I circled him slowly, tracing my fingertips along his back, ribs, and stomach. His hair stood and I saw other clear signs of arousal, but I knew I could do better. I wanted him to beg - for what, I didn't yet know. He would tell me, and I would use it against him.

"Scarlet," he whispered, voice heavy with need.

I kissed his cheek.

My purpose was to serve the Ivory Kingdom. Be their sacrificial princess; enter the Other world; seduce our enemy, Rowan the Crimson King. I did all of these things. Now he would take me to the Crimson Gates and unwittingly break the banishment curse on my kingdom. My kingdom would invade his overnight. But he wasn't the monster I was told he would be. He was precious, playful, and all things good. I didn't want to betray him, but I didn't know what else to do.

18+ for sexual content
TW: mild violence; substance-induced psychosis; recovery from cult/mental abuse.

Of What is Red is created by Diana Regolizio, an eGlobal Creative Publishing signed author.

Of What is Red

Planning a spectacular wedding was a lot for twenty untrained men to undertake. While they had the know-how to cook, they didn’t have the confidence to decorate, and a small group of them brought their heads together on what would please me in terms of a wedding dress.


Thankfully the king volunteered himself to kitchen staff, giving me time to disappear to the dungeon. 


“Rowan,” I said, approaching the bars to his cell.


Still naked, he sat sideways to me, a long leg bent to block his pelvis. “Princess Lily,” he replied, startling me for a moment before I figured he was being playful. His straight-face and his joking-face were the same.


I twisted my mouth. “Soon to be ‘Queen’ Lily.”


“Queen Lily,” he echoed softly, eyebrows raised. “And what might Queen Lily’s first decree be?”


Chapter 11: Of What is Red