Page 10 of A Song of Saints and Swans
I froze and took inventory, exhaling a sigh of relief to discover most ofmyclothes were still on, and—besides a slight hangover—I felt relatively unmolested.
Who the fuck is in bed with me?
Slowly withdrawing my hand from the ratherlargeappendage, I located my sweater and began easing away from this random man. I needed to slip away and find Rena before he awoke—
“Jarilo! You’re still not up?”
I cringed as Marena appeared, her clear voice echoing off the trees and startling a flock of doves who were feeding nearby.
“Oh, I’m up,” Jarilo chuckled as he flung back the fur, giving me an eyeful of the anaconda I’d been wrestling. “But I was waiting to see if Anthia would finish what she started.”
I rolled my eyes, if only to force my gaze away from the perfect specimen lying next to me. “Why are you in bed with me at all, Jarilo? Were you hoping your dick might just accidentally find its way into my vagina without me noticing?”
He snorted, gracefully rolling over before prowling toward me like a big, naked cat. “I joined you because you smell like an angel and I wanted to cuddle. But I assure you, little swan,whenmy cockends up in your cunt,it will be entirely on purpose. And you’ll definitely notice.”
“I-I…” I stuttered, oddly speechless, lost in the golden depths of Jarilo’s eyes. Where I’d been chilly a moment ago, my body now felt like it had gone up in flames. My brain short-circuited as I easily imagined the exact scenario he was suggesting, especially as I now had hands-on knowledge of what I’d be working with.
It wouldn’t be the worst thing…
“WithAnthia’s permission, of course,” Marena pointedly enunciated as she stepped closer—her protective behavior inflaming me even more.
Both of them together, perhaps?
“Of course,” Jarilo scoffed, although the irritated glance he sent his sister was quickly replaced by mischief. “I’d love nothing more than to hear ‘Thiabegfor it.”
On the other hand…
“And just like that, I’m uninterested again!” I declared, quickly pulling on my sweater and escaping the furs like they were on fire.
Standing, I accepted the bowl of berries Marena had foraged for breakfast, keeping my gaze staunchly locked on her.
“Get dressed, Jar,” the goddess commanded. “If we’re quick, we can use Vel’s willow as a shortcut before it closes completely. Move!”
To my surprise, Jarilo immediately obeyed. “Yes, dearest,” he purred in a tone that had parts of me purring in reply. “Just give me a moment. I may have left my clothing in the grove…”
Was he dancing naked?!
I didn’t realize I had turned to watch him walk away until Marena loudly cleared her throat. Tearing my gaze from the god of springtime’s ass, I found her smirking at me.
“Perusing the ritual offerings, goddess?” she teased, stealing a glance for herself. “Can’t say I blame you.”
Isthatwhy she’s been holding me at arm’s length lately?
“Rena…” I hedged, wanting to better understand my travel companions’ relationship, so I didn’t intrude. “Have you and Jarilo ever… you know—”
“Yes,” she snickered, clearly amused by my modern hangups, as always. “It’s part of our sacred duty to the land to invoke fertility. However,” she quickly added, “it’s been a long time since we took things so…literally.Why do you ask?”
Feeling myself blush under the intensity of her gaze, I began self-consciously poking at the contents of my bowl. “I just never noticed how closeyou were before. I mean, I know you’reclose—being… twins and all.”
Glancing up, I found her expression had shifted to concern, so I quickly clarified. “It doesn'tbotherme or anything! In fact, seeing you two dancing together made me feel...”
The memory of the gods entwined the night before had my body reacting all over again. My skin flushed and stomach flipped as I squeezed my legs together to stave off the ache.
I wonder if I could trick Rena into covering me in frost to cool down.
More than anything, witnessing what was clearly a deeply loving and mutually worshipful relationship had inspired a different kind of ache—one I was still working through in my head.
Is it just because I want what they have with each other?
