Breath a rumbling sigh, he dropped his hands to the water. Cupping them to let the cold liquid run down her back, he wiped away the sticky sweat. He bathed her in slow passes, massaging the stiff muscles of her neck and shoulders. He had her lie back, each of them silent as he scrubbed at her scalp and worked the tangles free of her hair with careful fingers.
Knowing what he was doing did not stop Aida from relaxing into his touch, her every ache and tightness soothed away as the cool water refreshed her flagging spirit. Unaware how dirty she’d felt, how much it affected her, she let her eyes drift shut as the sensation of being clean seeped into her soul. She did her best to ignore his quiet praise and sounds of pleasure but knew it wouldn’t matter. He would do what he wished, whether she consented or not.
“Open,” Er’it murmured, gliding a wet thumb over her lips.
Before she could open her eyes, he pressed inside, sliding a piece of dried meat over her tongue until Aida had no choice but to accept. Stomach at first revolting, she gagged on the heavy spices until he pressed the waterskin to her lips, feeding her a trickle of sweet water until Aida could manage to chew the shred of venison without her jaw aching.
“Easy now.” He slipped another piece between her slack lips, following it with a taste of more water. He continued feeding her small scraps and sips of water, praising her for every tidbit she accepted as they soaked in the cool rush of the stream, his fingers traversing the column of her throat as she swallowed.
Ravenous now, Aida accepted it all, even his petting and the deep resonance of his pleased growls as she wrapped her hands around his and held them still so she could tear a delicious mouthful of the jerky free with her teeth. Turning her face up to his, she offered him her parted lips.
Chapter 12
Er’it
Knowing she wanted more water did not stop him from leaning down to lick away a smear of spice and grease staining the bowed perfection of her lips. Delving inside her, he searched out more of her decadent taste beneath the flavor of dried meat, growling when her tongue made a shy pass over his. Still so innocent despite all he’d done to her, she drove him mad with need.
Far past desire, well into his obsession, Er’it forced himself to sit back, his chest heaving with the strain of keeping his hands from grabbing at her soft curves as he held the waterskin to her flushed lips. Watching Aida’s throat work pulled a groan from him, and Er’it hurried to hold another piece of jerky up before he sampled more than her mouth.
While the color returning to her cheeks was a good sign, Er’it knew he couldn’t take her, not here, not now, not when each time they came together their combined magic gained a life and purpose all its own. Expending too much power in too short a time, she’d drained herself to the dregs, somehow managing to take most of the other mages’ magic in the process… even his. None of them understood it, least of all him. Her power alone supposedly unfeasible, she appeared to wield far more than seemed human.
Regardless of how much she had at her disposal, she spent too much of herself. The way the eerie blue light exuded from her skin, it was clear she did not draw that energy from some outside source, not by any means known to Er’it or any of his mages. It was within her, a part of her, an endless well of magic at her fingertips. Still, she had limits, as evidenced by the pasty cast of her skin and the way she felt like a bow strung too tight. With every morsel he fed her, she brightened, and the intense promise of all that she was began returning by degrees.
Er’it hid the widening of his eyes from Aida as he shoved a hand deep into the pouch Tor’en had given them. Filled to the brim with jerky and dried fruit, it should have been enough to feed them both. Yet Aida remained starved, ripping into the sturdy slabs of meat and tearing at the fruit. She let him continue feeding her, though, and that fact distracted him long enough for the bag to empty before he was prepared for this scene to end.
Grabbing the bag, Aida tugged the opening wide to see the empty interior. Rounded eyes of midnight sky met his, and her lower lip trembled. A flush stained the fresh tawny gold of her cheeks as she ducked her head, letting the drying cascade of curls provide shelter for her embarrassment.
“Hush now,kou’va. There is more at the camp,” Er’it said, running his splayed hand up and down Aida’s back.
“I ate it all,” she said in a low whine, pushing her face against his chest.
“It was meant for you.” And him, but he would have his tongue ripped out before he said as much to her, not while she sought comfort in his arms, pressing all of her softness against him. Dampening the brightness of his smile, Er’it tucked her chin into his palm, forcing Aida to meet his gaze as another thought came to him. “Help me bathe, and we can get you more.”
Brow puckering, she leaned back to watch him through narrowed lashes, no doubt thinking back to when he’d had her bathe him in the castle. Offering a strained smile, Er’it lifted Aida by the hips to set her on the sandy creek bed beside him so he could begin scrubbing the cold water over his legs and chest. Not having her warmth pressed against him did nothing to ease the throbbing ache in his cock, but at least he would not feel her delicious squirming anymore.
“Undo the braids,” Er’it said, keeping his gaze focused on his hands. Doing everything he could to make her at ease, the task he set for her would take time, and she would take care not to tug at his hair. Knowing that fact made him grin at the burbling water as Aida moved farther behind him to pick up the first of many raveling plaits.
Her small fingers were nimbler than he gave her credit for, and Aida made quick work of it, surprising him when she splashed toward the shore on awkward knees to deposit the palmful of decorations that had survived this far. Before he could react and ruin the moment, she turned back, her smile shy as she returned to his side to brush out his long locks.
There was no helping the subterranean depth of his rumble, the way it resonated through his chest. Her small hands worked over his scalp as she guided him back, thorough as she cleaned away bits of leaf and twig caught in the strands from the forest. Peering up at her, he saw the avid joy on her features, the simple act something of importance to her. Uncertain if her joy was from the act itself, of having some duty to perform, or if it was for him, he reached up to rub the back of her neck as Aida hunched over him to do the same.
“Kiss me,” he whispered, a hint of question lying beneath the command, wanting to give her the option to refuse but unwilling to accept it if she did.
Blush spreading from her cheeks down to the gentle curve of her breasts, Aida nibbled at her lower lip. Meeting his gaze, a daring act for her, she took a deep breath that caused the stiff points of her breasts to brush against his shoulder before she leaned farther down to press a chaste peck against his lips. As she breathed into him, Er’it’s hand tightened at the back of her neck to deepen the kiss. Teasing at her tongue with his, he gave a gentle call at her timid response. His fingers worked at her nape when she hummed in return before slanting her mouth over his in a bid to get closer.
With a strength of will he didn’t know he possessed, Er’it urged Aida back so he could sit up. Water cascading down his face and back, he ran a rough hand through the soaked locks then turned his attention to getting clean. Keeping his pleasured sounds to quiet growls and rumbling sighs as she worked at his back, they made quick work of his bath together. All too soon, he had no more reason to keep them there.
“What of your hair?” Aida asked.
“It will take too long to dress it.” Er’it looked at her, one side of his mouth sliding up as he caught her staring at the delicate ring of red at his shoulder. A place that thrummed with sensation, a tangle of icy fire working its way through his chest, he felt something of her there—the intensity and innocence of her nestled beneath the steady drumming of his heart.
It disturbed him at first. During the act, instinct had guided them both. He’d reveled in the shock of pain, gloried in the surge of awareness of her. After, when he’d sensed the volatile swirl of her emotions, the overwhelming tide of her power, he’d been more than concerned, not for him but for her. Too small, delicate, and fragile by half, his little Omega was not built to contain so much. Even the strongest of Alphas would be hard-pressed to endure such a burden.
Yet she gave him a smile, trembling and bashful as it may be. She let him help her up from the water to make their way to the bank and beyond where fresh clothing had been left for them. Snatching up the rough cloth to dry them before she could fetch it, he buffed her skin dry then applied the damp cloth to his body. Helping her dress an amusing feat, he wound the soft belt around her waist three times before it stopped dragging the ground. The tunic he’d chosen for her long enough to brush her ankles, he still opted for her to wear the loose breeches beneath. The long slits up the sides would bare too much of her well-turned thighs for his comfort, but an idea began to form. Something she’d said during their time alone in the glen came to him as he tugged on the snug trousers and tunic he favored for himself.
“Come,” Er’it said, some perverse urge leading him to tuck his arm beneath hers so that her hand rested upon the back of his. A formal gesture used within the courts he’d not visited in an age, he used it now to guide her toward the road.
Upon seeing Tor’en’s sly smile, the first thing he saw as they came out of the trees, Er’it lifted his lip in a silent snarl, one he took care not to let Aida see. Turning her toward the lean-to the soldiers had erected for them, he noticed more food laid out on trays. Someone had managed to catch a brace of rabbits while they’d bathed. Er’it had no plans to stay their travel for so long, but Aida needed it. Even now, her feet hissed over the ground as she shuffled, and she leaned into him as he came alongside her.
