He was back on the bed, changing out the cloth across her forehead. “What did the Beast say?”
“He said I need to soothe the bite.”
“But how, Master?”
I gave him a wry look, his frown following before he slapped his hands across his lips. “You don’t mean…” he started.
I nodded, peeling the sweat soaked hair from her face. Herbeauty could not be denied, even as she fought a fever delivered by the monster inside me.
What could kill a Goddess?
A bite from the Beast she’d brought beyond the Veil?
I couldn't imagine so, but I’d been through stranger things in my life than what I needed to do. I wanted to touch her. That truth was clear and had been the moment I’d confirmed it was she who fell into my realm. But more than touch, I wanted my mouth on her skin, breathing into her and taking a moment, no matter how small, to possess her.
I bent lower, salivating just looking at her wound. I chose to write that off as a remnant of the Beast’s desire for blood more than my own.
When my lips pressed over the bite mark, she stirred, but in a different way. As my tongue traced over her, gentle, like a lover, she gasped, moaning and lifting her torso in the sheets. My body reacted with nothing short of lust, shaming me as she lay battered and bruised. She sighed as I sucked and licked, her heavy breathing soothing into something languid. Her heart slowed and her head stilled as she slipped into a deep slumber.
It was difficult to pull away—I wouldn’t deny it—and as I replaced the bandage, I savored the taste of her skin on my tongue.
“Master,” Piffle whispered, and I jumped, startled to remember he was there. “She is calm and sleeping. I will stay with her?—”
“No,” I growled, clearing my throat and pulling a chair to her bedside. “I will stay. The Beast rests—she is in no danger. I will call for you if I’m in need of your assistance.”
He slid off the bed. “I will check back in an hour.”
I nodded silently, watching the soft rise and fall of her chest as the Changlingfae left Reshina to sleep and me to my thoughts, dark as ever in the crackling firelight.
CHAPTER 20
Reshina
Fire flaredacross my neck as I woke, blinking rapidly in the soft light. I was in my room below ground. Heat radiated from my wound, burning my skin. I traced my fingers across the bite, surprised to find the bandage gone.
“How much does it hurt?”
The voice was Arthur’s and with more blinking, his form took shape. He sat on a chair beside my bed, his head resting on his fist with over a day’s worth of hair growth stubbled over his chin. His brow furrowed, his mouth upturned into a frown, and his gaze…something akin to sorrow crossed it.
I pulled myself upright, pressing at the tender bite that had somehow not healed over in my sleep. “It is painful,” I rasped. I brought my hand to my mouth, my tongue dry and solidly foul.
Arthur rose, offering a cup to my lips. I tried to swat him away and take it for myself, but my hands shook, so I accepted his help in frustrated silence.
When I’d had a few gulps, he took it from my lips to refill. “You’ve been asleep for two days.”
I closed my eyes, promising myself it would be for just a moment. “That’s not possible,” I managed to speak, reaching for the cup of water again.
After he helped me take more sips, I slumped back down into the bed, altogether exhausted and in such confusion, the blissful ignorance of sleep drew me closer.
“Reshina,” he whispered somewhere near my face.
“Hmm?”
“You cannot fall back to sleep. I need you to eat, then you can rest some more.”
I lifted my hand, feeling for him. With a dreamy hum, I remembered this face. It was the same one from my dream of heat and ice and skin. I traced a finger down his nose, following the soft curve, the dip above his lips.
“Reshina,” he repeated, this time with a sigh and a press of his cheek into my palm.
