Liam heard the distinctive sound of Riley’s musical laughter coming from somewhere in the great hall. He stopped to listen, a smile playing across his lips. She was such a breath of fresh air in the palace. Her energy and joie de vivre was so infectious, it seemed as though no one was immune to her charms. In fact, just yesterday he’d caught Bastien humming one of the pop tunes she loved so much.
Eager to see what was so delighting her, he followed the sound, stopping when he reached the library.
He pushed the door open and peered inside, the smile fading quickly from his face as he took in the scene before him.
Drake sat in a wing-back chair by the fire, with Riley draped across his shoulder. They had their heads pressed together as they laughed quietly. They were so engrossed in one another that they hadn’t even noticed him.
Liam cleared his throat loudly. “Don’t you two look cozy.”
Startled, they looked up to find Liam leaning against the door frame gazing at them with a frown on his handsome face. Riley stood and backed away, quickly putting distance between she and Drake.
“Liam.” She said with a nervous smile, “You startled me.”
“So I see.” He spoke to Riley, but his eyes never left Drake.
“We were just watching funny dog videos on my phone. There’s one of this Corgi that can play piano. I’ll play if for you…”
“Maybe another time, Lady Riley.” He interrupted, giving her a tight smile, “Right now I need a word with Drake.” He returned his steely gaze to his friend, “Drake…if you wouldn’t mind.”
Without giving him a chance to respond, Liam turned on his heel and strode from the room.
Drake heaved a heavy sigh and pushed himself out of the chair.
“Well that sounded suspiciously like a royal command.”
“I’m so sorry, Drake.” Riley looked close to tears, “I don’t know what I was thinking. I shouldn’t have been sitting so close to you. It was… inappropriate. I can only imagine what he’s thinking right now.”
“Relax, Matheson.” He said giving her shoulder a reassuring squeeze “I’ll handle it. Don’t give it a second thought, okay.”
Riley bit her bottom lip anxiously and nodded.
By the time Drake made it to the hallway, Liam was several feet ahead of him. Drake broke into a jog to catch up before falling into step beside the King.
“Liam…”
Liam held up his hand, silencing him instantly. Drake snapped his mouth shut, sulking moodily as he followed Liam to his private chambers.
Liam swung the door open and motioned Drake in, slamming it behind them so hard that several pictures on the wall shook.
“SIT.” He commanded
Drake took a seat on the couch in the sitting area, leaning back and propping one ankle on the opposite knee.
“So.” He drawled, raising a sardonic eyebrow, “Who pissed in your cheerios this morning?”
Liam shot Drake a quelling look as he crossed to the bar at the far end of the room. He dropped some ice cubes into a tumbler and splashed a liberal amount of whiskey into the glass before returning to stand in front of Drake.
“I don’t suppose that’s for me.”
Their eyes locked and Liam raised the glass to his mouth, taking a long sip.
“Guess not.” Drake muttered.
“Would you like to explain to me what I walked in on just now?” Liam’s tone was calm, but Drake could see the tell-tale tightening of his jaw that meant he was holding his temper in check.
He shrugged his shoulders meeting Liam’s icy stare with one of his own. “Just a couple friends watching dog videos, that’s all.”
“Is that so?” Liam’s eyes narrowed slightly as he perched on the edge of his desk. “It was all just innocent fun? Just friends…sitting by a romantic fire…hanging all over each other… watching YouTube videos?”
Drake cocked his head to the side and grinned at Liam. “Are you seriously jealous right now?”
Liam gave a harsh laugh, “Of course not.”
“Good. Because you realize how stupid that would be, right?” Drake held his hand out and Liam handed the tumbler to him without thinking.
Drake took a sip of whiskey, studying Liam’s intently. He seemed calmer now, his shoulders relaxed as he leaned back against his desk.
“If you’ll recall, you’re the one who told me to stick close to her. To get her to trust me.”
“Apparently it’s working.” Liam said wryly
Drake’s face broke into wide grin, “I knew it. You are jealous!”
The corner of Liam’s mouth twitched as he gave in to an embarrassed smile. “Maybe just a little.”
Liam pushed away from his desk and bent down to cup Drake’s face in his hands, enjoying the familiar scrape of his beard against his palms.
“Maybe I don’t like the thought of sharing you with her.” Liam said softly as he guided Drakes lips to his. He let out an audible sigh when he felt Drakes hand cup the back of his head, his fingers tangling in his hair as their tongues collided. After a minute Drake pulled his head back and gazed into Liam’s eyes before falling back against the couch with a sigh.
“You know, if anyone has a reason to be jealous these days, it’s me.” He took another deep swallow of the amber liquid and handed the glass back to Liam. “This whole suitor situation is complete bullshit.”
“Drake…” Liam said gently. “We’ve discussed this.”
“Yeah Li…we’ve fucking talked it to death,” he said sharply. “That doesn’t make it suck any less.”
Liam hung his head.
“Do you have any idea how hard it is to watch those girls fawn over you.” Drake continued, his voice flat, “To watch you flirt with them, kiss them…” He tilted his head back and sighed at the ceiling, “to listen to you fuck them.”
Liam winced and Drake couldn’t help a little smirk. “You really should be more discreet. You know what they’re calling you, right?”
Liam furrowed his brow and shook his head.
“The Kinky King. Because of your penchant for fucking loudly in places where you know you’ll be caught.”
Liam had the grace to blush. “You know why I do that.”
“Yeah, yeah. I know. To throw everyone off the trail. To make sure that the courtly gossip focuses on your sexual encounters with the beautiful women of the court rather than your commoner best friend.” Drake raked his fingers through his hair, his frustration apparent, “I get it. But like I said, doesn’t make it suck any less.”
Liam leaned over and smoothed Drakes hair back into place, tugging on it a little until Drake looked up at him, his dark eyes clouded with sadness, “I know this is hard on you, my love.” He said softly, his fingers stroking the back of his neck, “It’s hard for me too.”
“Then put an end to it!” Drake shouted, pulling away, “Marry Liv. She knows about us and she’s fine with it. It might even be fun. I’ve fucked her, you’ve fucked her. One big happy family, right?”
Liam was already shaking his head, “The people will never support a Nevrakis on the throne, you know this. Cordonia is already far too unstable. I need a Queen that will unify the country not plunge it into civil unrest.”
Drake slumped back against the couch in defeat. Continuing this argument was pointless and he knew he’d never win anyway. Liam was going to do the right thing, because that’s what Liam did. He’d sacrifice his own personal happiness for the good of Cordonia.
They sat side by side on the couch, shoulders touching, knees bumping together as they passed the tumbler of whiskey back and forth.
“Damn Leo.” Liam mumbled, “This is all his fault. If he hadn’t abdicated…”
“Jesus Liam…” Drake groaned, “Not this again.”
“But it’s true! If Leo had stayed and claimed his birthright…”
“What would’ve changed?” Drake said wearily, “A big fat nothing, that’s what.”
“That’s not true. I wouldn’t be forced to marry…to produce heirs. Everything would be different.”
Drake laughed. “Yeah? You think we’d be able to be together, out in the open? The Prince and his gay, commoner lover?” He shook his head, “It would never happen. Not even if Leo was King. You have to know that, Li. What we have now is the best we can ever hope for.”
“It’s not fair.” Liam said softly.
“Nope, it isn’t. But when has life ever been fair?”
Liam stood and crossed to the bar to refill their glass. On his way back, a picture on his desk caught his eye. He picked it up and studied it for a minute before turning it around to show Drake. “Do you remember this day?”
Drake didn’t even have to look to know what Liam was talking about. It was a picture that Leo had taken of them the day they set sail on an epic adventure at sea. The day Liam nearly drown. They were standing side by side arms slung around each others shoulders, grinning like fools.
“Like it was yesterday.”
“You saved my life that day.”
Drake laughed. “If I hadn’t dragged you out there when a storm was brewing, your life wouldn’t have needed saving.”
Liam smiled and placed the picture back where he found it before joining Drake on the couch again.
Liam gazed at Drake, studying the face he’d loved for more than half of his life. He saw the little flecks of gold in his eyes that caught the light. He knew how dark those eyes could turn when he was angry or troubled…or turned on. He ran his thumb over the small creases by his eyes that grew deeper when he smiled. He hadn’t changed much over the years. He was still every bit as handsome as he was when they were boys, maybe even more so now.
“Even then I knew I was in love with you. But you had no idea.”
Drake laughed again. “Don’t kid yourself. Subtlety has never been your strong suit. I knew.”
Liam smiled, his eyes sparkling. “You just let me suffer then.”
Drake shifted his body, throwing his arm across the back of the couch as he leaned toward Liam, pressing their mouths together. “I wasn’t sure how I felt about it yet.” He murmured against Liam’s lips.
The kiss was long and languid, with an underlying heat that could quickly ignite into a wildfire at any moment. Reluctantly, Liam pulled away, resting his forehead against Drakes for a moment before sitting back, an indulgent smile on his face. “When did you know?”
Drake smirked at him. “Do you remember our first kiss?”
“How could I forget?” He said, a wistful expression flitting across his face. “The summer I turned eighteen. We were in Lythikos visiting Liv.”
Drake nodded. “She stole a bottle of 100 year old Nevarkis wine and we brought it down to the lake. We all got completely wasted and she convinced us to play truth or dare.”
Liam laughed, “That’s right! The first of many over the years.”
“She dared you to kiss me.”
Liam nodded. “I never was one to back down from a dare.” He quirked a brow at Drake, “Remember what happened next?”
Drake nodded and bit his bottom lip, trying to keep from laughing. “Yeah…I…uh…”
“You completely freaked out.”
Drake smiled sheepishly. “Yeah. How many times are you going to make me apologize for that? You kind of sprung it on me. I wasn’t ready. I was young, confused…”
“Sleeping with Olivia….” Liam supplied helpfully.
“Yeah, there was that.” Drake rubbed the back of his neck in agitation.
“And the next day” Liam continued, his voice suddenly thick with emotion, “You were gone.”
“Li…” Drake said softly, his eyes clouded with pain, “C’mon. Don’t.”
“You ran away, Drake”
“I didn’t run away. I went to college.”
“You took off in the middle of the night and enrolled in a college 3000 miles away. I call that running away.”
“Ok, Fine. So maybe I ran.” Drake said with an exasperated sigh, “But I did it because I was really fucking confused. My best friend kissed me…and I liked it. I didn’t know what to do with that. All I knew is that up to that point, I was pretty damn into pussy. I didn’t know what the fuck to do with the feelings I had for you. So yeah…I ran.“
“Don’t run again, Drake.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
Liam reached out to stroke Drake’s stubble covered cheek tenderly. “Promise? Because I can see that this is taking a toll on you. I see you retreating…more than usual.”
Drake wouldn’t meet his eyes.
Liam punched him in the shoulder.
“OW!” Drake glared at him rubbing the spot where a bruise was rapidly forming, “What the fuck was that for?”
“Tell me you aren’t going to leave again.”
“Fine, fine… I won’t leave.” he mumbled with a petulant scowl.
Liam rolled his eyes. “Now say it like you mean it.” He commanded
Drake reached out to yank Liam in for another blistering kiss, his fingers sinking into his hair as their mouths fused together. He curled his tongue around Liam’s and sucked gently, sending a jolt of desire racing through Liam’s body. Liam brought his hands up to Drakes chest, the fingers of one hand grabbing onto Drake’s shirt while the other slid inside to roam over his tightly muscled abs. Electricity crackled between them, as it always did, even after all these years.
After a minute Drake pulled his head back and looked down into Liam’s face.
“I’m not leaving again. I knew when I let Leo bring me back that I’d never find the strength to leave you again. You’re my weakness, Li. I love you.”
Liam smiled. “I love you too Drake. Forever. I don’t want you to worry. We’ll find a way to make this work, okay? I really think she might be the answer we’re looking for.”
“Riley?”
Liam nodded. “We have a real connection. I care about her…and I think she feels the same. But I sense that she’s conflicted. I think she’s falling for you too.”
“And…” Drake worried his bottom lip between his teeth for a minute before raising his eyes to Liam’s, “You’re okay with that?”
Liam nodded. “It might work to our advantage. If she feels some sort of affection for you she might be more willing to…turn a blind eye to our relationship. She’d make an excellent Queen. The people love her. She young and vibrant and outgoing. Her views and ideal are modern without being radical. I think she’d be good for Cordonia.”
“I agree.”
“So I need you to help me convince her.”
Drake’s brows drew together in a deep frown, “What are you suggesting, Li? Do you want me to seduce Riley?”
Liam threw his head back and let out a hearty laugh, “No, of course not. Nothing so nefarious as that. Just keep doing what you’re doing. She’s already drawn to you, not that I can blame her.” He reached out to brush a lock of chestnut hair from Drakes eyes, “You’re fairly irresistible when you want to be.”
“Heh. Irresistible huh? Everyone else tells me I’m cranky.”
“Oh, you definitely are.” Liam agreed with an affectionate smile, “But it’s endearing.”
“Do you think she’ll still want to be queen when she finds out about us?”
Liam ran his hand over his face and shrugged. Finding out your betrothed is in love with someone else was usually a deal breaker under the best of circumstances. Finding out that lover was another man, well…Liam was pragmatic enough to know that Riley may not respond well to the news.
“I don’t know. But it will have to be a condition that she agrees to before we’re married. If I do choose her as my queen, she’s going to have to know everything. Because I’m not giving you up. Not for her…not for Cordonia…not for anything.”
“What if she doesn’t agree?”
Liam gave a deep, shuddering sigh. “Then I suppose I accept Madeline’s proposed arrangement.”