Page 184 of A Dance of Water

And shefelt.

Her toes scrunched into nothing, her arms felt weightless, held by him, and the rumble of thunder drowned out the beat of her heart.

Flying.

She was a bird, flying.

She didn’t know how long they stayed there, but eventually, he lowered her arms. Blood rushed through the numbness, filling her withpinpricks.

Trepidation threatened to carry her away; she knew what came next.

Luella turned to look at him, a damp, white strand of hair grazing her cheek. "Can we stay here a little longer?"

Graves clenched his jaw, staring back into the glass doors leading to her room.

Ina and Osa fluttered about, preparing her gown and blending oils.

"Right." She sighed. "I know better."

She shook the thoughts away, starting for the doors.

Graves’s voice reached her ears just as her palms closed around the gilded handles.

"Luella, what happens tonight and every night that follows, know we are trying to keep you safe."

Unable to stop herself, she turned back to look at him. But he was gone. A single black feather floated to the ground in his wake. The only sign he had ever been there.

Lavender and vanilla smoke curled through the air, thin tendrils rising from the burning incense. Steam filled the room, wafting from the cracked doors of the bathing chambers.

The bath had been filled, warm and rippling, but she would not budge. She knew it wasn’t healthy; she couldn’t rely on Az forever…

Osa had rubbed her down with a cloth. Her arms were still pink from the scrubbing, but she marveled at the softness of her skin, made new. If only it could be that easy to wash away her thoughts.

Her lids were heavy. The soothing motions of Ina’s fingers as she twirled her hair around a fire-heated brush only made her more drowsy.

"Stop that." Osa slapped Luella’s wrist. Oiled fingers massaged sweet, enticing scents into her skin as the maid knelt over her, red hair like flame around her. "You have a long night ahead of you. It wouldn’t do you well to fall asleep now."

Luella caught her gaze in the mirror. Blue eyes, heavy-lidded and lined with kohl. White hair styled in soft curls, smaller piecesframing her face. The frizz had been tamed by the fire-heated brush. Pale lips, not yet rouged. The same lips that had been touched not by one, but by three.

No.

She blushed, the light pink rouge on her rounded cheeks concealing it.

Four…

Four lips had touched her own.

All of her Vincire had tasted her save for the King.

Osa’s fingers bit into her skin as she finished oiling her arms. The maid stood and made for the wardrobe, opening it to reveal the dress hanging within.

The pure simplicity of the gown stole her breath.

Osa caught her staring and scoffed, angling the door of the wardrobe to keep the dress hidden as she finished fluffing out the skirts.

Ina tapped her shoulder. Luella looked up, meeting the meek maid’s gaze in the mirror. Ina rolled her eyes, staring pointedly at the wardrobe—and Osa, who was just visible behind it.

Luella smiled faintly. "I’ve missed you, Ina."

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