by Viola Grace
“Got it.” She smiled. “Thank you.” She straightened to leave.
The man blinked. “Lady, don’t you want your prize?”
She covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes crinkled. “I am sorry. I forgot. Yes, please.”
She was given a glass jar with a brilliant lime green fish with a black stripe. She chuckled. “Hello, Spectre.”
Daku raised his brows. “Spectre?”
She shrugged. “That is his name. He told me so.”
He shook his head and said, “Shall I carry your fish?”
She looked at her position, and she murmured. “Please.”
He smiled, and a tendril of shadow wrapped around Spectre’s jar, and they walked to the next booth. There was a ring toss, but this one Daku played as she wasn’t able to balance properly for it. She was very impressed with the doll dressed in a similar manner to herself but with golden skin and black hair and eyes. Another tendril took her prize, and they went to a food stall, and he got her some snow candy. She paused when the vendor asked them to carve a name in the snow, so she carved Daku and Kyna.
The hot syrup was poured into the glyphs, and the vendor tapped it, cooling it rapidly with his freezing talent.
Daku looked at her. “You learned my name.”
“So far. If I still have it tomorrow, it will stick.”
They were handed their candy and walked to a series of benches to eat it.
She raised her brows at the taste of it and then ran her tongue down the side while it melted. It was a race to the finish, but she ate it before it melted all over her.
She held her fingers out. “And now I am sticky.”
He handed her a dampened handkerchief and had one for himself.
“You came prepared.”
He grinned. “I did this when I was a child, and paying the extra for the napkins kept my mother from knowing how many I had consumed.”
She smiled and grinned. “That is an excellent plan.”
“But the key to the execution is to return the napkins to the stand instead of bringing a pocket full of them home.” He smiled.
“Well, I have had a lot of fun. Can we get some meat pies on the way out or something?”
“Certainly, but there is still a tradition for young ladies. We need to go to the charm booth.”
“Is it important?”
He stood and took her napkin, sending theirs both off with the shadows back to the stand. The fish and the doll were ready to travel with them.
“The charm booth is essential. Trust me.” He smiled, and they were off again.
They stopped in front of a kiosk with hundreds of charms hanging on the hooks and a large stack of envelopes. Daku handed over some coins, and three envelopes were handed to Kyna. At his urging, she opened the first, saw the polished wood with the writing on it, and swallowed. “I can’t read it.”
He wrapped his arms around her and traced the word. “Love.”
She put her finger over his and traced with him. Her hand tingled again, and she went over the word with him.
He whispered, “The next one.”
She opened the crackling parchment, and the glyph was on red wood.
“That one would be passion.” He traced it with his finger, and she followed it with her finger on his.
The third was a beautiful blue, and he chuckled. “Truth.”
“They are lovely. What do I do with them?” She followed over the path of the word, and she blinked as her fingers felt warm, and her mind presented her with the three glyphs together.
She smiled and hoped they would stick.
“You put them on your dressing table or hang them on the wall. You keep them.”
She smiled. “I will. I still need some actual food, and then, Spectre needs to get into his new pond.”
He smiled, and they went to get the meat pies. He got a few of them, had them wrapped in a napkin, and they joined the fish, the dolly, and the charms.
A few guardians who were from the retreat began to approach them, and Daku simply nodded to them, picked Kyna up again, and the shadows propelled them up and away.
Time to head back to the retreat.
Chapter Eleven
He dropped them right onto the bathing deck of the VIP quarters. “How long do we have before your maid arrives?”
“Larada? She will be here in six minutes.”
He smiled. “Good.”
Holding her in his arms, he kissed her. She was rather surprised, considering what he had said the night before.
When he lifted his head for a moment, she whispered, “I thought I was complicated.”
“You are, but I have decided that it is a complication I can welcome.”
She giggled and reached up to his lips. “You got my makeup on you.” She stroked his lips with her thumb.
He smiled and licked her thumb. “You still taste like sugar.”
Kyna blushed. He kissed her again, and this time, she felt his tongue graze her lips. She gasped, and he delved a little deeper.
He murmured. “How much longer?”
It took her a moment to figure out what he was asking. “Four minutes.”
He let her slide down his body but continued to take her weight with his arm around her waist. She curled up to him and held the front of his robe while his kiss got hotter, faster.
She pressed to him, her hand holding his neck, and she whimpered, “One minute.”
He slowed, and he raised his head to wink. “Take off your makeup and have her take down your hair. We can have the meat pies and a chat.”
She nodded and headed into her room, slowly moving on her delicate ankle.
She sat, and Larada came in, looked at her, and burst into giggles.
“The lip colour gave it away?”
“He must be wearing most of it.” Larada chuckled.
Larada took down and unravelled her hair as well as removed the outer robe and cleared the makeup. It was fifteen minutes after she had arrived that Kyna was released again to return to what was a date. That information was provided by her handler, and it was handy. It explained the making out.
Wearing her loose hair and a more casual robe for the evening, she returned to the bathing area, where a voice called out, “Over here, my lady.”
She pattered around and saw the low table, the pies, and the tea set. She washed her hands in the warm bowl nearby, and she knelt across from him.
She bowed and reached for one of the meat pies that were on his side of the table. He grabbed her by her wrist and pulled her forward. “So, earlier, you said you were willing to whore yourself out to remain here. What would that entail?”
Kyna narrowed her eyes. “I am not going to have sex in exchange for a meat pie.”
“What about a kiss? Just a kiss.” He smiled, and there was mischief dancing in his eyes.
“One kiss for one meat pie?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
She thought about it and agreed. “Yes. One kiss for one meat pie. For tonight only.”
“Ah, an important caveat. In that case, Lady Kyna, please eat your fill.”
She paused. “Aren’t you having any?”
“I will have mine when you are done.”
She took one of the meat pies and ate it, munching under his direct gaze. Kyna managed one and a half before setting the food to one side.
He smiled. “You can’t manage anymore?”
She shook her head. “I normally only get one for dinner, and I was a little nervous about the festival.”
“About your performance?”
She flicked a look at him. “Sure. The performance.”
He looked at her uneaten piece. “May I?”
She nodded and poured them both tea. He demolished three pies and her half. She chuckled. “You were hungry.”
He smiled. “The pies were good and reminded me of festival food when I was a child.”
&n
bsp; She smiled. “It must have been fun.”
“It was. Tonight was very entertaining. Would you care to go again tomorrow night?”
She grinned. “I would if my ankle is recovering. I didn’t like having to hold you back as we walked.”
“I enjoyed it. It has been a while since a pretty woman clung to my arm because she had to, rather than with seduction in mind because I am a guardian.”
She met his gaze and then stared into her teacup. “Right. Not a thought like that in my head.”
A drop of tea had landed on the table when she poured, and she slowly began to trace a design. She swept her hand across it when she realized that she was spelling his name.
She felt like a teen in school doodling on her notebook.
She sat, and when he had finished his meal, he wiped his hands clean and took a sip of tea. “Shall we get Spectre to his new home?”
She smiled and nodded. Her ankle was still tender, but it held as she went to pick up the jar that held her new friend. She turned back to him, and he said, “You can hang onto me if necessary.”
“I can only hang onto one of you.”
He took the fish and offered his arm. She smirked and took hold of his arm. “One would think you liked it when women hung onto you.”
“Only you, Kyna.”
She blushed and looked away as they walked slowly to the gardens and pond. She took Spectre and added some of the water of the pool to his jar. When he still swam happily, she set the jar in the pool, and she jumped in surprise when he sprang out and dove into the pond, heading for the reeds.
She giggled, and Daku helped her off her butt. She had fallen back onto the grass. “It seems like he knew a good thing when he saw it.”
Daku raised her to her feet and smiled. “Some of us come to it faster than others.”
He faced her, and he kissed her. The cooling roil of shadow moved under her skin again, and she held onto his clothing. The wave of cool moved down her body and circled around her ankle, easing the hot tenderness that swirled around her joint until it moved on and found the burn in her shoulder. The cool relief moved along the joint, and she leaned into him and shivered. His tongue slid along hers, and she felt the pools of heat in her body flaring up. The cool sensation moved toward the heat, and it paused.
She whimpered and pressed closer to him; she was pretty sure that she wanted him to finish what he had started but was clueless how to ask him about it as that wasn’t something that Rai ladies did.
“Lord Daku! Lord Akutan has arrived, and he would like to speak to you.” One of the hostesses was nervous, but her voice was firm.
Daku moved to face his friend, and he kept her tucked behind him. She was easily concealed behind him.
“Akutan, it is good to see you.”
“What are you doing, Daku? You saw the portrait, you know who your match is, and you are playing with some servant from the retreat?”
Kyna growled, but Daku kept her behind him.
“I am not playing. She is a charming woman and suits me more than any fantasy from a portrait.”
She blushed and pressed her forehead to his back.
Akutan groaned. “Telling anyone that Rhoda was wrong is tantamount to sacrilege. Fine. Miss. I wish you well.”
She spoke politely. “Thank you, Lord Akutan.”
He had been turning to leave, and he froze while Daku’s shoulders shook with amusement.
“Lady Kyna?”
She leaned sideways and peeped out at him. “Hello.”
Daku took her hand and steered her around to stand in front of him. He wrapped his arms around her, and she leaned back against him. She was quite sure that they looked cute.
Her first guardian on Rai looked at them and laughed. “Amethyst has arrived, and we were hoping to stay, but the quarters we normally stay in are taken.”
She sighed. “I will tell Ageka she can move me again.” She tried to step away from Daku, but he held her back against him.
“I will speak with her. You remain here for a moment.”
He formed a column of shadow and darted through the building.
Lord Akutan smiled. “So, you two are courting?”
She rubbed the back of her neck. “Is that what it’s called? Lady Ageka made him swear that he can’t use his hands on me, so I guess that means I have to do most of the work.”
He looked at her wide-eyed and then burst out laughing. “You look like a child’s doll, but I can hear the Terran in you.”
She sighed and shrugged. “I am trying to get a Rai into me, but we keep getting interrupted.”
Lord Akutan was wheezing with laughter when the shadow that was Daku returned. He placed his arm around her, and his hand wrapped the side of her ribs.
“Things have been settled. Your quarters are being arranged, and as things are progressing with Kyna, she will remain with me as we discuss what is to be done.”
There was a lot of warmth spiralling out from that grip on her ribs; his fingers were right below her breast. Her heart began tripping. She didn’t have a chance to say farewell to Lord Akutan; she was walked back to the VIP quarters, but they took the longest route around the guest quarters, the main entry, and along the edge of the gardens.
“Why are we going on this long walk?” She bit her lip.
“I want to make sure that there is no confusion as to what is between us.” They were on the elevated walkway above the courtyard while the guardians working out down below saw them. He leaned down to kiss her; it was in full view of a dozen warriors and two dozen servants of the retreat. She heard some gasps, giggles, and cheers, as well as disappointed masculine groans.
When he raised his head, he smiled. “I believe I have made my point.”
She blinked and took in the fact that he had bent her back in suitably dramatic fashion. To anyone watching, it would have looked like she had completely surrendered to him. Which, she supposed, she had.
He picked her up and carried her off to his quarters. She was blushing furiously, and he was definitely amused.
Once inside his quarters, the attendant took a look at them and paused. “Shall I summon her maid?”
He chuckled. “I can manage her for the night. I think the lady would like privacy.”
The attendant was wide-eyed, and he darted away, closing the door behind him.
He pressed her against the wall with his arm over her head, and she felt really tiny at that moment. He whispered, “If you object, the time is now.”
She was still red, but she focused and said, “No objections, just going to have to learn as we go.”
He grinned. “Good answer.”
He slid his hands into the front fold of her robe, and he opened it wide with a sharp tug. He looked at her, and her skin continued to be bright pink as he looked at the curve of her neck, her collarbone, and the upper curve of her breasts.
“You bind them?”
She nodded. “It keeps me from getting hostile looks from ladies when I travel. It is a habit now.”
He smiled, and his fingers unravelled her sash, and when it fell, he opened her robes completely, untied the layer next to her skin, and reached under it for the closure to her wrap. He released it and unravelled the band until it slipped from her hips and pooled at her feet. She wasn’t sure where to look, but Daku had decisive points of interest. He cupped her breasts and massaged them. When he went down on one knee, she caught her breath and inhaled sharply when he used his lips and tongue to soothe the lines left by the binding. She let out a moan, and she froze, remembering the thin walls.
He chuckled. “If it is privacy my lady requires...”
Shadow covered the walls, doors, and the divide between the two bathing pools.
Without thinking, she asked, “How long can you keep it up?”
He grinned. “Until you ask me to stop.”
She blinked and then realized what she had said, and she leaned in,
moving until she was next to his ear. “Whatever I say, don’t stop.”
He shuddered and swallowed. “I don’t know if I can do that.”
She smiled and stroked the tip of his ear with her fingertip. She breathed warmly into his ear. “Use your best judgment.”
He turned his head and caught her lips, lifted her, and put her down on the bed. The cool curl of air where she wasn’t covered turned into a wave when he opened the layers and drew his hands down her breasts and hips. “You know, giving you that massage told me a few things.”
She covered her face with the wide sleeve. “What?”
He moved his hand over her hip and trailed down the joint toward her inner thigh. “You have a lot of wet heat for a woman who tries to stay cool.”
She shivered as his fingers stroked her folds, dipped inside, and then made a series of slow circles over her sex with his fingertips, and he watched where she flinched, shifted, and a spot that made her hips rock against his hand.
He paused, and she peeped behind her sleeve and watched as he removed the layers of clothing until he was facing her with his cloak of black hair loose as he moved over her and used his tongue where his fingers had just been. Time slowed to a crawl as she gasped, trembled, and moaned as his tongue teased her, causing her body to create more of its slick welcome, and when he slid his fingers into her, the two went in easily, and the third managed to coax its way in.
She moaned, and she bit her lip while her hips rocked with the rhythm of his hand while his mouth teased her breasts in turn. The heat built inside her, and then, her body sparked, and the energy burst throughout every nerve in her body. Her moan was low, and he kissed her neck while she arched and the low sound rippled out of her.
She flinched when he removed his hand from her and swallowed when he moved over her, and she felt the pressure where his hand had just been. He eased into her, and she panted as the progress brought him closer and closer to being fully inside her when he stopped and leaned toward her.
She met his mouth with hers, and he guided one of her hands between her thighs. She took the hint, and he caressed her breasts while easing a little further into her with every heartbeat.
