My eyes blinked open. I sat up in a panic. Virtus! I looked around my room. The old female medic was sitting on a chair close to me, crocheting.

  “Good morning, Your Majesty,” she said softly.

  “Where is my husband?” I spluttered.

  “He must be somewhere around here,” she told me calmly.

  It had all been a dream. I sat and let my mind wander.

  “He must be at his father’s funeral procession,” I said slowly. “It’s happening this morning.”

  “No your highness, that was yesterday morning. Today is the second day of the three funeral days. This mid-day we will be starting the ceremony at the Great Temple.”

  “Have I been asleep so long?” I asked, confused.

  “Well yes and no,” she told me. “You’ve woken up a little in between to eat, drink and use the chamberpot. You were quite out of it, perhaps you don’t remember.”

  “Ohhh, yes now I remember.”

  I would tell any lie I had to to seem sane.

  “Priestess,” I continued. “Which day of my quarantine is it today?”

  “The king died five days ago, Your Majesty. So there would be two left, today and tomorrow. That is if we think you are well enough at the end of it.”

  “So I wouldn’t make it out in time for the king’s burial tomorrow.”

  Which meant that Duchess Karina would be by Virtus’s side through all of his troubles, and I would be locked in my room. It made me more annoyed than I had any right to be.

  ***

  The day passed slowly, but steadily. Finally, I was able to read again. I embroidered a few flowers and the old priestess seemed very satisfied to look at them. In the afternoon, Virtus came to meet me.

  “My love, are you better today?” he asked with a trembling voice.

  “Yes, much better.”

  “Yesterday I came twice, but both times they said you were sleeping.”

  “Yes, I finally got my sleep in and now I feel perfectly well. I could even leave my room tonight,” I said cheerfully. “Or I could come with you to the burial tomorrow.”

  “My love that is not a good idea.”

  “Open the door,” I told him. “I’ll sit far away.”

  I had looked at myself carefully in the mirror earlier that day. I knew I looked better. Sir Thanmar slowly opened the door for us, revealing his exhausted expression. He brightened up when he saw me.

  “What do you think?” I asked him.

  “You look wonderful, my love. I wish I could kiss you.” He sounded very relieved.

  “You could I’m not sick,” I pouted.

  He ughed.

  “In two days, I will.”

  I smiled too.

  “It’s been so hard doing all this without you, Talia,” he sighed. “Without Plinius too. We still haven’t found him.”

  “Oh, that’s terrible.”

  I wished I had kept the door open, that would have made it easier to lie.

  “You know, he has that friend, Sir Titius. Does he know where Plinius is?”

  I had not wanted to mention Titius, but my curiosity was getting the best of me. Why hadn’t he told on me yet?

  “Actually, Sir Titius disappeared the same night Plinius did.”

  “Oh, that’s strange.”

  He disappeared? That would indicate that Sir Titius was guilty. Perhaps Alvar didn’t do it at all. I was so confused.

  ***

  The st two days of the quarantine passed slowly, but they passed. I was able to read and embroider, and I slept at night without issue. Virtus came to see me on the day of his father’s burial as well. He seemed to be extremely tired, but happy that I was getting better. Finally, on the morning after, I was given permission by the old priestess to exit my room and go where I pleased.

  The first thing I did was to go to Virtus’s room just to see him. I didn’t even bother getting dressed, I went in my night-gown. I knocked on the door and his guard let me in. He y in the bed, having just freshly woken up. His beautiful bck hair was tousled, and he gave me a soft little smile.

  “My darling,” he spread open his arms. “Come to me.”

  I went over to him as he y in bed, and as I approached he grabbed me tightly, pulling me on to the bed with him. I giggled.

  He held me to his chest, rolling me side to side on top of him, kissing my cheeks and neck. I ughed until my cheeks started to hurt.

  “I’m so gd you’re well again,” he murmured into my ear. “I wouldn’t be able to bear it if something happened to you too.”

  A pang of guilt struck my chest. A lot of my husband’s misfortune was my fault. Then he kissed my lips, and the feeling ceded to that familiar warmth I had gotten so used to. I kissed him back, spreading my legs to each side of his for bance.

  His hand dug into my hair as the other one held my waist closer to him. I loved this, I wanted this forever. I never wanted to leave. I stopped kissing him and moved my head above his just to look at him for a moment.

  I looked into his sparkling dark eyes, which were crinkled from smiling. I took in his entire face, his curved nose, his soft lips, his beard, his cheeks, his eyebrows, his lovely curls. I loved every bit of him. I couldn't let him go.

  I kissed him again, pouring everything I was feeling into the kiss. He moved his hand down my back and to my dress, which was bunched around my knees. Slowly he moved it up, stroking the back of my thigh. His hand was warm, and tingled as he touched me. I hadn’t been touched by anyone at all for the st seven days. It was exhirating to feel Virtus’s skin on mine.

  His hand moved further, pulling my dress up with it as it went all the way to my breast. As my dress moved the cold air of the room wafted in under it. I shivered.

  “Are you cold, my love?” he asked.

  I nodded.

  He rolled me to his side and pulled his big bnket over us. We y in bed on our sides, looking at each other. Under the bnket it felt like we were in our own little world. He scooped me close to him, and pulled my leg over his hips. We started kissing again.

  His hand moved up my dress again, this time stopping between my legs. He moved between my lips, getting the wetness he needed to start rubbing my clit slowly. It immediately felt very good. Since the medics had been with me at all times I hadn’t even been able to masturbate in my quarantine, so I was extra sensitive.

  I sighed into our kisses. It felt very good, but he was going too slowly to get me close to an orgasm. I started to grind my hips against his fingers, which made him smile.

  “Slow down, my love.”

  I looked up at him, his loving gaze was fixed on me with a cheeky glint in his eye. Maybe everything would be all right.

  We awkwardly scooted our clothes off our bodies until we were ying naked side by side, his erection pressed against my thigh. We moved the bnket so our heads were out from under it.

  “Turn around,” he whispered.

  I turned around so my back was to him. He moved behind me and lifted my leg so he could enter me. It felt amazing as he pushed into me. I could feel my heart beat between my legs. Then he was inside, he looped one arm under my head and the other went on my hip to help him move.

  “I love you,” he whispered in my ear.

  “I love you too.”

  We moved in unison, building a warm feeling in my stomach. His hand wandered up and down my body, stroking my belly, my breasts, finally finding it’s pce between my legs again. The warm feeling grew more intense.

  He didn’t speed up, but stayed at the same pace. His movements remained slow and deliberate as the warmth built up inside me.

  My orgasm was slow and long, it built up as it was going, feeling better and better with every movement from Virtus. At first it felt like a tingle, then the pleasure spread through my body, filling my senses.

  When I was done, he grabbed my hip and thrust quickly until he came as well. Then we y on the bed together. He was still inside me and he held me even more tightly to his body.

  “I’ll never let you go,” he whispered.