The orgasm hits us both at once, the bond making it impossible to tell where mine ends and his begins. I shatter, crying out against his mouth, and I feel him follow, feel his release pulse through both of us. The heat of his cum washing inside me.
For a long moment, we just hold each other, trembling, gasping, overwhelmed.
The water has gone lukewarm. Half of it is on the floor. Cadeon looks thoroughly debauched, shirt plastered to his chest, white hair in disarray, a dazed expression on his face that makes him look almost young.
"Your clothes are ruined," I manage.
"I don't care."
"The floor is flooded."
"I don't care."
"You're smiling."
He is. A real smile, unguarded and bright. "I'm happy."
The simple admission makes my eyes sting. "Good. You deserve to be happy."
"So do you." He pulls me closer, tucking my head under his chin. "So do you, Iris."
We stay like that until the water goes cold, wrapped around each other in a ruined bath, thoroughly soaked and completely content.
Three days until everything changes.
But right now, in this moment, everything is already perfect.
Later, much later, after we've dried off and changed and mopped up the flooded bathroom, we lie together in my bed.
His head rests on my chest, my fingers combing through his damp hair. It's such a human position, vulnerable, trusting.
"Tell me more," I say softly. "About Mariana. About what the bond was like before."
He's quiet for a moment, and I feel him sorting through memories. "She used to make me tea. Every morning, without fail. Said a partnership meant taking care of each other."
"I leave tea outside your door."
"I know." His arm tightens around my waist. "The first time I found it, I didn't know what to do. I stood there for ten minutes, convinced it must be some kind of test."
"It wasn't a test. I just wanted you to feel... "
"Cared for. I know that now." He presses a kiss to my collarbone. "Mariana would have liked you. You have the same approach to magic: gentle but persistent. Healing instead of harming."
"I wish I could have met her."
"She would have told you stories about me. Embarrassing ones. She delighted in reminding me that I was once young and foolish."
"You were young and foolish?"
"Devastatingly so. I challenged a duke to a duel once because he insulted her cooking."
I laugh, startled. "You didn't."
"I did. Nearly caused a diplomatic incident. Mariana had to smooth things over by sending him a basket of her scones with a note apologizing for her 'overly enthusiastic familiar.'"
"Overly enthusiastic."
"Her words." I can hear the smile in his voice. "I was not enthusiastic. I was righteous. Her cooking was excellent."
