Archive of Our Own

The month between Naveen and Tiana’s bayou wedding and the ceremony they’d had before God, a caravaning court from the Maldonian monarchy, and the entire population of New Orleans had done quite a number on their patience. They hadn’t wanted to take things this slowly. Their unplanned abstinence was purely a matter of convenience—or inconvenience, if they were being honest. In fact, if they’d had their druthers, the newlyweds would have been ferried off to some extravagant estate the moment they turned human again to consummate their vows with a few endless nights of passion, returning to the world of the clothed and the vertical some time around Thanksgiving at the earliest. (That had been Naveen’s wish anyway.) 

Much to the contrary though, they had paddled their way back on their own in a dilapidated old rowboat that could only have been held together by Mama Odie’s magic, eventually dragging their fine clothes through swamp banks and city streets alike. When they’d finally reached the doorstep of Tiana’s home in the middle of the night, they’d nearly sent her mother Eudora into an early grave, what with their getup and getting married and all. One long maternal fit later, and the new princess had only energy left enough to fall into bed without so much as removing a single article of her wedding attire. And instead of risking being smothered in his sleep by his bride’s poofy, green dress, Naveen had opted to retire to the couch that night where, out of respect to his new mother-in-law, he’d slept alone every night since.

They needed a place of their own. And soon. 

To make matters more complicated, Naveen had written to his parents the very next morning, explaining the highlights of his whirlwind romance with Tiana and his new found work ethic—notably leaving out the froggier parts for the time being. The king and queen of Maldonia had rather fervently replied to his letter some days later with the notice that they were en route to New Orleans. Surprisingly, their words came across as more relieved than he’d expected, no doubt spurred by the prospect of him one day providing a legitimate heir to the throne. Still, the king and queen’s note contained a patronizing promise to annul whatever vows he’d made if they saw fit for the future of their country. That last part obviously upset Tiana. But the prince assured her that his parents’ gruffness was merely in reaction to his own past behavior. A reaction that was unfortunately justified. He wasn’t that same person anymore, though. He couldn’t be with Tiana by his side. His parents would realize that the moment they met her. And they’d be smitten with her, too. Just… not as much as he was. That, Naveen assured his bride, was impossible.

The month wasn’t all bad though. The prince and princess used those first few weeks together to get to know each other better—as people—not just as the hapless frogs they’d been. They talked about their friends and families. Their fears. Their favorite things. The princess returned to work as a waitress and the prince got a few jobs of his own, translating old French archives for the library and delivering parcels across town. They saved up for her restaurant together. They walked home hand in hand after long shifts. On evenings when the sidewalk was particularly empty, they’d neck under a streetlight or on a bench or up against some broad oak tree. Lost beyond lost in their love. Once they got to the house, Tiana would make her new husband gumbo. Naveen would serenade his new wife with a sweet tune or two on his ukulele. Then the two of them would end up sharing both soup and song with the neighborhood from the stoop of the back porch. 

Even after supper, when Tiana’s mother was home, the young couple would find an excuse to slow dance together or share inside jokes or pinch one another in inappropriate places when they thought the older woman wasn’t looking. More often than not though, Eudora had just turned a blind eye, smiling to herself at their sneaky kissing and carrying on. Having herself been little more than a generation removed from the right to wed, she let her daughter have her fun. What was Uncle Sam’s seal of approval on a love as pure and plain as this? Naveen wasn’t American anyway. Maybe in Maldonia, Eudora let herself believe, being married was as simple as saying yourself so. And if they needed more proof, well, they could jump a broom, too. Her Babycakes had proclaimed to be the wife of somebody’s son—a king and queen’s son to boot! So her mother let that proclamation be enough.

At night sometimes, after Eudora had gone off to sleep, Tiana would tiptoe out into the living room to touch her husband in the dark. They’d rustle together under the quilts her ancestors had made. Huffing and hungry. Never actually getting very far—but wanting to all the same. Naveen would reach under his bride’s nightgown. Tiana would feel her husband harden in her hands. They’d sigh together until their lungs lost breath. Before dawn, the princess would slink back into her room and pet the empty place on her mattress she’d reserved for her man, imagining what it would be like to use the whole bed with him, or to cry out his name without caution or need for quiet. Did Eudora even care where he slept anymore? Surely a threadbare old couch was no refuge for a prince. For her prince, at that. Tiana often told herself she’d work up the nerve to ask about it. Then she would remember the man missing from her mother’s own bed and feel ashamed. Here she was. Staying for free. Safe and warm and a few feet away from the love of her life. Even if Eudora wouldn’t have minded (and she wouldn’t have), it seemed like such a small price to pay for the world of courtesy it gave in return.

But, Lord, they needed a place of their own. And soon. 

A week or so after receiving that letter from Naveen’s parents, it was time to greet them at the pier. They’d come in a hurry. Royal attendants were scattered all about the Port of New Orleans, charting out a path for the king and queen from the gangplank to the shore and from the shore towards some sort of respite. The Louisiana heat was brutal. Naveen’s little brother Ralphie had tagged along, too, fussy and fatigued and fanning himself with both hands, poor thing. Tiana needed to get her in-laws somewhere more hospitable. Fast. Luckily for her, Mr. La Bouff had offered up a few rooms of his manor for the monarchs, and thankfully, they’d accepted. It would be much easier to dial up the Southern charm and win them over from the home of a family friend rather than some ritzy place all the way downtown. But she didn’t know how she’d pull it off yet. Naveen had assured her to just be herself. That she was enough as she was. He had already chosen her. If his parents had objections with that, then they could take it up with him directly. But he still had no doubt they would love her.

Tiana had to admit it. Naveen had been right. Being herself did just the trick. She hadn’t needed to pile more work onto her plate to impress her new royal in-laws. They were taken with her just the way she was. It wasn’t even so much that she seemed leaps and bounds above all the other girls the prince had entertained (though this was true). More likely it was that she was different. Tiana was thoughtful and kind. With ambitions and dreams. She’d had plans for her life before her husband had come along, and she hadn’t let him steer her off course. 

It was also clear that she’d changed Naveen—and for the better. When Tiana had invited her new family to her home for supper each night during the course of their stay, she would make them jambalaya or fried catfish or crawfish etouffee. But Naveen would be the one to set the table. He was the one to serve them, too. After they’d all eaten, the prince’s parents and the princess’s mother would chat and listen to the radio and remark on the state of the world, while Ralphie would read Tiana nursery rhymes in Maldonian and she would sneak him sweets. Naveen, however, would clear the dishes and wash them—all of his own volition. He’d dry the old chipped plates and scuffed up glasses, and place them into the cabinets with care. Like treasured, priceless things. When his chores were done, he’d join his family in the living room and listen along to their stories and genuinely laugh at their jokes. And when the La Bouffs’ chauffeur came around to take the king and queen and little Ralphie in for the night, Naveen would fluff up the couch and prepare himself for bed, seeming honored to sleep anywhere near his new wife in his mother-in-law’s humble home.

The second wedding came soon after that. Not that the prince or princess felt the need for another one. But it had been the only logical outcome after the boisterous reception Naveen’s parents had had for Tiana. Their son had found a future queen. And that was cause for celebration. The entire event was planned in a matter of days with everyone pitching in—and even more folks showing up. Crowds in the streets. Confetti in the air. Cameras on the scene. It wouldn’t have been a royal affair without a carriage to carry them off, too. There was eating and dancing and all sorts of fun. Then as the night wound down and the mood mellowed out and the newlyweds were nearly ready to go, the king and queen of Maldonia presented the first of a lifetime’s worth of thoughtful gifts to their son and daughter-in-law: a stay at the penthouse suite of the Hotel Monteleone. 

Tiana hadn’t wanted to accept such an expensive and elaborate gift. But there was no talking Naveen’s parents out of it. There were so many Maldonian traditions they hadn’t been able to perform to honor this royal marriage, that the king and queen saw this gesture as the least they could do. And after the month the prince and princess had just survived, there was little protest left in them. 

So finally, if only for the night, they’d have a place of their own. And they would be there very, very soon.

Prince Naveen carried his bride over the threshold of their wedding suite. The lamplight was dim and warm, casting them both in fine oranges and golds. He stumbled a little as he tried his best to close the door behind them and kick off his shoes all in one go. Tiana giggled and covered her smile with her hand, amused by his impatience. But just below the surface, she knew that she felt the very same eagerness that he did. 

As her husband searched the expanse of the penthouse for the bedroom with her still clutched in his arms, the princess took in her surroundings. There were long tasseled curtains and ornately patterned rugs. Crystalware and even chilled champagne. There was Italian furniture and gilded art and a private phone—just for the room! She had never stepped foot inside a place as lovely as this before. Well, technically she still hadn’t stepped inside it anywhere herself. But that didn’t matter. Tiana wanted to remember this place forever. She committed as much of it to memory as she could. To hold on to the weight of the moment. She would leave a part of herself here tonight. And she would gain something beautiful and brand new here, too.

At last they found the bedroom at the far end of the suite. They went inside and Naveen playfully tossed Tiana onto the mattress where she bounced into place. They both laughed, giddiness their overwhelming emotion. The prince jumped onto the bed beside her and started pulling at the fingers of his gloves, tossing them aside.

“What a night…” he sighed, staring up at the ceiling.

“You can say that again,” Tiana answered. She kicked off her heels and set her tiara on a bedside table, savoring the chance to turn off her new royal image for the night. 

Naveen rolled onto his side and started removing his bride’s gloves for her, too. He moved with intention and gentleness, casting his eyes over her face in a subtle, sweeping gaze. Even this nearly non-action sparked something hot within the princess. A coy smile stretched between her dimples.

Her husband noticed. He ran his thumb softly over her cheek. 

“You are smiling from excitement, or…?” he began, not finishing his thought. Letting the space between them fill with heat and meaning where words should have been. 

Tiana turned onto her side to face him and tapped one of her now bare hands on his chest. She traced her fingers over the stains she’d made on his ceremonial guard uniform, blotches of buttercream left from smashing too much cake into his face earlier that evening. She giggled a little remembering it. It had all passed by too quickly. For not wanting a second wedding, she was already enjoying the memories from it.

The prince laughed a little, too. 

“You will pay for that, you know?” he naughtily threatened his bride.

“Hate to break it to ya, Hop-along,” she countered, “but every penny I make goes straight into my restaurant fund.”

All too easily Naveen rolled on top of her, lightly pinning her hands above her head and rubbing his nose against hers.

“Well, then…” he rasped, “I guess you will have to find some other way to pay, hmm?” 

He brought his lips to hers.

Tiana wasn’t expecting to be so weakened by his kiss. Kissing was their home base. Something they'd done so many times before that their mouths were far beyond familiar with each other. But this... this was different. Why did this time feel so... raw? So unrestrained? She felt her knees rise off the bed and her wedding gown ride up and her legs weave around his waist as if by some supernatural force. The prince pulled away for a moment, smiling down at her. Tiana exhaled, suddenly realizing she had been holding her breath.

“I love you, Tiana,” he whispered, the words intimate and close—said just for her.

The princess quivered from the way he looked at her.

“I love you, too, Naveen,” she answered, very much ready for more. Then without warning, “Oh, wait! I forgot somethin’!”

They both sat up.

“What is wrong, miamoza?” Naveen asked.

She patted his leg. “Nothin’s wrong, sugah. I just… I forgot I got a gift for tonight.”

“Surely this gift can wait, no?” The prince brushed his nose against her ear and tenderly pulled at the lobe of it with his teeth, knowing his tongue could be quite persuasive. 

“Well…” Tiana tried to reason with him despite his tactics, “it’s really a gift for you…”

He perked up at that. “I’m listening…”

Tiana stood from the bed and looked about the room for wherever the bellhops had set their belongings. When she spotted them tucked away in a corner, she quickly rummaged through the trunks and suitcases until she found a bright, pink lingerie box from none other than Miss Charlotte La Bouff herself. Tiana brought the gift back over to the bed and placed it in front of her husband. 

“You can probably guess what this is.” Tiana giggled.

He chuckled along with her. She lifted the lid of the box so that the contents we’re still hidden from him. 

“Didja wanna take a peek?” she asked. “Or… should I head straight to puttin’ it on?”

“Just tell me how frilly and pink it is.”

She smiled, “Very… to both.”

The two of them laughed some more. 

“Guess I ought to go freshen up then…” the princess offered, standing this time to find somewhere private to change her clothes. As she got up, though, Naveen caught her by the hand.

“D-don’t…” he muttered.

Tiana turned around to look at him and he ran his thumb unconsciously over her wedding ring.

“What I mean to say is...” he tried again, pulling her close, “is that there will be plenty of time for frilly, lacey things later. Let me take you out of this dress tonight, Tiana… my princess. I… I already missed my first chance a month ago.”

Just then Naveen stood up and took the box from his wife. He set it on the floor so he could hold both her hands in his, his one thumb still toying with her ring as his lips parted. As his eyes darkened. As his intentions grew full. Lust was transforming her husband right in front of her. Tiana’s cheeks were surely burning now. The way her prince drank her in, undressed her with a look. He must have been holding back before, she thought, because he clearly had a mission that he was determined to see through to the end.

The princess nodded to her husband nervously.

“Perhaps it would help if I go first, yes?” he suggested.

Prince Naveen placed sweet kisses on the backs of his bride’s hands before placing her palms flat against his chest. She looked up at him.

“The sash must come off first, my love,” he explained.

“Oh, right…” Tiana shook her head at herself. “How do I…do that exactly?”

Soft and low, the prince spoke to his bride: “I will show you.” 

Naveen moved Tiana’s hands over the pins of his royal sash, up to the buttons of his collar, then all the way down the front of his jacket. He let the garment fall to the floor, never taking his eyes off her beautiful face for a second. She was getting the hang of it now, reaching up to his shoulders to remove his suspenders one by one and finally pulling off his undershirt. She had felt his bare chest in the darkness of her mother’s living room plenty of times. But she had never seen him in the light like this before. He was broad and muscular, but not overly so. With skin like toasted cinnamon under a patch of warm, brown chest hair. She reached out to touch him. To see if he still felt just as delicious under her fingertips as he had all those times sneaking around. But she was hesitant.

“You do not have to be scared, miamoza,” he assured her. “I will not bite… unless you want me to.”

She glared at him, scandalized. He winked. They fell against each other grinning and giggling.

“I don’t know why I’m so worked up, sugah,” Tiana sighed. “I want to do this… I’ve been lookin’ forward to a night like tonight for so long.” 

“It is alright to be a little nervous, princess. I am, too,” admitted Naveen.

“Really?”

“Absolutely. More than I’ve ever been.”

She raised her eyebrow at him. “More than almost being eaten by gators?”

“Okay, not that nervous,” he laughed. “But close.”

The prince guided his bride over to the other side of the bedroom, parking them both in front of the suite’s large floor-length mirror. He stood behind her and circled her waist with his arms. They locked eyes with each other’s reflections. Just holding each other and being held. They started swaying together, the movement helping them ease out of their jitters.

When Tiana finally mustered the courage to ask what she was thinking, she did. “Why are you nervous, sugah?”

Her husband paused for a long, thoughtful moment, resting his chin on her shoulder and looking away from her for one of the few times all night. He seemed to scan the bedroom as if the right words were written on the floor.

“I suppose… because I do not want to hurt you,” he said after a moment. “I want your first time, our first time, to be perfect for you.” 

He rubbed her sides, resumed eye contact with her in the mirror. “I want you to want this with me… as desperately as I want it with you—and only you, Tiana.”

The princess turned her head to the side and kissed her man. Letting her lips and open mouth show him what she wasn’t yet able to tell. They stayed that way for a while. Then for a little while more.

Finally she said, “Of course I want you, Naveen.” She caressed his jaw in her hand. “I need you, too.” 

“Not as badly as I need you right now, Tiana,” the prince promised her.

That overwhelming desire had returned to her husband’s eyes again. But this time, it didn’t fluster the princess one bit. Instead, she held his gaze in the mirror, welcoming whatever cravings he cast in her direction. She wanted to give him more of herself to covet, too. So, Tiana reached up to her hair, removed the pins, shook her mane loose before him—her curls framing her face like a halo of hedonism. Then she moved one of her husband’s hands from her waist to the top of her wedding gown.

“The straps have to come off first, my love,” she mimicked him.

The prince chuckled and played along. “Oh, right… How do I do that exactly?”

“Let me show you,” whispered Tiana.

Naveen allowed himself to be led through undressing his bride. She motioned to him how he should pull down her straps and had him undo the buttons hidden in the seam at her side. He watched her every move in the mirror, a sly smile curling the corner of his mouth as he did. Her gown was so low-cut in the back that wearing a brassiere had been impossible, and he pressed wet kisses along her spine as he excitedly peeled the top of her dress off, letting the fabric pool around her hips. 

“Achidanza,” he sighed, lifting his head from his barrage of kisses to behold the hot spectacle that was his wife. “I could eat you alive…” 

The prince scooped up his princess’s breasts from behind. They fit perfectly in his hands. Tiana gasped as she watched him work her body in the mirror. He skimmed his fingers over her nipples until they tightened at his touch. She closed her eyes and cooed. Somehow, Naveen thought, she felt even better than she had those nights in the dark—now that he could see her react to him, could see how pleasure consumed her.

“We need to get the rest of you out of this dress, miamoza,” Naveen rumbled.

He dragged his hands down her sides, hooking his thumbs into the cloth of her gown and pushing past the thickest part of her hips. It fell to the floor, leaving her in just her knickers. She made to cover her lower half with her hands, but the prince hugged her tighter, drew her closer, brought one of her hands to his lips and kissed it.

“It is just me, Tiana,” he tried to comfort her, “Your little frog.”

“I know, I know...” She gave him a weak smile and nuzzled against his cheek. “Guess I just can’t believe this is finally happenin’.”

“Do you want to keep going?”

Her answer was certain. “Yes.”

“Then what do you want to do next?” His lips brushed her neck when he asked and Tiana shivered in his arms.

“I… I don’t know,” she confessed. “But I do know that I want to be with you… very much.”

Naveen picked his princess up again and walked them over to the bed. He sat on the edge of it and seated Tiana on his lap.

“Let us just take a moment to be together then,” he offered, “Like this. Nice and easy.”

“Okay,” she said shakily, but smiling nonetheless. She draped her arms over his shoulders. “I like this.”

“See? I have some good ideas every now and then, princess,” he teased.

“Better than your cooking ideas, that’s for sure,” she teased right back.

“Hey!” Naveen laughed, “How is mayonnaise not a good base for a roux?”

Tiana grimaced and stuck out her tongue. They laughed together for the hundredth time that night. When their breathing returned to normal, the prince swept a coil of his bride’s hair out of her face. He took her chin in his hand. He swam inside her gaze.

“You are the most breathtaking woman I have ever seen…” he exhaled, barely above a whisper.

Tiana blushed, not knowing how to respond to such a compliment. “You’re the only man I've ever seen…”

Dammit, thought the princess. That sure wasn’t it. Why had she gone and said something like that? Naveen shifted beneath her, suddenly feeling very far away. 

“Is this… about my past, miamoza?”

Her heart broke a little at his question. She never meant to make him feel this way, especially on their wedding night. 

“Naveen, sugah… I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“No, Tiana,” he shook his head, “You are right to bring up these things. You want to talk about it now, yes?”

“We don’t have to—”

He gently cut her off, “No, we should. I want to.” He reached for her hand and held it. “I… I was very lost before, Tiana… Mad at my parents…. Avoiding my responsibilities. I… I definitely wasn’t looking for love.” He met her eyes at that last word without realizing it at first, and gave her a smile when he did. “If anything, I was just looking for enough of a good time to get me to the next day. Heh, kind of sad for a brat with everything, no?”

The princess squeezed his hand. “No, that’s not sad at all. I don’t think folks with everything they need act that way anyhow.” She kissed his brow. “Besides, look at you now... You’ve been wearin’ hand-me-down clothes and sleepin’ on a couch for a month, and I think you’ve been makin’ it to the next day just fine.”

She giggled and his heart melted at the sound.

“That is because I actually have everything I need now, Tiana…” he said, his eyes piercing hers. “I hope you know that I am not that same man anymore. None of those women ever had my heart. No one ever will but you.”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were in love, sugah,” his bride joked, her eyes twinkling at him.

He pulled her backwards onto the bed with him and she huffed from the shock. 

“Mhm...” he growled into her ear, “Let me prove it to you...”

Naveen hovered over Tiana where she lay on the bed. He surveyed her full lips, her chocolate skin, her dark, perfect nipples that had peaked just for him. His mouth watered predatorily, each of his senses preparing him to pounce. He reached for the sides of her knickers, seconds from pulling them down.

“May I?” he asked, greed tingeing his face.

Tiana exhaled heavily. Smiling, nodding.

The prince unwrapped his bride from her last piece of clothing like the anxiously awaited gift she was. With her underwear tossed aside, he reveled in her beauty, kissing up her stomach, between her breasts, along her quivering neck. Tiana panted softly and arched into him. She ran her fingers through his hair. Inhaled his rich tobacco scent. By the time his mouth made its way up to hers, she was waiting for him. Her tongue fell in sync with his in an eons-old act of devotion. Kissing. Moaning. Loving each other. Naveen paused for a moment to kick his way out of his trousers and underpants, to fling off his garters and socks. Then he eased himself back into place beside her. He was hard against the outside of her thigh. Tiana spread her legs apart, trusting that her man would soon be between them. In truth, part of him would be. Just not the part she’d been expecting. 

“If it is alright with you, princess…” he breathed into her ear, “I’m going to watch you come first...”

With that, Naveen slid his hand down, down, down the front of her, plunging a few fingers knuckle-deep inside her cunt. He couldn’t believe how wet she was for him, only now getting to see her like this—with the lamplight exposing her body. Every part of her was beautiful. Every part of her was finally his. He pumped his hand into her with an intoxicating rhythm. Warming her up. Tuning her pussy like an instrument he would finally get to play. Tiana clutched at the bedcovers, her insides twisting at his touch. She panted quietly into the air, forgetting there was no one nearby to disturb. Unfortunately for her, that sort of softness was not the wedding night welcome that her husband had envisioned.

“Do not hold back, miamoza...” the prince demanded. “We are all alone tonight… and I want to hear you...”

Then he dragged his wet fingers up to her clit and gave her something to shout about. 

All at once, Tiana cried out for mercy. A litany of vowel sounds escaped from her wide open mouth. Whatever magic currently emanated from his fingers exceeded all the times he’d pleasured her before. Had he been saving this sort of dexterity for a special occasion? Or maybe a cramped old couch was not the best stage for his skills. Regardless, the prince was suddenly the only thing grounding her in the universe and she gripped hard into his shoulders in an attempt not to float off into space. 

“You’re too gorgeous...” he sighed down to her. “How did I get so lucky?”

Naveen bent his head and captured one of her nipples with his lips. The princess dug her nails in deeper, leaving a patchwork of scratches on his back. He teased her with his tongue and teeth. Sucked at her till she bucked. He was closing in on her climax, dragging fresh sap from the center of her slit up to her nub of nerves until her whole pussy threatened to melt. When Naveen kissed his way over her neck and to her ear, he left her with one very important promise.

“I have so much more for you, Tiana… just you wait…”

There was no containing it. The princess came in his hand. Wild, loud, bold. The squishy, wet sounds of him finishing her filled up the room in the most undignified and delectable way. When her body went limp and her bellowing stopped and the balance returned to her brain, it was finally time for what they’d both been waiting for.

“Now,” Tiana ordered. “I want you right now…”

Her husband was a step ahead of her, stretching over to the nightstand in hopes that a hotel as generously furnished as this would come pre-stocked with prophylactics. They couldn't risk the possibility of children just yet, not when the dream of Tiana's restaurant was so close. But he didn’t want to leave her for a second, even if only to search through his own suitcase. He was in luck though. There were a few sealed tins of rubbers tucked away in the bedside drawer. Naveen popped a tin open and took out a fresh one, rolling it down the length of his shaft. The princess watched him the entire time. His cock was long and dark—thick with veins like routes on a map that she wanted to ride to paradise. She suddenly whimpered aloud when she hadn’t meant to, and Naveen smiled devilishly in response. 

He crawled between her legs.

Tiana kissed Naveen the moment his lips were close enough, purring and panting into his mouth. He’d centered his cock just outside of her, pressing it up against her cunt ever so slightly for the very first time. She winced like she’d never known was possible—joyful and riled up all at once. More eager than eager could be. The prince broke their kissing for a moment, his eyes hooded, heavy. He spoke so near to his bride that the hairs on her neck tingled from his breath. 

“I want this to be perfect for you, Tiana,” he rasped. “So tell me what you want…. or what you think you want… or what you want me to try...” 

She smiled at him and nodded. “Okay, sugah…” She was brimming with excitement now.

“I can start slowly,” Naveen suggested, kissing lazily up her neck as an example of the pace he had in mind. “But if you don’t like that, I can speed up, too.” He scattered quick little kisses all over her. 

Tiana giggled beneath him. 

“And if that doesn’t feel good,” he said, “I can slow down again.” He went back to his previous pace. 

The princess squeezed his shoulders. “Alright, sug—”

“Or,” he thought of something else, “we can try a different angle or position... or anything you’d like—”

“Is this supposed to be a lot of work to remember?” she asked, rightfully peeved.

“‘A lot of work’?” He joked, “You of all people should enjoy that, no?” 

“Naveen!” She playfully pushed at his chest and they both trembled with laughter.

“Alright, alright,” he chuckled. “I will stop making you wait. I just… I can’t believe I get to make love to you tonight, Tiana. My wife…” He stroked his hand up and down the curves all along the side of her body. “I love you so much.”

Tiana felt her eyes well up a little, but she held back the tears.

“I love you, too, Naveen. So, so much.” She kissed him gently, cupped his strong jaw in her hand. Then she pulled back a little, saying, “But if we don’t get to more than talkin’ in the next few seconds, I will lose my mind.”

Though her impatience was amusing, Naveen didn’t have much strength left to resist either.

“Are you ready for me?” he asked her, hot lust radiating off of both him and his words alike.

“God, yes!” she all but yelled. 

Carefully, anxiously he thrust inside her—or at least, he tried.

“That is odd…” he mentioned offhandedly.

“What is?” the princess asked.

“Just… let me try again,” he told her. 

Again, he pushed into his bride. He got a little further, but not by much.

“Hmm,” Naveen considered their circumstances. “It seems as though I do not fit, miamoza.”

Worry warped Tiana’s face. “Is... is that normal? Is somethin’ wrong?”

“No, nothing is wrong,” he assured her. “You are a virgin, is all. Though it does seem as though you are trying to stay that way…” 

Tiana glared at him. Naveen laughed. But he wasn’t giving up yet.

“I have an idea…” he said, eyes twinkling. 

He wrapped his arms around his bride and swiftly flipped them over. Once the surprise of their sudden new position wore off, Tiana sat up. She was straddling Naveen where he lay, her pelvis slightly below his cock. She ran her hands over his stomach, mostly certain of what to do next, but still unsure of exactly how to do it.

“Now what?” she asked.

He smirked. “Now we let gravity help us…”

The prince grabbed her where her thighs met her hips, running his thumbs into her creases there and instantly falling in love with them—those fullest, most voluptuous parts of her body. He lifted and lined up her center with his shaft. 

She slid down the length of him.

Tiana swore and shut her eyes tight. Her hands turned into fists on her husband’s chest and she smelled her own blood in the air. This wasn’t as easy as she was hoping it would be. She felt a startlingly sharp pain shoot up the middle of her abdomen, immediately giving way to a different sensation: Naveen. He was so much. So big. With her maidenhead no longer a barrier, he had pierced her all the way through, their hips finally flush against each other. He’d stretched her, filled her beyond measure, and a restless heat prickled her skin everywhere she could still manage to feel.

“How are you, miamoza?” His voice was all concern, though he’d already wanted to growl out her name.

She opened her eyes one at a time and gave him a weary smile. “Ah, I think I’m alright…”

The prince shifted underneath her, reaching his hand towards her face and hoping to give her some sort of comfort. But his movements had done something else.

“Ohh…” she let out a long, low sigh.

“What is the matter, Ti—”

She allowed herself to shift on top of him, too. And they both sighed at that.

“N-Naveen...” the princess purred, rotating her hips in exploratory little twists and turns, “You feel… so good…” She looked into his face with lidded eyes. “H-how do I do this?”

“You want to keep going?” He had to make sure. He didn’t trust himself to stop once they were in the thick of it.

Tiana’s weary smile transformed into a wicked one. “Yes, sugah…”

He bit his bottom lip. Scanned her up and down. 

“Well,” he huffed, “you learned how to dance… It is kind of like that.” He lowered his voice. “Try moving your hips a little more for me...”

Naveen pulled Tiana’s thighs forward. Pushed them backward again. He was demonstrating a luscious rocking motion for her—and also delighting in the chance to sink his fingers into his new favorite spot on her body. She shot her head back and groaned. 

“Like this, miamoza…”

She mimicked his moves and his eyes rolled back in his head.

“Like this?” she panted.

“Ahh…” he breathed out hard. “Just like that…”

Princess Tiana locked eyes with her man and rocked herself against him. She’d never felt so powerful—so feminine—before, her body soft where his was hard, but both equally strong and insatiable. Each completing the other. Consuming the other. Together made one in pleasure. She wondered what she felt like to Naveen. What sort of sensations could he feel on his end? If they were anything like what she was currently experiencing, she could see why he had been such a playboy before. She wanted to shout from the rooftops. To tell all of New Orleans to stop whatever they were doing right now and go make love. However, Tiana didn’t have much stamina yet, and she was starting to grow tired on top of him. Fortunately for her, Naveen noticed.

Without warning, he flipped them both over again.

Tiana gasped as she landed on the bed. But her legs hooked around the prince as if she’d done this a thousand times before. Naveen brushed his lips against hers, speaking just outside of her mouth. 

“I am going to lead now…” Then he vowed to her, gravelly and low: “And I am going to make you feel so good…”

The prince kissed his bride and thrust inside her at the same time, crashing his hips into hers like slow and steady waves upon a shore. Tiana cried out. Bit his lip. Anchored her nails in his back again. They would both bleed some tonight, not that Naveen minded. All he wanted was for Tiana to enjoy herself. And from her pleasant little screams, she seemed to be doing that just fine. 

Naveen dragged his tongue over her nipples and sucked them each with care. He wound his hips into hers in unhurried, agonizing strokes. He had never put so much dedication into a night of lovemaking before. But, he’d never actually been in love before either. It wasn’t so much that he wanted to impress Tiana, though surely that was part of it. More that he felt the need to show her the sort of desire she deserved. This worthy, hardworking woman. From waitress to wife. To his. He worked his body confidently on top of hers, in awe of the first night in what he knew would be more than a lifetime’s share of passion. 

“How is this, my love?” he asked Tiana. “Is this alright? Do you want it faster? Slower? Harder?”

The princess wasn’t exactly in the right state of mind to make decisions. Everything felt brand new, her own body included. How could she possibly comprehend her husband’s questions? Still, she tried anyway. 

“I-I don’t know…” she stuttered. “This is... so good already…” But her interest was piqued. “What’s harder like?”

Her husband smirked. “I will show you…”

Naveen raised himself up to the full height of his knees, lifting Tiana’s lower body off the bed with him, their most engorged organs still salaciously intertwined. He rolled his hips against hers, drove every inch of his cock inside her dripping wet cunt. Deep and hard and powerfully slow. He could have come from their fleshy noises alone, but he started reciting addresses along his delivery route to himself to keep his climax at bay.

He moaned down to her, “Do you like this?”

Princess Tiana needed to yell. What, she didn’t know. Things like “how?!” or “hey!” or “help!” crossed her mind, though she wasn’t entirely sure why. Her husband’s own name honestly seemed like too many syllables for her to handle at the moment. His cock was anointing her with some divine and unknown spirit, and she felt blessed to receive it like this. Rock-hard and repetitive. As meditative as prayer. She gripped onto all the pillows and bedding, shutting her eyes and taking it all. His every inch and thrust. All she managed to get out was an overly satisfied hum through bitten lips.

“You like this, yes?” Naveen moaned again, his ego peaking through in his ask.

“YES!” the princess managed to say something comprehensible. “Don’t stop!” 

Naveen dropped down, hovering above Tiana, and pressed his torso into hers. His taut forearms and biceps tensed next to her face on the bed, and he captured her jaw and the side of her throat with one of his hands—not quite choking her—but not quite being gentle either. Then he swept his open mouth over hers as she gulped at the air in an act too loose to be considered a kiss, but just as seductive. Maybe more so. Their hot lips brushing past each other in lust. The long locks of hair that usually framed the prince’s face fell over Tiana, sticking to her sweat and tickling her cheeks, and she ran her hands along the back of his head to keep him close. Good God, she thought in a brief moment of clarity, I’m in love. I’m in love. I’m in love.

 “Don’t hold back, Tiana…” Naveen begged, gazing at her through narrowed eyes, mere inches from her face. “Come with me… I want you to come with me…”

Tiana crossed over with her husband into orgasm, drowning his cock in her cunt. Unable to get enough. She screamed his name, the muscles of her face tight and aggravated, her body contracting around him in a sensation she was discovering in real time. Naveen cursed in Maldonian, his body buckling at the bidding of his bride. He shoved his head into the pillows next to Tiana’s neck and roared, pumping himself dry between her legs. Slumped together in the sheets and satisfied beyond a shadow of a doubt, they were depleted and dazed and done.

A few moments later, they replenished their lungs, rubbing their noses lightly against each other before they spoke.

“I love you, Tiana…” he huffed, exhausted and happy.

She huffed and heaved herself. “I love you, too, Naveen…” She tried to catch her breath for a moment, before finding the nerve to ask him: “Is it… is it always like that?”

Naveen knew she didn’t mean to bring up his past, but her curiosity was natural, and it must have been hounding her right now. He kissed her tenderly before answering.

“Miamoza,” he started, “It is never like that.” His words were truthful and soft. Then he added, “But for us, I have a feeling it will always be.”

“Hmm…” the princess smiled up at him, caressing him lovingly all along his neck, “That’s where you’re wrong...”

“Wrong?” His eyes widened. “How can that be?”

“I think…” Tiana trailed a naughty finger down his jaw, “that for us, it’s gonna get better and better… Starting right now.”

Then she rolled them both over again and laced her fingers with his so they could help themselves to seconds and thirds (and a few small snacks in between). At some point or another, though, sleep outweighed their lust. And in the wee hours of the morning—and for the very first time as humans—they dozed off. Side by side. 

Prince Naveen and Princess Tiana approached the front desk of the Hotel Monteleone. The two of them had wasted away as much of the morning as they could in each other's arms, luxuriating in their last few hours of solitude together until whatever golden day they could move out of Eudora’s home. Still, they eventually mustered the energy to return back to everyday life, gathering up their luggage and setting it outside the door of their penthouse suite. Soon the bellhops would collect it all and bring it down and send them off—like they’d never even been there at all. But they would remember. Always, always, they would remember this place.

With Tiana on his arm, Naveen put the key on the counter and slid it across to the receptionist, cementing their check out process once and for all. The woman behind the desk asked for their room number, opened a ledger, prepared to cross off their names from a big book of past guests and stays. When they told her it was the penthouse suite, she eyed them like they were lost, like there had been some kind of mistake. And there was—on the prince and princess’s part. 

It was quite simple really, the receptionist made it seem. A room as distinguished as the penthouse required a minimum stay of three days, and their booking had been secured for the week, paid in full by a commissary of the Court of Maldonia. It was all there in black and white. Hadn’t they known? 

Before Tiana could pick her jaw up from the ground, before she realized her husband had reclaimed the key, before the news had even really sunk in all the way, Naveen had already tossed her over his shoulder. He walked them back to the elevator. He told the operator what floor. He had no interest in dismissing this good luck—or in letting his bride see the sun for the next several days. 

In the not so distant future, they knew they’d have a restaurant and an apartment and somewhere that belonged to only them. 

But for now—right now—they still had a place of their own. And not a moment too soon.