Monty opens a cupboard and starts pulling out a teapot and teacups. Oh lord. He really is making tea this way.
“Making tea is a form of alchemy,” says Monty. “It requires precise water temperature, the correct hardness of water. The quantity and quality of tea leaves need to be just so. Then there is the centrifugal force when stirring. Even the teapot and cup affect the flavor. The composition and thickness of glaze. If there are any cracks.”
I watch him work as he talks. I really can’t think of anything to say, but he doesn’t seem to mind.
“If an alchemist can’t make a decent cup of tea, he has no business attempting anything else.”
He hands me a delicate china teacup and saucer. The steaming liquid is a vibrant amber. I’m not going to ask for milk and sugar. He seems like far too much of a purist for that.
“Thank you,” I say instead, and I take a sip.
Flavor caresses my tongue. Oh my goodness. This is the most wonderful cup of tea I have ever had. If Monty is half as good at alchemy as he is at making tea, he is going to be the most successful alchemist ever.
I take another sip. Delicious. But just as I return my cup to its saucer, a wave of dizziness hits me, making the china rattle.
“Um…Sorry to be blunt,” I say, “But may we get on with things?” I left coming here to the very last possible moment. I didn’t factor in time for tea and small talk. I never imagined in a million years that I’d want to get to know the mage who is going to empty me.
A beautiful pink blush spreads across Monty’s cheeks. “Oh…yes, of course.”
Oh my days. He is adorable. This is so bewildering. Mages are arrogant, chauvinistic assholes. They have all the worst traits of Alphas. They are not like this. Men on the whole, are not like this.
Another surge of magic claws at me. Everything in the RV rattles. Okay, it really is time to get on with things. I can try to make sense of it all later. Right now, I need to get this magic out of me before I explode.
My gaze drifts around the one room of the RV, and then up to the crumpled bed above the cabin, in the small space over the driver’s seat. It looks cramped up there. I’m not even sure if it would fit two, and there is definitely no room to sit up.
At the other end of the van is a narrow door, but I’m pretty sure there is only a toilet and possibly a tiny shower behind it.Monty has maximized his space for his work. It is clearly more important to him than comfort.
“Shall I bend over the table?” I suggest.
Monty’s blue eyes dart around his home as if taking it in for the first time. His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows. “Excellent idea!”
I stare at the cluttered and overflowing table. Monty jumps forward and starts clearing a space. Wordlessly, I help him. In no time at all, we have created a bare square of table. Just large enough for me to rest my elbows on and bend my torso over.
I hover next to it for a brief moment, then I pull myself together and yank my sweatpants down. I suck in a breath and get into position.
Monty steps behind me. I close my eyes and try to calm my mind.
“I…um…” Monty stammers. “Have never done this before.”
My eyes snap open and stare at the rich brown wood of the tabletop.
“Taken a vessel?” I say. “There is nothing to it. It’s just like normal sex, except, when I cum, my magic will be released and you will be able to draw it into yourself.”
Silence. Thick and heavy.
“About normal sex…” Monty says softly.
My eyebrows have risen. They have disappeared into my hairline and there is not a damn thing I can do about it. It is a bloody good thing I’m face down over the table and he can’t see my rude expression.
“You’ve never topped a man before?” I ask.
Monty sucks in a breath. “I’ve never done anything before.”
Bloody hell. You could knock me down with a feather right now. Is he really saying he is a virgin? In every sense of the word?
“I’ve been rather distracted by my studies since a young age,” he says sheepishly.
My heart flutters. He has nothing to be ashamed about, he really doesn’t. I think it is the sweetest thing ever, just very surprising. I’ve spent the last few years as a sex slave, so meeting a virgin is akin to meeting someone from a different world.
