Donte reached the grounds where the carriage stopped and found an omega woman waiting for him with guards on either side of her. The woman dressed in the crinkled wrapping of brown and green robes woven out of silk twisted around her body like water, leaving any open space only for beads, bracelets, and marked circlets. Her braids were shorter than he was used to, and the beads clung to the ends of her hair, swaying in the breeze as the sun had begun to set.
Her hands outstretched, she said, "Follow me."
"I apologize for my undress." Donte looked down at his form in embarrassment. He was practically naked with little but the heavy cloak Akhutenan had slid over his shoulders.
The woman laughed, and then she said, as Donte took her hand so that she could help him wobble over the pathways leading to the housing. The residence was larger than he had expected and spacious.
"My husband was prepared for you to arrive in all states of body," the woman said. "Kinya is not one to propose things and not follow through."
Donte blinked. "Of the Sarakh clan."
"That would be my husband."
Chickens fluttered by, trailing behind one of the servants, tugging goats around the residence. The air filled his chest, and he exhaled in relief.
"This was always his plan, wasn't it?"
"Yes and no."
"Is Akhutenan alive?"
"No worries," the woman laughed. "He's of utmost importance. And so, by extension, so are you. You have no need to worry about our motives. Your destiny and ours are now connected."
Donte's hand fell on his stomach, and his wobbling led him to lean on the woman as they walked down the path on a decline. They walked a little further, reaching a housing on the edge of the residence with three people and a camel hitched at the side waiting at the front: two omega men and an old alpha woman with an injured leg and a heavy walking stick.
They greeted Donte with a bow.
"This is Afi and Adzo, they will be taking care of your direct needs. You'll need their help with childcare, cleaning, and moving the water from the well near the main housing," the woman pointed to the two omegas. And then pointed to the alpha, "This is Tunde, your point of contact. He will inform us anytime you need more food, water, transport, or anything else that may run through your mind. He is your line of support to the main housing."
"Can I--?"
The unsaid words as he furrowed his brow.
"You can trust them," she said soothingly. "They're from my maiden clan and specifically my alpha mother's old residence. And whenever you gain your foothold and find a servant you trust, you can bring them in but, remember, they must pass my husband's tests."
"Tests," Donte said questioningly and then shook his head. "I can't imagine finding servants" He hadn't had a real home in such a long time but even in those days he never had servants. "I thought Akhutenan and I would be here alone."
"Until things are settled," Kinya's wife pressed. "You two will likely never be alone."
The words settled in a bit like a threat but Donte wasn't one to search a gift horse in the mouth. He nodded and then thanked Afi, as he took over from Kinya's wife and led him inside the housing. A simple home interior with stone floorings, walls, with dividers splitting the bedrooms from the main central quarters and the kitchen. The furniture was a bit more plush and soft than the rest of the housing low on the ground. Donte had to slid on the upper backing to reach the cushion flooring but his body sunk into the soft material with a sigh.
"Madam Unatti told us that you don't have much time before giving birth," Afi said as he gestured for him towards the snacks on the floor table. "Let us know of your preferred foods. My brother knows many recipes from the Carolingian Empire."
"Oh?"
Afi nodded. "I know there are things like beef stew and layered vegetables with broth. Very rich foods with a water base."
"Would you happen to have any?" Donte asked.
Typically, the servant quarters were full of sweets and meat-filled pastries. They were delicious, of course, but most servants couldn't eat much of it unless they wanted their weight affected. Isiah was perhaps the only one who could, and his youthful metabolism would run out one day.
It would be nice to have a real, filling meal.
Afi and Adzo began pouring out the stews with fluffy breads he hadn't seen in years. He rather liked the taste of the thin breads and sauces, but there was nothing like biting into a fresh loaf of bread from his homeland.
The servants pattered off and the sun set. He wasn't sure how much time passed before he was given a clean bucket, gentle washcloths and a bottle of scented oils. Echoing fingertips of Berman just earlier that day still flitted over his skin. Rage that had been contained under the surface of his skin bubbled over but he couldn't even kick the bucket or throw the cloth in his anger when his belly blocked his every smooth movement. His head dropped back and he began to breathe deeply before he began to wash the invisible imprints left behind.
Akhutenan's marriage is still on. If Donte carried the only heir of the Berman's, he was in tricky territory. The politics of his relationship with Akhutenan could be manipulated. It only took one minister to point out that this was all Akhutenan's plot to bring down the Berman family or worse a plot by the French clan to bring the military back under their control.
Donte watched outside until he heard the hooves of horses in the distance. The sounds were getting louder but he stifled a watery laugh. He couldn't get up on his own anymore. Wasn't it always this way? Left to the devices and whims of more powerful people. All he could do is wait.
Even when he was not one to sit and mull over the failures and consequences of such, he thumbed his tears away like dirt on the bottom of his sandals but they wouldn't stop. All he could do was plug his eyes with the back of his hand to stop them from spilling over. The door swung open and a hand pulled his palm away but he could barely see through his blurry vision.
He heard a heavy pack fall to the ground and footsteps.
"Oh, heart of hearts," Akhutenan kneeled beside him and removed his collar handkerchief to dry his eyes. "We're home now. I'm home now."
The dam broke then. His mind tripped over everything that could go wrong and had already gone wrong.
Donte clutched Akhutenan's arms but the Captain moved up to cradle him on his lap. His arms wrapping around him like a blanket.
"One day," Donte said wetly. "You're going to have to leave. Again. And then I'll have to wait. Again. I'll always have to wait. It's all I ever--"
The other grimaced but didn't correct him. He replied, while slowly rocking Donte, hushing his repeated muttering, "With the Berman's ongoings, I already have a right to divorce. Yet, Amina is innocent. I can't do so without her first being properly settled in. But know that you are my priority. I will never abandon you. When it comes to you, you will come first. Always. Always." and then pressed a kiss against Donte's brow.
He had never heard his wife's name before.
His heart chilled over the open wound.
He was being foolish. Ah! How many times had he criticized and chastised Dorian or Johannes for their insatiable greed in their ambitions for love? Too many times to count.
"This life will be enough for me," Donte ended. His eyes were no longer wet. "This is already more than enough."
Something in his words, for reasons Donte couldn't understand, offended the Captain. When Donte motioned to leave, Akhutenan did not let go. Instead, with his one free hand unraveled some clothing from his pack. He detangled the pearl filigree from his body and it felt as if a burden had been removed. The Captain motioned for Donte to move his arms as he slid a warmly, softly woven V-necked blouse over his body, a length falling below his thighs and covering his belly loosely.
His lips trailed kisses over his collar and drew up his neck. He said with a nibbled kiss under his ear, "May I?"
Donte nodded with a whine as Akhutenan's hand snapped the fragile underclothes and pressed a heavy hand under his thigh as he lifted him over his lap. Their eyes met. He could see Akhutenan clearly now, whose own eyes were glassy but affectionate, searching.
His cock rubbed between his legs before sliding in. The pressure full and stretching as his heaviness pushed down with only Akhutenan's firm hands holding him up. Akhutenan couldn't get close with his belly in the way but the man leaned forward and kissed his stomach as Donte leaned back, spreading his legs until his hips settled on Akhutenan's thighs. Fingers pressed drew underneath the tunic until thumbing his nipples with gentle flicks as his body heated up. Donte tossed his head back and Akhutenan took advantage of the angle and lifted him up before he dropped with a loud, slick, then smack.
Donte moaned as the Captain bounced him on his cock, while continuing to thumb his chest and draw kisses across his open collar. He realized then that Akhutenan had been whispering something as he kissed his collar and neck.
"I'm going to fill you up with my seed over and over again until you can't remember a day you've never been full of child bearing my name."
Perhaps it was the passion and the way his palms pressed up against his back but such a thing didn't sound awful when said that way.
A roguish grin fell over the captain's face before his body slid back long ways over the couch and Donte's full weight fell on his cock with only his trembling arms holding him up on his chest. Akhutenan's hands trailed down his ribs to his waist and then to his ass before rolling him on his cock, blocking him from falling with his muscled thighs holding Donte up. His cock thickening and stretching still as slick pistoned him in and out. Donte couldn't think anymore but the feeling of being full and pressed between Akhutenan's chest and his thighs as his cock thrusted. The Captain lurched up faster and faster when Donte keened as the soft slick filled an ache he couldn't tell where it came from. He sheathed inside his body with a final, trembling thrust as he slowly kneaded out. The Captain sat up carefully with Donte leaning on his shoulder as his climax wrung out of him with a shiver, and kissed his lips with pressing fervor. His strong hands thumbed his cheek and then he pulled away with a smile.
"You seem as if you missed me," Donte breathed out.
Akhutenan chuckled and then kissed his lips again. He said, "I have never missed anyone more than I missed you."
He wasn't sure if he could trust that Akhutenan meant what he said but he hoped that for however long this man was in his life--that it would never waver in his memory.
Harsh knocks struck at the door and Akhutenan grumbled under his breath. With an easy flourish, he lifted Donte, gently, off his lap then flattened the new tunic against his hips and then whispered in his ear, "You should listen from the bedroom or rest." and pressed a kiss against his temple.
The severity of his furrowed brows told him this was important, so he nodded before sliding past the dividers into the bedroom. He pushed the door far enough that only a slim line showed through between the rooms.
Footsteps entered the house, he counted the range of five people and immediately recognized two of them as the Casas brothers.
Roy spoke first, and Donte could imagine by his pausing speech, that his moustached upper lip was contorted in a way he did when relieving servants were found outside of their quarters working. "What had to be said here and not on the campgrounds?"
"Was the Empress angry at our proposition?" Enzo added.
The pregnant omega tried sliding sideways to angle his eyes and see the others. A flash of familiar blonde hair covered underneath a cloak and the face of Wuhayb Cordero took the form of the other two persons.
He heard the shuffling of Akhutenan before he sighed and said, "These words won't be leaving these rooms."
"Of course."
"Indeed."
"Sounds ominous."
Two of them went quiet, and Akhutenan repeated, "That goes for you two, especially you two, speaking of, what in heaven's name was that?"
"My brother warned me that he would make an aggressive move on behalf of our camp," Captain Casas said carefully. "I didn't know it would be so aggressive; likewise, we would've required a meeting between us all."
"It needed to be done or the Emperor, the madman, would get his way," the young Casas retorted. "Can you imagine? A bastard on the throne and his mistress high on the flights of gold and privilege. I can't imagine a worse consequence of all this corruption and pure idiotic ego on display."
The room was silent until an unfamiliar voice spoke, "It's not so far-fetched. From what I've heard of my. . . brother, he is a man of the sword and light-hearted. I wish I could hate him more. Even moreso, he doesn't even want the throne."
"What did the Empress say?"
"She said she'll give us way to return home with the use of our own soldiers and a few of her own, but that clearly means that she must have our own army then," the Prince said and then laughed. "She's certainly a better monarch than my father. I didn't realize what she meant until after we were dismissed, and it's too late to take back the promise made. I think the only reason she offered us so much time was that her own hand-picked soldiers could be trained, under a Commander of her choosing."
Akhutenan awkwardly cleared his throat then and added, "About that Commander--"
"You know who it's going to be?" Wuhayb cut in. "He might be a serial murderer for all we know. The worst Commander we'll ever have."
"--is me." Akhutenan finished.
Donte had to press his ear closer to the door to hear the sudden still and the wavering motions of the others. Even Donte was a bit surprised by that, why would the Empress choose him? His name, conveniently, represented the ancestors of her people, but he couldn't imagine why a woman like that would point him out to represent their Empire. He was of the Carolingian Empire and he was well-known throughout the land for it.
It wasn't like they were related.
He must've missed what was said when sounds of shock shook through the room. His hands pushed the door a bit wider and he could see the expressions of bewilderment on everyone's faces but two. The Prince carried a calculating gaze as his eyes slid from Akhutenan to Enzo. And the Captain's eyes were tight and his lips twisted.
He didn't know much about the Captain but he had never seen the man step out of line. Perhaps Akhutenan's sudden rise in position offended him in some way.
But neither of these people spoke up.
There was little else to be said and Donte could hear them shuffling around again as if to leave.
And everyone but the Captain stayed behind.
"You wish to speak?" Akhutenan asked. "I am a bit too young and you're more--"
"When it comes down to it," Roy said coldly. "You will have to make a choice for what's best for your family."
"As it should be."
"But," Roy added. "Few of us have two families that are never to meet and can never bond."
The Captain's footsteps sounded until he could no longer hear the sound of moving feet. And as Donte pondered on if Roy would be a problem in his goals of keeping Akhutenan, the door opened with his face meeting Akhutenan's smile.
"Somewhat of a tall mouse to be hiding behind a door," Akhutenan said before he grabbed his chin and tipped his face up. "I imagine you have questions." and then kissed his lips before drawing away.
"I missed the part about the Empress. Why did she choose you?"
Akhutenan laughed. "I'll tell you another day. For now, let us enjoy the comfort of a soft bed and being able to sleep beside one another."
It was true. Donte had slept with many, many people but rarely with them in a bed. And certainly never to sleep. The former Captain now Commander thumbed his hand before leading him to the bed.
And Donte imagined that he must've already been sleeping.
There had never been a better dream than the one with him laying against Akhutenan's chest as they fell asleep in each other's arms.