© ItalRT4u, 2012

     I had been shifty for the rest of the day, avoiding Cane as much as possible thanks to Sandra.  This had definitely been a day to top all days from a news standpoint.  Needless to say, I never felt any more insecure about who I was as a person – I mean, who was I?  Everything I was; everything I’ve done; none of it was ever truly me now was it?  I sat here, on the edge of the bed remembering the conversation I had with Cane’s mother earlier…

     I sat down in the garden as we had the previous day.  I was feeling nervous and when Sandra finally sat across from me, I had realized that I was inadvertently feeling some of her nervousness.

     Damn empathic abilities!  Can’t you ever go off on holidays for once!

     I shifted in my seat, waiting for this conversation to start.  I had the distinctive feeling that this one was going to be an awkward one for the record books.

     “Sweetie,” Sandra began and smiled; “you remember the talk we had yesterday about how you felt for Cane?”  I nodded in comprehension and urged her to keep going.  “Uh...”  She rubbed her hands, palms down onto her thighs.  This was evidently tough for her.  “This is a conversation a mother has with her daughter.  Please bear with me on this one.”

     “Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s not as bad as you think it is.”  I tell her, patting the top of her right hand that still lay on her lap.

     “It’s not bad.  It’s just I never thought I’d be having this conversation with my son’s girlfriend.”  She blushed slightly.

     “Oh?”  I looked at her, my eyes widening in slight comprehension as to where this conversation was heading; her nerves beginning to get the better of me along with herself.

     “It’s about you being a Royal and your match.”  She said.  “How you become truly matched.”

     “I know it has something to do with the first touch of the succubus and then there’s…”  My voice trailed off momentarily as I struggled to get my bearings.  “Sex.”  I said almost at a whisper.  Imagine my predicament of having to speak about sex, nonetheless with my boyfriend’s mother of all people!  It kind of freaked me out.  Then again, no one knew more about all of this than she and Will.

     “We’re not in the nineteenth century and I know how things go.”  She began.  “I know that you’ve both been together.”  I felt my heated blush come over me.  “But I also know that the royal matching wasn't completed.”

     Sandra had told me about the royal bonding process.  I couldn’t help but wonder if Cane knew about any of this.

     “No.  He caught his father and me discussing you and your being Royal this morning and he had us explain a bit to him before you all left for the gym.  Other than that, he doesn’t know anything other than the fact that you're of royal descent.”  She tells me.

     “I see.”  I said, pondering.  “So what you’re telling me is that even though Cane and I are matched, we haven’t completed the process?”  She nodded.

    “You need to complete the first series of the process on the first full moon after you've happened upon your match.”  She explained.  “If not, then all will be lost; from a Royal perspective.”  She dropped the bomb on me.  Talk about pressure cooker!

     A knock on my door was what shook me out of the memory of my earlier conversation with Cane's mother.

     “Come in.”  I said faintly.  The door opened and in walked Andy; definitely not the person I expected to see.

     “Just making sure you’re okay.”  He said; his eyes unable to make contact with mine.

     “I’ve been better.”  I admitted.

     “You’ve got everyone worried about you downstairs.”  He divulged, this time, his eyes finally making contact with mine.

     “I know.  It’s just a lot of information to digest all at once.”  I told him and nervously flattened my red strapless dress over my thighs; trying to rid it of its non-existent wrinkles.  I knew it wasn’t long until Cane would come and find me for our date.  My fidgeting was getting worse by the minute.  Like I needed the extra pressure; tonight was the full moon that Sandra was talking about.  The fate of the Fae world having a Royal on a throne again hung in the balance because, in just a few hours, I had to make the biggest decision of my life – to risk it all and be a regular Fae or give in to what now was beginning to feel right, bring peace to the world again, and take on my responsibilities; which, at this point, I had no clue what they entailed.  I knew that the Nottingham’s were there to help me along the way and with Cane by my side, I had always felt like I could take on the world.  So much had to be said and done in the wake of tonight; and it all hinged on me being able to fulfill this dream everyone else had of wanting, no, needing a Royal back to restore balance to all things Fae.  A soft knock came a second time, on the bedroom door and my heart felt like it wanted to jump out of my chest and run away from me as nerves once again began to get the better of me.  Andy opened the door to reveal a handsomely dressed Cane in a white buttoned down shirt, rolled at his elbows and black dress pants; the top buttons of his shirt left undone to reveal the beginning of his chest.  One word came to mind…

     Sexy.

     He literally took my breath away.  Before leaving us, Andy turned and looked at me.

     “We’ll be leaving now.  You look beautiful.”  He said as he blushed.  Despite his initial shortcomings, Andy was a good man.  Sandra might not see it as clearly as I do with Andy and Patrick, but they are both good men.  She raised them right.  Urges aside, their hearts were in the right place when it mattered most.

     “Hi.”  He looked at me in the eyes.  He seemed hesitant to come to me but I couldn’t ignore the pull between us.  I hadn’t seen him since this morning in the den and despite my nerves, which have magically disappeared somehow, and the hodgepodge of thoughts rolling around in my head at the moment, my feet made their way to him.  Letting go of a breath he had been holding, he wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead as I found myself taking in his sweet and spicy scent; my core fluttering to life with tingles of heat.

     “Hi.”  I smiled sweetly at him.

     “Ready?”  He asked me.  I nodded as I took his hand and he pulled me slightly down the stairs.

     Shocked was the first thing that hit me and then a change to delightful surprise washed over me when we walked into the back garden.  There, in the middle of the mix of hydrangeas, rose bushes, and other beautiful flowers, their names evading me at the moment, was an elegantly decorated table and two chairs.  Coupled with the setting sun, everything looked like it was taken out of a dream I once had.  Pulling me to one of the chairs and helping me with it as I sat down, I couldn’t help the girly giggle that came out of me.

     “You did this?”  I asked him, maintaining eye contact.

     “I had help.”  He said, his voice unwavering as he poured us some champagne.  After he handed me one of the flutes, he held his up and gestured to me for a toast.  My mind ran a blank.

     “I don’t do toasts.”  I said quickly as I felt a slight blush flush through to my face before I continued.  “Mainly because I never know what to say.”

     “How about…”  He paused.  “To living in the moment.”  I laughed lightly as he clinked my glass.

     Dinner was great.  Cane had ordered us some pizza.  Yeah, I know, pizza!  Oddly enough, it was my favorite food.  So here we were, sipping expensive champagne, eating pizza, comfortable silence as we stole glances from one another.

     “How was your chat with Mom?”  He asked me.  My face was burning and I knew he enjoyed that reaction seeing as he chuckled and I was thankful I had no food or drink in my mouth to choke on or spit out.

     “You know about it all.”  I tell him.

     “I knew it was the reason you had been avoiding me all day.”  He said quietly.

     “I’m sorry.”  I began.  “It’s just so much to digest.”

     “Anything I can help you with?”  He asked me.

     “You can answer one question for me.”  I told him.

     “Anything.”  He responded.

     “How come you’re not every bit as freaked out as I am?”  I asked him.  Instead of answering me right then and there, he got up and came to kneel beside me, our faces mere inches in distance from the other.

     “There’s something I haven’t told you.”  He said, tucking a loose strand of my hair back behind my ear, our eyes exchanging a variety of emotions.  “I love you.  I think I always have and I always will.  Even before I met you, I loved you.  I don't care what we do, I know it'll be great.”  My heart raced and my body took over for me as I grabbed his face in my hands and crashed my lips to his, forgetting about all this talk about royalty this and war that.  I simply wanted to do what felt right – natural.  I knew I didn’t want to lose Cane; I couldn’t lose him.  Most importantly, I knew I had to follow through with this newly acquired destiny of mine.  My succubus urges were becoming stronger and stronger and I felt myself failing to keep her in check.  This horny bitch simply wanted out.  Cane managed to pull himself away from me, breathless and darkness consuming his irises with lust.

     “I didn’t expect that kind of a reaction.”  He smirked, making light of his revelation.

     “You can’t say that to a woman and not expect her to be all over you.”  I smiled shyly as he proceeded to find his seat and I got up.

     “Where are you going?”  He looked at me confused.  I walked up behind him and kissed his ear and nibbled his lobe, smiling at the groan that rumbled in his throat.

     “I’ll let you in on a little secret.”  I whispered.  “I love you too.”  And as I turned to walk back to the house, our shared room my intended destination, I felt his hand on mine, pulling me back to him as he remained seated on his chair.  Forcing me to sit on his lap, I couldn’t ignore the part of him that was now standing at attention for me nor the look of tenderness that had clouded his eyes where moments ago, only reflected lust.

     “You can’t say that to a man and just walk away.”  He mimicked the tone I had used with him before his hand found itself gently wrapping itself around the nape of my neck, pulling my lips to his.

     Phase one of three of our royal binding was complete – I hadn’t expected for it to happen but I realized that my proverbial heart wanted what it wanted and simply stifling my feelings wasn’t going to work.

     Cane and I had been so deeply wrapped up in one another that we failed to notice the person that had been standing there until he had cleared his throat.  Jumping slightly and Cane bracing me to keep me calm, we both turned to find Will standing there with a smile on his face, his eyes twinkling.

     “I thought you were all gone.”  Cane mumbled and I feeling embarrassed but also disappointed at our interruption.

     “I was, but I came back to look in on you two.”  He said with a smirk.

     “We’re fine.”  Cane said, nuzzling the side of my jaw, barely paying any mind to his father.

     “I see that.”  He chuckled.  “You two are glowing by the way; and get a room!”  He turned and left us and all I heard was his hearty laugh in the background.

     “I think that’s the best idea I’ve heard yet.”  I told Cane as I met his lips with mine, nibbling on his bottom one, making him groan.  He evidently didn’t need any convincing as he whisked me up into a bridal style hold and carried us into the house; forgetting all about the rest of our dinner which we had only just begun.

     He set me on my feet, at the foot of the bed, never once taking his eyes off of mine.  He seemed as if he was searching for something within me and I sensed worry.  I don’t know why my empathic abilities were wreaking havoc on my senses all of a sudden but I was glad at this moment.

     “What’s wrong?”  I asked softly, my hand reaching up to his face.

     “I don’t know where your head is at with all of this royal business.”  He said and I did the best thing I knew to do.  I kissed him, hard and passionately, slipping my tongue into his parted mouth, eliciting a soulful moan from him before I pulled away to look at his face once more.

     “I spent the entire day freaking out about this whole thing.”  I told him as I nuzzled his jaw slightly and pulled back again and took a deep breath.  “I want peace, Cane and I can’t help the motions I need to take to get there.  It’s like something inside of me is urging me to go through with it.”  He cupped the side of my face with a loving hand.

     “But why do I sense fear?”  He asks.

     “Don't get me wrong, I am terrified.”  I tried to stray my gaze somewhere else but my eyes wouldn’t budge; it was like they were fused to his sapphire pools.  “I have no clue what this whole royal thing is all about but the thought of losing you is too much to bear.”  Truth is I was also hopeful.

     “You’ll never lose me.”  He says and I knew that but I simply couldn’t shake the feeling that was building within my core; telling me that I needed to complete this whole process.  I needed his mark on me, I need all of him, and most of all, I needed to end this age old pending war in its entirety – I wanted my happily ever after.  Yes, I said it!  Now, go ahead and call me a sentimental sap but you'll end up admitting that it's exactly what you'd want for yourself as well!

     “I love you too much to let anything happen to us.”  He tells me, his eyes growing darker slightly as my fingers played with the hair at the nape of his neck.  His fingers rubbing up my back as he found the zipper to my dress, slowly unzipping as he let his fingers lightly graze my skin, sending heated shivers of lust that caused me to gulp, my breath to hitch and my eyes to close as I savored the sensation.  His lips made contact with mine and trailed down to my jaw, alternating between nibbles, licks and more kisses until he had reached my neck and then collarbone.  Arching into him, my body betraying me as my knees began to weaken.  Cane grabbed hold of my butt and palmed it, pulling me closer to him, my mouth colliding with his in a feverish kiss, our tongues dueling.  My feet found the floor and regained stability as Cane pushed the remainder of my dress down to the floor, leaving me in my red lacy strapless and barely-there underwear.

     “I'm glad you like it.”  I smirked after he took a long have mercy type look at me, a gulp distinguishable.

     “You're beautiful.”  He said breathlessly.  I approached him with the one step I needed to take, as he watched me start unbuttoning his shirt, letting my eyes feast over his body.  Bringing my mouth to his chest, I pleasured his heated skin with a few nips and licks while I pushed his shirt off of his shoulders, feeling the muscles of his arms flexing as my fingers gingerly played the length of them until he grabbed my hands which caused me to look up as he kissed me hard and full of want, on the mouth.  Craving closeness, Cane let go of my hands as he pulled my hips toward him.  My hands went on another mission as they found his belt buckle; my fingers fumbling about clumsily out of urgency.

     He lay over top of me, kissing, eliciting the most wonderful tingles throughout my body, making it throb with need.  The sinful things that mouth of his was capable of doing had me begging for the feel of him inside of me.

     “I'm planning on taking my time with you, tonight.”  He said as he came back up to meet my eyes.

     “Cane.”  I moaned into his mouth in the midst of our carnal warm-up.  I didn’t know how much longer I could take; I needed him like a plant needs water in the desert.  Moments later, I felt his erection at my entrance; no condom this time.  An interesting fact that had been brought up between Sandra and I had been that I didn't have to worry about becoming pregnant seeing as it wasn't part of this particular process.  In fact, it turns out that the Royal woman chooses when she gets pregnant.  It was quite handy and the part about Cane going bare backed was actually the main reason why we had only partially completed the matching process as of yet.  Phase two and three were completed at the same time; by our true joining.

     “Are you sure?”  He nuzzled my cheek quickly and pulled away so he could look me in the eye.

     “More than anything.”

     At the peak of our climax, everything began to change.  My marking on my hip began to burn red with heat this time, instead of cool and judging by the look on Cane's face, his was doing the same.  It was then that I noticed the change in his eyes.  They were now more of a purplish coloring.  A surge of some kind had come over me, causing me to writhe in pain, screaming.

     “Payton?”  Cane looked at me worried.

     “I think I'm gonna die!”  I screamed out and as soon as the powerful surge of pain appeared, it had disappeared.

     “Your eyes!”  Cane whispered, registering shock.

     “What of them?”  I asked him.

     “They're almost purple.”  He said.  I smiled at him as he held me in his arms.

     “So are yours.”

     We lay in bed, holding each other until a knock came at the bedroom door.  Cane looked at me and I nodded to him that I was okay.

     “Go away!”  He said, winking at me.  I couldn't help but shake my head at him.  “We're busy.”  He took me into his arms and began to kiss my neck again.  “If this is what I have to do to keep people away, I'll be damned if I ever stop.”  I couldn't help the giggle that came out.

     “I'm not going to argue with you on that one.”  I whispered, nuzzling the side of his face with the side of mine.  “Come in!”

     “Are you decent?”  It was Will.

     “Seriously Dad!”  Cane chuckled exasperatedly.  “You have the worst timing.  Hold on.”

     “I seriously thought you'd be done by now.”  He said as I quickly got up and slid my short white satin robe around me before rushing back to the bed, covering my bare legs as Cane slid his underwear back on and opened the bedroom door; in walked Will who blushed immediately.  Cane did the same thing but with a look of confusion sprawled across his face.

     “What's wrong?”  I studied Cane's face.

     “Why am I feeling embarrassed?”  He asked.  His face crumbled and I found him registering anger and moments later, my ears found themselves perking up as I heard Andy and Patrick in the middle of an argument; something I don't think I would normally hear.

     “Did anyone just hear that?”  I asked, Cane looked at me, shocked.  “Hold on!”

     “What's going on?”  Cane and I turned to look at his father.

     “I see you've succeeded.”  He said.  Something told me that he and Sandra knew more about this whole Royal match thing than they had been letting on.

                                          *************************************

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