Wyvern’s Gold (The Ruins Of Men Book 1)

Chapter 67

Sixty-Seven

Ayla

T he next day started with loud noises upstairs. When Rymar came down that morning to make my dose of venom, he was covered in dust. Naturally, I followed him back upstairs once my body adapted to the drink. It was getting easier, too. They had not only been increasing my dose but changing whose venom I ingested, just to make sure my tolerance would be complete.

But what I found on the second floor was a complete mess! Zasen's workroom had been moved around. The bags were stacked up at the side. The pieces of wood were now in a barrel. The tables he worked at had been pushed against the wall - and Rymar's desk was on another.

Kanik, holding a dustpan in his tail, informed me his desk was going to move as well, and somehow, they had to make it all fit. It wouldn't. There simply wasn't enough space, but the men didn't seem to care. They were sure that if they simply moved things a little more, it would all work out.

So I offered to help. I expected Kanik to pass me the broom and dustpan he was using. Instead, I was asked to move the books from the stacks in the other room to the shelves in here. And when I made my third trip, I realized why I hadn't been given the broom.

Kanik had the dexterous end of his tail wrapped around the handle of the dustpan. As he swept, he dropped his tail, collected the dust without needing to bend over, and dumped it into a box at the side without a pause. I was actually a little jealous.

While I was in the process of arranging the books on the shelves, Zasen's voice roared out from the first floor. "Ayla!"

"Go," Kanik said, flashing me a little smile like he knew what was going on.

Rymar just rubbed my shoulder, but his eyes were locked on a corner of the room as if lost in thought. Most likely trying to think of a better way to arrange too much furniture in too small of a space. I didn't have the heart to tell him something would have to go. So instead, I made my way downstairs.

Halfway down the stairs, I heard voices. One was a woman. Curious, I kept going. Stepping into the living room, I found the woman's voice belonged to Lessa, the seamstress.

The sandy-colored woman was flipping through a set of clothing on the table inside the door, and from her words, it sounded like she might be describing them. I caught two different colors and a few fabric types. But as she talked, the woman also had her tail pressed against Zasen's leg, the thick muscles moving steadily higher. He chuckled and turned to face her, stepping out of its reach.

Lessa wasn't about to be put off so easily. Tapping her fingers along his chest, she counted, adding another word between the numbers. Bucks? I didn't know what that meant in this context.

The whole time, Zasen looked down at her with his body tilted intimately, and he was smiling. Lessa leaned into him. Just when I was sure he would kiss her, Zasen shook his head and his lips canted into a crooked smile.

"Not happening, Les," he said.

She pouted. "Zasen..."

"It's not happening," he said again, but their bodies were almost completely touching.

I cleared my throat, letting them know I was in the room. While Zasen didn't look away, he lifted his brow and his smile grew.

"See?"

Lessa simply smacked his chest playfully, but she did step away, reaching up to drag her claw along his jaw as she moved toward the door. "So you know, this is the biggest mistake you've ever made, Zee. Trust me, because I'm not about to come crawling back another time. I can take a hint."

"So you say," Zasen laughed and stepped back. "Hasn't seemed to work so far for either of us, hm?"

"Asshole," Lessa laughed.

Evidently, that was the signal for her to leave. With a wiggle of her fingertips in a way that resembled a wave, she walked out of the house and closed the door behind her.

My mind was spinning. That had been so improper! She'd all but thrown herself at him - but Zasen hadn't done anything. He hadn't tried to stop her either. Maybe this was the flirtation he'd mentioned before?

"So you're courting her?" I asked, trying hard to ignore the anger simmering inside me.

"No." Zasen grabbed the folded clothes from the table. Carrying them over to me, he then dumped them into my arms. "Dragons don't court, and if we did, I think it would be more true to say she was courting me."

"Women don't -"

He tilted his head. "Dragons aren't Moles, Ayla."

I pulled in a deep breath and nodded. "So, that's okay?"

"Yes. It's also okay that I've had sex with her. No one thinks less of her - or me - for it."

Those words were such a shock my arms went limp, spilling the clothes onto the floor. "What?!" I stared at him with my mouth open. "You and she…"

"And we’re not married."

"Oh." I knelt and began stacking the clothes again.

He joined me, helping to pick up the mess I'd made. "I also told her I'm not currently interested in doing it again."

"Why not? I thought men liked the act."

He chuckled. "Oh, I do. I'm just not interested in doing it with her right now."

With the stack of new clothing in my arms, I stood again, careful not to drop them a second time. I had a billion questions in my mind, but not enough sense to know which to ask. I wasn't sure I was even brave enough to say the words.

Instead, I headed into the bedroom to set my new things beside the rest. The problem was I no longer wanted to look through them, hating that Zasen's lover had crafted them all. The colors were vivid and beautiful, but I couldn't get the vision of that woman's posture out of my mind.

She'd stood so close. Her tail had touched him gently - maybe intimately? The way he'd laughed had sounded warm and friendly, and it hadn't made her tense up. No, she'd looked like she wanted to lean closer!

While I was staring blankly at the clothes, Zasen's hand lightly touched my shoulder. "I can't answer the questions you refuse to ask," he said gently. "Ayla, I'm trying to explain our culture, not be insensitive."

"I shouldn't have asked," I mumbled softly.

"No," he whispered. "This is exactly the sort of thing you should ask about. That's how we learn not to offend each other." He clasped my other shoulder and turned me so I was facing him. "I want you to be brave. I want you to ask what you want to know and accept that you won't always like the answer."

Nodding, I lifted my eyes to his face. "Do you love her?"

He smiled. "No." He waited a moment, letting the word hang between us before he went on. "She's a friend. I like her as a friend, and at times, we have made each other feel good. I also think you're jealous."

"Why would I be jealous?" Because the truth was, I didn't understand what I was feeling, and I was hoping his answer would help me.

He tilted his head, his face smug. "You seem angry." He leaned closer. "Just like I was when you said you like the color of my eyes."

When I met those pretty orange eyes again, he seemed overly pleased. Pulling in a deep breath, I convinced myself I should simply ask what I really wanted to know. All I had to do was get the words out there, and then I would at least know the answer. It would be a brave thing to do. Asking would be the sort of thing the Dragons did, and I really wanted to be a Dragon right now.

"If she's truly your friend, then why would you do that to her?"

His entire body flinched as my words hit him, and his eyes went wide. "Sex?"

"Yes."

Zasen's brow rose and he shook his head slightly. "There's nothing wrong with it. I'm confused."

I let out a grunt of frustration. "Zasen, she's your friend, why would you want to hurt her? Why would you want to do that ?"

His expression would've been comical in any other situation. His mouth flopped twice as the air rushed from his lungs, and he stepped back, dropping his rump onto the bed. "That's what this is about? You think sex is painful?"

"The wives warned us." I lifted my chin and pressed my fists onto my hips, hoping it made me look strong instead of as scared as I really was. "The first time is so bad it makes us bleed. After that, it hurts less. Eventually, a woman can learn to tolerate it."

"Is this what your mother told you?"

"No. My mother died when I was young. I was the second child she had. The fifth killed her."

"Oh," he breathed, the word little more than a rush of air.

"But Meri made sure Callah and I knew. She snuck into the dining hall to tell us so we could be prepared! She told me all about how Gideon had held her down. How he'd hit her when she'd cried. She told us it hurt, Zasen! And Meri wouldn't lie."

"No, Ayla..."

"And maybe that's all you think women are good for, but I don't want to be a wife! I don't want to be hurt so a man can feel good. I certainly don't want to get pregnant!" My voice was getting louder, but I didn't care. "I will not have some husband breed me over and over until the next baby kills me. I want to get old! I want to live past thirty-five! Why even have children if I will never get to know them because they aren't my property anyway?"

"That's not - " he tried, but I cut him off.

"The only reason for sex is for children, but you don't want that with her! So you hurt her. You abuse her for your own entertainment, never caring about how long it might take her to recover after! You lied to me!"

"Ayla," he breathed, clasping my arm to stop my rant, "the Moles are wrong. I don't even know how to explain, because they are so wrong." His other hand slid across his entire face, "I'm sorry."

"What?"

Zasen leaned over his knees, but his face was no less shocked. "Ayla, I've been trying to seduce you, thinking it was just your view of rules holding you back. I've been flirting - as well as you let me - not realizing I probably scare you more than flatter. I'm sorry. Sex doesn't hurt. It feels good."

"For men."

"For both. Why do you think…" He groaned. "Mole women don't seek it out, do they?"

"No!"

He nodded. "Dragons and Reapers do, because it feels good." His orange eyes flicked up. "For women, their first time, it's true there can be blood. Can, Ayla. That doesn't mean there has to be. At worst, it's a little painful initially. Then it feels good if the person with you cares."

"So you even admit it hurts?"

He looked at me pointedly. "Less than drinking my venom. Much less than getting sliced open by a kitchen knife. Less than the wood in your feet, the beating by that man in front of the house, or a dozen other things you've shaken off so easily."

I swallowed, trying to wrap my mind around his words. "I won't do it, Zasen. I won't do that ."

"That?" Kanik asked, stepping only far enough into the room to lean against the door frame.

"Sex," Zasen told him. "Ayla says it's painful."

"Mhm..."

"I told her I'd had sex with Lessa," he explained. "I thought it would explain how we don't have to get married."

"Okay?"

"Do you do it?" I asked, lifting my chin to glare at Kanik. "Do you hurt women like that for fun?"

Zasen gave Kanik a look I couldn't quite make out. Kanik lifted his hands as if he was holding me off. The pair glanced at each other, clearly sharing some thought.

Then Kanik asked, "Ayla, have you ever had sex?"

"No!" I huffed. "I stabbed Mr. Saunders with a fork before he could hurt me like that."

He nodded slowly. "Okay. So do any women enjoy sex in the compound? Harlots? Sluts? Whatever term I'm sure the Moles would use for them."

I shook my head. "No! Wild women are the harlots, but they're minions of the Devil. Eve's curse doesn't affect them anymore."

"What?!" Rymar asked before he was even in view. "Eve's curse?" And then he too stepped into the room.

I backed up, feeling like I was outnumbered. "That's what the Bible says. Eve ate the fruit, so she was cursed with pain. Now it is women's duty to be fruitful and multiply. The act is enjoyable to men because they didn't commit the sin, but women must suffer. We must tolerate it whenever he wants - "

"No!" Rymar said, waving his hand through the air to cut me off. "That is not how it works, Ayla."

"But..."

"That's a lie. That's how those men down there kept you under their thumb. That , Ayla, is something they never want women to know, because they don't want to love you. They want to hurt you, and sex is an easy way to do it. They get off on hurting you. It makes them feel powerful when nothing else does, and the weaker they keep you women, the less you can do to stop them."

"Really?" I asked.

He nodded slowly. "Which is why the three of us never have sex with a woman unless she wants it. Unless she thinks it will feel good. It's her decision, Ayla."

"Always hers," Kanik assured me.

Zasen nodded. "Otherwise, it's called rape, Ayla."

"But a married woman can't be - "

"Yes," Kanik said, cutting me off. "It doesn't matter if she's married, or 'asking for it,' or any other excuse a Mole might use. If a woman doesn't want to have sex, then it is rape. Ayla, rape hurts. Sex doesn't. The acts may have similar mechanics, but they are not the same."

"Oh," I breathed.

So he held out his hand to me. "Maybe we should take a walk and talk about this more where you aren't trapped in a room alone with a bunch of men?"

"Fuck," Zasen grumbled before shoving to his feet and heading for the door. "Didn't even think about that."

"Take her shopping," Rymar suggested. "Maybe for some... vegetables?"

Kanik looked over at him and smiled. "Now that's a good idea." Then he looked back at me. "What do you think, Ayla? Want to see the market and maybe pick out some new food to try for dinner?"

I just nodded, feeling like my head was about to explode. "Yeah. Is it okay if I put my clothes away later?"

"Definitely," Kanik said. "And it also means Rymar and Zasen can lift the crap upstairs. I need a break." And he offered his hand again.

This time, I took it.