Page 173 of A Dance of Water

Out loud, Bastian said, "We can behave, pet. We won’t tear each other apart, I promise. I’ve shared before, it’s not something I’m unfamiliar with." Let her mind fill in the blanks.

"That’s not what I’m w-worried about," she stammered. "It’s improper to share a bed like this."

Azgorath smiled. "Let them talk, angel. You’re more important." He kissed her cheek, and she melted into him, a soft sigh escaping her.

"This is purely medicinal. Think of us as you would any tonic," said Bastian. He leaned down over her, running his tongue over the tip of a fang. "Would you like a kiss?" At her noise of protest, he amended, "To help heal you, of course."

Luella’s hands tangled in his silken shirt. She stayed quiet, so he sought the answers for himself.

Her mind was tinged with sickness and desperation. She was doing a good job of hiding it, but he felt the pain in her head and limbs, the way each breath made her lungs ache. He felt the way she yearned—too scared to ask. He gathered the thoughts close to him and let them flow into Azgorath’s mind. The demon’s eyes grew wide as he felt her pain and desire.

"Lu." Azgorath pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth. "Let us settle this sickness."

She touched the mark on her chest. "But we can’t."

"Vale said you were not to feel desire. A kiss won’t hurt. We won’t push too far," Bastian assured. He was playing the noble hero, but gods, looking at her… his motivations were utterly selfish.

Kiss her, he whispered to the demon.

Azgorath tightened his hands on her, thoughts warring against each other. Bastian felt his desire and his protectiveness battling. Finally, one won.

The demon took her chin and gently leaned down to press his lips upon hers. She whimpered, arching into him.

Ravenous, Bastian watched, head in his hand. They were so close to him, he saw the firelight play off their hair, hers white and frizzed from the way it had dried after her bath, and his brown curls. Her nose nudged against his, and he tilted his head, mouth opening hers beseechingly.

Her small hand reached out, tapping against Bastian’s thigh, and he took it and brought it up to his face, breathing over the soft skin of her wrist. Her veins were blue and green. Bastian ran his nose along the lines of them, fangs throbbing in need.

Her fingers stretched out, then relaxed, as the demon took her mouth, battling against the order Vale had placed upon her.

"My turn." Bastian cupped her cheek and turned her head away from the demon, breaking their kiss. A string of saliva connected them, and Azgorath licked his lips as he stared down at her. She was utterly debauched under the two of them, lips swollen and blindfold keeping her in the dark. "I want more than a kiss," Bastian purred.

So much more.

The words made her cheeks flush a brighter scarlet. Somewhere outside, thunder drummed like the pounding beat of a war cry.

She’s getting worked up,Bastian said into the demon’s mind.

Azgorath’s response was not a clear one—Bastian would have to train him to project his thoughts better. The vampire tilted his head, listening to the increasingly violent tempest.

Azgorath growled. "Are you okay, Lu?"

Her lips glistened as she spoke. "I feel better, my head hurts less. But my chest—"she touched her Binding mark with a wince—"it aches."

Bastian turned her head, smiling at how she fumbled under him, searching for where she thought him to be. "You had your turn, beast." To Luella, Bastian said, "May I kiss you, pet?"

"This is so wrong," she breathed, but she made no move to get away.

Lightning cut through the darkness as a bright flash of white light illuminated her room.

"Resplendent," he murmured, and then, he closed the scant distance between them and pressed his lips to hers, uncaring that the demon had just done the same. She was made to share, after all. Bastian wasn’t the most fond of it, but out of all her Vincire, he was the most open to the idea.

The kiss was lazy and sensual; he was careful to keep his mouth closed and not deepen it further, in tune with every little wince or hitch in her breath. When she stiffened against him, he pulled away and let her relax before taking her lips again. It was a slow push and pull, and she was constantly chasing after more, more, more—but couldn’t quite get there.

Her thoughts were a maelstrom of desire, her hand rubbed against the mark on her chest to soothe the bite of pain.

Bastian pulled away and pressed a soft kiss to her brow. "Thank you."

Her breaths were light, but she was utterly relaxed between them, limbs languid as Bastian laid her down. Azgorath pulled her into him and arranged her comfortably, tucking the blanket around her.

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