Page 28 of Insurrection
Yes, he was a loyal and talented Reaper who had collected more souls than anyone in his age group, but he also wasn't living life. He didn't go out and have fun.Ever.And that was coming fromme, the girl with almost no social life. Still, he was all work and no play, and I found myself both hating that and worrying about him as I continued to look him over. I'd have to work on changing that when we got home if he was serious about trying to smooth things out between us.
Stretching my arms above my head, I let out a small groan at how sore my body was from sitting in that damn carriage for hours. I needed a massage or something. The large obsidian tub popped into my mind, and a smile took over my face at the thought of using it. I pushed myself off the couch and strode towards the bedroom to grab a couple items. Ruffling through my luggage, I grabbed a black silk robe and a hair tie before quickly padding over to the bathroom.
Flicking the light on, I noted the floating shelves on the wall that held candles and a lighter. Hanging my robe on the hook, I used my hair tie to roll my ponytail into a bun on top of my head, right behind my horns, securing it so it wouldn't get wet during my bath. When you had this much hair, you washed it only when necessary because blow drying it was such a bitch.
Turning the hot water on, I grabbed a few of the mini bottles of bath products and scanned until I found a scented bubble bath. Vanilla. It wasn't my usual choice of scent, but it would definitely still be delightful and relaxing. After pouring in a generous amount—because who doesn't love a lot of bubbles—I set it back on the shelf.
I figured it would be at least five minutes until the bath was even close to full enough for me to submerge myself in it, so I quietly walked over to the bar back in our living space and poured myself a glass of the cabernet there. Swirling it around in the glass, I breathed in the notes of the wine before taking a small sip. It had a heavy, full-bodied aroma and tasted of dark chocolate with an underlying black cherry note.
This. I needed this. The bubble bath. The wine. The peaceful silence.
The memory of my father telling me the humans topside didn’t allow anyone under the age of twenty-one to drink alcohol popped into my head. I was eighteen and thought it was an absurd rule. If you made something illegal, it only made kids want to do it more. We were, of course, taught to drink responsibly, but I firmly believed that not being off-limits made it less appealing to a lot of people.
Glancing at Drayven, I saw he was still passed out in the chair, so I returned to the bathroom, thrilled when I saw the tub was more than half full. Closing the door with a soft click behind me, I set the wine on the small table by the tub and lit the candles in the room before I began to undress, neatly folding my clothes and setting them on the edge of the sink as I went.
Turning the lights off, I melted at how serene this bathroom was with just the candles illuminating it. Grabbing my wine once more, I took a sip and climbed into the obsidian tub, hissing lightly at the first bite of heat on my skin. While I loved the water to be scalding, it was still always a slight adjustment at first.
Reaching for the knob, I turned the water off and sank down fully into the tub, my body immediately relaxing as the heat worked its way into my muscles. Tilting my head back, I fit my neck into the rounded edge and rested my arm against the side, wine glass in hand.
Closing my eyes, I ran through all that Otto had told me about the houses in preparation for introductions tomorrow. I wasn't sure what was expected of us outside of the formal introductions and then the meal together, but I definitely wanted to explore the capital a bit since it was my first time here.
I put my wine glass to my lips as I mulled everything over, then almost dropped the damn thing in the tub when all my candles blew out and I was left in the dark.Fuck.My heart raced in my chest as I glanced around in the darkness, desperately trying to identify possible threats. Sitting there naked in the tub, I felt vulnerable and exposed, and I mentally cursed myself for being lulled into a false sense of security and thinking I was safe just because I was in our house’s chambers.
Stupid Ama, never expecting the worst out of a situation.I was so out of my league here.
Suddenly, a hand clamped over my mouth. A muffled scream would have no doubt escaped my lips if it hadn’t been for the familiar scent that wrapped around me, instantly stopping the noise from working its way out.
A familiar voice whispered into my ear, “I needed to talk to you without Drayven around. I didn’t mean to scare you, but this couldn’t wait.”
Finias.
His voice was raspy as he continued, “I couldn't stop thinking about the way we parted earlier, and it's been eating at me, Ama. Did he convince you to stay away from me?"
My chest heaved as I sucked in air to calm my racing heart when his hand lifted from my mouth. "Fucking hell, Fin. You couldn't have just asked to meet with me in private like a sane person would have?" I asked, still partially in shock.
With the darkness blindfolding me, my other senses felt heightened. So, when I felt a deep laugh rumble through him and his breath tickled my throat as he said, "I never promised I was sane," a shiver raced through my body.
Oh man, it could not be healthy how attracted I was to the darkness in Fin.
Despite the precariousness of the situation, not even an ounce of me felt like I was in danger with him. Maybe that was stupid, but I couldn't deny that he had an easy way of making me feel safe and relaxed...and, dare I say it? Happy.
I fought the urge to fall back into the easy-going manner I had with him and quipped back, "What do you want, Finias?" Then I chugged a few mouthfuls of wine to stop myself from saying something cheesy.
His response had me nearly choking on said wine. “You.”
Coughing a bit to clear my throat, I wheezed out, "Come again?"
I jolted slightly as his fingers started to trace circles on my exposed neck, and he slyly retorted, "Can't make you comeagainif I didn't make you come to begin with, but I am eager to change that right now."
My body betrayed me, and I felt myself tilting my head back to give him further access. His hand dipped lower, skimming the top of my breasts, and the whimper that came out of me was shocking. I had never made that noise before. Holy hell. My legs rubbed together as the desire built within me at just his light touches.
"Tell me you don't want my touch and I'll stop." He whispered the promise, but I felt the pain in his words, as if it would kill him if I told him to do so. I was nearly positive it would kill me as well.
Despite my being immersed in hot water, chills spread across my neck where he breathed against it and trailed kisses over the sensitive skin. He began to speak as his hand firmly cupped my breasts and kneaded them, "Why did you pull away from me, Ama? Do you not feel this electricity between us?" He emphasized his words as he rolled my nipple between his fingers, making me moan.
He tutted, "Be quiet, or the Reaper will come and ruin everything."
Fin was right. If Drayven heard me, he would come in here, and it would likely turn my relaxing bubble bath into a bloodbath if the two men fought. I was in no rush to end this encounter before my body was satisfied, despite my mind screaming at me for going back on my decision to keep my distance.
