The Breeding Lands (An Epic Erotic Fantasy Novel) (15 page)

Mia realized that Femi had been talking to her, and he stared at her expectantly, waiting for an answer.

“I’m sorry, Femi. What?” she asked.

“I asked when Mr. Ayo would be back.”

“Oh,” Mia bit her lip, deep in thought. “I think he said he would be back tomorrow. The council was gathering a few regions over.”

Femi nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll make sure I prepare something special for dinner.”

“Thank you,” Mia said, smiling warmly. “Jossalyn will be here for dinner, too,” she added.

Femi knew better than to ask if Melanie would be joining them.

Mia had been overjoyed to discover that Ayo knew her Aunt Jossalyn. And not only that, but that her aunt was married to one of the most powerful warlords in the region. While Mia didn’t care much for Jossalyn’s husband, Ayo had praised his good fortune for the coincidental relation, and Jossalyn seemed to have a solid relationship with her warrior.

Jossalyn had been overjoyed to discover Mia, and the two women had grown close. Jossalyn and Mia tried to dine together once a week, if not more. For Mia, it had been more than she could have dared hope for, and helped to fill the large gaping hole in her heart left from losing her family.

While finding Jossalyn had been a dream, Mia had been saddened over the loss of Melanie. She had no idea which tribe had claimed Melanie, and she had asked Ayo for weeks if the Sabre Pride could have selected her twin. Ayo was unsure, so he asked around, especially when he traveled. As it happened, the Sabre Pride had taken Melanie after all.

One evening, Ayo told Mia he was hosting a few tribe members for dinner while they were passing through the region. Though Mia wasn’t allowed to attend the dinner, she had slipped into the kitchen for a snack. One of the men saw her flash of red hair and called out loudly in surprise. Mia was desperate to learn more, but Ayo made her go back to the bedroom and promised to find out as much as he could.

To Mia’s surprise, she learned that Melanie had in fact been claimed by the Sabre Pride and lived a few regions away with an reclusive warrior who rarely left his house. Melanie was rarely seen outside the home, and many of the tribe members attributed this to the strange ways of her husband.

Ayo reached out to Melanie’s husband, and was able to reunite the twins. They were not welcome at Melanie’s house, but Melanie’s husband had grudgingly agreed that Melanie could spend two days with Mia.

Mia had wept with joy when she saw Melanie, and both girls laughed at their pregnant bellies. While the reunion was joyful, and more than Mia could have hoped for, she learned that Melanie had not been as fortunate as she when it came to mates. Melanie’s mate was on the older side, and he had been traumatized by a battle when he was young. He often imagined bizarre things, and even hallucinated. He didn’t want Melanie speaking to other women, and he preferred that she stay inside.

As Femi had brought Melanie and Mia grass tea, Melanie had broken down, confessing how unhappy she was and how she hoped the baby would change things. Mia consoled her sister, and looked around her own lovely home. She had been very fortunate that Ayo had chosen her. He provided her with more than she needed, and he even seemed to respect her.

Mia had hoped to maintain her relationship with Melanie, but Melanie’s husband made it difficult. In the six months that Mia had lived in the Southern Lowlands, she had only seen her sister three times. While it was more than Mia could have originally hoped for, it wasn’t enough now that she knew her sister was nearby.

Refusing to dwell on her sadness, Mia rose and walked into the sunroom. Though the room was hot, it was one of her favorite places in the house. The walls were comprised of huge windows thrown open wide, their silky cream drapes billowing softly in the dry breeze. There were no neighbors to the south of Mia and Ayo’s house, and Mia loved looking out at the empty land. It wasn’t the same as her sea back home, but the gently waving grasses of the desert were soothing all the same.

Femi left for the market, and Mia made her way to the nursery. Even though the baby was not due for two more months, most of the room was finished. A handmade wooden crib sat in the center of the room, and a pale green blanket was draped over the rail. A rocking chair sat in the corner, and a few simple paintings of desert animals decorated the walls.

Sometimes Mia had a hard time filling the days of her new life. She wasn’t feeling social that day, and didn’t feel like visiting her neighbors. Femi wasn’t around to talk to, and she was feeling too lazy to work on the house or take up a new project. She knew that soon enough she would be busy being a mother. Her mind drifted to her own mother, and she wondered how she was doing. Mia hoped her mother was still there for her younger sister, Gracie.

Giving up on finding something worthwhile to fill her time, Mia retired to her bedroom. The high thatched ceiling was comforting, and Mia climbed into the spacious bed she shared with Ayo. She pushed her face into Ayo’s pillow and inhaled deeply. She could still smell him on the material, the sweet smell of verbena mixed with wood and sweat. Mia had found herself more dependent on Ayo than she could have imagined. He calmed her, comforted her, and made her laugh. He took care of her, and protected her, and made love to her fiercely, knowing exactly how to please her.

Mia rolled over onto her own pillow, and fell asleep quickly, dreaming of a little boy who kept turning into a tiny tiger cub.

Later that evening, Mia dressed in a dark brown cotton dress. She loved how the women of the Sabre Pride wore short dresses, and she was more than happy to have her legs exposed—she stayed cooler that way. She twisted her wild hair into a pile on top of her head and wore a simple green gemstone necklace Ayo had given her.

Jossalyn had blown into the house, chatty and exuberant as ever, her pretty brown hair twisted and pinned along the crown of her head. Jossalyn was not yet thirty, and barely looked a day over twenty-five. Her blue eyes sparkled, and looked brighter than normal given the azure dress she was wearing. Most women in the Sabre dressed in the muted earthy tones of their surroundings, but not Jossalyn. She chose bright, cheery prints that reminded Mia of home. Jossalyn kissed Mia and put a plate of cookies on the table.

“Mia! You look so good! You’re glowing!” She patted Mia’s round belly and smiled. “The boys send their love,” she explained, referring to her three sons, Mia’s nephews, whom Mia had grown to adore. They were eight, six, and three, and still Jossalyn made parenting look so easy.

“Any word from Mel?” Jossalyn asked in a low voice, even though there was no one around but Femi to overhear.

Mia shook her head sadly. “I just have to accept that even though we are here together, I’m not going to be able to have a real relationship with her. I just have to be grateful that I get to see her at all.”

Jossalyn squeezed her shoulder. “I know it’s tough,” she sympathized.

The women sat down and drank cucumber water as Jossalyn filled Mia in on the latest happenings of the area. Mia’s head spun with all the news, and she wondered how Jossalyn was able to keep all the tribe gossip straight, while still taking care of her brood.

Femi came in and served them before retreating to his servant quarters. Though Femi lived with his family, Ayo and Mia provided him with a small room of his own that he could use during the day. Once Femi had gone into his room, Jossalyn lowered her voice dramatically and looked around.

“I overheard Mosi speaking today while he was conducting business. He was speaking to one of the chieftains about the Dragon Lords.” Mia stared blankly at Jossalyn. “The Dragon Lords,” Jossalyn repeated.

“Yes, I heard you, but I don’t understand. I know that they had something to do with the crystal and gates in that bone yard,” Mia said. The power crystals were essential in keeping the magical gates locked, which ensured the Dragon Lords could never again enter Nihilo Terra.

“Yes,” Jossalyn whispered, “But I heard Mosi say something about a Draconian sorcerer and aiding the tribe.”

Mia burst out laughing. “You must have heard wrong!”

“I didn’t!” Jossalyn insisted.

Mia laughed again. “And what did Mosi say next?”

Jossalyn looked away sheepishly. “I don’t know. I was afraid he would catch me, so I hurried back to the boys.”

“I’m sure it was nothing. The Sabre despise the Dragon Lords, just like the other tribes. And the Sabre get along best with the humans,” Mia pointed out. “The tribe would never conspire with them.
No one
has contact with the Dragon Lords.”

Jossalyn raised her eyebrows and popped a chunk of potato in her mouth. She chewed thoughtfully. “Just keep your ears perked up,” she warned, “Ayo is deeply entrenched with the council.”

Mia thought the entire idea was ridiculous, but she humored Jossalyn and promised to listen for any other strange rumblings. Jossalyn spent the rest of the evening giving Mia advice about raising boys and complaining about one her new servants. Jossalyn had three servants in her home, and she had just lost her eldest because he turned seventeen. The newest servant had just turned twelve, and was a slow learner. Mia couldn’t help yawning, and Jossalyn picked up on it quickly.

“I’m sorry, Mia. You must be tired. I’m keeping you up, yakking on about my silly servants.”

“No, no, it’s OK. I enjoy the company, especially when Ayo travels.”

“Will you be alright with Ayo being away and Femi going home?”

“Yes, yes,” Mia said, waving off Jossalyn’s concerns. She knew that deep down Jossalyn felt it was her responsibility to look after Mia.

Mia kissed Jossalyn and left the dishes out on the table. Normally, she would clean them herself so Femi wouldn’t have to arrive with waiting work the following morning, but she was too tired. She walked Jossalyn to the door and watched her begin to make her way home in the muted sunlight. Mia had long adjusted to the constant sunlight in the Lowlands. Though the sun became softer in the evening, it was still bright the entire night.

Femi had closed up all the windows and pulled the blinds, bathing the house in darkness. Mia pulled her dress off, dropped it onto the floor, and climbed into bed wearing only her necklace. Her body ached for Ayo. Sometimes he was gentle and soft, but other times he was rough and raw. Lately, Mia preferred him rough. She fell asleep to her erotic fantasies of her husband.

The following day proved busy for Mia. She attended two wives meetings in the area. While some of the women of the tribe were treated like property, others, like Mia, were respected and valued. Some of those women got together and met regularly, discussing everything from cooking to the safety of the children of the tribe. Jossalyn wasn’t in attendance, and Mia almost expected someone else to mention the Dragon Lords, but she realized that she was being ridiculous.

At home, she was busy with one of her new house projects and she didn’t hear Ayo until he was directly behind her.

“My Mia.” Mia whirled around and threw herself at Ayo. “I’ve missed you,” he murmured, trailing his fingers along Mia’s collarbone.

“I missed you too,” she admitted, pressing her body hard against his.

Ayo smiled knowingly and took her hand, leading her back to the bedroom. He pulled the door closed so Femi wouldn’t disturb them, and then quickly yanked his shirt over his head and stepped out of his pants. He was already hard for Mia. She reached down to take him in her hands, running her hands over the familiar solid mass.

“Mia,” he croaked, as he pulled her dress over her head. Mia was wearing nothing underneath, and Ayo groaned with lust, running his hands over her round belly. “I love seeing you swollen with my child,” he breathed, his voice crackling with desire. He turned her around and bent her over, pushing his erection against her backside. The promise of what to come was almost more than Mia could take.

The further along she was in her pregnancy, the more she seemed to crave Ayo. Gently, Ayo pushed her towards the bed, and Mia climbed onto all fours, pushing her backside high in the air for Ayo’s viewing pleasure. Ayo hungrily ran his hands over her bottom, his tanned hands squeezing at her flesh. He leaned down to nip her sensitive skin.

“Ayo!” Mia moaned, pushing her backside towards him, desperate to feel her husband. Ayo reached his hand between her legs, running his hand along her wet sex. His fingers slipped between Mia’s folds, and he could feel her silky wetness cling to his fingers. It had been a long two days away from his wife, and he had missed her. He had missed her bright red hair, and her sweet personality. It had taken her months to warm up to him, and it pleased him to see her eyes light up when he walked into the room, and to feel her soft, round body press up against him when he embraced her.

Of course, he missed other parts of her body, too. He missed how soft and smooth she felt beneath him, and the way her round breasts fit perfectly in his hands and mouth. She tasted of milk and honey, and Ayo would have happily spent every night with his face buried deep within her pristine pussy that belonged only to him. He became aroused just thinking of how his wife was his and
only
his. No one else had ever seen her pink breasts, no other man had ever slipped his fingers deep within her tight opening, and no man or beast had ever possessed all of her, felt her wrap around them tightly and cry out in protest as they pulled out, before plunging back into her.