Chapter 41
Vesper
They both fixed their gazes on me as I leaned against the metal exam table. With my arms crossed, I waited for a response, but none came.
“Are you going to say anything?” I tilted my head. “Have you both known about this and just not said a word to me?”
Veylor and Oryx exchanged glances, seemingly unsure of what to say. It would have been useful if I had Oryx's mind-reading ability, but naturally, I'm always left clueless.
Helpless human.
"We didn't want to overwhelm you," Veylor said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I thought it might be too much to tell you about my feelings, my desire to be part of you and Oryx’s relationship and that we were all destined to be with one another."
I blew a raspberry and walked across the room.
“Please, being in this realm is enough to make me want to pull my hair out. Why not add something else. You already told me I’m not fully human, and now I find out I am a fated mate to the both of you?
I’ve read fictional stories in my world about it, why would it seem so strange here?
I wouldn't be surprised if paranormal creatures and fated mates exist on Earth.” I shrugged my shoulders.
“Anything is possible. I’ve learned to let go of logic because there are walking corpses on the property as we speak.
” I flung my arm outward, gesturing at the absurdity of it all.
Oryx hung his head. “Our pet has a point.”
Veylor rubbed his hands down his face, looking more human than the stone-looking fae he once was. “I cannot win with this woman.”
I bit my lip and smiled.
Poor thing.
"Maybe that explains why I wasn’t as deathly afraid of Oryx the moment I saw him, or why Veylor's whole dark-and-dangerous act never quite landed with me."
Veylor's hands clenched into fists at his sides. "You weren't afraid of me?" His voice dropped to a dangerous whisper. "I command the Under Shadows. I can tear spirits from the veil with a thought. I am the darkness incarnate—a lich who has mastered death itself."
I twirled my hair around my finger. “Yeah, that doesn’t bother me. I’ve been around dead things all of my life.”
"Which makes her perfect for us." Oryx's voice rumbled like distant thunder as his tail coiled around my waist, drawing me closer. "Even with all I've witnessed through Veylor's eyes, with his memories of who I once was, I feel there could be more. And that is you."
I realized that this strange and twisted dynamic between the three of us was more complicated than I had initially thought. As Oryx pulled me closer with his tail, I could feel a strange sense of belonging, as if some invisible thread had been connecting us all along.
Veylor's eyes held a mixture of longing and uncertainty, as if he was afraid to fully embrace what fate had apparently decided for us. I could see the conflict in his eyes, the battle between his dark, powerful persona and the vulnerability that seemed to be creeping in.
Veylor cleared his throat. “We don’t know much about mates. The higher classes did not learn about them, but I will investigate them thoroughly. What the signs are, what it means—”
“How to complete the bond…” Oryx interrupted.
Veylor sucked in a breath. “If you both wish.”
My lip curled into a smile as I saw Veylor clear his throat.
What was going on in his head?
“If you wish for me to find out exactly how to complete this bond, I would have to go to an old friend. We can make a date of it. Go to a play while we are out?”
Oryx’s ears perked up and I couldn’t help but smile. “A play? Really, we are going on a date?”
I tried to contain my laughter as Veylor tried to show emotion he wasn’t used to…enthusiasm for Oryx’ sake.
“Yes, my love. A date.”
Oryx groaned. “No one will let me in, not looking like this.” He waved his hand down his body. “Not when people have seen me kill their livestock, they find me more animal.”
Veylor placed his hand on his hip. “I have an idea. Please don’t be angry with me as I show you.”
Oryx tilted his head as we trailed behind Veylor to the rear of the lab. The torches flickered as we moved through the light. When we reached the forbidden door, I stepped back and took cover behind Oryx. I refused to be cornered against the wall again and have Oryx take me again in the hallway.
I mean, I wouldn’t mind that much, but this was important.
Oryx tapped the side of his head with his claw while observing Veylor as he waved his hand over the lock. The door opened magickally, and as it creaked open, we were all stunned by what we saw inside.
On the opposite side of the wall hung a portrait of a man with long golden hair, green eyes, and sun-kissed skin. He was a strikingly handsome fae, dressed in a green coat with gold trim. Despite being a painting, he wore a smile that showcased his dazzlingly bright teeth.
However, the most startling sight in the room wasn't anything else; it was the body draped with a sheet up to the neck. Only the head was exposed, with long golden hair fanned out over a pillow.
My eyes widened and I tried to gauge a reaction from Oryx, but of course I can’t get one because his face is in fact, a skull. Instead, I’m watching his body and his tail isn’t moving, he isn’t moving at all.
“I know you said you were happy with your current vessel,” Veylor began, “with this form however you won’t be recognized with a cloak, or be feared. This is the vessel I had prepared for you. It is what I have been working on all these years. For an apology. For…what happened.”
I still don’t know the details of the major event that murdered everyone, just that Veylor is trying to make things right. I haven’t asked and he hasn’t offered to tell but…what I was seeing was insane. Just the side profile of this vessel looks similar to Oryx’s original body.
He really was handsome.
But I still loved the monster in front of me. I couldn’t see him being this fae.
Oryx took a slow, steady step into the room. Once he reached the vessel he stared down at it. He sniffed and placed his hand on the chest.
Veylor stood beside him. “What do you think?”
Oryx's skull swayed slowly from side to side.
"What you've done here... I appreciate the intention behind it.
But this vessel isn't me anymore." His claws flexed at his sides.
"The fae I was is gone. All I have are fragments—echoes of who I was through your eyes.
And yet..." His voice softened to a rumble.
"Those echoes are enough to know what I felt for you then. What I still feel now."
Veylor took a deep breath in. “I understand and I accept you as you are. I always will. I wanted to give you the option and it was here, so…”
Veylor tried to turn away from Oryx, but he gently grasped Veylor with his tail turning him around. Oryx stood upright, his forehead lightly touching Veylor's, as I observed the tender moment from the doorway.
Please kiss him.
A deep rumble vibrated from Oryx's chest as his tongue emerged, leaving a glistening trail up Veylor's neck that made him tremble with pleasure.
Veylor’s hands traced up Oryx’s muscular body. Oryx groaned and threaded his claws through Veylor’s hair and tugged.
Oh yes, give it to him.
My clit throbbed as Veylor’s mouth opened, inviting Oryx to let his tongue dip into his mouth.
Watching the two of them kiss was the most erotic thing I have ever seen. I leaned against the door frame as they touched one another. They were gripping at one another like the other person was going to disappear.
More, Oryx. You should take him in here.
It was like closing a chapter on Oryx’s past if they did it in here. Saying goodbye to his old body and accepting the new.
Oryx must have heard my voice because he growled and started tugging on Veylor's clothes. Veylor's eyes widened in shock as he glanced in my direction.
“Give him what he wants, Veylor.” I purred and laid my hands on my chest.
Instead of feeling jealousy, I was getting more turned on by the second. It made more sense with this whole fated mate thing. If it was anything like romance stories then of course I would like watching them do things to each other.
And I shouldn’t feel guilty about it at all.
With swift, hungry movements, Oryx stripped away Veylor's clothing until he stood exposed, his arousal evident. Veylor's back hit the wall with a soft thud as Oryx pressed against him. I shifted to the side, settling into a nearby chair where nothing would obstruct my view.
I’m guessing now I was sitting in a cuck chair but whatever.
I wasn’t going to just sit here though, I’d get off myself.
Veylor inhaled sharply as Oryx's tongue trailed down his body. It didn't take long for Oryx's lengthy tongue to reach Veylor's dick, where it soon wrapped around and began to suck with intensity.
That was interesting.
Veylor gasped, his hands threading through Oryx’s hair.
“Don’t come!” I taunted as I grabbed my breast. “I want a good show.”
I’m a bitch. I’m such a bitch.
A horny bitch.
Veylor's breath hitched, his eyes fluttering as he tried to hold back his release. Oryx, meanwhile, seemed determined to make that as difficult as possible, his skull stayed still while his tongue sucked and slurped Veylor's cock with enthusiastic vigor.
I squirmed in my seat, my own breath coming in short gasps as I watched them. My hand trailed down from my breast, sliding over my stomach as I hiked up my dress. I could feel the heat radiating from me, the wetness already gathering between my thighs.
If Veylor can pleasure himself in front of an audience, so can I.
Veylor's eyes met mine, his gaze locked onto me as Oryx continued to pleasure him. There was a silent challenge in his stare, a defiance that only served to heighten my arousal. I smiled, biting my lip as my fingers found my clit, rubbing it in slow, deliberate circles.
"You like that, don't you?" Veylor ground out, his voice strained. "Watching us?"
I nodded, my breath hitching as I slipped a finger inside myself. "More than I thought I would," I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper.
Oryx paused, his tongue flicking out to lick up Veylor's shaft before he turned to look at me. "And what do you want, little pet?" he asked, his voice a low rumble. "Do you want to join us?"
The thought sent a shiver down my spine, my eyes fluttering closed as I imagined it. But I shook my head, a small smile playing on my lips. "No," I said. "I want to watch. Make him unravel."
Oryx growled, a sound of pure, primal lust, before turning back to Veylor. He doubled his efforts, his tongue working Veylor's shaft with renewed vigor. Veylor's gasps filled the room, his body tensing as he tried to hold back his release.
“I can’t hold back.” Veylor gritted his teeth.
Oryx ripped his tongue away in an instant and slurped around his mouth. “Mmm, shame that our pet says you can’t come.”
Veylor snarled. “This is mad!” He sobbed. “Please, let me come, I can’t take it.”
The begging was nice.
“Maybe, perhaps.” I dipped my fingers inside me and both males stared at me longingly. “Oryx, what is something you have wanted to do to Veylor for a long time?”
Oryx groaned and pulled down his pants. He wrapped his large hand around his cock and jerked it. “I want to be inside him.”
Veylor gasped.
I bit my lip. “Why don’t you then?”
Veylor whimpered as dark tendrils of shadow spiraled around them, enveloping the room in an inky haze.
Beneath them, a plush black mattress materialized.
Oryx, with a determined look, seized Veylor by the shoulders and maneuvered him onto his back.
With a swift motion, he then rolled Veylor onto his stomach, ensuring he was comfortably positioned on padding.
I smiled seeing Oryx pull Veylor’s ass in the air. “I cannot wait to fuck this ass.”
At least it isn’t mine.
Oryx licked his finger and pushed it inside Veylor’s hole. Veylor groaned and leaned his ass toward him.
I pushed two fingers inside myself and pulled out, rubbing my clit.
“Fuck,” Veylor breathed.
Oryx chuckled. “Just wait until this cock is inside you. I will stretch you like you never have before.”
I leaned my head back on the wall.
Yeah, I was not regretting running into a portal and being chased by a monster at this moment.