“I do have a slight treat for you, however.” I grinned, the whiskey loosening my muscles and creating a heady sensation.
“A surprise?”
“A rebel Earth Mage. Big fucker. He’s currently sedated and in a cell in the Academy, guarded by a few of my best. Lex kept him sedated with Pleasure Magic the entire way home, but he should be rousing soon for us to have some . . . fun.”
Alois’ smile was positively maniacal.
“That’s the best news you’ve given me all day, Rohak.”
“Even better than a Rune Master, the key to your book?” I nodded toward the hidden door in his office. He licked his lips at the thought.
“Perhaps. We’ll see what . . . information we can gather from this Mage, first.” Alois rose from his chair and waited for me to do the same. He strode to the hidden door in his study and knocked twice, one of his own personal Mage guards appearing moments later.
“Sir?” He stood at attention, eyes trained on the back wall.
Damn, I trained him well. And I couldn’t help the slight feeling of pride as I regarded one of the thousands of men I trained.
“Find Lex and his Vessels. Tell them their presence is required in the Academy cells. It’s a nonnegotiable request from me. He can have his time off later.” His orders were clipped, all the familiarity and looseness from the last few hours with me was gone. In its place stood the leader of the Northern Alliance, and while I respected this version of Lord d’Refan, I couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness over what we’d had to do—what we’d had to give up—to get here.
As Alois adjusted the collar of his shirt, I donned my own armor, slowly shedding the person only Alois got to see anymore and embodying thepersona of General d’Alvey. My blank mask slid into place, and I strode to the door of the study.
“Ready to play, General?” Alois grinned, showing all of his teeth and I jerked a nod, lightly touching the crystals in my pocket. I still had three from the last week and was hoping to not use any more for a while.
Looks like that’s shot to shit.
I grasped them tight once before releasing them and swinging open the door.
“First we play, then I meet that Rune Master of yours.”
I sighed. It was going to be a long fucking night.
Chapter 50
Lex
Resounding moans, both real and fake, and the sounds of slick flesh slapping flesh filled the air as I leaned against the padded back of the couch. The air was heavy with the combination of scented candles and the distinct smell of sex and cum. It always smelled like this, whether day or night, and that was because Beck—the owner of Le Petite Mort—kept the heavy red velvet curtains drawn, creating the illusion of privacy and the depths of night.
A slender finger caressed my scarred chest and trailed lower down my abs, drawing lazy circles and abstract patterns as it went. Soft breasts pressed against my left shoulder, the girl’s nipples hardening at the contact. Her tongue shot out and licked my earlobe before trailing tantalizing wet kisses in the same path her finger had just taken. Her fingers continued their tease down my front until they met my half-hard cock.
I’d refilled my Pleasure reserves hours ago—and my Pain reserves from a few of the women at Le Petite Mort who liked a little pain with their pleasure, but I couldn’t seem to drag myself away from the heady feeling that sex invoked. I wasn’t quite ready to face the real world again. At least in here I could force the memories and the pain into a tiny box in the back of my mind.
Later. I’ll face it later.
And I would. The nightmares would be horrific for the next week now that I was back in a known and safe place. It was like my body relaxed, which caused my brain to release the toxicity it had built up over the past few weeks. Which is why I always came to Le Petite Mort after a mission—I could refill my reserves and delay the debilitating nightmares for another night.
And who wouldn’t want to be wrapped in constant pleasure?
The girl’s hand pulled me from my thoughts as she squeezed and pumped my cock back to life. I had no clue how many times I came over the last twelve hours. Every time I felt like I was spent, I let loose a healthy dose of Pleasure Magic and my dick miraculously hardened again. I wasn’t worried about using too much of my magic—I was in a pleasure house, for fuck’s sake—and could refill my reserves in the time it took to snap.
The girl—I couldn’t remember her name, there had been so many, both women and men, over the last hours—followed the path of her pumping hand with her mouth, licking and swirling her tongue around my balls, then up my shaft until her wet, warm mouth met the tip of my dick. I sucked in a breath through my teeth and my abs contracted as she licked the tip like a fucking candy stick, a bead of precum leaked out and she eagerly laved her tongue over it, moaning at the taste.
Fake moan. I could tell the difference now, but it didn’t bother me either way. This was her job and, like all of us, she had to do what she had to do in order to get through it.
I gripped the back of her head by her thick blonde hair and pushed her down until my dick hit the back of her throat. She gagged, her throat contracting around my length, and I held her there until tears pooled in her eyes and spit ran down my shaft and over my heavy balls. There were times that I let the girls take control—most times, actually—but I had a little sadism in me, too. The curse of being both a PleasureandPain Mage, I assumed.
I yanked her hair, pulling her off my cock abruptly and she gasped for air, an obscene amount of spit trailed from her lips to my dick, and it twitched at the sight.
Why was that so hot?
