Mitchell walked down the path that led to a pool about seventy or eighty meters past the tree line of the clearing around Gilriel’s cottage. The water from the stream that ran past her residence poured over a little two-meter-high waterfall and into a mostly circular pool about four meters in diameter before running out the other side to continue on its way. The area just around the pool had been largely cleared away and moss grew in large patches interspersed with beds of wild grass and various flowers. It had then been cultivated by the old elf into something that put Mitchell in mind of a sort of Japanese hot spring.

The moss was thick and soft around the banks and he could see the small ward posts that Gilriel had erected to keep insects and animals away. The woman clearly had a knack for creating wards. Flowers were also growing in abundance all around the circumference and they filled the air with a variety of scents from citrus to lavender to pine. The thick, low trees that seemed to dominate this part of the forest were plentiful here and it was almost possible to believe Mitchell had stepped into some other world. Well, a second other world, now that he thought about it and grinned to himself. The heavy canopy and thick trunks blocked all sight of the clearing and cottage despite not being very far off, and the air was cool and heavy.

Once at the edge he began pulling his sweat-soaked clothes off and stripped down to his birthday suit before stepping into the cool water. He gritted his teeth against the abrupt temperature change on his skin and then groaned in relief as the chill water leached the heat from his tired and abused body. Three days of brutal sword practice had taken its toll, especially followed by a few hours of magic training that, while not as physically taxing as the blade work, still left him with pounding headaches afterwards. Luckily, Gilriel had a tea that was well-suited for this and about a half hour after they finished, he mostly felt better. Finding out about this pool after that first day of practice had been a godsend as well.

He eased himself back into the recess and let his toes play in the silty bottom. He could make out small fish that swam in the pool but they didn’t bother him and so he didn’t bother them. The scents and sounds of the grotto lulled him into a sort of stupor and he felt his psyche go as lax as his muscles. He let his mind wander and, as it often did these days, his thoughts circled back to Allora.

Growing closer with her these last two weeks since she’d awoken had been like a dream come true. When he reached for her hand, it was always there. When he leaned in for a kiss, her mouth was always waiting. And she had grown more confident in initiating kisses of her own. He knew that they were building towards sleeping together but he found he didn’t feel like rushing it. It would happen when it happened.

But, there was the secrets she still kept. Whatever she was hiding from him was a concern. He could see the grief on her face sometimes when she thought no one was looking. Then there were her nightmares. He’d heard her often enough in her sleep that he could tell which ones were random and which ones were related to whatever burden she was carrying. And the name: Davrys. It was always a giveaway. The anguish in her eyes during that delirious confession on the steps of the Peaks still haunted him. He wasn’t sure what he should do about that just yet but he knew he couldn’t keep putting it off.

“May I join you?”

Mitchell jerked up, startled, and saw Allora standing at the opposite rim of the pool. He’d been so lost in his own thoughts and with the sounds of the forest around him that he hadn’t heard her approach. She looked down at him with a playful smile and Mitchell became very aware that he was nude. Not that it was that much of an issue as there were little secrets left between the three of them anymore. They’d been in close quarters nonstop for months now and they’d seen all of each other.

She stood there, barefoot and in the simple dress she had borrowed from Gilriel, and waited expectantly.

“Sure, there’s room,” he told her, sitting up.

She dipped her head and, in one fluid motion, pulled her dress up over her head. Her chest came into full view and Mitchell nearly forgot how to breathe at the sight of it. He felt himself grow hot and hard beneath the water at the display before him. Her breasts were full, round, and still taught and firm, despite being what must be a D-cup back home. But there was hardly any sag to them. Her nipples were a warm pink the same shade as her lips and they were already erect. He followed the valley between her tits down to her toned stomach, her six-pack clearly visible, to where it disappeared into the simple linen panties she wore.

Tossing the dress aside, she saw where his eyes were focused and she grinned.

“What are you looking at, my lord?”

He gave her his own little wicked smile.

“I’m looking at you, m’lady.”

She hooked her fingers into the panties and, with a little shimmy, slid them down as well, bringing her sex into view. Mitchell had seen it before, though mostly in passing. Brazilian waxing apparently wasn’t a thing here—not that there would have been a way to do it on the road—but he found he didn’t care at all. The tuft of black hair between her thighs only aroused him more. And she noticed. Her cheeks flared red at seeing him beneath the clear water, but she didn’t hesitate.

Allora stepped into the water and shivered just as he had and sank down onto the seat that had been built into the pool on that side. It was composed of polished river stones that had been carefully shaped to accept humanoid proportions and he found it to be quite comfortable.

She settled down until her breasts sank beneath the water and Mitchell made a pouty face at her, which she saw but chose to merely scrunch her nose up at him as her feet found his near the middle of the pool. Then, like teenagers sitting across from each other at the lab table in chemistry class, they played footsie as she soaked. She laid her head back, resting it on the soft moss and her arms floated up to the surface. Mitchell opted not to speak, but to let the silence stretch as she relaxed just as he had. Their feet never stopped their idle touches though. He mimicked her pose and allowed his head to lay back as well.

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After a few minutes he heard her sit up as her feet pulled away. He opened his eyes and saw that she was reaching for the little basket that sat at the base of the waterfall and which Mitchell knew to contain some soaps and, of all things, a loofah. Although here it was called a natorki. It turns out they had a similar plant in Awenor that could be converted into a spongey material that was good for scrubbing.

Natorki and soap in hand, she stood and Mitchell was treated to the glorious sight of all the water cascading down her body as if she were a sea goddess emerging from the depths. The little bit of sunlight that filtered through the canopy played across her body and glistened in a way that made Mitchell want to run his tongue over every inch of her skin. His cock, almost soft after several minutes of no stimuli, sprang immediately to life once more.

She began to lather up and saw him watching. While she didn’t actually turn to face him, he could see her shift a little bit so that he might get a better side view. The soap began to bubble and foam over her smooth skin and Mitchell’s nose was filled with the floral scent of the soap that Gilriel preferred. It was like rose, but not so cloying. And there was a hint of some spice that Mitchell thought might be nutmeg or allspice.

He watched as she passed the natorki over her shoulders and her arms, then over her breasts. Then she did turn to face him full on as she sat her naked rump on the mossy bank and began to lather up first one leg, then another. Mitchell watched like a man hypnotized as she put on a show for him. Her movements were slow and languid and as her soapy hands traveled up between her thighs he heard her gasp slightly at the contact. Then she looked at him with an undeniable invitation.

“I could use some help with my back and my hair, if you do not mind.”

“As my lady wishes,” Mitchell said and stood to cross the short distance. He watched as her eyes trailed down his now-chiseled chest and abs. Mitchell knew he looked like he belonged on the cover of a fitness magazine at this point. Weeks of hard training, rugged overland travel, and the high protein, low-fat diet had him ripped. He’d never been all that vain but even he couldn’t believe how good he looked.

Her eyes lingered on his hardness and he saw her bite her lower lip as she squeezed her thighs together. As he stood before her fully exposed, she brought her hands to his chest and ran her fingers over the lines of his muscles. His skin prickled with goose flesh and she noticed and giggled at the little dimples that broke out of his chest and arms.

“All that training has done good things,” he said as she drew him close and her arms went around to his back.

“Yes, it has,” she said distractedly. She parted her legs and started to pull him closer but he stopped her.

“I thought I was here to help you with your hair and your back.”

Allora glanced up at him, pulling her eyes away from his chest, and she saw him smiling at her.

“Yes. I did ask for that.”

Mitchell reached behind her for the little basket and brought the soap out and plucked the natorki from her hands. Then she stood and turned away from him. He grabbed her hair and pulled it over her shoulder and then began to scrub in slow circles, first over her shoulders, then down to her spine, and then to her lower back and over the curve of her ass.

“It tickles!” she squeaked.

“Sorry,” he chuckled.

As his hands started their way back up she leaned back into him and he wrapped his arms around her. Allora’s breath caught in her throat as his hands made their way up the curve of her breasts and found them just as firm and supple as he’d imagined. Her nipples were hard and rode over the ridges of his palms in a way he found indescribably enticing.

“That is not my back…” she said breathily as she pushed her chest forward while simultaneously pushing her ass into his cock which made him groan into her ear.

“No, it’s not. But you missed a spot. You had some tree sap right,” Mitchell swirled fingers around her areolas making her gasp. “There. Just wanted to make sure you were all clean.”

“Oh, did I?” she said with a throaty chuckle. “Am I all clean now?”

Mitchell did another pass over her breasts and squeezed firmly causing her to shudder in his arms.

“I think so. I’ll do your hair now.”

“Mmmhmm.”

Mitchell pulled her hair back over her shoulder and brought up a few handfuls of fresh water to rewet her long raven locks. Then he began to work the soap in and built up a thick lather. He began to massage her scalp which drew a long groan as his fingers found those pressure points at the base of her skull and then around the crown.

“Oh, gods…” she said as he began to work at her temples. “Where did you learn to do this?”

“I had a book on massage in college. I studied. It seems the technique works on elves also.”

His fingers began to work down the arch of her neck and into the tight muscles of her shoulders. She actually started to go weak in the knees.

“You have known how to do this the whole time?”

“Sure. Just didn’t have the chance until now.”

“Your new job is to do this to me everyday,” she said with another throaty groan as he worked at the muscles around her shoulder blades.”

Mitchell leaned forward and kissed the tip of her ear and said, “As my lady commands.”

He turned her around slowly and her body was all limp and relaxed. Her eyes were closed and she had a soft smile on her lips as she moved. As his arms encircled her once more and hers rose to encircle him as well, he eyes opened and they looked at each other.

All of a sudden, she let out a little scream and jerked away from him so hard she lost her footing and fell with a splash back into the water.

“Allora!”

He reached for her and she jerked away.

“No!” She shouted and pushed his hands away and pulled herself up onto the mossy embankment where she pulled her body into a ball. There she sat, shivering and hugging her knees to herself, soap still foamy in her hair, and eyes squeezed tight. Mitchell could only stare at her in shock.

“Nononono,” she was whispering to herself.

Mitchell walked to the edge of the pool then sat down on the edge next to her. He reached for one of her hands and she resisted at first, but then her fingers came lose from around her leg and she allowed him to hold it.

“What happened?”

Slowly, her eyes opened and she looked at him once more. She flinched, as if she was afraid of what she might see, but whatever she feared, it wasn’t there and he saw her shoulders relax slightly.

“For a moment, when I opened my eyes, I saw…”

Her body suddenly convulsed as she sobbed and her hand squeezed his.

“I saw someone else. I do not know why but for an instant you wore his face.”

Mitchell exhaled hard through his nose. Although he was seriously concerned about her, he was also about at his limit. He needed to walk this line carefully. Obviously, Allora was dealing with something traumatic and it was chewing her up inside, but he knew they couldn’t continue like that.

“I think it’s time to tell me the truth.”

Her body shuddered harder for a moment.

“No more lies and half truths, Allora.”

She didn’t say anything but he saw her eyes well with fresh tears. He gripped her hand harder, trying to reassure her that he was there for her.

“You need to tell me about Davrys.”

Allora jerked as if he’d slapped her and a look of abject horror spread over her face.

“How do you know his name?”

“I know it. That is enough for now. The truth, Allora.”

Then, Mitchell did something he had never done with her before.

“That is an order.”