Page 211 of Blade of the Nightking

She nodded sympathetically. “Shame.”

She regarded me for a moment, thoughtful despite the fact that the male behind her chose that exact moment for a particularly forceful thrust. The back of her head struck the wall with a thud. She barely seemed to notice.

She jerked her chin toward the mass of writhing bodies. “Pick one. On the house.”

“Oh. No.” I immediately backed away.

The male suddenly went rigid against her. A long, ragged moan escaped him before his entire body slackened. He sagged against her, resting his forehead on her shoulder as he drew several deep breaths.

She patted him on the backside before unhooking her leg from his waist. Her robes slipped back into place as she straightened. The male immediately draped a possessive arm around her shoulders and blinked over at me, his expression glassy with satisfaction.

“There’s Ambrosia,” she suggested mildly. The male reached for a glass resting on a nearby ledge. The jewel-bright liquid inside fizzed delicately as he took a long sip.“It helps... loosen inhibitions.” She waggled her brows and cast a pointed glance downward.

Unfortunately, my eyes followed.

The male’s manhood was on full display, erect and glistening. I immediately looked away. I wanted to sink straight through the floor. The female's smile only widened, apparently taking my accidental glance as enthusiasm rather than abject mortification.

“I don't think so,” I said quickly.

“It’s a beautiful vintage,” she insisted. “Very expensive. Very rare. Imported from Pelaga—we only just received it today. They say it's the High Lord's favorite.” She winked again.

“Thank you, but no.” I took another step backward.

“Suit yourself,” she called after me.

The male was already busy again, his hands fumbling with the fastenings of her robe.

I started toward the stairway at the far end of the room. It seemed impossibly distant, separated from me by a sea of limbs and sweaty flesh.

I stopped suddenly.

Rìan had ordered me back to the room.

Ordered me.

As though I were one of his tongueless servants, expected to obey without question. I bristled, whirling back toward the corner. The female was now bent over a tabletop, her robe hanging open and her breasts pressed flat against the wood as the male fumbled with the mass of fabric gathered around her hips.

“Just take it off,” she panted over her shoulder.

I stopped in front of her. “You said we would get a hot meal.”

The sound of tearing fabric answered before she could.

She lifted her head, her eyes dark with lust. “Down the hall. To the right,” she rasped.

I set off immediately, but not fast enough. The cry of pleasure that followed me when her companion finally found home was unmistakable.

Was that what was happening in the shadowed alcove right now? Did Rìan have Elyndra bent over one of those cushions? Were his hands on her? His fingers tracing the curve of her spine the way they had traced⁠—

NO.

I slammed the thought out of my head.

This place was getting to me. Along with the exhaustion. The hunger. The lack of sleep. I wasn’t thinking clearly.

At the edge of the room, two hallways branched away into the darkness. I stopped, my thoughts muddled by the constant noise behind me. Down the hall to the right, the female had said.

Did she mean the hallway on the right?