I don't get that luxury. And how much sense does that make, given the position I am expected to hold?"
The sheepish look in his eyes said it all. "It makes perfect sense to me."
"To you!"
"Amaka...."
"Don't. Please, Ryethen, just give me some time. I don't know how I'll get through this. I need to walk in the gardens to clear my head. You understand don't you? Can I have at least that?"
She saw his hesitation. If she were not so angry, she would admit to herself that he was a fair ruler to their people. Everyone loved him, and she knew he didn't get to choose his lot in life anymore than she did, but at least he loved it. He had glowed with purpose that afternoon when he took time out right after their wedding to settle some local disputes among his people. She sighed. Among their people. She was his princess now.
Finally, he nodded. "Yes, possibly the cool night air will help you to see this is not an ending but a beginning of something that can be very special. My parents came to ... respect each other a great deal over time."
Amaka turned away to step to the outside. She hadn't missed the fact that he couldn't lie. His parents had never loved each other, and she feared neither would she and he.
Strolling quickly among the trees, she tried to put as much distance as she could between herself and the palace. With each step, the stress of her new life slipped away if only for a moment. As she neared the river, she heard its gentle call, and she slipped her sandals off in anticipation of stepping into the stream.
At the water's edge, she tossed away her shoes and with no witnesses except the three lilac moons in the night sky; she stripped off her clothing. How many times had she swum in the river? She couldn't remember. Whether a person was born common as she was or of the royal family, the river was accessible and up until now no law had forbidden enjoying it.
Amaka slipped beneath the rippling surface, shivering from the chill. The last of her worries receded as she dove down deep. All of her people were born able to breathe under water. Tiny receptors in their skin, invisible to the naked eye, extracted the necessary oxygen from the water. If she wanted, she could live down here forever, and never have to open her legs to a man she didn't know.
Suddenly, strong hands reached around her to grasp her breasts and tease her nipples. A male body pressed against her back. She shoved away and swam to the surface. Seeing the man in front of her come up with a wide grin, she frowned and covered her naked breasts.
"Neth! You have no right!" she sputtered.
He laughed. "I have every right. I have known that beautiful body in every way imaginable for two years now. Come here. Let us make love in the water like we did last night."
She blushed. "We shouldn't have. It was the night before my wedding, and I should have been ashamed. Neth, you promised to go away."
He swam closer and she moved out of reach of his arms. As if to show her what she was missing, Neth, leaned back until his lower half was level with the water. His shaft was stiff, despite the chill. Amaka licked her lips. Even after one night, she missed him being inside her, his fiery kisses and skilled touch. But she had to put those thoughts aside forever. Things were different.
"Neth," she warned.
He was unrepentant. "What? Okay, okay. I did say I would back off, but it's hard."
"It's been less than a day." She glanced at his broad chest. "I'm not going to cheat on my husband."
"But you want to." He swam closer. "You don't know him. We can continue our intimacy. Within seconds, I can be inside you." He groaned. "Listening to that little scream you do when you come for me."
"Neth..."
He drew her into his arms. She closed her eyes when she felt his erection brush her stomach, and her nipples graze his chest. She had met him first at the river, and he had taken her virginity there. Still they had never been in love. The relationship had been purely sexual.
"Let me make love to you," he whispered in her ear. She trembled. He covered her mouth with his own, dragging his teeth gently across her lower lip. She mewled, aching for more.
"Oh, Neth, I admit I want you more than any man on this planet. You are the greatest lover, but I just can't do this. I should be inside the palace right now consummating my marriage. I'm sorry."
Amaka thought she saw pain in his eyes, but it was gone in an instant, replaced by his usual good nature and habit of not taking life too seriously. It was that upbeat personality that drew her to him in the first place.
"I guess I understand," he sighed. "We've had this conversation countless times after the prince chose you. I think he made a big mistake."
"Neth!"
He laughed. "I don't mean you wouldn't make a great princess. I mean he should have chosen someone else, but then how could he after he laid eyes on you. Maybe he hoped you would come to love him. Hey, maybe he's good in bed. You do like to get it often."
Despite her sorrow, she grinned and playfully slapped his shoulder. "I recall you liking to get it often yourself. You'd sneak down to my father's house to drag me out of bed at three in the morning to get some."
"Yes, and the sleep just magically disappeared from your eyes at the mention of sex." Amaka burst out laughing and then all humor left as her former lover calmly exited the water. His hard body was chiseled to perfection, his stiff cock the stuff of every woman's dreams. The man knew how to use it, that along with his hands and lips--every part of his delicious body.
Amaka wondered how her husband's body would compare, and then cringed at the thought. Dressed, he was incredibly handsome and his form seemed strong and hard, but one couldn't be sure what the clothes hid. And would he be as endowed as Neth? Would he be skilled? She doubted it. She hadn't heard anything about him keeping concubines as was legal for royalty. That law had slipped her mind before now. The prince was allowed to have as many mistresses as he liked before and after his wedding. It wasn't clear if she was also. They would need to discuss it.
"So, beautiful, you're just going to stand there and stare at my body all night or come out of the water so I can stare at yours?" Neth called.
She frowned. "You'll turn your back so I can come out, thank you very much."
He grumbled. "I don't know how we'll do this, Amaka."
"We'll get through it," she said, not sure at all. "We'll get through somehow. We have to."
)
