‘Woah, Lilly. Since when are you sharing baths with Nocthare scum?’ the man asks he swims to the edge of the pool and rests his arm on the lip to face the two of us. He looks vaguely familiar: brown hair, crooked nose, full lips. I think he was in the line-up of combat leaders from earlier. Yes, that’s it. He was in charge of the third group.
I force myself to blink away the fogginess clouding my brain. It’s not easy, though; I’m disorientated by the magic of the crystals and the heat, not to mention the exhaustion from training. I can’t move. It’s like I’m frozen as he stretches over the small slab of concrete separating our baths and tugs on Lillian’s hair like a damn child trying to get her attention. His smile is wide and charming, despite what he just called me. He has a face that looks like trouble.
‘Since you losers ditched me. Also don’t call herthat. That’s not her name,’ she scolds, slapping his hand away from her.
My eyes widen. I brace myself for him to get defensive, to protest, to double down on the insult, because why wouldn’t he? I’m right here in the open, half-naked and ripe for the picking if he wanted to send a slew of hatred my way. But surprisingly, he doesn’t. Instead he just shrugs, as if he couldn’t care either way.
‘Sorry,mommy.’ He smirks lazily, backing away from the edge of the pool but only enough to turn around and lay his head in the spot his arms just vacated. ‘Shiiiit, this feels good,’ he sighs.
‘Close your mouth, Jed; you’re ruining my bath with your commentary,’ Lillian chides.
Out of the corner of my eye I spot another figure getting into the bath to join Jed. The newcomer doesn’t enter the pool in a loud splash like his bath-mate did. No. Long, tanned legs and thick thighs laden with firm muscle slowly descend into my eyesight and into the water.
My heart starts to race as my eyes observe the way those quads tense beneath the skin with each step. I don’t know if I’ve ever admired a man’s legs before, but these ones are worthy of being admired. Black briefs suddenly dip into my vision as the newcomer submerges deeper and a little voice in the back of my head is almost disappointed to see the material covering what’s beneath.
‘You like what you see, Little Traitor?’
My body freezes.
Oh,hellno. There is no way in all of Valmora I was just caught staring athislegs.
My neck cranes, my head feeling heavier than normal, thick and sluggish from the magic. When my eyes meet a pair of deep green ones filled with pure male satisfaction, I want to perish. I mean, sinkhole-opening-in-the-bottom-of-this-bath-and-swallowing-me-into-its-murky-depths kind of perish.
‘I would have. Too bad there was nothing to see,’ I quip and face forward, utterly appalled at myself.
Jed sniggers as he lays there with his eyes closed.
‘Yeah, you tell yourself that,’ Sebastian drawls with cocky arrogance as he finds his seat. Because there was a lot to see, and I’m sure the prick is well aware.
I look to Lillian for help, but her eyes are also closed, her face the picture of serenity. In fact, the three of them all seem to be completely unaware of my discomfort as they settle into their own sense of calm.Even Sebastian reclines in the corner of his pool, legs spread wide as if he owns it and the pool was made just for him. He crosses his arms over his bare chest, his muscles shifting, and frustratingly, I catch a smug smile tugging at the corner of his mouth as he closes his eyes.
The longer the two men lay there, the more uncomfortable I feel. The crystals can heal my aching muscles and joints, they can coax me into a false sense of calm, but deep down, they can’t do a damn thing against the swirling storm inside my head. My thoughts are just too loud.
‘I-I shouldn’t be here,’ I mutter quietly under my breath, more to myself than anyone else.
‘You’re right. You shouldn’t.’
I glare daggers at Sebastian when I look over and find him watching me, no longer resting against his side of the pool but instead reclining back on arms that are hanging over the edge. His head is turned just enough for our eyes to clash. I recall how relentless he was during our training session, to the point where I wondered if he was trying to see how far I would go. How much further he could push me … if he couldbreakme. Well, I won’t give him the satisfaction. I’m stronger than he thinks.
‘How about you drown yourself,’ I snap, voice filled with venom.
His grin is slow, deliberate, as if he was hoping I’d lash out. He enjoys my discomfort and because I’m too reactive when it comes to him, I keep feeding into his game.
Jed groans from the other side of his pool, snapping my gaze away from Sebastian’s. ‘I can’t picture Lilly’s tits in my mouth with all this talking!’
‘How about you picture Lilly’s fist in your face instead?’ Lillian offers, flicking water at him.
Jed just chuckles. ‘You can touch me any way that you like, Lilly Pie. I’ll like it.’
‘Ugh,’ she shakes her head, but a smile grows ever present on her face. ‘You’re a pig.’
I tune them out as they continue to bicker in soft voices and turn back to Sebastian whose eyes have dropped to the tops of my breasts.
‘You like what you see,Zain?’ I mock, ignoring the way my skin starts to tingle, his eyes searing across my chest like a phantom touch.
He flicks his gaze up. ‘I thought it was only fair, since you gotyoureyeful.’
I scoff. ‘I wouldn’t call what I saw an eyeful. In fact, I’m a little disappointed.Littlebeing the key word here.’
