The Alpha Emperor’s Resurrection

13: Aurelia

I still couldn't believe my father was back, and I needed time to process everything. I knew I needed to get in touch with Talia, despite what I had told him, but I couldn't face that thought yet.

The Villa that Robin and his sister had taken him to was luxurious - there were several bedrooms, a swimming pool in a private courtyard, and everything was clean and modern.

I stepped out of the room I was going to be staying in onto a balcony overlooking the forest. I needed to clear my head; I really wanted to be alone, but I didn't tell Robin to leave when he came out.

His sister was exhausting to be around, and I couldn't blame him for needing to get away. The balcony was shared by our rooms, anyway, and he had as much right to be there as I did.

I was a little disappointed when he remained on the other side of the balcony without acknowledging me.The way he was leaning awkwardly against the edge looking out at the trees made him look rather awkward and unsure of himself, and it was rather surprising to see him like that. It certainly wasn't the impression he had given me when we first met.

"What is the deal with you, anyway?" I took a chance and asked him directly, hoping he wouldn't be offended.

"My deal?" he sounded surprised, as if he hadn't expected me to speak to him, but he wasn't upset. "What was that supposed to mean? What deal?"

"I mean…you can't be here just because your sister wants you to be, surely?"

He smiled, and exhaled a laugh as he reached into the back pocket of his scruffy black jeans and pulled out a packet of clove cigarettes. He took out one for himself and offered the pack to me without saying a word. I hadn't smoked in decades, but it wasn't about a craving for nicotine and I accepted the cigarette and brought it to my lips as he struck a match with his thumb and held it out for me.

He leaned in close to light his own cigarette from mine, and I couldn't look away from him as he got close to me.

He smelled like clove oil, and leather, but beneath that was his own scent and I hadn’t paid much attention to that before. It was fresh, and full of energy - virility - despite the fact he seemed so unsure of himself, and it caught me off-guard.

He took a draw from the cigarette and his lips parted slightly when he exhaled the distinctive-smelling smoke.

"What?" he asked, and I blushed because I had been staring at him without meaning to.

"I'm just curious, I suppose. There is clearly more to you than you're letting on."

His eyes sparkled with amusement, and I wasn't sure how he was going to respond to me.

“I just broke up with someone,” he shrugged. “I’m sure you know how it is.”

That may have been true, but it wasn't what his issue was. There was a reason he was with his sister, and I highly doubted he was running away from an ex-girlfriend.

“I haven’t had a boyfriend for a very long time,” I laughed. “It’s a lot less complicated to just keep things physical when you know they aren’t going to last forever.”

"Amen to that. I am not dealing with that bullshit again until I am unceremoniously forced to do the honorable thing."

Spoken like a true future Alpha, but not because of what he said. It was the way he said it that gave me that impression, and I couldn't explain it beyond the fact I had seen it enough that it was obvious to me when someone was destined for that life.

“Forced?” I tossed my own cigarette to the ground. “Who would be unceremoniously forcing someone like you to do anything?”

“You must have seen my life played out a thousand times over the years, Aurelia. Do you really need to know the names this time around? Why don't you tell me what your deal is?"

"My deal?" I laughed, and shook my head. "I don't have a deal. I do what I want, go where I want—"

"—f**k who you want?"

His comment surprised me, but when my eyes widened, he smiled.

"I don't think that is—"

"—I'm sorry," he raised his hands defensively.

"You only said it to test the water," I shrugged. "You’re just too nervous to ask me if I'm interested in you."

"I know you're interested in me. Believe it or not, I'm not interested in you."

I didn't believe it.

"You—"

"—I don't f**k people I actually like."

I tried not to let him see how relieved I was that he apparently liked me.

"Is that really why you just broke up with someone? Because you were starting to care?"

“I broke up with her because she wanted me to commit to her, and I wasn't prepared to do that. If you're going to lecture me about it when we've only just met, I assure you I've heard it before. I'd rather listen to that again than end up stuck with the wrong person before I'm ready, though."

I wasn't going to lecture him - I actually rather admired him for it - but I raised my hands and stepped back from him.

"I guess it's nice to know you like me."

He laughed dryly, then grabbed my waist with no warning and pulled me into a deep kiss.

My hands rested on his firm chest, and I felt that his heart was racing.

"I might make an exception for you," he murmured close to my ear. "I'll regret passing up the chance to see how good someone with your experience is."

"My experience?" I laughed and stepped back from him. "What makes you think I’m going to entertain your morbid curiosity?"

"Suit yourself," he shrugged, and began to turn away.

I grabbed his wrist and pulled him back, pulling his shirt off before he had a chance to react.

"Not bad…" I glanced at his body.

Sculpted muscles, and a number of objectively well-executed tattoos.

I knelt down, and he wound his fingers through my hair.

I brushed my fingers across the top of his jeans, enjoying the way I raised goosebumps on his soft skin as I leaned closer and licked the spot above his belt buckle before blowing it softly so he grunted in frustration.

"I'm curious enough to screw you, but I am not interested in anything else. If you give good head I'll—"

If… as if I wasn't going to be better than any of the women he had been with before me.

"—you’ll forget your own name by the time I’m done with you."

"Really?" he raised one of his eyebrows and began to undo his belt.

I stood up and grasped his hard-on where it was restrained against his thigh.

He was harder than I anticipated already, and he had to stifle himself when I squeezed him gently to get an idea of what I would be dealing with.

"Jesus…" I glanced down.

I hadn't meant to say that aloud; a lot of men would have been significantly more arrogant than he was if they looked like him, let alone…

"Still think you can handle it?" he smirked as he took the things from his pocket and put them down on the table next to us, before pulling down his jeans and underwear.

He definitely had every right to be arrogant, but it was embarrassing that he could see that I was flustered.

He stroked himself, and I looked down again so I could watch him.

"It's a pleasant surprise, I'm not intimidated," I lied before I got back down on my knees. "And you better know how to use that thing, because after I've finished sucking it, I'm going to ride it."

"Is that so?" he laughed, and tousled my hair affectionately as if I was being naive.

I kept my eyes fixed on his as I took him into my mouth and grabbed his thighs; he smiled, and grasped my hair tightly before he forced his c**k further down my throat.

There was a sudden flood of warm wetness between my legs, as if sucking him off was the most exhilarating thing imaginable, and I began to suck him hungrily while my tongue explored him.

Apparently, my skills were adequate, because he closed his eyes and muttered something under his breath.

When he reached for the table I guessed he was grabbing the condom he had deposited along with his cell phone and cigarettes.

Which were exactly what he reached for.

Motherfucker…

I stopped what I was doing and he looked down at me while he lit another cigarette.

He definitely hadn't been lying when he said he didn't f**k people he actually liked, if that was anything to go by.

"If it's too much you can just say so. And I'd rather you didn't try to impress me if we f**k. Obvious discomfort is off-putting and there's no point embarrassing yourself when this is a one-time thing."

I narrowed my eyes and grasped him in my hand firmly, teasing him while I decided what I was going to do.

An attitude like that should have been enough to put a stop to our one-time encounter, but I took it as a challenge and savored the fact he choked on the smoke when I took him in his entirety.

It served him right.

He tangled one of his hands through my hair again and held me in place so he could test my ability to handle him, before deciding I wasn't just trying to impress him.

He grasped my hair tighter and moaned as he exhaled a cloud of clove cigarette smoke, allowing himself the blatantly rare chance to f**k my throat without choking me.

I looked up at him, keeping my eyes fixed on his as he took another draw from the cigarette and smiled at the sight of me.

He closed his eyes and moved his hips again, and I guessed that I wasn't going to be making him forget his name anytime soon if this was what he had decided he wanted, but he was already regretting his comment about not doing anything with me after this.

I rested my hands on his lower back when I felt that he was getting closer, and he flicked the cigarette away and reached for the table again.

If he was going to try to record this on his phone I was going to make him regret it, but thankfully he wasn't quite as arrogant as that and he was only grabbing the condom.

He pushed me away and told me that I was going to struggle to ride him if I was on my knees with my clothes on.

It wasn't exactly going to be practical outside, regardless, but he pulled one of the chairs from the table and sat down. He'd probably been planning that while he had his c**k halfway down my throat; I didn't bother commenting on that, and I straddled him without removing my underwear.

He slid my underwear to the side and rubbed my clit with surprising skill.

I had expected him to rely on his size to impress me, but he knew exactly what he was doing and he was clearly well-practiced.

I moaned, and felt him position himself against me before his hand moved to my hip. He wanted to know what I felt like, and he closed his eyes as he rubbed against me; I pressed my lips to his and kissed him slowly as I moved my hips to slide against him so he could feel how wet I was.

When I broke away from him, he opened his eyes, and moaned, rubbing against me again.

"Do you mind?"

He moved his hips to press closer to me as if I didn't know what he was asking.

It was a surprisingly considerate thing for him to ask.

I moved onto him in response, and he pulled me down onto his c**k until he felt me tense. His eyes revealed exactly how much he enjoyed the feeling, and I began to move, feeling him pulsing eagerly inside me; he grabbed my ass and lifted me off him so he could slip the condom on before we carried on.

An overly cautious act, because he didn't trust his own instincts, but he had enough self-control to grant himself that small taste.

I gasped as he pushed into me, unable to move at first because he was trying to push deeper than I could handle.

When he eased off he watched me intently, his hand firmly on my hip, guiding me as I began to move.

I leaned forward, pressing my hands to his chest as I rode him, and he watched me silently for a moment before he thrust up roughly. It made me collapse against him.

That was his way of drawing me close enough to kiss him, and his tongue was in my mouth before my arms were around his neck.

I could feel his c**k throbbing inside me, and the way his hands clenched my hips made me whimper and tighten around him.

“You’re torturing me," he muttered against me.

"Torturing?" I laughed, then pushed down hard so he groaned, his head falling back as he thrust up again.

"f**k," he muttered. "Much more of that and I'm going to cum."

I wanted to make him lose control, but I felt the knot of tension within me and knew I wouldn't be able to keep going for long.

His hands moved to my breasts and he groaned in frustration; I pulled off my dress and unhooked my bra, as if letting him squeeze my breasts for a few seconds was worth the effort.

He brushed his thumbs over my n*****s and I sank down further onto him; he reached down between my legs and rubbed my clit briefly, and I shuddered with pleasure.

"You're torturing me," he muttered again. "You have no idea how much I want you."

I moaned and gripped his shoulders as he moved beneath me again, my nails digging into his flesh.

I knew exactly what he meant, and I ground against him faster, pushing myself over the edge; he finished a moment later and held me to him as I caught my breath.

It seemed unlikely that he usually did that when he f****d women he actively disliked, but I let myself enjoy the moment. I hadn't felt an Alpha's arms around me for longer than I cared to admit, and I had missed the reassuring comfort that it gave me.

"I'm surprised you managed to keep that a secret," I murmured against his shoulder as he stroked my back. "Most men would be dying to brag about it."

"When should I have brought it up? My sister thinks she just found your reincarnated dead father, and he’s in pretty bad shape, but if you're interested in a distraction I've got a pretty big d**k and I know how to use it wouldn't exactly have been tempting."

"Pretty big?" I laughed.

"I try not to let my ego get the better of me. Maybe next time I'm interested in someone I'll provide them with a full-scale replica so they can try it out before I ask them if they're down to fuck."

"Do you screw women you don't like so you don't care if they're uncomfortable?"

He smiled, and lifted me off his lap so he could sort himself out.

"My dad got himself killed because he loved my mom too much," he threw out the explanation casually as I got my clothes back on.

"People get themselves killed over stupid crap all the time. I’m sure you'd do something dangerous to protect your sister."

"Dangerous, sure, but not guaranteed to kill me. He martyred himself like an i***t because my mother was pregnant with me. He didn't have to die, but he couldn't stand the thought of her losing me; Saga can defend herself; I'm in no danger of throwing myself into the jaws of certain death for her."

"That's why you're so cautious, I take it."

He laughed and sat back down on the chair, scrolling through his phone.

"Sure, if that's what you want to believe. It couldn't have anything at all to do with the fact your 2000-year-old p***y has probably taken loads from more men than I can count, or that I'm not exactly a saint, either."

"Which is definitely bullshit because you let my 2000-year-old p***y take that ridiculous thing raw."

He exhaled a cynical laugh and put the phone down.

"You realize how blatant this is, right? I won't give you another ride on that ridiculous thing just because you're trying to antagonize me.”

"I'm sorry," I sighed. "I haven't felt like that in a long time, despite the fact I've definitely not been celibate…my head is a mess right now, I’m not trying to make things awkward."

"I appreciate that. And I'm sorry I accused you of sleeping with literally countless men."

"You want me to give you an insight based on my extensive knowledge and experience?"

He leaned back in the chair slightly, but I pulled him to his feet with no resistance.

"I assume you're about to tell me I should warn people I'm bigger than they're expecting before they make outlandish claims about their head game?"

"Sometimes a single day with someone is a more satisfying way of defining a one-time thing."

He couldn't stop the smile twitching at the corner of his lips, and I knew he wasn't going to fight with me over that.

"I'll think about it," he scooped his things up from the table and shoved them back into his pocket.

"You know it won't count as a one-time thing if you decide to come back to me tomorrow, right?"

"Why don't you go to your room, and I'll think about it while I'm making drinks for us?"

He was taking me up on the suggestion, then. And he was completely incapable of keeping his thoughts private.

"The only thing you're thinking about is whether I could handle that unreasonable thing in my ass."

"I'm not, you couldn't, and it's not like it's freakishly massive so stop acting as if it is."

"You are, I definitely could, and it isn't freakish but it's big enough that you need to moderate yourself."

He bit his lip, and ran his hand up my thigh, pushing past the hem of my dress to grab my ass.

"You should go to your room and get yourself ready to prove that."

"You're the one who needs to prepare yourself," I laughed, but his hand slid between my legs and he pushed my underwear to the side again.

"I am fully prepared to handle whatever you have to offer, and I don't think you need me to prove that."