Malaykah sat in silence and concentrated on concealing her thoughts. Everything that Alëxios shared with her was heavy enough to cause her heart to explode. She thought about what it truly meant to have a life partner; love, respect, honesty, and acceptance. None of which she had experienced in the human realm. She would need to determine how much stamina and tolerance she possessed to be with Alëxios. She also had to resolve whether he would make the same assessments regarding her.

Up until then, Alëxios had only tasked himself to demonstrate his indifference concerning the matter of delivering his heir to the throne. All of the kings before him seemed to have preoccupied themselves with that particular element of ruling Phëläniciä, which caused a series of attempted coups, murders, and wars among siblings in some eras.

Alëxios desired a legacy utterly dissimilar to the days of old. He secured some semblance of peace within the kingdom and cultivated a military unmatched in strength and numbers. In fact, he had spent such a lengthy amount of time manifesting his dream kingdom that his only other concern had been to find a suitable queen.

Malaykah was everything Alëxios had searched for in a lifemate. She proved invaluable in the events that led up to, during, and after the siege. The possibility of her inability to conceive his child was of no consequence to him based on that measure. However, it was clear to him that she felt inadequate as a queen and his bride.

Without any audible persuasion, Alëxios gestured for them to take their conversation over to the bed. Malaykah reluctantly obeyed. He wasted no time caressing her body. The warmth of his breath on her neck sent chills through her spine. She abruptly pulled away from him and instead slid under the covers.

“How can you touch me, knowing full well that when we make love, I might not be able to give you a child?” she asked unnervingly.

Alëxios smiled deviously and slid down beside her.

“My Queen, I assure you when we make love, that is the furthest notion, nor has it ever been a specific goal,” he replied.

Malaykah’s contrite aura set the mood of the room. As her thoughts remained heavily guarded, he conceded that she would not make herself available to him. Alëxios took her disinclination as a cue to let well enough alone since he had no desire to experience passionless intercourse with his wife.

~Ch. 19, The Realm Beyond the Stars and Sea~