The Hive #3
A muscle feathered in his jaw. “I imagine not.” More serious now, he leaned back, giving me the space my tone demanded. “I came here with a purpose, you know. Not just to chat.”
“Was it to apologize?” I gently scrubbed the pumice stone on my arm’s freshly healed skin.
His brow furrowed and he laughed out, “Whatever for?”
“For lying to me.” I switched my focus to the other arm.
“Lovely.”
That got my attention. Rhazien’s blood drew claws beneath my skin. I froze and slid my gaze to meet his.
“I may have bent the truth, but I didn’t lie.”
Water dripped from the pumice stone as I shook it at him. “You said I was brought here to help find something, that I belonged to the regent, not that he intended to court me. That is an entirely different purpose. And a grave omission, sir.”
I giggled maniacally at that. At the whole situation. Set within the ancient stone of the Irriset mountain range—rocks and caverns as old as Atoris itself—I was naked, scolding a vampire like we were old friends.
It all felt ridiculous.
“You’re right.” He nodded in surrender.
“I know,” I said and sank below the surface. When I emerged, Dommik had repositioned himself, sitting with his legs bent and elbows resting on his knees.
“Listen. Things are…delicate here,” he began.
Worry etched into the creases of his brow.
“It’s not every day a vampiric regent brings a prospect to the Hive.
It's a highly coveted position. And beyond that, your talents could bring big changes to our way of life soon. Some of us want that change, and others are…less enthusiastic.”
My breath hitched. I’d lost myself to the blood’s lullaby and the luxury of the tub and, if only for a brief time, had forgotten that I wasn’t a person to the immortals. I was a tool. A pawn.
I wasn’t in the least surprised by his warning. I’d seen it before at court. The new lady-in-waiting or recently blossomed daughter of a high lord would inevitably become fodder for gossip and sport for married and unmarried men of society.
The role’s full weight was held at bay by Razien’s blood. For now, it told me to relax. To focus on the warmth of the water. The smells of the oils. To be present.
“I understand.” Flat. Simple. Dismissive.
“Good.” He stood to leave. Beneath my skin, Rhazien’s blood exhaled in relief only to groan again when the Commander stopped at the doorway. “One last thing. I’ve been informed I have the honor of being your personal guard.”
“An honor indeed.” I grinned, pleased that he would in fact be nearby. Like a safety net. Like my own personal mercenary. Like…a friend.
“If that’s the case…” I helped myself to more of the luxurious oils, pouring them into my palm above the water. “You need to be careful too.”
He leaned against the door frame and arched a brow. “Why’s that?”
“You’re jealous.” I ran my fingers across my collarbone and perched my chin over the edge of the tub.
He scoffed. The blood scolded me for taunting him and I dipped my head, whispering to the bubbles, “He denies it.”
He folded his arms over his broad chest, a curious delight twinkling in his steely eyes. “Why do you think that?”
I sat up, letting my breasts emerge from the water. His stance went rigid and his nostrils flared, but Dommik’s eyes never left mine, never descended to take in my exposed, peaked nipples.
He searched my gaze for something. Permission, maybe.
“I left a gift on your bed,” he said as he turned to leave. “I’ll come to collect you tomorrow evening after the bells. Say a prayer for me, Lady Bergmont.”
I splashed water in his direction and he chuckled as he exited my room.
“Deviant,” I cursed under my breath after the door shut behind him.
Rhazien’s blood purred beneath my skin at the idea of touching myself, enticing my desires. I rolled my nipple between my fingers and slid my opposite hand beneath the lavender-scented water to press against the sensitive bud of nerves.
My imagination conjured images of Dommik beneath my skirts in the abandoned dining room. Teasing, licking, savoring. I matched my strokes to fit the fictional scene.
I plunged one finger, then two, inside of me as I pictured discarded leather getting soaked by splashing water as his length filled me again and again.
“Come for me, Reyva,” his phantom purred.
Then, the blood called forward a second voice.
“Come for me, Reyva.”
Rough and commanding.
I obeyed Rhazien.
The faces, sounds, and feelings of the two men intertwined as the pleasure built. Stars blinked across my vision as I erupted and I covered my mouth to stifle the sounds of the overpowering release.
Yes. I could understand how someone could become addicted to the blood.
As promised, Alba had delivered a meal. In nothing but my towel, I enjoyed chicken smothered in some kind of gravy, a small pile of vegetables, and the most buttery biscuit I’d ever tasted.
Satisfied and satiated, the call of sleep became too strong. I walked past the unopened gifts to the bedroom where I found a sleeping gown laid out next to a familiar item.
I gasped at Dommik’s gift.
I nestled under the luxurious covers with The Forest and The Flame cradled to my chest.