The Lycan’s Curse
Chapter 14

Cassius

I move back into the bedroom, a true smile on my face letting the towel drop as I see Larissa resting on her stomach, humming softly to herself. As quietly as I can, I move over until I'm behind her, covering her entirely as she lets out a little squeal. It turns into a It's hardly gone down since she woke it last night. By now, it's almost painful how intense it is when there's no relief, but compared to the last eighty some years, I can't complain.

moan when she feels my hardness press against her tight little a*s.

"Is that all you're going to want now?" Larissa teases, but she pushes her a*s up, opening her legs for me and I sink in inch by inch listening to her moan.

"Don't deny it, you're just as bad, little wolf. You need to feel it inside you, bringing you the ultimate bliss."

"It's so good, too good, but I'm not a wolf anymore," she adds pushing back nearly upsetting my stance.

"You'll always be my little wolf, even though you're now a strong, fierce Lycan. You're my little wolf, the one we loved without knowing what it meant." My lips trail along her neck, indulging in her taste until the slow thrusts aren't enough for either of us.

My hands dig into her hips, claiming her body with mine as my Lycan shouts feeling the pleasure. He had plenty of his own last night in the woods, so right now it's my turn with our mate. He'll get just as much pleasure from it as I will, especially with Larissa's bare neck begging for our teeth, her a*s against my groin.

"Harder," she moans, arching into me, and I latch onto her neck, toppling her. She pulls me along unable to resist the tight waves milking my c**k, and I lay on top of her, her head on my arm, a smile on her lips for the longest time. "I love you."

"I love you too, little wolf," I promise, pressing a kiss to her temple before forcing myself up. "Go shower and then we'll go down for dinner."

"Do we have to have dinner with those boring dukes again?" she asks, stretching upwards, teasing me with her body and I almost cave, but this news is too good to not share immediately with the ones that love us most.

"I sent a message to Mother earlier, telling her that I wanted a private dinner and who to include, which was none of the remaining dukes or Father. I want to share the good news with her but not him, make him suffer for a bit longer," I state and her smile blossoms. She gives me a quick kiss before moving into the bathroom and I take out a dress for her.

I hop back in the shower while she's dressing. We'd never leave the room if I tried to shower with her, then help her with the present I bought to belatedly acknowledge her birthday. At the time I didn't know how appropriate the starburst was. It settles in the valley between her breasts, the starburst a brilliant silver that glistens against her skin shimmering with diamonds. The chain hangs long, with a single diamond at the end, and with this dress it stops just above the fabric.

"I love it, Cassius. You'll have to tell me what you want for your birthday so I can top this," she teases as we head down to meet the others.

"You, preferably naked in my bed, all day," I return, stealing a long kiss one of the guards interrupts as he moves through on rounds. "Come, I want to celebrate."

"There you are, we were starting to think we were going to be stood up," Mother says, her eyes widening as she turns towards Larissa. "You're positively radiant, you're feeling your old self again entirely?"

"Better than that," Larissa states making eyes widen.

"What is it that you wanted to show us?" Dominic asks as Larissa lifts up nuzzling against her claim. "Oh, that's new."

I can't stop the reaction her teasing causes now, and claim her lips in a kiss, that I force myself to keep brief.

"That's not," Mother muses with a laugh.

"But that is," Dominic returns, his eyes widening as the scent of our desires hits the air. His eyes shoot down and he lets out a laugh taking note of the tightness of my pants.

"Cassius, what...how?" Mother says moving up to us, staring from me onto Larissa in disbelief. "It can't be..."

"It is, and I now know why everyone hated her," I tell them, returning her hug, letting my eyes show the truth of my feelings for her now.

"Okay, someone needs to explain what's going on here," Kai states, moving up to Larissa and me. He shakes his head as he looks at her, before pulling her in for a hug. "You're glowing in ways I've never known, it's incredible and I know you feel incredible, don't you?" Larissa nods, smiling fully at us. "I've never felt this right in my whole life."

"Which I won't complain about but how exactly did you," Kai says turning to me, "go from being incapable of what we all just smelled, to now?"

"A broken curse-or two," I explain motioning Donaldson forward. "Can you please read what is noted about star-blessed mates for everyone," I ask our historian letting him read the brief history of what they were, the curse put upon them, and when they supposedly went extinct. "And now, will you read the counter-curse that another group of witches performed, when they were unable to void the original?"

Donaldson reviews the references until he replaces it, flipping through the large book until he locates the page. The words are ones that I read once during school, forgotten in my head until last night.

"When a star-blessed mate defies all odds, reaching adulthood to be crowned queen, the curse shall break and blessings will return to all kinds alike," he announces before shutting the book at my nod.

"A shiften weaker than the rest, ridiculed and beaten by women under the force of the curse, until they died-or nearly died. Defies all odds to become an adult and becomes queen to break the curse. Sound familiar to anyone? Someone standing in this very room's history?" I state dropping a kiss to Larissa's temple. "They say we are blind to what is right in front of us, and I was until last night, when I was given the greatest blessing of all, the love of my mate. Not even knowing at the time just how special it would be, because star-blessed mates choose who they love, no matter what bond exists otherwise, they can ignore it even when staring it in the face.

"As everyone in this room knows," I add pulling Larissa closer to me, "a witch placed a curse on my father and the royal Lycan line. It limited him to have but one heir, that would be forced to walk the earth alone for eternity, unable to die, remaining hollow, unable to feel joy or happiness, or pleasure of any sort, and unable to bear a child, ending the bloodline entirely. She came by one day before she died, to take pity on him she claimed at first, but it quickly showed how spiteful she still was so many years later. At the time, not knowing that, Father allowed her to add in a chance to break the curse. One that until last night I was certain was impossible-for the heir of the arrogant king to gain the love of a star-blessed mate. Not just claim them as their mate, but for them to love someone incapable of loving them in return."

"Who wouldn't love you?" Larissa says softly, her fingers lifting to my lips, a sparkle of tears in her eyes as they flow over my face. The love glistened brighter than any tears in them and I fell deeper for her by that alone.

"Everything that happened was part of the curse keeping you apart," Mother states, and I nod turning us to face the others again.

"The alpha's son being her 'fated mate' rejecting her, because they didn't understand her wolf's oddness, preferring her dead than to accept her as his mate, leading her to leave, before I would arrive to potentially meet her understand her history and offer her refuge by my side. Her slower healing abilities were to conserve her strength for when she chose her mate, and which beast hers would become," I add, making Dominic's brow lift. "Would you like to show them?" I ask her, immensely glad that as Lycan we are not like normal shiften that our clothes shift with us, or I would never allow it. Allow for anyone to see my mate naked.

I only want your eyes on me, my love. Her voice inside me soothes the building jealousy and I hold my Lycan mate in my arms for a moment before she returns to her soft, delicate skin.

"That is most certainly not her wolf," Kai states shaking his head at us. "That is a beast I would not cross."

"She's not, I can assure you of that," I muse with a chuckle. "What happened after I did catch a whiff of her scent and was curious as to why my Lycan approved of it, I don't truly know. Perhaps the two curses somehow joined, deepening to keep them from breaking, or perhaps the curse on the star-blessed grew deeper each year the mate grew older. Either way, both no longer control us, and I can give my mate, the life she deserves, without worry that an unknown female will try to kill her again."

"Well, you can't guarantee that one just that if it happens it won't be because of a curse" Dominic suggests drawing a growl from me as I wrap Larissa tighter up against me.

Mother hugs us again, and I give her a nod, knowing now why she and Caroline never gave into the urges to harm my mate. There would be no jealousy of a star-blessed mate searching for their other half, their other male half, if they were not attracted to men to begin. I'll never give away their secrets, but it explains a great deal as to why she never slept with my father again after having me.

"For now, I don't think we'll inform Father that the curse is broken. After all that he's done in the last hundred years, he should sweat a bit longer. And so, everyone knows, that's an order by the king," I state pulling chuckles from a few. "Now, I don't know about anyone else, but I am damn hungry. Let's eat."

"That's what happens when you spend all day in bed with your mate," Dominic states and I let out a full growl at him.

"Easy, he was just teasing," Larissa huffs, pulling me back with ease as I began to advance, showing the room her full strength. "He's mated, you know he wouldn't want another. He only meant it as a joke. Put your Lycan away or I won't let him near mine for weeks." "That's the way to do it, show him who's boss," Mother says laughing at my dark look but it's all in fun, I know that.

"Is there anything urgently pressing on us that needs my attention in the next few weeks?" I question looking from my mother to Dominic.

"No, I suggest that you tell the dukes to return home and you will call a session when you require it," Mother suggests. "Seeing as how they know you are newly mated, and your mate was poorly in recent weeks, they won't argue it." "Nothing the regular offices cannot handle," Dominic agrees.

"Good, I'll be taking my mate on a honeymoon as they say, and then there is some unfinished business to handle before we can truly settle into our rule," I state, giving my gorgeous mate a kiss not about to let it go now.

I can't. My Lycan can't. He demands revenge, wants retribution through blood spilt, and with the curse broken, there's no holding him back from replaceing it.