Chapter 32 Tap
Tap
Isettled Phin in a cool bath, opting to use hers so she had her own items for comfort as soon as we got back.
Seir’s eyes were wide as I went back to the hall. All he’d seen was me bursting through a portal and carrying her at a jog toward our living quarters.
“What’s happening?”
“I need a few days. Nobody in or out of this place. All doorways will be inactivated.”
“Okaaay.” He raised an eyebrow, watching as I began preparing to divert several portals. “I can do that. Is she alright?”
“She’ll be fine.”
He nodded but didn’t press. “This could be a good test for Keplar’s candidates, I guess.”
“You have my approval for whatever you think is best, as long as the doors are monitored. I’ll send word when it’s okay for you to come back.” I hustled my brother toward the portal back to the glade.
“You’re acting very strangely,” Seir said, trying to glance at me over his shoulder. “And that’s saying something, brother.”
“Leave, Seir.”
He threw his hands up. “Fine, I’m going. But what about food? Do you need any supplies?”
“If I do, I’ll use the scrying mirror.”
“And if there’s an emergency?”
“Mirror.”
“And what about—”
“Mirror.” I shoved him toward the doorway, urgency drawing my demon to the surface. My wings snapped out wide, and my tail snaked out along the floor by my feet, tapping anxiously. My brother had the audacity to just grin.
“Ooh, it’s serious then. Put your fangs away, I’m leaving. See you in a few days, I guess. Good luck?” He leaped for the portal as I moved to push him again, gone before I could make contact.
I hurried down the hall, disabling or diverting every last doorway, which I’d never once done before. It was eerily quiet when I was finished, the ambient hums all silenced, the chorus of noises the portals made that gave the impression the hall breathed unusually quiet.
My next stop was the kitchen. I collected what seemed like enough food and drink for a couple of days and delivered that to my room. Phin’s bed was still missing sheets, but I could fix that if she preferred it over mine.
When I got back to her, she was calm but had turned so that her face was settled on an arm that was draped over the side of the tub, discomfort etched into her face.
“Do you want some of Greta’s elixir? I have some of the regular pain remedy I gave you after the visit to the glade as well.”
“Can I have both?”
I collected them and brought them to her, feeding her the liquids right there in the tub. I scolded myself for the response my body had to her lifting her slender neck and opening her mouth. I was nearly undone when she flattened her tongue to accept the elixirs.
“Do you want to stay in there?”
“Just a few more minutes.” She sounded drowsy, but it seemed more likely she was just overwhelmed.
“Whatever you need. Shall I wash your hair?” Her gentle nod gave way to her body curling into itself, her face pressed to her knees until the wave passed.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized, wishing I could take on the pain for her.
After rolling up my sleeves, I cupped my hands and used them to pour water over her short curls as she did her best to lounge in the tub.
One at a time, I scrubbed in the shampoo, rinsed, then layered in some fancy floral-scented conditioning cream that she’d picked up when she went shopping with my sisters-in-law.
Once she was rinsed again and had soaped herself clean, I helped her out of the water and wrapped her in a towel.
“Mine or yours?” I asked.
“Yours.”
I scooped her up against me and carried her to my room, setting her down, towel and all, right in the middle of the large mattress.
“Clothes?”
“Do you have another shirt I could wear?” she asked, her expression bordering on embarrassed.
“You’re welcome to anything of mine you like, Feather.” I dug around in my wardrobe again, unearthing another old, soft shirt for her. She pulled it on and began arranging the pillows and blankets.
“Phin?” She looked up at me, sweat dotting her brow despite how cool her bath had been.
“Yes?”
“I’m here to help you, but I need to know what you need.
I’ve never done anything like this before.
” The confession that had scratched along the edges of my mind for days lingered at the back of my tongue.
“The night in the tattoo room, that was … You are the only lover I’ve ever had.
” My voice dropped to a whisper. “The only one I’ll ever have. ”
“I’ve never done this part either.” She shuffled around. “That night, it wasn’t my first time, but it’s the only one that matters.”
I shoved down a flare of jealousy. It didn’t matter who owned that part of her past as long as I was her future. “Then we’ll learn together.”
“Okay.” Her face scrunched, and despite her efforts at disguising it, she groaned and curled up.
I felt helpless, standing there discussing steps and expectations when her body was causing her pain.
“I need you closer.” She patted the mattress next to her, the wall of pillows and blankets she’d constructed around the mattress having made a little nest.
“Of course.”
“Can I …?” She indicated coming closer, and I opened my arms wide. She snuggled her face against my chest, her ear above my heart. I could feel the heat of her forehead through the fabric of my shirt, the fever back and perhaps even worse than before.
“Is the medicine working?”
“I think so. The pain is a little better.”
“Good.”
I dragged my fingers up and down her spine, the floral scent of her soap heady in my nose. Her knees were tucked into my thigh, and the muscles in my stomach tensed as she inched her fingers under the hem of my shirt.
“Can I take this off? It’s rough against my face.” Her eyes were round, pleading. I could see the question embarrassed her from the blush on her cheeks.
“I already gave you one shirt today,” I teased. “But I did say you could have whatever you wanted.” Her pink cheeks deepened to red as I unbuttoned and shrugged out of my shirt. “Just a joke, Feather.”
She smiled and took my discarded shirt, stretching it out along one edge of the mattress against the pillows. “Thank you.”
“Of course.”
Phin hummed as she traced the tattoos that ran along my chest under my collarbone, looped over my shoulders and continued across my back. “This tells your rank and titles. Your legions.”
“Yes.” My lips tilted up. “Not that anyone sees them but it’s nice to have someone around who reads the old language. Less explanation needed.”
“Mmm.” She tensed and her fingernails dug into my side.
I didn’t mind it nearly as much as I thought I would.
As she relaxed again, her hands ran up and down my ribs, my skin and muscles twitching in response. My head fell back, and I could only sigh when I felt the weight of her as she straddled my lap again, her lips resting against my throat as she settled her face there.
“Tell me what you want me to do, Feather.”
She sat back, her face pinched, and her hips rolled. “Touch me back.”
I inhaled slowly through my nose as she removed my spectacles, setting them aside on the little table so they wouldn’t be lost in the tangle of sheets and blankets or damaged. Then I repeated what she’d done, flattening my palms against her ribs as I smoothed my hands up and down her sides.
Phin had begun sweating in earnest, and her body seemed to be moving of its own accord, hips undulating and her hands restless along my shoulders and chest. I suspected I knew what it was seeking, that release was the only way to calm the need wreaking havoc inside her.
I leaned in close and sucked on her collarbone, and she arched into me on a moan.
“Everything is … it feels like I’m on fire.”
“I’ll help you, the whole time. I’m not going anywhere, understand?” She nodded weakly. “Good. Is there anything you don’t want me to do? Anywhere you don’t want me to touch?”
She shook her head, hesitated, then shook it again. “I don’t think so.”
“Well, if you get uncomfortable, say … library. I’ll stop immediately. How about that?”
“Yes.”
“Say the word. I want to be sure you are really with me, Phin.”
“Library.”
“Good.”
She shifted, expression pained, and moaned in her throat. “Tap.”
“I’ve got you. Shall we lie you down, Little Feather?”
I narrated my movements, ensuring she was aware of every step as I lay her back on the cushions and began to inch her shirt up and off, kissing my way from her navel to her breasts, pausing to suck each of the rosy tips into my mouth.
Her hips jerked at the sensation and her violet eyes opened long enough to stare into mine for a beat before slipping closed again.
“Up.” I drew the fabric over her head and off her arms, leaving it where she could reach. She tucked it blindly into the pillows next to where she’d stuffed mine.
Hands trembling as my blood surged through my body, I kissed her long and slow, nipping at her swollen bottom lip before moving on. Down the column of her throat, down the valley between her breasts, until I was slipping my fingertips under the waistband of her leggings.
“Off,” she puffed eagerly, lifting herself up to help me. “Itchy. Hot.”
I chuckled and peeled them down her legs, tossing them behind me.
“You can add those to your design later.” She didn’t seem to care, her chest and even the tops of her thighs flushed with color.
Her fingers threaded through my hair as I bent to kiss her stomach, then continued lower still, the scent of her forcing my demon to the surface.
“Phin,” I breathed, making sure she met my eye. “I am myself, but not in full control of my dark nature either. I am completely undone by you, little mate.” I shuddered a sigh, desire surging through my veins, my pants painfully tight as my cock swelled with need for her.
“Can I see the rest?”
I sucked in a harsh breath and released my wings as gently as I could, the weight of them still making the snap of the leathery flesh loud in the cozy room.
Her fingers grazed the sensitive undersides as my tail wound around her leg, coiling from her ankle to her knee with the arrow-like tip tapping on her skin.
“I accept you just the way you are,” she replied, shaking her head as though unsure why I was even concerned about it. “I like you this way. Always have.”
A growl rumbled through my chest, and I licked out, my forked tongue laving a wet mark on her thigh.
Her hips rocked, and she moaned, breaths coming in shorter pants. “Please.”
“I don’t want you to hurt, Feather. What is it you need?” I retracted my wings so they wouldn’t be in the way, a surge of pride flaring when she pouted that they were gone.
Her hands fluttered over her womb, then she cupped herself. “I feel … empty.” She breathed, eyes widening with horror as the word came out.
Those words affected me very, very differently than they did her. My cock throbbed behind the laces of my trousers.
“Do you trust me, Phin?”
“Yes.”
“You remember what to say if you get uncomfortable at any point?”
“Library. Tap, please.” She moaned again, hips lifting, her body searching for any bit of friction it could get.
“I have waited lifetimes for this.” I sighed and lifted one of her legs over my shoulder, calmly running my fingers down the length of her calf, then her thigh as I kissed her delicate ankle.
Her skin jumped as I traced my path, and she made little noises that only made me harder.
“I’ll give you what you need, beloved. But I’m going to take what I want while I do it.
” She moaned out at my words, and I could see the rush of her arousal glistening against her skin in the low light.
I lowered my head and licked all along the seam of her, the noises she made feeding the sound of blood throbbing in my ears.
Her sweet flavor burst on my tongue, and I groaned, gathering one hip in each hand, bringing my feast closer to my mouth.
I watched her face contort and one of her hands pinch the tip of her breast as my forked tongue surrounded her clit from both sides.
When I took her between my lips and sucked, she cried out, her body trying to buck away from my hands.
I held her steady, only encouraged by that response.
“Please,” she begged again, violet eyes misty as she watched me.
I swept along her opening with my tongue again before returning to my focused ministrations. As her thighs began to shake, I sank a finger inside her heat and reveled as her cries tingled down my spine.
“I … can’t … I don’t …” She moaned and writhed, slick with sweat as her inner muscles fluttered. I let up on the suction I’d created with my mouth, laving her sensitive clit with the flat part of my tongue as I gently worked another finger inside her.
“You’ll be just fine, Feather. You’re doing so well for me.
” She panted as I combined the suction with quick flicks, and for a moment she stopped breathing.
On a long moan, I felt everything inside her tighten, and then release in fluttering waves, her pleasure mine as she reached her peak with my face buried between her thighs.
I shuddered, the pressure too much for me to contain.
My spend soaked the seam of my trousers as I rumbled a groan against her flesh.
I gentled my pressure and withdrew my fingers, her eyes following me as I sucked on them before kissing along her trembling leg.
“Better?” She nodded languidly. “Stay where you are. I’ll get us cleaned up.”
I stripped my soiled pants off and wet a rag with warm water, willing my demonic features to retreat.
I stared at myself in the mirror until the last of the red in my eyes faded, flattered that Phin hadn’t cared one way or the other.
When I got back to the bed, she had rolled to her side and was propped up on one elbow, drinking water.
“Thank you,” she breathed, flopping back to the mattress once she’d had her fill. “But you—”
I shook my head. “That was my honor, Feather. And I got at least as much out of that as you did.” She raised an eyebrow at my words but didn’t contest them as I gently cleaned her up.
“Though I’m also glad it helped.” I lay down beside her when I was finished, and she immediately curled up across my chest. I pulled a blanket across us and she snuggled close.
I stroked down her spine until her breathing changed, then indulged in rest myself, unsure how long we might have until the next spike but longing for this kind of closeness for the rest of my existence.