Page 267 of A Dance of Water

Az set her down carefully, her legs sliding down his body as he kept her flush against him. The moment her bare feet settled on the stone floors, she hummed at the pleasant warmth the dark stones emitted. Convenient.

Without his body keeping her gown upright, it slipped from her front, revealing the soft curve of her breasts. Air whispered over her nipples, hardening them.

Az turned his head away, jaw ticking.

She melted. "Az"—she placed a hand on his lower stomach—"it’s okay. I trust you… I don’t want to hide from you."

"Lu, are you sure?" He still did not look at her.

"Yes," she whispered.

Az’s amber eyes settled on her small breasts, and if not for having to hold on to him to keep herself from falling, she would have shielded herself with an arm. Her skin warmed. The muscles in her back twinged as her wings fluttered.

"You are beautiful," Az whispered to her.

"I…" Luella looked toward the water, heart clenching at the steady ripples. "So are you."

His laugh rumbled through her. "We need you to be able to walk, at least a little bit, for our plan to work," he started.

Her brows furrowed at the mention of a plan. She knew the others were in Vale’s room discussing their next steps while Az helped her clean up, but she felt fear kindle low in her belly.

This reprieve could not last.

Az kept her upright with his large, strong hands on her waist, and she slowly stepped away from the heat of his body, wobbling dangerously. But he didn’t let her go.

She was tugged backward by the weight at her back, her center of balance off as she almost fell. Az grabbed her wrist, tugging her back upright and into his chest.

The ruined gown was in tatters around her hips—the only thing keeping her lower half decent. She kept it on as Az led her into the water, his steps patient and slow.

Her chin trembled as the water rose to her ankles, further to her thighs, then her waist. She felt it brush the tips of her wings, making her shiver from the strange feeling. Throughout it all, Az never let her go—and never stopped sending calmness and fuzzy adoration down the thread between them, making her forget all about reaching hands and saltwater burning in her lungs.

She knew she was far from fixed. If not for his hands on her and the way his emotions soothed the roiling inside her mind, she would have broken.

When the warm water lapped against her navel, her back to him, she uttered, "Can I get m-my wings wet?" It was strange to claim them as her own…

A pause, then:

"Tharen says it’s fine. The warmth should help ease the pain in your muscles, too."

Az helped her deeper into the water, and she satfacing him, her wings trembling behind her as the water tickled the delicate feathers. The sensation was so odd; she felt the nerve endings in her wings tremble as the water lapped against them, but she could not bring herself to move them of her own accord.

The wings stayed tucked closely to her back, protecting her.

Trying not to focus on the shadowed water around her, she stared up at Az’s face.

"You truly are beautiful, my angel," the demon said reverently, cupping water in his large palms and trickling it over her back; her wings fluttered, the warmth making the knots on her back loosen. "I could live a thousand lives and never deserve to have you."

Her breath hitched as the water turned red around them, the blood washed away from his meticulous touches.

Her shoulder blades twinged as she lifted an arm and cupped his cheek. "In every life, I would find you, and in every life, I would tell you, over and over again, that that is not true." She licked her lips, skin tingling as she recalled the warmth of the stardust against her skin as she had lain under Tharen on the altar. "If the gods have done one thing right, it is giving me you," she murmured, drowsiness softening her words.

Az’s hand came up to settle over hers, keeping it against his cheek. After a moment, he turned his head and pressed a kiss to the inside of her wrist.

The only sound for some time was the faint trickling of water as he washed away the blood from her, achingly careful not to touch her wings.

When she had soaked well enough, and her skin and wings were clean from the blood, Az reluctantly helped her stand.

"We can’t stay here all night, as much as I wish we could."

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