Truly Yours - Lesbian Omegaverse Fantasy Romance, page 1
Truly Yours
Lesbian Omegaverse Fantasy Romance
by Lily X
Learn from Avani:
Your feelings are always valid.
Your behavior is not.
Dedication
For anyone who’s ever felt second-best—I would love to hear about your villain era.
Content Note
Please read with caution.
This novel contains explicit descriptions of mating cycles and G!P (girl penis). As the blurb indicates, this is a story about someone being traded to pay off a debt.
The main character, Avani, is a user and abuser. Things to expect: rough sex, non-consensual elements, fleeting bouts of suicidal ideations, unrealistic ideas of virginity, and difficult depictions of an omega as merely a ‘thing’. If those themes are triggering for you, please click away.
You’ve been warned.
Also available from Lily X
Published by Carina Press
New World: Stay with Me
New World: Made for Me
New World: Own Me
New World: Breathe with Me
New World: Safe with Me
Seventh Star Series (F/F Omegaverse)
Let Me Be Yours
Never Yours
I’m Yours
Forever Yours
Truly Yours
Independent enemies-to-lovers novel set in the Seventh Star:
Wrath of a King
Copyright © 2024 Lily X
All rights reserved. No part of this novel may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission by the author, except for brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Eight
Chapter Forty-Nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-One
Chapter Fifty-Two
Chapter Fifty-Three
Chapter Fifty-Four
Chapter Fifty-Five
Epilogue I
Epilogue II
Prologue
Avani
Past
The sharp tip of the lead pencil broke under my fingers. Frustration curled low in my belly, and I flung the offending pencil aside. It hit the wall and fell to the stone floor with a clatter.
I hated being in here—trapped with the musty smell of old books and banked ash from the hearth. Worst of all was the large chalkboard that loomed threateningly at the front of the classroom. It covered the whole wall, its surface marked with fading lines and diagrams from previous lessons.
If I really concentrated, I could understand the diagrams… but the words, not so much, and not for the lack of trying.
Just past the large bay windows, Ris and Aran tossed a ball around with Zephyr, Zach, and Zanny. The echoes of their happy laughter made my fingers turn into fists.
“Vani!” Ris called through the foggy windowpanes. She bounced up and down on her toes. “Hurry up! We need you to form teams.”
I pressed my face against the cold glass, watching enviously as the other children played outside. Their laughter pierced through the window—each giggle felt like a taunt, mocking my confinement indoors.
My fingers traced the patterns of condensation on the window, longing to be out there, feeling the warmth of the sun on my skin. I could almost taste the freedom they enjoyed, the carefree abandon with which they chased each other across the grass.
The urge to join them gnawed at me, a constant ache in my chest. I yearned to feel the wind in my hair, to run barefoot.
Instead, I remained trapped within the confines of the classroom, shackled by a task about rhyming words. My world was reduced to four walls and an irritable professor who had often said he disliked teaching young children, especially untalented ones like I was.
“Your Highness.”
I didn’t want to turn. I refused to.
I hated the way our tutor looked down at me through his glasses. The gold-rimmed frame slid down low on his nose, and several deep furrows marred his forehead.
His steel pointer slapped the notebook on the table. Not once, not twice, but five times in succession.
Each tap made me jump.
“Your Highness,” he repeated, his nasal voice echoing in the empty classroom—empty save for me. “You need to focus. Pick up the pencil. Your attention is elsewhere, isn’t it?”
It just wasn’t fair.
Everyone else got to play outside in the sun while I was forced to sit in this classroom like a prisoner to old man Booger. That wasn’t his real name, of course. Maman had often said Professor Bowgan came from a long line of talented scholars. It was an honor to learn from him.
Blah, blah, blah.
It had tickled me that his name was so close to Booger, and now, we all called him that behind his back. Although sometimes, the nickname slipped out by accident.
He was never pleased to hear it.
I sighed, glancing down at my notebook. I was no closer to finishing the task of finding rhyming words. In fact, everything on the page looked exactly the same—swimming around in a jumble.
Even Aran had finished the task before me, and he was supposed to be my younger brother, born an hour after me.
I flipped through the notebook absently and rubbed my eyes.
“May I have a glass of water, please?” I asked, making sure to use the right words. I’d already been corrected several times for saying ‘can I’ instead of ‘may I’.
Professor Booger frowned a little before shuffling away to the pantry, his flowing robes brushing across the floor. It occurred to me that I’d never seen what his body looked like underneath—he never took his robes off even when the days were warm. That was highly suspicious behavior.
Perhaps he had an oddly-shaped body. Some people were just born different, or so Maman had taught us. Or perhaps Booger was must a floating head sent from another star to torture me.
I breathed a sigh of relief as he left the room, but it was short lived.
The sharp clip of shoes in the hallway drew my attention. It was too early for Maman to return from her meeting, and Sire was out of town for the next few days.
I turned to find Grandmother standing in the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest as she smiled at me.
With an excited squeal, I stood quickly, ready to embrace her.
She dressed so differently from Maman and Auntie Jamie. I liked it very much. Gold flashed on her fingers and her throat. She wore a dark brown vest and trousers and a hat to match. It was tilted on its side, and I wondered what she would do if I pushed it back into the right position. Perhaps it was meant to be on the side. Not everything had to be upright.
Grandmother didn’t visit us often, preferring her villa on the islands to the cold mountain air. Often, I’d caught her saying that the old castle held too many memories for her after Grandfather’s death.
Her boots were silenced by the carpet as she entered the study.
I flung my arms around her waist and held tight.
“Why are you here all alone, dearest?” she asked, patting my back in soothing motions. “Where are your little friends?”
“Outside,” I said, my words muffled by her shirt. “Playing.”
“And why aren’t you playing with them?”
I shrugged, pulling away to glance down at my shoes. A splatter of pink paint marred the shiny leather.
With a thoughtful murmur, she led me back to my table and leaned against it.
I found myself looking at the gold buckle on her belt. It was shiny and new—the kind of thing I would normally not be allowed to touch. I’d seen similar butt ons on sire’s clothing. The beast in the middle was our family’s crest, and one day, I would wear it, too. When I was old enough to know its importance.
“You shouldn’t be sitting here alone,” Grandmother said, touching my cheek. Her skin was soft, cotton-like.
I found myself looking into her dark eyes, so very different from any of us.
“I have to finish my rhyming sheet,” I murmured, placing a hand on the notebook so she couldn’t peek at the rubbish I had written down in hopes that it would be correct.
But Grandmother was too smart for me. She reached down and plucked the notebook out of my hands.
“No, please—”
But she didn’t read it. Instead, she ripped the page and crumpled the paper into a little ball. Across the room it flew. I watched it disappear into a back corner, and mentally prepared to pick it back up once Grandmother was gone. Professor Booger didn’t like messes, and it wouldn’t do to anger him further.
“You want to be outside, don’t you?” Grandmother asked. I looked back at her and nodded.
“Then you should go outside.”
“But I’ll get in trouble,” I whispered, wondering when the professor would be back from the pantry. Probably any minute now.
Grandmother knelt in front of me. The distinct scent of sweet flowers wrapped around my body. She smelled good. Like Maman, but in a different way. I found myself tilting forward to get a better breath of her scent.
“You are a Brimwood Alpha, Avani,” Grandmother said. “You are the most blessed in all of Nestia. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”
“I don’t?” That didn’t seem right.
But Grandmother was convinced. “Of course not. You will learn to get what you want—take what you want—even if you have to fight to get it.”
“Fight,” I repeated.
“Yes, dearest.” She pressed her cheek to my own, leaving her scent on my skin. “Fight.”
Professor Booger returned with a steaming mug in hand. He bowed to Grandmother and placed the warm water in front of me. He always believed that warm water was better for the body than cold.
“Let’s get back to work then, Your Highness,” he droned, pushing the glasses further up his nose. “We have quite a bit to get through before you catch up to Aran.”
My cheeks ignited with embarrassment. How dare he embarrass me like this in front of Grandmother? Now she knew how stupid I was, how much I lagged behind my younger twin. I was supposed to set the example for Aran, but I was too dumb to be a good big sister.
Booger picked up the fallen pencil and placed it back on my desk.
“Let’s begin,” he said, nodding toward my notebook. “You will not reach your destination if you cannot summon the energy to start.”
With explosive force, a single word broke free from the trapped frustration in my chest.
“No.”
“I beg your pardon?” Booger’s eyes widened behind his spectacles.
“I said no, Professor.”
A flicker of disbelief crossed his features as my words registered. His brows furrowed deeply, astonished at my unexpected outburst.
I glanced at Grandmother, who looked pleased by my sudden strength.
“I don’t want to do this anymore.”
Taking his stunned silence as a cue, I pushed the chair back into its assigned position and strode from the room.
Grandmother’s boots clipped on the stone floors as she followed me out into the hallway.
My heart beat unsteadily; my palms were damp with sweat.
I knew in my heart that what I’d done was wrong… But. The rush it gave me was unparalleled.
For so long, Booger had tormented me with language and arithmetic challenges. I had spent more time than anyone else in that classroom, waiting to be chastised for falling behind.
Refusing to be his prisoner made my blood hum with adrenaline.
Even so, Maman’s teachings won out.
“That was rude.” The belated realization struck me like a blow. I looked down at my shoes, heaving a sigh. “I should apologize.”
Strong fingers gripped my chin. Manicured nails dug into my skin. Grandmother’s dark eyes gleamed in the sunlight as she bent to meet my gaze.
“Never apologize, Avani. Kings don’t apologize.”
“But—” I stuttered. “I’m not a king.”
“You will be,” she assured me. “One day.”
Surely that wasn’t possible. But Grandmother seemed convinced. She had a strange look in her eyes, a gleam that made me believe that perhaps she knew something I didn’t.
She released my chin and placed a quick kiss to my forehead.
“Don’t you want to say hi to the others?” I asked as she walked back towards the suites.
“No,” she called over her shoulder. “I’ve already seen my favorite grandbaby.”
Warmth spread through my chest. In Grandmother’s eyes, I wasn't just another grandchild; I was someone truly special, worthy of her undivided attention. She always knew exactly what to say to make me feel like the most important pup to ever exist.
It was hard to understand why Ris and Aran didn’t like her. They always groaned when Maman planned a dinner in Grandmother’s honor, or ran away if they heard her walking towards them.
Silly creatures, I thought, watching Grandmother disappear down the hallway. She’s the best person in the whole star.
Chapter One
Avani
Present day
If Beaux hadn’t been built like a fucking barrel, I might’ve compared him to a snake with its belly to the ground.
Slither, slither.
His sleuthing skills were impressive, his contacts extensive.
I could only hope that he didn’t end up dead because of everything he knew. Working for me certainly didn’t do him any favors.
He made his way through the sluggish tavern, ducking under the low awning. The local watering hole at the base of the Twill mountains was nothing more than a dimly lit den, its walls stained with years of smoke and spilled ale.
The furniture, if it could be called that, consisted of rickety wooden tables and chairs, their surfaces worn and scratched from years of use and abuse.
In one corner, a group of rough-looking individuals huddled around a game of cards, their voices low and gruff as they exchanged banter and insults.
At the bar, a burly bartender with a scarred face wiped down glasses with a dirty rag, casting wary glances at the patrons gathered around him.
In another corner, a trio of shady figures whispered conspiratorially, their heads close together as they exchanged furtive glances.
Every few seconds, they looked over at me and ducked their heads.
Fuck ‘em.
Even if they were smart enough to clock who I was, I doubted they had the balls to approach.
A tankard of cherry ale stared back at me, full to the brim. Just the thought of sipping on the cheap drink made my stomach churn. But I held my palm around the tankard, its icy cool exterior making an attempt to dampen the frustration that bubbled in my chest.
“Your Highness.”
Beaux’s voice was rough and gravelly, like sandpaper on stone. Each word scraped against the air as it left his lips, carrying with it a hint of menace and danger. There was a coarseness to his tone, as if years spent in the shadows had worn away any semblance of softness or civility.
I found kinship in his gruffness, whatever that meant.
A low, dark hat casted shadows over his eyes. A glint of copper flashed from a tooth. His cloak spread out around him as he slid into the narrow booth that could barely accommodate our bulk.
“Tell me.”
I had waited, and waited, and waited some more.
Months. Six, in fact—ever since the news of my brother’s second pregnancy had traveled from the tops of the Twill mountains to the rest of the star.
Everyone hoped for an Alpha. They prayed to the Goddess to bless Aran and Caira.
Everyone but me.
I had long since buried the idea of Caira being an ally to my cause. He was weak—easily fooled.
My sire had dangled Aran under Caira’s nose like a dead worm on a fishing hook, and the Alpha had sunk his jaws into it like a feeble-minded piece of shit.
Caira had been my strongest ally. With him and his army, I could’ve taken Nestia by force.
I would’ve been King, claiming my birthright, reigning true.
Everyone would’ve bowed before me.
