Prince of Pleasure Read Free Page A

was not as enraptured with their actions as he’d once been. Still, he permitted them to carry on, his thoughts drifting back to the coming war.
    So much had happened in the last few full cycles, or years as he often heard humans refer to them, that it was simply a matter of time before war was declared and the small confrontations occurring on the borders between the kingdoms turned into full-scale battles.
    Even the vultures were daring to show their faces within the boundaries of the hawks’ and the falcons’ lands. They were friend to none, enemy to all in the realm.
    Sighing, Rossi continued to stroke his cock through his trews. Soon, he would order the women to service him so that several of the females could take turns sucking his cock. The idea of such acts had, at one point, left him near spilling his seed. No more. Now, the acts seemed to take longer and longer to bring him pleasure, and even that pleasure was not as great as he hoped it would be.
    He watched as handmaidens danced in a circle in the center of the room, each trying to catch and keep his gaze upon them. Demanding wenches, if he did say so himself. They no longer had the attentions of the king, so they were particularly giving in the needs and wants of those in positions of power.
    Such as Rossi.
    They would suck him for hours and hours if he called for it. They would do whatever he wished of them. Harems were commonplace through the entire realm. Some even operated from taverns, giving pleasure to passing warriors.
    He was sure most of them had hopes they’d end up mating a man of means. While they were well cared for and wanted for nothing, it seemed a fantasy of most young women to want to mate.
    Women.
    He never quite understood why they’d want only one man for the rest of their lives. It made little sense to him. If unmated, they could bed any unmated male whose eye they caught. He knew how to please a woman in bed, but out of it, he found them strange creatures. He would never permit himself to be tied to one woman.
    Never.
    His brother, the king, had disbanded the official harem several years back when he’d taken a mate, but an unofficial one remained in place for the unmated males of the race who resided within the castle walls. As youngest son in the Hawk Royal Family, Rossi had no plans to take a mate anytime soon. He wanted to sow his wild oats, fuck, and be merry. There would be time for mating later, when he had even more full cycles beneath his belt. He was young yet, as far as bird shifters were concerned.
    Once he’d selected a wife, his king of a brother appeared to forget what life had been like as a single, unmated male. Now all that fell from his brother’s mouth was how much the man loved his wife, how only one woman would do for him, how no others compared.
    Nonsense.
    Drivel.
    He shuddered at the idea of commitment.
    Of family.
    Of actual responsibility.
    The idea of any sort of permanent time restriction held little appeal to him. As it stood, he could come and go as he pleased and enjoy life to the fullest. He filled in to help oversee the duties of king only when absolutely necessary and only because his other brothers had no interest in the position. Growing up, Rossi often wondered if even Kabril had interest in the throne. All the boys had seen the toll the throne took upon their father. None had been eager or power hungry.
    He envied Keonae, his brother who no longer resided within the realm. As always, he did what he pleased and answered to no one. He was hardheaded and refused to conform to what was expected of him. For all Rossi’s protests and pleas to be given less responsibility as he was not truly needed, he still assured his royal duties were seen to. Keonae cared not for those, either.
    Ah, to be so free. So unconcerned with duties.
    Rossi could only dream.
    One of the females danced closer to Rossi, her breasts jiggling under the thin material she wore. He reached up and squeezed one. Her nipple