Chapter 23

The days blurred together in a flurry of activity. Childhood memories of time spent with his mother and father surfaced that Xan had long since forgotten—hours upon hours that he had sat at his mother’s side as she made her way through imperial correspondence. Day after day filled with requests, grievances, and requirements were all in the life of a ruler. His stamina for manual labor had increased over the years, but for these tedious matters, he still needed to get in shape.

It was less than four months until his coronation, and Xan felt as if he were slowly drowning in a sea of paperwork. The bright spots in his days were waking up with Sloan in his arms, meals with Sloan and his sister, and the occasional sparring match with Cain in the afternoons. His mother continued to keep her distance, only taking her midday meals with the rest of them.

His mother did, however, make herself readily available during the day to help brief Xan on anything and everything that needed to be done before his coronation. She reviewed his correspondence drafts and helped ensure that he had all the background information he needed to succeed in the new position. It seemed that Ragon had not been keen to take over the day-to-day ruling and had left it up to their mother. While there were still three years until he would have been crowned in Xan’s place, Xan was surprised Ragon hadn’t arrived yet. Xan was sure someone had contacted him to let him know Xan had been found.

The imperial guard also took some getting used to for Sloan. On the ship, they had been able to move freely without escorts, but here in the palace, there were at least two guards posted to Xan or outside the room he was in at all times. It felt claustrophobic at times. Sloan was taking the intrusion especially hard and often tried to lose her detail. After a few chastisements from Cain, mainly about how keeping her safe allowed Xan not to worry about her and concentrate on his work, Sloan finally relented and allowed the guards to protect her.

He rolled over and took in Sloan’s sleeping face; she still took his breath away. She had been through so much in her life—taken from her planet without parents or any other family. Xan pushed a curl from her face and enjoyed running his fingers over it as the light filtered through her honey-brown curls. Xan didn’t have anyone else in the entire universe. He had thought he was in the same situation. It had drawn them together. Now that he knew he had family and a place in the universe, he wanted to share that with her. He wanted her to know she had a place in the sector, and it was by his side.

Sloan grumbled in her sleep and pulled the blankets over her head. “Too sunny,” she said before snuggling up to Xan. He chuckled and told her to stop complaining. Grabbing on to the blanket and sliding it down, Xan kissed her on the lips as she cracked open her eyes and glared at him.

“Waking me up with the first sun is no way to get into my pants.” She yawned, stretching her arms over her head. Xan couldn’t help but harden at the nightclothes Sloan was wearing. Along with the more formalwear Yaris had helped Sloan choose, it seemed there were also had a number of undergarments made for her.

This one was silky with triangles of fabric that covered her ample breasts. Her nipples pebbled as the warm blanket slid down her body. It skimmed over her hips and ended mid-thigh. Running his hands up her thigh to cup her bare pussy, Xan saw her eyes flare and watched her licked her lips. He brought her lips to his but was interrupted by a knock at the door. Xan let out an exasperated breath. Thwarted again! There was another round of knocking followed by a voice.

“Majesty, my pardon for waking you so early, but we have an urgent message from your brother. He has requested to speak with you immediately.” The voice of Xan’s personal assistant, Kerl, filtered through the door. Kerl had been an invaluable asset in getting Xan accustomed to palace life, but at that moment Xan wanted nothing more than to banish him from the palace. The fact that his brother required him was the only thing that forced Xan to get out of the bed.

“On my way, Kerl,” Xan shouted at the door, knowing Kerl would continue knocking until he felt the need to have a guard check on Xan’s well-being. They had figured out that a particularly passionate early morning romp made them deaf to the world.

“I promise we will finish this later,” Xan said and kissed Sloan to the point that they were both gasping. “It seems we are always dealing with interruptions.”

“Whether it was the comm on the ship or your assistants or guards here, it seems that someone is always trying to stop me from getting into your pants,” she said sleepily.

“I’m sorry I woke you. Go back to sleep.” Xan retrieved his clothes and began to get dressed for the day.

“Like I could sleep after that kiss.” She sat up and dragged her knees to her chest. She supported her head on her knees and watched him get dressed. “Busy day?”

“When isn’t it a busy day around here? I swear if I didn’t have to sleep, they would run me around the clock. As it is, it seems as though everyone is up before me and doesn’t leave until after me.” Putting on his shoes, Xan saw Sloan’s face drop slightly. “What do you have planned today?”

“I was going to try to call Dev today. They should be within communicator range soon. There’s a lot to tell them. Then we need to figure out our next job. I know you threw out that whole big payday thing, but I can’t cover that from the credits I have in reserve. I need to work that out.”

Xan got up from the chair and sat on the edge of the bed facing Sloan. He ran his hands down her back, then trailed a finger up and over her shoulder.

“I wasn’t kidding about that, Sloan. I will give you the credits you need to give everyone a well-deserved break.” Sloan sat up straight.

“I don’t want your credits, Xan. I know I don’t have much, but I’m not here for your credits. I will find a way to give the crew a break soon,” she said on a growl, shrugging off his hand and getting out of bed.

“Sloan, you know I don’t mean to suggest you can’t care for your crew. I know how much they mean to you—”

“You think I can’t get the credits I need to give them some time off,” Sloan said, stomping over to the closet.

“My D’Auriel, I have so much, and you and the crew have done so much for me. I want to give them this time off. Give you this time off. Things will be busy, and I don’t want to add the unneeded stress of securing more work for the crew.”

“I don’t need your help, Xan. I’ve survived out in space for more than fifteen years. I can do this on my own,” she said as she came out of the closet wearing pants. Pulling on her shirt, she glared at him. “I can take care of my crew.” She grabbed a hair band from the dressing area and put up her hair in jerky, angry motions.

“Sloan, I wasn’t trying to say you can’t—” There was another knock at the door.

“Majesty, your brother is still waiting.” Kerl’s muffled voice came through the door.

“I will be there in a minute,” shouted Xan.

“Go talk to your brother, Xan. I’ll see if I can get in touch with Dev.” Sloan marched over to the door and flung it open. “He’s all yours, Kerl.”

A stunned Kerl stood in the doorway as Sloan brushed past him, her guard scurrying to catch up to her as her angry strides carried her away.

Shaking his head, Xan stood to take the call from his brother.

“Majesty, I apologize if I caused any issues,” Kerl said.

“It’s fine, Kerl. Where am I taking the call from my brother?”

“In your private office. Right this way, Majesty.”

Xan shook his head and wondered how a morning that had been filled with so many tantalizing possibilities had gone so wrong so quickly.