Bride of the Emperor (The Prophecy of Sisters Book 4) by Hayley Faiman (the gingerbread man read aloud txt) 📗

“Try?” she breathes.

I hum, shifting my lips over to kiss up the side of her jaw and nibble on the lobe of her ear. She sighs, tilting her head back, arching for me. I bite back the moan at the feel of her soft breasts pressing against my chest.

“Try,” I exhale. “Our words seem to be very different. I will try, but remember you are in my world now. These are my people and their customs.”

Kissing down her neck, I stop at the hollow of her throat, then lift my eyes to look up at her through my lowered lashes. Her head is tipped, her breathing is labored as she watches me, and her teeth are still biting the corner of her lip.

“I understand, Tiberius,” she whispers. “But…” she says, her words trailing off.

“But?”

“Please, nobody else. Just you and me like this, just us.”

She is not just saying this, she feels it deep in her core, this is what she needs. I cannot lie, not to her, nor would I wish to. So, instead of promising her false claims. I lift my head and connect my gaze with hers, making sure that she sees all of me when I speak to her.

“I will try with all that I am to make sure you know how I feel about you, always, Drucilla. There is nobody else in our relationship, just you and me. You are my empress and you always have my ear. You will carry my children and you will be the puzzle piece of this prophecy. We will stand side by side as it unfolds, there will be only us.”

Tilting my head to the side, I touch my mouth to hers and don’t give her the opportunity to respond. Once I have tasted her, with all of the strength in the world, I roll over to my side of the bed, gather her in my arms and I sleep.

Chapter Twenty-Five

DRUCILLA

Cassia smiles across the table at me, she’s practically dancing in her chair and I want to ask her what she’s so excited about, but this is my first true breakfast with Tiberius’ people as the empress, plus also being able to understand them all.

Tiberius holds my hand throughout the meal and I wonder if I’ll have to eat every single meal with just one hand or is this a show for the first? I don’t get the chance to ask him, because from the moment we walk into the room until he bids me farewell for the day, someone is talking to him.

I watch as he walks away, Marcellus and Brutus at his side, his head shifting from side to side as he talks to them. Letting out a sigh, I decide that I need to talk to both Cassia and Laurentia. Turning to face Cassia, I give her a smile and finally she stands to her feet and hurries to my side.

“I thought they would never leave,” she cries as she sinks down next to me.

Laughing, I shake my head. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do,” I admit.

“I’m just glad that we can talk to one another, now,” she confesses. “I have been planning your celebration.”

“I feel very lost,” I admit.

Her lips curve up into a grin. “I won’t be able to go to all of the events, but it is going to be wonderful.”

“What do I do, on regular days?” I ask.

She shrugs a shoulder. “I paint, read, ride my horse, and ensure that the famulus in the house have everything done the way that Tiberius prefers. But my favorite thing to do?”

Wrinkling my nose at the mention of slaves, I try really hard not to say something. Instead, I listen and nod, as I wait to hear what her favorite thing to do is.

“Going to the market,” she says dreamily.

Shopping.

I giggle, because it’s one of my favorite pastimes too. None of my sisters quite liked shopping as much as I always did. I could shop for hours, nonstop, until I physically dropped. Images of finding some seriously kick-ass jewelry and shoes in this place fill my head and I suddenly can’t wait to do the shopping thing.

“When can we do that?” I ask.

Her eyes brighten and she lets out her own giggle. “The vendors will be here and set up by the end of the week. They are coming from all over the country of Savona to sell their wares, knowing that there will be a mass amount of people coming to celebrate the new empress.”

Empress.

It still hasn’t quite sunk in that I am essentially a queen. “The gownmaker will be here shortly though to measure you for your celebration attire.”

I get whiplash at her sudden change of subject, but I decide that it’s close enough, so I just smile. When she stands, she holds her hand out to me.

Lifting my arm, I slip my palm into hers. She tugs me to my feet and together we begin to walk. I have no idea where she’s leading me, but I don’t really care, either.

I’m just excited to be able to talk to her.

“What happened to your face? Was Tiberius angry that you were taken?” she asks, but doesn’t look at me. Her face is straightforward as we walk.

Stopping, I look over at her. “Tiberius didn’t do this, is this something he would do?” I ask, remembering how angry he became at the sight, and at the explanation of how I received the bruises on my face and neck.

She shakes her head. “I don’t know, he has never had a wife before.”

“But men do this?” I ask.

She shrugs a shoulder, tugging my hand and continuing her walk, guiding us toward the side door that leads out to the garden. I smile as soon as we step outside and the warm sun slides over my skin. It isn’t Florida, but I can’t say that I mind. It’s still warm and bright, that’s all that matters.

“Men will do as they will.”

Her explanation