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"What about you, Wraythe?" Eladehl pressed.
Wraythe scoffed. "I've been stroking it myself since like fifth year. First time with a girl, though."
Eladehl just leaned in to press his mouth to mine. "First kiss, first cum. You are not stealing him from me."
"Aw, baby, I thought we were sharing," I teased.
"Yeah, we are. I get to use your guy for my audience, you get to use mine for your restraints, and we both get off. Choose the Path of the Body, Nari? The four of us are good together."
It was tempting. So very tempting, but all I said was, "We'll see."
Chapter 15
Nariana
For the rest of our eighth year, people were pairing off. Boys with girls, girls with girls, and boys with boys. The four of us always stood out. We'd figured out that romantic love was inconvenient as Priests of Temptation, but Jamik's words about a family rang true. I couldn't be their girlfriend. One of them couldn't be Eladehl's boyfriend. It would never last through our Choosing, but this arrangement would.
My guys were safe. I trusted them not to go too far and to always listen when I was nervous or wanted to stop. Even Amerlee encouraged what we were doing. It was a healthy way to learn about our desires, she said. One that hopefully wouldn't break my heart. Because if I did follow the Path of the Body, and Eladehl was chosen for it like everyone expected, then Anver and Wraythe would be our guardians. The four of us would stay together forever, finally wanted, even if it was only by each other.
Even Saval used us as an example of a healthy relationship. Unfortunately, that was enough to set Ciella off. According to her, Eladehl was her arch-nemesis. The idiot acted like there were a limited number of spots in each Path, and if she wanted to become a Priestess of the Body, she had to make sure that Eladehl ended up in a lower rank.
She also decided that I was the weak link. It happened when I was coming back from Amerlee's room from a lesson about noble manners. My mentor had treated me to dinner, but it had been served with all of the utensils common at the most respected tables. Thankfully, I'd passed, but only barely. Stuffed on amazing food and a small glass of wine, I was looking forward to falling in bed and passing out when Kald, a boy from my class, fell in beside me.
"You get to go to the other side of the temple?" he asked.
I shrugged. "My mentor's rooms."
"Right. You're the one who lucked out and got that priestess, right? The redhead?"
"That's the one." I had to stifle a yawn from the oncoming food coma.
"You look bored. Wanna find a dark corner with me, and uh..." He grinned, letting me use my imagination to finish that.
But there was no need. "I'm good. Aren't you messing around with Ciella?"
"She's in a girl phase. Figured maybe I could wear myself out with you." And then he played his trump card. "Figured your friends won't care, since you're all kinda cheating on each other."
"You are aware that none of us can get married, right? That plenty of us are going to have sex with strangers for our god?" I stopped and faced him. "I don't know how cheating fits into any of that, because most of us are going to live our lives doing nothing else."
"Well, yeah, but..."
I lifted a brow, waiting for him to finish. "No, I'm dying to hear this argument."
"They don't care?" he asked.
"Do you?" I shot back.
"Yeah, I'd be pissed if my girl was getting some dick behind my back."
I just leaned closer. "What about in front of your face? Because that's what Ciella is going to end up doing. She'll lie on her back in a room, and men will satisfy themselves with her. If you follow the Path of the Body, they might use you as well. If you follow the Path of Protection, you'll definitely be watching, making sure none of them hurt her. And if you're in the Path of Action, you'll hear all about it when she gets back. There is no such thing as cheating in the Temple of Temptation. Our bodies belong to Zeal."
"Bitch," he snapped, turning to storm off in the other direction.
I told the guys about it, and we figured out it had been a rather pathetic attempt at a setup the next day when Kald was hanging all over Ciella at lunch. She kept shrugging him off, but he acted almost desperate. I couldn't figure out why. Anver, however, understood.
"No matter how many times they explain it," he said, "there will always be a few who think the rules don't apply to them. Kald is that kind of guy. He's so sure that because Ciella's been playing with him since third year that they'll find a way to be together."
"She doesn'twantto 'be together,'" I pointed out.
