The Thane (Cullen Rutherford AU)

Chapter 8 (edited)

"Samira, please don't yell," Cullen groans, putting his hand to his wound. Claw marks have permeated his skin, crimson flowing slowly between his fingers. "I'm not dying; I'm just injured," he mumbles. Alistair and Stormbringer join us, offering their hands to Cullen.

"Thank goodness your bride has good aim. That pelt will be a great prize for saving your arse," Stormbringer says, helping Alistair hoist Cullen up. Alistair pulls away after Cullen is up, and grabs the lion's corpse to drag back to the hold.

"We'll walk behind you," Alistair declares, lifting the carcass onto his shoulders. The other two men agree, and they start off before us. "So, you're his bride? He must've picked you from that afoka of his. I couldn't imagine having that," he muses, walking with me.

"You wouldn't have an afoka if your own, if you weren't engaged, that is?" I inquire.

"Goodness no! They only did that because his betrothed passed away, and he refused to pursue another. Well, until you came along," Alistair explains.

I pause, staring at Cullen's backside. I'm just the replacement for the bride he lost. "What was her name?"

"Surana Amell. She was gorgeous; ivory skin, bright blue eyes, long black hair. He adored her," he answers.

My heart feels like someone carved it out of my chest and crushed it in front of me. If I could speak, I would probably beg Cullen to let me leave, to tell him that I am not Surana's replacement, and that I never will be. A web of questions swarms through my head. Do I resemble her in some weird way? (Which is improbable, unless there's something about my face or build that is similar). When he touched me, did he think of her?

Alistair notices my change and hurries back to me. "Samira, please. Surana died ten years ago, and the afoka was set up two years ago. I've seen the way he looks at you; he doesn't want to lose you. He has had time to heal, and he wants you. So relax, okay?" He asks with an encouraging smile.

"I don't know if I can, Alistair," I reply, biting back tears. The ride back to the hold is silent, my eyes focused on Filarion's mane. Cullen pulls up beside me, holding an old cloth to his wound.

"Samira?" He begins.

"I'm not Surana's replacement," I mumble.

"What?"

"I am not Surana's replacement," I yell, making Cullen pause.

"Samira, you're nobody's replacement. You're you. What brought- Alistair!" Cullen snarls.

"I'm sorry!"

"Samira, you don't understand how much I care for you. If I could pull the moon from the sky to make you smile, I would!" Cullen replied, grabbing my hand.

"Prove it then," I retort.

Without missing a beat, Cullen pulls me in for a kiss, pouring all of his love into it. When he pulls away, he reaches up and gently touches my face. "Samira, if I didn't love you, you wouldn't be here with me. I want to show you how much I love you," he whispers.

The rest of the trek is in silence, though Cullen and I keep glancing at each other. He grabs my hand once more, massaging it with his thumb. He dismounts first when we reach the hold, then he assists me from Filarion's back. "I will be bugs the rest of the evening. You are to remain in my room until midnight, and at that time, you will meet me in the throne room. Krem will guard the doors until we are to meet," Cullen says.

At this, Krem walks over and escorts me back to Cullen's chambers. Dinner is delivered to me by Vera, who hardly says two words to me. What the hell is going on here?

In between dinner and the meeting, I distract myself with the books in Cullen's library. He has a substantial collection. I manage to get halfway through a battered copy of "Hard in Hightown" before Krem knocks.

"My Lady, the Thane wishes to see you now."

I exit the room, and in silence, Krem leads me to Cullen. He reclined on his throne, just like when I first met him. "Krem, you are dismissed for the evening," Cullen declares. Krem leaves, and I am left alone with the Thane. "Samira, come here," he says.

My footsteps are loud on the stone floor as I walk to him. When I reach him, I kneel at his feet. "Stand." I follow his orders. Cullen rises from his chair, then moves and pushes me down so that I'm sitting on his throne.

"Cullen, I-"

"Samira, I care about you so much. I want to show you how much I care," Cullen explains, kneeling before me and unlacing my boots. When he unlaced my boots, he pulls them off, leaving my feet bare. He grabs my left foot and brings it to his lips. "My mistress," he mumbles, peppering kisses from my foot to my knee. Then, he switches to my right foot. "I am yours to command. I want to serve you Mistress, in every way possible."

My face heats up as I watch him, his voice echoing through the empty hall. "Let me serve you, Mistress. Whatever you want, it's yours," Cullen continues, looking up at me with his honey brown eyes, golden curls a mess.

{explicit content edited out; message me for the link}

In the heat of the moment, neither of us hear the door open, or the two men enter. "Well, well, well. Look what we have here," the one begins, his voice familiar from hours earlier.

"Yeah. Looks like my brother couldn't keep his hands off of her," the other continues, making Cullen and I pause.