The Consort, Chapter 29
Author's Note: I'm sorry I missed yesterday's scheduled update. The remnants of Hurricane Ike blew through Ohio on Sunday and about 70% of the Columbus metro area was without power, about a third still is. I was lucky enough to get mine back Monday morning, but I didn't have my cable and internet back until today, so I couldn't load up the new chapter. Moving on with the fluff! I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit that the rest of this story is going to be damn near wall-to-wall fluff. I mean, we've got a freaking wedding to get to. It doesn't get much more fluffy than that. There'll be some seriousness too, but...yeah, fluff. Hey, I denied myself fluff for twenty freaking chapters! It got kinda pent up in there!
one month later…
DG stood up, another Receiving session concluded. She automatically turned to her right, hand already out for Cain’s arm, before she remembered that he wasn’t there. “Whoops,” she muttered, trying to cover it up as some kind of half-stretching gesture. Azkadellia was snickering.
“He’ll be back the day after tomorrow,” she said, coming to DG’s side as she came down to greet the weekly cadre of invited guests.
“You’re just so darn helpful,” DG said, her smile never failing.
“I do what I can.”
A familiar face emerged from the crowd, to DG’s delight. She stepped forward to embrace Thelma Winterset. “Thelma! I didn’t know you were coming today.”
“It’s a bit last-minute,” Thelma said. “How are you, Your Majesty?”
“I’m good! But you, I hear you’re the new darling of the art scene!”
Thelma flushed. “If I am it’s because of you. After everyone saw the General’s portrait, well…things have been very busy since then. I’ve done several more portraits, and even gotten paid for them!”
“That’s great!”
“And I got a lovely writeup in ‘ArtZone’ magazine. I’ve had to hire in some help for my bakeshop, I’m just too busy painting.”
“You love it, I know you do.”
“I do love it. It’s a nice change to be taken seriously for once.”
DG grinned. “I know that feeling. I hope you’ll still have time for another Royal commission.”
Thelma’s eyes widened. “Another one?”
“Of course! You have to paint a portrait of Cain and I together!”
“Oh, I’d love to! Maybe I’ll finally get to actually meet this husband of yours. Where is he, isn’t he usually with you at Receiving?”
DG flapped a hand. “Oh, he’s off on one of his inspection tours.”
“How long has he been gone?”
“A week. I expect him back on Sunday.”
“Long time to be apart,” Thelma said, her eyes sympathetic.
“It’s all right. He has duties to perform.” DG hugged Thelma again, extracting a promise to come to the Spire for lunch sometime soon, and moved on.
The truth was that she missed Cain terribly. He hadn’t been thrilled about this inspection tour, but it had been scheduled for months and couldn’t be put off, so he’d gone. Watching him pack and get in the car had been very hard for DG, much harder than she’d let him see. She’d smiled and kissed him goodbye and waved while inside her stomach was rolling. The last time she’d done this, he’d been killed, or so she’d thought. It was far from the first time they’d been separated, indeed it had been a frequent occurrence throughout their marriage, but it was the first time they’d been separated since his near death experience.
She’d bid her husband goodbye many times. This was her first time bidding goodbye to the man she loved.
Sleeping alone sucked. Eating breakfast alone sucked, although Azkadellia was valiantly trying to fill in. Sitting in her office alone, conducting business, sucked a lot. Cain called her every night from the road, but that somehow made it worse. Saying goodnight to him, knowing she’d be going to bed alone, didn’t help.
But it wouldn’t do for the Queen to moon over her Consort like a lovesick teenager, so to use Glitch’s favorite of her expressions, she’d just have to put on her big-girl panties and deal with it.
DG heard her private phone ringing when she came into the sitting room; she ran across to her bedroom to answer it. It could only be Wyatt, no one else had this number except people who were in this palace and wouldn’t need to call her on the phone. She picked up the handset. “Hello?”
“DG?”
She sighed, flopping down into her favorite chair. “Hi, honey.”
“You sound out of breath.”
“I had to run for it.”
“How was Receiving?”
“Oh, the usual. Thelma Winterset came, which was a nice surprise.”
“And I’m not there, of course. I’m starting to think there’s a plot afoot to prevent me from meeting this woman.”
“She says the same thing,” DG said, chuckling. “How’s the inspection tour?”
“Good, actually. And I have some news I think you’ll like.”
“What’s that?”
“I’ve made such good time that I’m coming home tomorrow afternoon.”
DG sat up straighter. “Really?”
“Yep.”
“Oh my god, that’s fantastic!”
Cain laughed. “I hoped you’d be pleased.”
“I’m way past pleased.” DG hesitated. “I really miss you,” she said, quietly.
“I miss you too,” he said. “Why do you think I got everything done so fast?”
“I’m terribly spoiled, is the problem. I’ve gotten used to sharing my bed with a hot guy every night, and having to lie there alone is just not cutting it.”
“Ohh, darlin. I’ve got one more night out here with a bunch of men. Don’t make it harder than it’s already going to be.”
She curled up in her chair, tucking the phone close like she was telling secrets in a fort made of blankets at a grade-school sleepover. “Wanna know what I’ve been doing in my lonely bed while you’ve been gone?”
“Great Gale, DG.” His voice sounded a little strained.
She sighed. “I suppose phone sex is a bit much to hope for out of you, Mr. Cain.”
“And I suppose I don’t want to know where you learned how to talk like this, Mrs. Cain.”
“Don’t question. Just enjoy.”
“I’ll enjoy plenty once I get you back to our bedroom.”
“Why, General! Are you getting saucy with me?” she giggled, delighted.
She heard him grumble something unintelligible. “You’re a bad influence on me.”
“I hope so.”
A comfortable silence fell between them. “I ought to be in around three,” he said, his voice quiet.
“I’ll be waiting.”
He sighed. “Sleep well, sweetheart.”
“I will once you’re back.”
He hung up. DG replaced the phone in its cradle and let her head fall back against the chair. He’d be home a full day earlier than he’d planned. That was the best news ever.
DG looked over the intake reports from the latest batch of Longcoats taken into custody at the Flornish border. “That’s how many total, now?”
“Over five hundred, ma’am,” General Showalter said.
She nodded. “Cain was told they had about six hundred. Thirty-five were taken during the palace raid, so we’re getting up there.”
“If we can trust what the General was told, yes.”
“Either way, it seems like the Flornish Prime Minister has come to appreciate my seriousness about this.”
“So it would seem, ma’am.”
“Any trace of these invasion armies that Mynus said he had ready?”
The General sighed. “I’m afraid not, ma’am. He did tell the General that he’d withdrawn his forces.”
“He also told him that they weren’t only in Flornistan.”
“I’m not sure how much we can trust that. It’s unlikely a single commander could maintain armies on several borders without our knowledge.”
“If he did, that brings up the troubling idea that the governments of some of our other neighbors were helping him.”
“I think it’s more likely that he maintained armies in their countries without their knowledge. It’s clear that this man had sophisticated cloaking abilities, whether mechanical or magical.”
DG was examining a map of known Longcoat hideouts in Flornistan, many of which had already been cleaned out by the Flornish army, with some assistance from her own forces. “And still no sign of the facility where the General was kept?”
“No, ma’am.”
She put down the map and sat back. “What’s troubling me, General, is exactly who were these invasion forces? Longcoats? He didn’t have that many. Flornish? They’re not the best soldiers around. Hired mercenaries? That seems like a large investment. Who were his soldiers?”
“I don’t know, Your Majesty. He would have needed five thousand troops, at least.”
She folded her hands on her desk. “I need to know how concerned I should be about these potential sympathizers that Mynus was counting on. I always knew there were those who didn’t like the fact that I took the throne, but…I don’t know. It’s troubling to think of our citizens acting against me.”
“Begging your pardon, ma’am, but there are always those who are dissatisfied. You can’t please everyone.”
She smiled ruefully. “I can try, can’t I?”
“If it makes you feel any better, Mynus was certainly right about one thing. The way you thwarted that invasion did a lot to raise your stock.”
She nodded. “I hope it did enough.”
A knock at the door, and Elspeth poked her head in. “Your Majesty? General Cain’s group has returned.”
DG grinned and jumped up. “That’ll be all, gentlemen.”
“Of course, Your Majesty,” said General Showalter, a knowing smile on his face.
She came out of the elevator on the first sub-level, where the motor pool was, and hurried down the hall. She didn’t know which bay Cain’s group would have parked in; she stopped at the intersection of two hallways, looking right and left, confused. A passing footman caught her eye. “He’s in Bay 4, Your Majesty,” he said, pointing and smiling.
“Thanks!” DG tossed back over her shoulder as she took off towards the door.
Bay 4 was crowded with trucks and transports. Cain’s inspection group had numbered over twenty officers and soldiers, and several representatives of the Ozian Council, plus all their field gear. She stood at the door, craning her neck, trying to catch a glimpse of Cain’s hat. She stepped off the curb and pushed her way through, the soldiers and officers stopping and bowing to her as she passed. She paid them no mind, walking on tiptoes to see over the vehicles.
Finally, she saw him near the back, directing a few soldiers who were unloading locked cases, which would be the reports he and the group had generated. She couldn’t help but feel a little silly at the bolt of pure joy that zinged through her just at the sight of him. Damn, DG. You have got it bad. One of the men with him spotted her and gave Cain a nudge. He turned around and broke into a broad smile at the sight of her. “Hey there, Princess,” he said.
DG grinned, ran to him and jumped into his arms, not caring if it was proper or how she looked doing so. I’m the Queen, dammit. If a little PDA crosses anyone’s eyes, they can just look away. Cain’s arms wrapped around her waist as she kissed him. “You smell like campfires,” she said, smiling.
He pushed his hat back with one finger. “I hope that isn’t a deterrent.”
“Hardly,” she said, kissing him again. Cain set her down and she pulled away, keeping a hold of his hand. “I assume your men can take care of this without your help,” she said.
“Yeah, we’re totally good here,” said Danny Armagnac, grinning, a clipboard in his hand.
“Are you sure you don’t need me to…” Cain began.
“Nope. Don’t need a thing. In fact, you’re kind of in the way.”
DG winked at Danny. “Why don’t I just get him out from underfoot, Captain?”
“We’d be much obliged, ma’am. After a week sharing a tent with him, I’ve had about as much as I can take.”
Cain shot a bemused glare back at Danny, but let DG lead him out of the bay, the men and women of his group hiding smiles and keeping their eyes carefully averted.
They walked down the hall towards the elevator, hand in hand. “How was your drive home?” DG asked, making filler conversation until they got to their quarters and she could unwrap him like a lollipop, one of the big giant swirly kind.
“Boring,” he said. “I couldn’t even doze off, it was too bumpy.”
“Well, at least you made good mmmmph…” They’d reached the elevator, and as soon as the doors closed Cain grabbed her and swept her up into a deep kiss, pulling her tight against him. DG responded eagerly, her heart leaping at his urgency. It was a heady thing to feel how much he desired her, enough that he couldn’t even wait until they reached their quarters before he had to be kissing her. He slid one hand boldly down her back and over the swell of her ass, his fingers wrapping around it. She laughed softly and reached behind her to put her own hand over his, holding it there. Cain cocked one eyebrow.
“Miss me?” he growled.
“Shut up,” she whispered, and fell into his mouth again.
They were politely disengaged by the time the elevator doors opened on the residential floor, hands clasped and faces flushed. They walked briskly to their quarters, Cain nodding to those who greeted him.
He was doffing his coat and hat as they entered the suite. DG held onto his hands and walked backwards toward the bedroom, grinning and pulling him after her. “How much time do we have?” he asked, shutting the bedroom door behind him.
“Not long. I have an audience in half an hour.”
Cain’s lip curled in a slow, dangerous smile. “That’s long enough.” He pulled on her hands and she let herself be drawn back into his arms and a long, slow, thorough kiss of the kind Cain seemed to specialize in. He’d certainly elevated it to an art form. He drew back and rested his forehead against hers, a weary sigh escaping him, his hands linked at the small of her back. “I didn’t think it’d be that hard,” he murmured.
“What?”
“Being away from you.”
She put her hand on his face. “Then I guess we better stick together from now on, huh?”
He put his hand over hers and turned his face to kiss her palm. DG melted at the look in his eyes, so clear, so unshuttered. She was still getting used to seeing Cain’s emotions there on his face; he’d spent so much of his life hiding them, had hid them from her for much of their friendship and their marriage. More than anything else, it was this that let her know how much had changed inside him. He let her see into himself.
She stood on tiptoe and kissed him, tilting her head to capture his lips between hers, exhaling as they sank deeper into it. Her hands went to his uniform as his went to her blouse and they quickly undressed each other, letting their clothing lie where it fell. Cain walked her backwards to the bed and laid her out naked, then climbed up to join her. She pulled him on top of her, impatient with the foreplay; he hooked one of her knees over his forearm and plunged into her. DG gasped, her fingers clutching his biceps, his shirt still on but hanging open. She ran her hands up his chest and pushed it off his shoulders so she could get her hands on him. Cain groaned, his head falling into the crook of her shoulder. DG bit her lip, writhing beneath his long, smooth thrusts. “You feel so damn good, darlin,” he whispered.
DG wrapped her legs around his hips. “Yesssss,” she hissed, seizing his ass in both hands, spurring him to quicken his tempo.
“You like that? Hmmm?” he gasped. Arousal was making him forget himself. DG considered it a personal triumph that she’d been good enough in bed to get Wyatt Cain to be vocal during sex, something that had never been a problem for her.
“Oh god, baby,” she moaned into his ear. He’d never admit it, but he liked it when she called him “baby” in bed. “Yeah, harder…like that…”
“Goddamn, Deej,” he choked out. He lifted his head and kissed her hungrily, teeth nipping, devouring her mouth and neck, sweat springing to their skin as their rhythm spiralled higher and higher. DG felt herself surging up that hill, carried with him, his body the closest thing to heaven she’d ever felt as it bore her higher and higher.
She hung onto him tight as she felt her body crest the peak. “Yesyes ohgodohgod,” she babbled, clutching at him as she felt him tighten, his teeth clenched until he burst into her, his cry of release pushing her over the edge; she seized around him and they held tight, kissing with manic urgency, until they both sagged, spent. DG twitched helplessly, feeling a dopey smile spread over her face, cradling her husband’s damp head to her breast.
“Great Gale,” he gasped.
“Why, thank you.”
He chuckled. “Maybe I ought to go away more often, if we get sex like that when I come back.” He propped up to look down at her face, her legs still wrapped around him, keeping him inside her. He pushed a sweaty lock of hair from her face. He shook his head a little. “I love you so damn much,” he murmured. “You’ll never know.”
DG’s chest swelled, a bubble of happiness rising inside her. She cupped his face in one hand. “Even if it’s only half as much as I love you, then I’ll know enough,” she said.