“No. I only did what they bade me to do.”
“Did they do you harm?”
I hesitated. “They…they punished me. Spanked my bottom. It hurt.”
“But you liked it. You wanted more.”
I lowered my head, unable to meet her piercing gaze. “Yes,” I mumbled. “I even begged for it.” I felt tears of shame welling up and brushed them away, angry with myself for showing weakness. I’d given up the luxury of crying years ago. “I’m their queen. They’ll have lost all respect for me.”
She came up the steps of the dais. Sat down beside me as though we were two girlfriends exchanging confidences. “Have you lost respect for them because of the things you did together?”
“No.” Her question was so surprising I replied without thinking.
“Why not?”
I paused. “I respect Drayke because he’s a brave warrior and a decent man,” I began slowly. “I was embarrassed by some of the things he did to me and what he demanded I do because I’d never done them before, but he never made me feel he was trying to humiliate me. In fact, his mastery added an extra thrill to our lovemaking.”
“And your warrior?”
Mywarrior. It seemed presumptuous to think of him that way. He should be the one using a word that denoted ownership. After all, I’d given him my body.
“But he gave to you as well, didn’t he?”
I responded, not realizing until much later I hadn’t given her my answer out loud. She’d pulled another of her tricks and read my thoughts.
“Yes, he did. Every one of his commands ramped up my arousal. He played me like a fine instrument, brought me to a shattering climax before finally allowing himself release. I discovered depths of passion I’d never have known I was capable of without him.”
The oracle nodded and smiled. “In Her infinite wisdom, the Goddess created love. It can be expressed in many ways, and She blesses each one. Love of a parent for a child, love of brothers and sisters, whether joined by blood or bonded by the fates. The love we express with our chosen mate, including that of woman for woman or man for man.
“She created our bodies as well,” she went on. “Built them to give and receive pleasure. There is nothing shameful or wrong about exploring and enjoying erotic sensations. If the Goddess didn’t mean for you to enjoy them, she would not have designed you the way she did.”
I let out a long breath, and the tension flowed out of my body. When she put it that way, it sounded so reasonable.
“And there is no rule against having more than one partner at a time – or exploring all by yourself,” she added with a sideways glance.
I thought of the nights I’d pleasured myself imagining the handsome Dragon Lord before I finally met him. My cheeks grew hot.
“I told you the Goddess knows all, sees all. Did you think hiding your hands beneath the bedcovers would trick her?”
That was the oracle I knew. Peppering the conversation with snide remarks that stung because they bore a grain of truth.
“The Goddess has but one law when it comes to sexual gratification,” she declared. “Do no harm. Not to others, and just as importantly, not to yourself. Loss of respect comes when one is taken by force, without consent. There is no shame in submission as long as submission is a choice. Then it becomes a gift.”
“A gift?” Consumed with guilt, I’d never looked at it that way. “Yes, it was a gift,” I replied slowly. “Not just a gift to him but to me as well. Magnus’s domination set me free to experience decadent pleasures I would never have known had I not given up control and submitted to his will.”
“These men have come into your life to do more than give you pleasure. You need them, both of them, if you are to vanquish the forces of evil. Each one brings his unique strengths and skills to the battle, as do the others the Goddess will put in your path.” She rose. “They need you as well. Now, go and love them, as the Goddess intended.”
I left her at the altar. Went down the steps and through the temple. When I glanced back, the dais stood empty once again. There was no sign of the oracle. Silently, I made my way through the Fortress to our quarters.
I paused at the door. My lovers were still asleep, Magnus stretched out flat on his back and Drayke on his side, as though he still cradled me in his arms.
I climbed back into bed between them, got on my knees, and took a cock in each hand.
Chapter Seven
Magnus
I’ve never been awakened more delightfully. At first I thought it an erotic dream – Melisandre’s hands around my shaft, stroking it to life. Her lips on my cock. Taking the head in her mouth then drawing away. Teasing me.