The ball had been exciting, to say the least.

It left Azura to consider a collection of things, and finally begin to grasp the reality of her new circumstances.

It wasn’t a dream, just as Cyrus has said.

The sooner she accepted that.

The better.

What she did not know about him – among a long list of things – was that for many years in his adolescence, he had kept hoping his life was a nightmare he would one day wake from. So, there were few people who understood the pain that could spring from living in denial for far too long.

From hoping that this life was only a dream that could be escaped.

Even now, some part of him still wanted to believe his parents would come for him.

That they would at last liberate him from this prison disguised as a home…

It felt good to be away from everyone.

To be alone in the room she had been given to call her own so that she could properly acquaint herself with all of her new thoughts and feelings.

The words the man from the ball had said were reverberating and ricocheting off of the walls of her skull, and had begun to morph into the start of a debilitating migraine.

It had already been something she considered more than once.

That perhaps she should just speak to her father before she decided to declare herself his enemy. Now that she knew who he was, the part of her that wanted to know him seemed to be reinvigorated. A facet of her younger self that she thought had been laid to rest years ago, but perhaps it had only been sleeping.

Azura released a deep sigh as her hands gripped the bannister of the balcony, and her gaze turned upward to admire the stars in the night sky above. Right now, she wished she could ascend and explore it. She wished she could to lose herself among the many suns within and see them for herself before they died.

It was familiar.

The desire to run.

For so long she had wished to run from those around her before they could have the chance to hurt her, and when the darkness invaded her mind, she even wished to run from herself. So, it was no surprise that with all of the new pressures now placed upon her shoulders, that the familiar flight response began writhe its way within her thoughts.

“Azura.”

Cyrus' voice shattered the silence as he walked out onto the balcony to join her. Although it was not the first time he had been to her room, as he had been sent to summoner her on several occasions, she had not expected to see him tonight.

The Romadis family was busy investigating how a supporter of Zelarin had managed to enter the palace undetected, and she had assumed that they might wish to use his particular set of skills to do so.

However, it seemed they did not require him, or he did not care if they did.

“Are you alright?” He asked when she did not reply, genuine concern — even if it was tenous — coating his delivery and creasing his onyx eyebrows. It sounded strange on him, given his manner was typically listless, sarcastic, or bordering on outright rude.

The only reason she had not immediately replied, was because she now had new concerns as to how he had gotten into her room without her noticing…

There was so very much she did not know about him.

Earlier, when he had heard the commotion on the balcony where he knew she had escaped to, he had felt a moment of true worry – which was something he was not used to. He would not say that it was some deep infatuation that brought the feeling, but over the last month he had come to enjoy Azura's company.

Yes.

He would perhaps miss her if some terrible fate befell her.

A thought he was not quite sure what to do with just yet.

Azura was still wearing her attire from the ball. That silken amethyst fabric and all of its careful details reflecting in a lovely manner beneath the kiss of the moon. The gown was a marvel, some of Ninki’s best work, in Cryus’ opinion. In fact, the old seamstress had been overjoyed to hear Azura would be wearing a dress, and so she had worked tirelessly to ensure it was perfection.

It had been.

Just the same as the intricate braids that had been weaved into her auburn maine. Though those were gone now, fortunately. They had left her rusted tresses riddled with bends and waves in the aftermath of their hold, which looked just a lovely as it had when they had been properly styled for the ball.

Cyrus was still in his suit, but the bowtie around his neck had been discarded, and the top two buttons had been undone in his dress shirt. There were also a few specks of red that Azura did not notice until he was closer to her, which raised several questions she was not sure she intended to ask.

It seemed they had required his skills after all.

But what for?

Had they caught the man, and what had they done with him?

“I’m fine,” she said dismissively. “He didn’t hurt me, I-”

“I know he didn’t hurt you, but that does not mean you are fine,” Cyrus replied as he finally came to a stop one short step away from her. “You were attacked-”

“I was not attacked… I was the one who attacked, Cyrus,” Azura corrected as her eyes rolled. “He spoke to me… He told me to come with him and so he could take me to my father... That he wanted to see me,” she explained, her tone bordering on defensive. “Have we ever considered that I could speak to him and bring peace-”

“No,” Cyrus said quickly as his tone tightened. “Do you know what he did to his last heir, Azura? To your half-brother… To the last person who threatened to rise against him and his tyranny?” He moved in closer as he posed the question, invading her personal space as if it belonged to him. One swift step forward closing the gap between them as he spoke with a new urgency and harshness. “He killed him… Even though he was aware that he had no other son to take his place. He summoned him to the throne room of the palace that will one day be yours, and he plunged a dagger in his gut in front of his court… He made an example of him for all to see… The son that he had raised since birth… He does not even know you, Azura… What will stop him from doing the same the moment you enter the palace?”

There were no words.

Only a blank stare as hazel clashed with emerald, doused in the light of the moon that watched overhead.

No, she had not been informed that her father had killed a brother she had never known - that she would never know.

“No… Nobody told me,” she finally replied with a dejected delivery. “I didn’t know-”

“There is much you do not know,” Cyrus retorted quickly as his jaw feathered. Although he intended to continue, the unintended severity of his tone registered, and largely because of the way Azura looked at him. The arch in her eyebrows increased as they stitched together in a budding aggravation, and her eyes narrowed as she silently told him to mind his tone. On any other occasion, he might have poked her further to get a greater reaction, but she had been through enough tonight. So, he instead sighed deeply, and took a moment to soften his timber before he spoke to her again “You have to be more careful,” he continued, his infelction considerably sweetened.

Well that was new…

But… why did he care?

They were… friends – or something like it.

But why did it matter?

Or was this another task given to him by Queen Shatrina…

“You look very beautiful,” Cyrus added after a drawn out silence. While it might have seemed as though it was an attempt to make up for his attitude moments before, it wasn’t.

It was genuine.

When she realized it was, Azura’s rusted eyebrows smoothed into their resting position, and her train of thought came to an abrupt halt.

Things were strange between them.

They existed in some sort of limbo that was vibrant with sexual and other forms of growing tension.

Although she did not expect more than what they had already shared, it seemed that things were escalating each time they interacted. There were red flags flapping in the wind on both sides, but even as new ones arose, neither of them seemed interested in listening to their warnings.

This could only end poorly.

Couldn’t it?

Wouldn't it?

“I meant to tell you earlier, but I did not get the chance…,” he trailed off as he looked down at her. The faint smell of alcohol lingered on his breath, and minced with his cologne as Azura remained where she was.

She did not need complications.

But to say she had not thought of him since that night a month ago would be a lie...

“Cyrus…,” she hummed in a tone so gentle it caused goosebumps to raise upon his arms. It had reminded him of the way she had whined into his ear when they were last entwined. That night had admittedly crossed his mind several times since, particularly that evening, and it had left him wanting.

“Why do you care?” Azura inquired, but she did not think he would reply. Or if he did, she did not expect he would be honest. Which was strange, given he had hardly been anything else since that first night.

Since he had kidnapped her.

She really did need to reconsider her taste in men.

Although he had contemplated replying, he did not know what he would say if he did. He did not know how to formulate his motives and the way he was beginning to feel into coherent sentences, or what it even was that he was feeling – what it was that he wanted.

Just the same as her, he was damaged.

Even if it was the first signs of affection that he had for her, he would not know it. He did not have relationships, and he did not fall in love. There could be no complications when he departed this place, and returned to his true home. So, he would call what he felt for Azura lust - he would call it desire.

And perhaps that was all it was.

Were she not dangled in front of him each day he would not find himself so tempted, but here they were.

He was a hungry dog, she was a fresh cut of meat set out on a platter, and he intended to satisfy his need to feed before it consumed his every thought.

So, he said nothing.

Instead, he leaned forward and pressed his lips into hers, parting them with his tongue as he caressed it with his own. With a commanding cadence, he forced her into the bannister behind her as their kiss deepened. With no intention to stop him, Azura reached upward, hooked her arm around his neck so she could pull him toward her, and pushed herself into him in a heedless gesture. All the while, his hands found her hips, and roamed to the curve of her backside so he could grip it through the many purple ruffles of her amethyst dress.

While some corner of her mind screamed for her to push away.

To not complicate her healing heart with whatever this was becoming.

Her body betrayed her.

Her posture mollified as a moan ventured into his mouth just seconds before he finally found the strength to pull away from her. Gently, he rubbed his crooked nose against the rounded tip of hers, as he admired her features, and allowed his gaze to wander down the length of her dress hungrily.

“I want you,” he declared shamelessly. “If you don’t feel the same… Then tell me to leave... and I will go to my room,” Cyrus whispered against her lips, brushing them with his own with each word spoken.

Hypnotized by his viridescent gaze and the rest of him, she could not bring herself to lie. She wanted him too, even if she was no longer certain that he was what she needed - for so many reasons. The last month had done a wonderful job of distracting her from her broken heart, and reminding her that she did not need anyone to feel whole again. The change in her status had also ensured that she now believed that it was best – for the moment – for her to walk alone.

Thankfully, there was something in her that knew whatever this was with Cyrus, was not love.

That it would likely amount to nothing.

That it was only desire.

It was need that burned hot and threatened to engulf them each time they found themselves alone together.

It seemed Cyrus was tired of resisting that beckoning blaze, and so was Azura

So, as a slow droop found eyelids dusted in a golden eyeshadow, and topped with fluffy eyelashes, she moved her lips to hang just beyond his ear. “Fuck me, Cyrus,” she whispered in a tone so low and alluring, he felt a tingle scurry up his spine in response.

He preferred a woman who asked for what she wanted more than anything.

He preferred when they took it.

There was something about Azura that spoke to his soul.

That made him ravenous.

Which was why he lifted her onto the bannister at her back, and moved his own lips to her ear. “Hold onto me, Princess,” he demanded in a husky murmur as he pushed her legs open, and began to part the skirts of her gown to gain access to her most tender location. All the while, his lips ventured to her jawline, down her neck, and peppered the cleavage that had baited him all evening long. Even when she had been on the other side of the Great Hall his gaze had gravitated toward her, and each time she had felt it, hers had collided with his.

Without words.

They had communicated that they wanted one another all throughout the celebration.

With her bare legs now on display, caressed by the cool night breeze around them, Cyrus rubbed the softer skin of her inner thigh with his calloused thumbs. Slowly, he moved closer and closer to the heated space that called to him as he planted gentle bites on the pillar that was her neck.

Simultaneously, Azura reached down to unfasten his pants and set him free. As soon as he was, she wrapped her fingers around him, grasping him firmly and bringing a grunt of pleasure from him that forced her lips to settle into a satisfactory grin. Although firmness had already begun to take hold, she stroked him several times to quicken the process. Once he was properly hardened in her grip, she pressed him against her increasing wetness, hooking her thumb underneath her undergarments and pulling them aside so he could feel her without a single barrier between them. In an immediate response, Cyrus’ hips began to gyrate all on their own, bringing a moan from them both in a show of synchronized pleasure.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Then he began to pull at her corset, nearly ripping the delicate fabric as he liberated her chest, and swiftly popped one of her pink buds into his waiting mouth. He sucked it eagerly and savagely, allowing the tips of his teeth to run across that hardened tip as his lips encased them in the warmth of his maw.

“Cyrus, “ Azura sighed as she gripped at him frantically. Her nails yearned for something to scratch, but his suit stood to be an obstacle. So, she began to peel his jacket from his shoulders as his length caressed her aching lips ceaselessly.

Finally he removed his mouth from her chest when he felt her tug at his clothing. The circular motion of his tongue on her rigid nipple came to slow halt just before he released it, leaving it to glisten in the moonlight as it was slick with his saliva.

As he began to aid Azura in her effort to further undress him, he pulled his jacket from his form in a swift motion. In order to do so, he was forced to let go of her, and when she began to fall backward, quick reflexes saw Cyrus’ arm snaked around her waist. “I’ve got you,” he whispered before he kissed her lips.

Why did that somehow arouse her more than anything else?

While Azura had felt a moment of fear, a gasp emitting from her as her descent seemed imminent, it had been short lived. Something about Cyrus made her feel safe, and given how they had met… it was foolish of her to feel that way.

Alas, she was a woman ruled by her heart and all that it could feel.

And she always would be.

One by one she unfastened his buttons as they kissed passionately. More muffled moans passed from her mouth into his as the movement of his hips resumed their previous momentum. It felt as if at any moment he might just slip inside of her, and she hoped that he would, but Cyrus was patient.

He wanted to wait until the need for one another was so great that she could no longer take it.

The ache between her thighs left her legs weak as they held onto him attempting to pull him closer to her even if it was not physically possible to do so. It was evident by the intensified tempo of her breathing that she was nearing feral territory - that she would soon be a mindless animal for him.

The thought brought a smirk to his lips as he pulled away from hers.

With his buttons undone and his chest just as liberated as her own, she caressed the strong plains of his abdomen. She enjoyed the sensation of his muscles against her palm as her touch ascended from the space just above his pelvis , and ventured to the peaks of his strong shoulders. Then, she dug her nails into his skin and raked downward, savoring the sharp breath that was sucked through his teeth and the raised red skin that was left in the wake of the path they charted.

It was this savage side of her that Cyrus enjoyed so much.

Although he had yet to say it, he felt rather fortunate to see it set free as it was now.

He knew he would look forward to each opportunity for another chance…

And he was not alone.

It had awoken something in him, a sensation that had him to gripping her hips vigorously as his thrusts became relentless. His eyes adhered to the rise and fall of her chest as her mewls wandered toward recklessness, and her hypnotizing hazel eyes threatened to roll back in her head.

If she did not feel him inside of her soon, she was going to lose her mind.

“Cyrus… I want you,” she whined as her arm curled around his neck once again to pull him downward, pressing her bare chest against his.

“Then…,” he replied as his movements became agonizingly slow. Making a point to run his tip along her eager opening torturously as if he might just spread her open.

It was tortuous for them both.

The only thing that kept him restrained was an overwhelming longing to hear her tell him she needed it.

To hear her beg.

“Tell me you need it, Azura…,” Cyrus continued as he stroked her lips once more. He even pushed forward ever so slightly as if he might finally give her what she wanted. She responded with a panting breath, and nearly pulled him in by further gripping him with her legs. Briefly, she had thought she would finally know relief, but it turned out to be just another tease.

Half of her resented the way he drove her crazy, but the other half of her loved it.

“Beg for it,” Cyrus commanded.

Those three short words ignited the part of her that could not relent her control.

The part of her that did not wish to submit to anyone at all.

Unfortunately, the motion of his hips and the way his swollen length provoked her was eating away at her defiant disposition. Before she could even think to reply, his speed hastened again, and she felt her mind liquify into a puddle of uninhibited proclivity.

“Cyrus,” she moaned helplessly as the hold her legs had him tightened to a tourniquet around his hips. Her body was acting all on its own, desperate to feel him as she became senseless - absent a desire beyond what she had for him.

“Say it,” he demanded as he grasped her thighs and spread them open, thwarting any potential for her to pull him inside of her. “Say it… and I will show you the gods tonight… my Domina.”

While all the new titles that courtiers had begun to use to address her had done little more than annoy her thus far, the way he said the moniker broke her.

It shattered what was left of her control and guaranteed that she was his.

Even if only for the night.

“Please,” she whimpered into his ear, and punctuated her plea with the saccharine song of pleasure that broke him.

Just as soon as the words departed her, he pulled his hips backward, positioned his tip at her entrance, and pressed forward with an unhurried sense of urgency. That slow invasion of her center ripped the air from her lungs as her breath caught just before she gasped for air. She then began to claw at his shoulders, digging her nails into his skin as she felt her sanity being consumed by lechery. Azura relished in the feeling of his girth as it split her open, and caressed her wet walls as he invaded her wholly. Meanwhile, the way she wrapped around him made it hard for Cyrus retain the the hold on what was left of his nerve – to not unleash upon her and explode inside of her impulsively.

“Fuck,” they hissed in unison. The harmonized expletive brought a smile to their lips before they exchanged a brief kiss. A hint of amusement lingered on both of their expressions before it was replaced with rapture, and more rapid breathing.

For a few moments as he stared at her, Cyrus did not move – he could not move. He could only readjust himself as he sought out his bearings, and then spread her legs apart as far as he was able. His grip on her thighs was tight to keep her balanced on the bannister, and to ensure she would not move when he did what he intended to do next.

Finally, he pulled backward, and then slammed himself inside of her entirely.

The way her muscles clenched him in response was an unfair advantage. Her tightness was adhered to him as if she aimed to drain the life from him, and perhaps she did – perhaps she would.

Azura cried out and her head was thrown backward. Her auburn hair chasing down her exposed back as her pleasure carried throughout the night, and could be heard by others who found themselves awake at such an hour. Encouraged by her noises, he moved in and out at a steadily increasing rhythm. It was hard to maintain anything slow as he began to let go, his grunts turning into growls that permeated her ears as she evanesced for him.

Her crux was molten now.

Her blood had been turned to lava as it coursed through her veins – as she felt herself gradually prime for eruption as if she were an active volcano. Her lips were stretched taut around his girth as she cried out without care, and her chest rebounded each time he plunged within her.

“Don’t stop… Don’t stop… Please don’t stop.”

There wasn’t a thought in her mind beyond this moment.

Being with him like this made her forget everything, and her only regret was that she had deprived herself from feeling him again for far too long.

“Tell me it's mine,” Cyrus demanded as he wrapped his arms around her waist and buried himself completely once more. “Tell me-,” he said again, interrupting himself with a roll of his hips, “-it’s mine.”

He didn’t know why.

But he needed to hear it.

Perhaps it was out of spite for the way he knew Oris wanted her, and for many reasons.

Perhaps some part of him simply wanted her regardless of that knowledge.

Meanwhile, there was a part of Azura that felt a great shame due to the way she yearned to obey his commands, but another part of her reveled in it.

At times, even the women with the strongest of wills simply wished to be taken.

Wished to be bent.

“Tell me,” he commanded again as he retracted, and remained there. Leaving only his tip within her as it dripped with preejaculation — a precursor to his own imminent eruption.

There was something like a whimper that threatened to depart her at any moment, but the fear of the vulnerability he was coaxing out of her was holding her back. Even if it was simply the heat of the moment — the heat of passion — he would remember that moment.

And so would she.

“Tell me,” Cyrus growled into her ear as he slowly pushed forward. His every inch eating away at her dwindling resolve as sounds of euphoria were lured from her lungs.

As he approached the base, filling her to brim, she crumbled.

In that moment she was his.

Wholly and unconditionally.

“It's yours,” she relented in a pleasured and pitiful manner.

While she expected the return of his quickened thrusts, he picked her up instead, removing her from the bannister. He then slowly walked her back into her room, charting a course to her lavish bed as they kissed one another the entire venture there. Submerged firmly in their ardor and unable to tear away from one another even for a single moment - even for so they could breath.

Once they reached their destination, he threw her backward, and dropped his pants. Stepping out of them just after he kicked off his loafers. It revealed the dagger adhered to his calf, the same one with a bone handle from the courtyard. Swiftly, he reached down to pull it from its sheath, and thoughtlessly began to toss it in his grip. All the while, Azura watched him, admiring the view, as she sat poised on her elbows. An eager grin plastered on her expression as he began to approach her. When he pulled her toward him by roughly pulling her dress, her smile was eclipsed as she bit into her fluffy bottom lip.

While the expected reaction would probably be concern for most, Azura remained calm as ever and even excited as he began to cut away at her gown barbarically.

Somewhere, Ninki was feeling a deep agony, and she did not know why.

The steadiness of his hands was arousing for Azura. It indicated that he was familiar with the blade and perhaps other weaponry – something she would like to see for herself. Its sharpness allowed it to cut through the fabric of her dress as if it consisted of butter, and as soon as it was severed he spread it apart so he could admire the view.

Which he did.

The fullness of her figure was refreshing.

He was a man who enjoyed having something to hold onto immensely.

Which was why he loved the handfuls on her chest, the subtle pouch of her belly, the thickness of her thighs, and the curves of her wide hips.

Although there were no words, he released a pleased grunt as he analyzed her naked body intrusively.

Even after gorging himself as he had, he was still so very hungry for her.

Cyrus tossed the dagger aside before he crawled on top of her, but was surprised when she pushed him by the shoulder, and forced him onto his back. In a movement that was undoubtedly practiced, she straddled him, and gripped his length so she could position it at her entrance.

Then, slowly, she descended upon him as she cried out to Nubis above.

While she had not minded the way he took control.

It was her turn now.

Azura’s palm rested on the center of his chest as she began to manuever her hips with intent to return the favor for the torture he had provided. Glacially, she began to swirl them in slow circles in between bounces - tighter and then wider as she alternated her rhythm.

Unbothered by this position, Cyrus rested his hands on her hips as her gripped them roughly, and soon delivered a slap to her backside that echoed throughout the room. She released a pleasured yelp in response and savored the sting it left behind, biting into her bottom lip once more as the pace of her riding increased. Meanwhile, her hand moved upward, traveling toward his neck just before her fingers curled around it, and she squeezed.

“Tell me it's mine,” Azura commanded as she picked up her pace, and used his own demands against him. The clap of her rear against his thighs grew louder with each movement as his breathing quickened, and her arousal left them both slick with her nectar.

There it was again.

That animal she kept locked away.

Set free for him, and him alone.

Allowed to roam free as she used him as she pleased. Granting him the pleasant view of her perfect chest and the way her beautiful face contorted in ecstasy.

Here, in this intimate moment, he truly did see the future Domina of Xetus.

“Make me,” he replied defiantly with effort, his speaking strained from the grip on his neck.

While it was certainly new, he did not mind.

In fact he rather enjoyed it.

However, he would find himself unprepared for the way Azura met his challenge. A sudden tightness felt around him as she contracted her muscles and forced his entire body to tense.

Suddenly, he was left to fight to keep his restraint - to prevent himself from exploding.

“Gods,” he hissed as his grip on her became possessive. His fingers sprawled out as he pulled her cheeks apart before he offered another slap to the same location. It was redder now, and sting was harsher, but she only wanted more. She tightened once again in response, this time involuntarily, and another one of those alluring yelps departed her. “Take it, Azura,” he dictated. “Take what is yours.”

With another satisfactory smile that disrupted her moaning for a moment, Azura released the grip on his neck and changed her position. Finding a new stance where she was crouched, and her palm rested firmly on the center of chest. Once she was secure, she began to ride him with invigorated tenacity, granting him a hypnotizing view of the way he disappeared inside of her as she cried out wildly. The room was filled with a symphony of hedonistic sounds from them both. Groans and moans – that soon became screams from Azura – dancing with the slapping collision of their bodies. A reaction brought on when he began to thrust upward each time she pulled him from her.

He was taking her breath away.

Leaving her mindless and hopelessly submerged in her pleasure.

“Oh Cyrus… Fuck me… Fuck me please,” she pleaded as she felt her muscles begin to compress around him. The first signs of her impending orgasm alerting them both, and driving them further into a lust fueled madness.

Cyrus was not far behind her, which is why he shoved her off of him forcefully. Pushing her onto her stomach as he moved behind her, and gripped her hips so she could be pulled toward his pelvis. There were only a few short moments where she lacked the feeling of him inside of her, as he wasted no time before spreading her open and pushing himself back within her depths. Both of them, sighing in relief as they were provided with exactly that once again.

“Cum for me, Azura,” he said as pressed his stomach into her back, and growled directly into her ear. All the while, he wrapped her long hair around his hand as he planted kisses on her neck. “Cum for me,” Cyrus demanded as he pulled on her hair. The yank was timed perfectly to match a forward thrust before he picked up speed.

Slap. Slap. Slap.

The clapping of their clashing bodies laced with cry after cry of bliss from Azura.

“Cum for me… My beautiful Domina whore.”

That was all it took.

Those words snarled into her ear as she screamed chaotically, tearing at the bed sheets beneath as if she hoped to rip them to shreds while she was assaulted by a debilitating orgasm. Her muscles constricted and contracted around his throbbing length, forging them into a death grip as her eyes rolled back. The sensation of it brought Cyrus’ orgasm soon after, as he just could't take the feeling of her for one more moment.

There had been every intention to pull out of her, but he could not help himself.

She felt intoxicating.

So, the aggression of his thrust reached a peak that rendered Azura unable to breath just before they stopped, and she felt the flow of him fill her as she rode the aftermath of her orgasm.

No one had ever done that to her before, and it was worrisome just how much she found that she enjoyed the sensation as he twitched and pulsed within her.

He was dangerous.

And so was she.

For a long few moments he simply heaved upon her, slowly going flaccid before he finally pulled himself out, and rolled over onto his back next to her. Quietly, Azura watched him as she descended from the height of her lust, and when he felt her eyes upon him, he met their gaze.

That was not something he usually did.

Perhaps the lingering high of climax could be blamed for his temporary change in behavoir.

“You are… An exceptional fuck,” Cyrus said with a laugh, his breathing still elevated.

A smile grasped her lips before she could reply, and even shared a laugh with him. “Likewise,” she said simply as she joined him in laying on his back.

Unfortunately, the view of her, coated in a sheen of sweat, was distracting. It left him to jump as he thought to take her again, if only for fear of how long it might be before he was provided another chance.

“Cyrus,” Azura said after a long moment of silence.

“Yes?”

“Don’t fall in love with me.”

There was a pause as his eyebrows furrowed, but he did not question it. “Likewise,” he eventually replied.

What followed was easy conversation, laughter, and eventually the pair of them fell into a slumber. When Cyrus awoke, Azura was resting her head upon his chest, and although he did not really wish to , he knew he needed to leave.

The last thing he wanted was for rumors to spread that the future Domina was keeping an outcast as a bed companion.

So, before she woke, he departed.

Leaving her to make her own assumptions as to why when she found herself alone in the morning.

Perhaps he was just taking her advice.

When he did leave, and it was only a few hours before she rose from her slumber, a golden bird soared through the hallway overhead.

Ensuring that he knew Shatrina was watching.

That she always was.