Stolen Kingdom
By Misha
Disclaimer- Not mine. I’m just borrowing them and will return them when I am finished.
Rating- NSFW
Words- 1940
Chapter Three
Dom lingered in the stables, doing the busy working, though mostly he was just trying to avoid the castle.
Luckily, there was plenty to keep him busy, even if they weren’t within the realm of his normal duties. The castle was bustling with people in preparation for the royal wedding and that included the stables, which was full of horses thanks to all the visiting nobility.
Dom fought a sigh at the thought of the wedding. He’d been doing his best not to think about it, but it was impossible to avoid.
Today was Kenna’s wedding day.
He knew he was being foolish, reacting like this, after all, he’d always known this day would come. He’d known for years that Kenna would have to marry one day and that it would be someone of “appropriate” rank, but… The reality was something else.
Especially since it had happened so quickly. Kenna had told him once that she would be expected to marry after the alliance was finished, but then she had met Prince Diavolos and apparently everything had changed.
Including the relationship between Kenan and Dom. They had barely seen each other in the months since her betrothal had been announced.
The Queen had kept Kenna busy with wedding plans and then when Prince Diavolos was visiting, he and Kenna were inseparable. The sight was a knife to Dom’s heart because it was obvious this wasn’t just an arranged marriage. No, it was apparent from watching them that Kenna had chosen Diavolos.
Which was why, even when Kenna could slip away and see him, things weren’t the same. The easy friendship they had shared since childhood had vanished overnight. Maybe that was normal, Dom thought with a sigh, especially given his feelings for Kenna, which naturally made the new situation a little awkward.
It was more than that though, the closer the wedding got, the stronger the niggling feeling in his gut grew that something was off. Something about King Luther set Dom on edge. He was just so smug as if he knew something no one else did, and it made Dom suspicious.
However, he kept those suspicions to himself, because he had no proof, just a bad feeling and he knew how easily those feelings could be dismissed as jealousy, given his history with Kenna and his unhappiness about her pending marriage.
So all he could do was keep an eye on things and hope, that if something was happening, he’d be able to act quickly and come to Kenna’s aid if she needed him. Because no matter what, he’d always be on her side.
—
“Oh, Kenna, you look beautiful,” Adrianna told her daughter as she helped her dress the morning of the wedding.
The dress had been ordered as soon as the betrothal was official, the kingdom’s best seamstresses working for months to pull off a vision of silk and lace. Kenna wasn’t much for fancy gowns, but she had to admit this one was beautiful and she couldn’t help but wonder what Diavolos would think when he saw her in it.
“Thank you, Mother.” She said with a smile, holding her breath as her mother tightened the laces of the dress.
She hoped that her mother didn’t notice that the dress was a little tighter than it had been at the last fitting. She also wondered how her mother would react once she knew that Kenna was with child.
It hadn’t been officially confirmed, of course, but Kenna had missed two cycles now and she’d noticed a slight thickening at her waist. Of course, she and Diavolos would be married in a matter of hours, so what did it matter if they’d anticipated their wedding vows?
Adriana paused, her hands coming to rest on Kenna’s shoulders. “You are happy, aren’t you, Butterfly? I know I pushed you to consider this marriage, but your happiness is important and if you’re not sure…”
“I am,” Kenna assured her, not even hesitating in her answer. “This is what I want, Mother.”
And it was. A part of her would always wish she’d been able to choose her own fate, but… She wasn’t a normal girl, she was the Princess of Stormholt and she’d always known she had to make an advantageous marriage and she could have done much worse than Diavolos.
He was handsome and kind and she thought she might be falling in love with him, which she’d never expected to be true of her future husband.
It also didn’t hurt that on a physical level, they connected in a way she’d never dared hope for. He was a skilled and generous lover and she found herself thinking about him when they were apart, remembering his hands on her body and the way he could make her tremble with a single touch…
No, all things considered, she was very fortunate to have ended up with him as her husband and she was very happy with the way things had worked out.
—
“The princess looks suitably starry-eyed,” Luther commented with an approving nod.
Diavolos simply shrugged, unable to form a reply. He knew the reaction his father wanted and he wasn’t sure he could give it, not when he was feeling an intense guilt over what he had put in motion.
The guilt had increased the closer they got to the wedding and as he faced the reality of what he was doing, the way he was manipulating Kenna and the consequences of his father’s plan.
The only thing that kept the guilt slightly at bay was the reminder that originally his father had planned on killing all the royalty of the Five Kingdoms, Kenna included.
Now, thanks to him and their marriage, she would live. More than that, she would be happy, Diavolos would see to it. He wasn’t sure if she loved him, but he knew she cared deeply for him and that he enjoyed having him in her bed. There was no denying the pleasure she found in his arms. That was a good foundation, the rest would come, he was sure of it.
“I have a plan for Adriana,” Luther announced after a moment, “one that will help keep the girl loyal.”
“I don’t want to know,” Diavolos said quickly.
Luther raised an eyebrow and Diavolos steeled himself for a lecture, but then Luther nodded. “Yes, that’s probably for the best. The fewer lies you have to tell, the better. We don’t want to arouse her suspicions.”
Diavolos fought the sigh of relief. “Just promise me that Kenna will be unharmed,” Diavolos said quietly, meeting his father’s eyes, his gaze firm. He was prepared for his father to call him soft or criticize him, but he wasn’t backing down on this.
To his surprise, Luther did neither of those things. “As of today, she’ll be a Nevrakis,” his father said instead, “and we protect our own. As long as she stands with us, no harm will ever come to her.”
—
“Ready to get out of here?” Diavolos whispered in Kenna’s ear as he wrapped his arms around her from behind.
“Yes,” she admitted, sinking into his embrace, “but it’s still early.”
The wedding feast was over, but the ball had barely begun.
“It’s our wedding night,” Diavolos reminded her in a low voice, “no one will question us wanting to leave.”
Kenna blushed at the implication, but she knew he was right and really, that was what she wanted, to be alone with him. She pulled out of his embrace and offered him her hand instead.
Diavolos brought it to his lips and kissed it, then linked his fingers through hers before leading her out of the banquet hall. They walked through the halls with a haste that would have embarrassed Kenna if she wasn’t so desperate to be alone with her husband.
Her husband, there was something surreal about the fact that she had a husband. However, she didn’t have time to linger on that thought because they’d reached her (their) chambers.
Diavolos paused and then suddenly Kenna found herself being lifted off the ground into his arms, she wrapped her arms around his neck as he carried her over the threshold. Diavolos set her down beside the bed and then stepped back, the combination of lust and admiration in his gaze making her flush.
“You are so beautiful,” he told her as he stepped towards her, reaching for the ties of her gown. “My beautiful wife.”
He undid the ties gently, his hands gently caressing her bare flesh and as he pushed her dress down, his mouth joined his hands, placing gentle kiss along her shoulders.
“Diavolos,” Kenna whimpered as he pushed her onto the bed.
“Yes, my love?” He asked, the endearment sending a thrill through her.
“I need you,” Kenna told him, reaching for him.
“You’ll have me,” Diavolos promised even as he evaded her touch, “but first I plan on taking my time with you and worshipping you the way you deserve.” He knelt between her legs, his strong hands pushing them apart, “the way I will for the rest of our lives.”
—
“Diavolos?”
“Hmm?” He murmured against his wife’s shoulder. His wife. Kenna was now his wife.
She turned in his embrace so that she was facing him and he immediately noticed that there was a nervous, but hopeful light in her eyes. Was she going to confess her love?
Diavolos held his breath, waiting for her words, his gut telling them they would be life-changing.
“I’m with child,” she said instead, watching him carefully, obviously waiting for his reaction.
Diavolos paused, this wasn’t what he’d expected to hear and it wasn’t something he’d given any thought to. Which was naïve, of course, especially when he knew it was his father’s goal because a child would strengthen Kenna’s tie to him and secure his claim to Stormholt.
But Diavolos wasn’t thinking about that, all he could think about that was he was going to be a father. It was overwhelming and a little terrifying.
“Diavolos?” Kenna asked after a moment, “are you unhappy about the news?”
“Of course not,” he assured her immediately, his hand gravitating towards her stomach. “Though, I have to admit I was hoping to have you to myself for a little longer.”
She blushed. “Well, then you shouldn’t have snuck into my room so often,” she teased.
“I can’t help it, my love,” he told her, his hands traveling lower, “I can’t resist you.”
He teased her soft folds with his fingers, enjoying the way she sighed under his touch. Diavolos continued to pleasure her with his hand, bringing her to the brink before rolling her under him and slipping inside of her.
Kenna groaned, instinctively pulling him closer. “You feel so good…” She moaned, her hips moving in time with his thrusts.
Diavolos sped up his movements, driving himself into her hard and fast, feeling a deep primal urge to claim this woman as his. His wife, the mother of his child. Maybe his motives hadn’t been pure at first, but as he spilled himself inside of her, her name on his lips, it hit him that he loved her.
After a long moment, Diavolos rolled onto his back and gathered Kenna in his arms, silently vowing as he did so that he was going to be the best husband possible.
It was too late to stop his father’s plans for Queen Adriana, but he could shield Kenna from them. She would be happy and safe with him, he would do whatever he had to to make sure of that.
—
