Chapter 13
She knew what she was doing was wrong, but Lyric no longer cared. Like some wild beast kept caged and under sedation for years, her dormant appetites had been wakened by Dae’s teasing, tempting antics…and now that they were fully roused, the strength of those desires was irresistible. Lyric struggled to keep her expression calm and neutral as she strode down the hallway toward Dae’s room, though she felt confident no-one would be around to witness her transgression.
Word had come from the guards yesterday that a peace between Lord Everdeen and the Scion was near to being officially ratified. The news had been met with jubilation by Dae, and disappointment from the others. Nevertheless, most of the inhabitants of the reformatory were currently occupied in the dining hall, celebrating Dae’s imminent return to her wife by throwing her a farewell party.
Lyric had mixed feelings about the news; on the one hand, she felt a certain sense of vindictive satisfaction that her uncle’s plans would fall to nothing with the signing of the treaty, and that she herself had played a part. However, it also meant Dae would be leaving…and the empty ache that filled her heart when she contemplated her future tainted her mood and kept her from sleep.
Dae had come closer to claiming Lyric as her newest conquest that morning in the monastery than she realized. Had she but pressed her seduction a fraction longer, had she been just a little more assertive, Lyric knew she would have succumbed. What made the situation even more frustrating was the fact that she sensed Dae knew exactly what she was doing, was aware of how great her need had become…and yet she’d withdrawn rather than press her advantage home.
Lyric could guess what the younger woman was doing; she wanted her to surrender, to admit her desires openly, before she herself surrendered to Lyric’s command. It was a subtle expression of power that Lyric—so much more accustomed to playing a dominant role in her sexual encounters—found both terrifying and exhilarating. All too aware of the sweet release that would reward her surrender, she had been moments away from giving Dae everything she wanted, confessing her darkest desires, before she turned away. Lyric had barely slept since that day, and the few hours of sleep she did manage to find were so filled with lurid, erotic dreams that they only made her arousal more intense.
Lyric shook her head to clear away the distracting thoughts. She’d reached the door to Dae’s room, and after glancing up and down the hallway to ensure she was alone, she tested the door handle to see if it was locked. A rush of excitement swept through her when the handle turned and she pressed the door open, checking to confirm the room was empty before slipping inside. She figured she had plenty of time, but still…it wouldn’t be wise to linger.
“You’re not really doing anything wrong,” she whispered to herself as she made her way over to the desk whose surface was littered with parchment. “It’s just a little memento…something to remember her by, that’s all. I think I deserve at least that much, right? Besides, she won’t even notice any are missing.”
Just as she’d hoped, Dae’s drawings were still scattered about on the desk, and Lyric reached out with slightly trembling hands to sort through them. Now that she had the privacy to look without judgment, she stared hungrily at each image as she looked through the various drawings; some were only very basic, little more than figure studies depicting various sexual positions and poses. But others were more complete and detailed, and it was these that interested Lyric most.
There was no point in lying to herself anymore; Lyric knew she’d only ever managed to quiet her desires and hide them behind the walls of her heart…that she had never really been ‘cured.’ When Dae was gone, any chance of satisfying her desires would be gone with her, and Lyric felt a sense of empty dread fill her at the thought of what her life would become once she accepted her marriage to Lord Haverbrook’s son.
A few of the drawings in particular made her pause to appreciate more fully. Dae had drawn a number of young women whose exotic beauty suggested they could only be the pleasure-servants she’d met in El’Kasari, and Lyric studied each of these with particular interest. She recognized Inaya's face among them, but another caught her eye and made her gasp in excitement; the drawing showed a stunningly beautiful girl whose hands had been bound to a set of pillars, her naked body being ravished by another woman wearing a curious device about her waist. Lyric couldn’t be certain, but from the position of their bodies it appeared as though the one girl was taking the other in the manner of a man, using this accoutrement in substitution of the male member. Lyric had never in her wildest imaginings conjured such a scene, and again she marveled at the creativity the Jaharri exhibited in their pursuit of pleasure. Dae had paid particular attention to the details of this drawing, capturing the young woman's muscles as they flexed in passion against her shorter lover…the fierce look of surrender and lust on her lovely features.
Lyric was utterly captivated by the image of such wanton submission. She felt the slick heat between her thighs grow more intense, more demanding, and stared at the drawing a long moment before finally setting it aside and seeking more like it. She had only flipped through a few more sketches before another image arrested her…this one even more intriguing than the last.
It was a drawing of herself and Kaylee, naked and entwined in a passionate coupling. Although she knew Dae had never seen her undressed before, her imagination had filled in the gaps with unnerving accuracy. In the drawing, Lyric was straddling Kaylee’s body, pressing her into the sheets of a bed, one thigh positioned between her legs as she leaned down to claim the younger girl’s throat in an ardent kiss. It was clear Dae had spent considerable time on the sketch; her effort had captured the lines of their bodies in such a way as to accentuate and enhance the sensuality of their union. Lyric could only stare, lost in a fantasy of playing out the image in reality, recalling Kaylee’s offer of pleasure and considering what might have happened had she accepted it.
She was so lost in her erotic daydream she didn’t hear the footsteps approaching outside, nor the slight click as the door handle turned and someone entered the room behind her. Only when she heard the girl’s voice did she freeze, startled and guilty.
“Lyric? What are you doing here?”
Lyric spun around, a flood of guilt washing through her at the knowledge she was caught. She expected to see Dae standing there, grinning ear-to-ear at having caught her red-handed…but instead found curious, wary hazel eyes looking back at her. Kaylee stood there watching her, and Lyric saw her gaze shift to the drawings she’d been searching through, then back up to her expression…and a slight smile lifted the edges of her lips.
Lyric’s mouth opened and closed a few times, struggling to form words but only managing to stammer incoherently. “I-I wasn’t…I just thought…It’s not…”
“Were you looking at Dae’s drawings?”
“No!” Lyric dropped the incriminating parchment and stepped away from the desk, though she knew it was pointless. “I was just—”
“It’s okay.” Kaylee’s smile grew wider and warmer, and she took a slow, cautious step closer, almost as though she were approaching a skittish colt. “Did you want to take some? Dae’s done so many, I doubt she’d miss them. I was planning to ask her if I could keep the ones she didn’t want, but if there are any you like you can have them. I won’t tell her.”
Lyric just stared at her, still trying to convince her mind to part with fantasy and finding it extremely difficult with Kaylee standing right in front of her…beautiful, sweet, and apparently willing to overlook her riffling through Dae’s erotic artwork. She just couldn’t move, her limbs frozen as Kaylee closed the distance between them and looked at the drawings she’d set apart from the others.
“They’re beautiful…don’t you think? She’s a talented artist.” Kaylee's eyes were sparkling with daring, and she flashed Lyric a shy smile when she recognized the picture that had captured her attention. “I was actually hoping to keep that one. It’s my favorite.”
“Wh—” Lyric finally managed to get her mouth to cooperate again. “Why would she draw such a thing?”
Kaylee lowered her eyelashes, a light blush rising in her cheeks. “Because she knew I’d like it. I think she wanted to show me what it could be like. The two of us…together.”
That statement was so intriguing it finally snapped Lyric out of her reverie. Her eyes narrowed as she considered Kaylee’s expression carefully. “Why?”
Kaylee shrugged and turned away. “Dae knows how I feel about you,” she whispered, so softly Lyric almost missed her words. Kaylee’s fingers traced lightly over the lines of the picture, almost like a caress. “She knows I…I like you. She knows I want you.”
“You…want me?”
Timorous hazel eyes glanced up, seemed to search her face to gauge her reaction, before Kaylee gave a single nod and looked away again. “It’s silly, I know. I used to tell myself I only admired you for how well you'd done overcoming your past mistakes…that I wanted to follow your example. I couldn't let myself think of you as…as beautiful, or…sexy. Not after what happened the last time. But Dae taught me not to fear my desires…not to be ashamed to let them find a voice.” Kaylee glanced up again, still shy, but certain. “I won't lie about how I feel again, even if my feelings are a little foolish.”
Lyric felt the beast within her stir…felt her nerve-endings tingle with excitement at this sweet confession. Kaylee may have lacked the same seductive allure that Dae wielded with such confidence, but her innocence made her even more tempting. That soft, vulnerable tone in her voice, the uncertain yet hungry light in her eyes, were far more intoxicating to Lyric than the more confusing and subtle dynamic that existed between her and Dae. Hearing Kaylee's confession, Lyric finally thought she had the answer to the question that had plagued her for weeks. “It was you. You wrote that note I found slipped under my door…didn’t you?”
Kaylee’s blush instantly deepened, but she shook her head. “No. Th-that was Dae…but she only did it because I let her. She was just trying to…you know…see how you'd react. To see if the thought of another woman feeling desire for you still held any appeal.”
Lyric felt some of the anxiety drain from her body, felt her limbs relax…but the coiling tension that lay low in her belly seemed to grow stronger. She turned away from the pretty brunette, feeling her self-control slipping. “I suppose she got her answer…right?”
“She wasn’t trying to make things difficult for you,” Kaylee defended. “Dae just wanted you to see that it’s okay to feel the things you feel…just like she showed me. I used to feel so ashamed of what I’d done…but now I understand that I have nothing to be ashamed of.” Hazel eyes glanced at the closed door, then back to Lyric. “The others are likely to be celebrating a while; we have some time if you want to wait in here. Maybe we could…you know…talk?” Another hopeful little smile. “I’m a much less judgmental sounding-board than Father Douglas.”
For a moment Lyric considered the offer, part of her wishing for nothing more than to retreat back to her own room, away from the tempting brunette and her kindness…but Lyric hadn’t the will to steal that smile from Kaylee’s lips, so instead she gave a tiny nod.
Kaylee grinned brilliantly and settled herself cross-legged at the foot of Dae’s bed, cupping her hands together in her lap and watching Lyric as she joined her. Lyric felt her pulse quicken just sitting on the bed so close to the girl. “So…did Dae express your desires accurately in her note?” she asked, making certain her tone invited an affirmative response. “Do you truly wish to do those things to me?”
“Is it so surprising? I’d guess most of the girls in this place have had naughty thoughts about you at one time or another. Your beauty’s a little too unique for you not to stand out in the crowd.”
Very much aware of how people—typically men—responded to her appearance, Lyric didn’t bother offering a humble but false rejection. “Others in the kingdom aren’t likely to support your views,” she said in a slightly warning tone. “Regardless of your courage or resolve, I wouldn’t make a habit of flaunting your desires.”
“I know, and I realize I may never be able to go back home…that I can’t face my father again, knowing these feelings are too much a part of me now to ever cast them aside. But I’m okay with that. Maybe one day, things will change and my family will be able to accept me the way I am…but I don’t want to ever have to lock my emotions away just because someone else isn't comfortable with them.”
“So, what will you do when you leave here?”
Kaylee shrugged. “I’m not really sure. Dae’s told me so much about her life in the desert, and I’ve always wanted to see more of the world beyond the borders of my father’s farm. Maybe I’ll travel around…see what’s out there. Perhaps I could even visit Dae in El’Kasari; she makes it sound so exotic and liberated, all the traders and travelers coming from all over the world, mingling together peacefully and sharing their stories. I think it could be nice.”
“Mmm…perhaps. Sometimes I wish I had that kind of freedom. Things aren’t quite so simple for me,” Lyric said quietly. “I am high-born; there are certain expectations…certain sacrifices…that come with noble birth.”
“Then…you’re still going to marry the man your family chose for you?”
“No.” A pause. “Well…maybe. I don’t…really know. It’s complicated.”
“I know it’s not my place to say anything, but the way I see it, whatever choice you make someone will be hurt by your decision. You can either lie to your family, marry this man…and be miserable in your life, or you can accept the truth of who you are, and be free. They may be your family, Lyric, but your life is still your own…and it’s the only life you get. Why spend it purchasing their happiness?”
There came a long silence that Kaylee did not interrupt before Lyric spoke again. “I’m not cured.” She paused, then laughed quietly. “That’s the first time I’ve admitted that out loud. I really believed if I locked those desires away deep down in my heart and never let myself think of them again, eventually they’d just fade away…and I could be normal. I never wanted to feel that shame I felt when my family discovered my secret. But ever since Dae arrived, she stirred those appetites…made me want to indulge in pleasures I thought could no longer tempt me. How can I marry a man—especially some unwashed thug like the man my uncle has chosen for me—when I can't even sleep a single night in peace without being tormented by dreams of forbidden carnal delights?”
“I wasn't going to say anything, but you do look like you could use a nap.”
Lyric gave a frustrated half-laugh, half-snort and looked away wearily, running her fingers through her unkempt hair. “Sleep won't satisfy this ache,” she commented quietly, almost to herself.
Hesitant and cautious, Kaylee reached out and placed her hand on Lyric’s leg just above her knee. Her hazel eyes, so shy and hopeful, met Lyric’s clear blue gaze. “If you wanted to…” she paused, her voice trembling. “I mean…maybe, if you wanted to, I could…you know? Help.”
Lyric raised an eyebrow, her lips drawing into a bemused smirk. “Help?”
Kaylee shrugged. “If you'd like.”
Lyric’s skin was tingling where Kaylee’s hand rested against her thigh, and the heat between her thighs grew hotter. It would be so easy…such a simple surrender and she could satisfy this raw and ravenous tension…
“I’m not sure that would be a good idea.”
Kaylee’s expression went from hopeful to disappointed in a heartbeat. “Oh…okay. I mean, I just thought I’d offer, since you seem like you could use some release. I didn’t mean to offend you—” She tried to remove her hand, but Lyric caught it and pressed it back to her skin, shushing her apology.
“I didn’t mean it like it sounded, Kaylee,” she said, even more excited by her reaction. “I’m just…not sure you’d enjoy what I would want from you.”
“Oh.” For a long moment Kaylee looked confused by her statement, but after a second her face lit up with comprehension. “Oh!” She blushed charmingly, glancing up at Lyric with shy eyes. “Well, I might surprise you. I mean, Dae’s taught me a lot of things since we became intimate, and I’ve liked everything she’s shown me so far.”
“And has she told you what I like?” Lyric leaned closer. “Has she told you what excites me the most?”
Kaylee’s smile and the way her eyes darted away was answer enough, but she confirmed it with a slight nod. “She said…you like to be in charge,” she whispered, unable to look Lyric in the eye.
“Did she happen to mention that I also enjoy punishing wicked girls for their bad behavior?” Lyric purred, feeling that surge of power rush through her blood for the first time in many years. “I wouldn't be as gentle with you as I imagine Dae has been.”
Kaylee finally managed to find the courage to meet her gaze again, and though her cheeks were scarlet, Lyric could see her pupils were dilated and her lips parted in obvious arousal. “I wouldn’t mind,” she whispered. “If that’s what you wanted, then…I’d be willing to try.”
“Are you certain? I haven’t enjoyed the company of another woman in more than two years…and I can be quite demanding.”
Kaylee sucked on her lower lips and nodded. “That’s okay. I’ve thought about you so many times, Lyric…but I never thought you’d ever—” Her words trailed off as Lyric reached out with her left hand and ran two fingers gently over the line of her cheek, down her jaw and under her chin.
The girl’s skin was soft and warm, her eyes filled with an intoxicating combination of trepidation, excitement, and awe…all the ingredients guaranteed to make Lyric tremble with anticipation. She drew closer, smiling when she heard Kaylee’s breath catch in her throat. “And have you been a naughty girl, Kaylee?” she whispered, lips only a few inches from the brunette’s flesh. “Have you been playing wicked games with Dae and your friends?”
Kaylee’s reaction was everything Lyric hoped for; her eyes were dark now with hunger, and each breath came shallower than the last. A quiet whimper escaped her throat…but she recognized the game and gave Lyric a slightly coquettish smile and a nod. “Are you going to punish me?”
“I fear it may be warranted,” Lyric teased. “I saw some of what you did in that storeroom, when you were with Dae and her Jaharri slave-girl.”
Kaylee tensed slightly. “Y-you saw that?”
“My curiosity got the better of me, I’m afraid, and I couldn’t resist peeking through the crack in the door.” Kaylee looked stunned and slightly embarrassed by her confession, and while she was nicely distracted, Lyric dipped down and claimed her lips with a light kiss. She felt the girl respond instinctively, leaning into her, but didn’t linger to press the kiss deeper. Looking into Kaylee’s eyes as she withdrew, Lyric grinned fully for the first time, delighted by the dazed cast in her eyes. “I saw how you touched that girl—Inaya, right?—while she was pleasuring Dae. I heard how she cried out when you applied your tongue to the task of bringing her to the edge. Will you give me the same pleasure?”
A tremor rippled through Kaylee’s body, and Lyric reveled in the response. “I-if you’d like.”
“Oh, I’d like…very much. Just remember, if I do something you don’t like…if you need me to stop at any time…just say the word, ‘crimson’ and we can end our game.”
“’Crimson?’” Kaylee giggled, looking confused. “Why can’t I just ask you to stop?”
“Because before I’m done with you, little one, you’ll be begging me to stop…but I can promise you you’ll still want more. I’m going to make you plead for mercy…make you cry and curse and scream…but until I hear that word—that one, special word—I’ll torture you with ecstasy you can’t imagine.”
Kaylee swallowed hard, looking equal parts nervous and overwhelmed with excitement. She gave a meek little nod and whispered, “Okay.”
This was a rule Lyric had established early on with her handmaiden. Lyric enjoyed nothing more than pushing a woman’s senses to their limit, but she’d learned early on with Selestene that phrases like “no more, I beg you!” and “I can’t take any more!” could sometimes translate to “make me” and “don’t ever stop” in the heat of the moment. Lyric felt safer expressing her own passions when she knew for certain that, however far she pushed her lover, her actions were accepted and enjoyed. She reminded herself that Kaylee was not Selestene…that she wasn’t as accustomed to this particular style of passion. She didn’t want to do anything that might frighten the girl or cause her to retreat. No…Lyric had endured two years of complete abstinence from all forms of physical pleasure, and she wasn’t about to let the strength of her lust jeopardize this chance to taste satisfaction for the first time in so long.
“Open your mouth,” she said, her voice sounding deeper than usual with the strength of her need, more demanding and authoritative. She hadn’t heard that tone in her voice in a long while. “Show me that tongue you’ll use to bring me pleasure.” Kaylee blushed, but willingly obeyed her command, parting her lips and extending her tongue. Lyric descended, claiming the younger girl’s lips and sucking hard at the wet, slippery muscle. Kaylee’s whole body seemed to dissolve into the kiss, melting weakly against her, and Lyric brought both her hands up to hold her head still as she explored the younger girl’s mouth with her own tongue.
When she broke the kiss it was only to tilt Kaylee’s head back so her lips could claim more of her skin, planting a line of sucking kisses like a necklace around and down her throat, descending until clothing barred her way. She darted her tongue down into the deep valley of Kaylee’s cleavage for a moment, then pulled away and eyed the rough cotton shirt with disapproval.
“You’re wearing far too many clothes,” she said, pushing Kaylee to the edge of the bed with as much gentleness as she could manage. “I want to see you…every last little bit of you. Strip for me, pet.”
Kaylee quickly got her feet under her and slipped off the bed, standing before Lyric and watching her with wide eyes. She reached down and quickly pulled her shirt over her head—too quickly for Lyric’s tastes.
“Slowly, girl…I want to enjoy this.”
Kaylee swallowed hard, but Lyric could tell she found her tone of voice exciting. While Kaylee did as she had ordered, shyly stripping off her shirt and standing there topless before her, Lyric lay on her side and watched with heated eyes as her hands began unbuckling her belt. When the girl finally dropped her skirt, letting the cloth pool at her feel, Lyric let her gaze roam at will over her curves, enjoying the light blush spreading over Kaylee’s face and up her entire chest. Kaylee’s nipples were already stiff, and Lyric guessed her blush was more one of arousal than embarrassment. Still, she could see those expressive hazel eyes watching her expression anxiously, obviously afraid she wouldn't find her pleasing; when her gaze drifted down to study Kaylee’s more personal treasures, Lyric made sure her appreciation was obvious. “No wonder Dae was so eager to seduce you,” she said quietly, running her left hand up along her own thigh and the curve of her hip. “How could she resist such a tempting beauty?”
“Thank you.” Kaylee lowered her eyes modestly, but Lyric saw her smile, pleased with the compliment.
Lyric sat up, the weight of her own clothing now unbearable against her skin. “While we’re playing this game, Kaylee, you shall address me as ‘mistress.’ Do you understand?”
“Yes…mistress.” Kaylee’s smile turned exceedingly wicked as she tasted the last word, and Lyric felt a jolt of arousal rock through her pelvis at the sight. She hadn’t seen that look of playful submission in another woman’s eyes for so long, she’d almost forgotten the effect such a sight had on her. Lyric sat up straighter and crooked a finger.
“Come closer.”
Kaylee obediently stepped forward until her legs made contact with the edge of the bed, and Lyric ran her eyes slowly down every inch of exposed skin. Her hands were just itching to follow in the path of her eyes…to touch and caress, feel the heat rising in the girl’s body until it consumed her…but she made no move to touch Kaylee just yet. When she returned her gaze to Kaylee’s face, she saw her hazel eyes hungrily flicker down to consider her still-clothed body, and grinned. “You wish to see more of me?”
“Yes, mistress.”
Lyric ran a hand behind her neck and drew her silvery hair over her right shoulder, at the same time turning to present her back to Kaylee…and more specifically, the laces holding her dress closed. “Undress me.”
There was a momentary pause before Lyric felt the girl move to comply, her fingers trembling slightly as they worked to undo the laces. Lyric felt the cool caress of open air against her skin as more of her back was exposed…but she also felt Kaylee’s eyes upon her…her fingers occasionally pausing to lightly caress the perfection of her body. Her voice, sweet and reverent, whispered behind her.
“Your skin is sooo soft.”
Lyric had always enjoyed the sensation of being disrobed by a lover’s hands, and as the laces were loosened she pulled on the front of her dress to part the cloth, giving Kaylee even more skin to explore. She allowed her a few minutes liberty to run her fingers over her in a light and lingering caress, then kneeled, slipping the dress from her shoulders and letting it fall from her body. When she turned, she saw those hazel eyes drop immediately to her small, firm breasts, and felt her nipples pebble and grow hard under her gaze. Kaylee’s expression was lost, stunned, and Lyric could barely contain her roaring need any longer. With one hand she stroked herself, drawing Kaylee’s gaze down her body to between her thighs, through the sparse silvery curls above her center and finally parting the glistening lips of her sex.
Lyric had been in a state of near-constant arousal for days now, refusing to give her body the release it so desperately craved, and the cool air against that wet, furious heat felt unbelievably good. She grinned wolfishly at the expression on Kaylee’s face, flicking her finger lightly over the swollen bud of her clitoris and delighting in the surge of pleasure that washed through her in response. “Am I as you pictured me in your fantasies?”
Kaylee seemed to struggle to find words, her eyes glassy and distant, but she nodded slowly. “Yes.”
“Yes, mistress.” Lyric corrected sternly…but her expression was full of playful hunger.
Kaylee still looked a little lost, but she apparently understood what Lyric wanted from her…what she needed to hear. “Forgive me, mistress.”
“It’s a shame I don’t have any of my old toys,” Lyric lamented, still teasing her sensitized body to even deeper arousal. She covered her breasts with her hands and pinched her nipples firmly, moaning at the delicious mix of pain and pleasure that shot through her. “Cuffs and clamps…whips and crops. I think you would have enjoyed feeling the sweet sting of their kisses upon your skin. I think I could have made you scream with such lovely abandon.” Kaylee’s eyes widened, watching Lyric’s fingers twist her own nipples lightly, her back arching. “Still…there are other ways to punish a naughty girl like you, little Kaylee.” Lyric bent down and picked up the cloth belt that Kaylee had been wearing, running the length of it through her fingers before giving it a sharp tug to test its resistance. “Mmm, yes. This'll do nicely. Turn around, my pet…let me see you from behind.”
Kaylee did as instructed, her breathing ragged with excitement, and Lyric studied the smooth muscles along her shoulders and back approvingly. Her handmaiden had been beautiful, with a body similar to her own, slender and athletic. Kaylee was softer yet stronger, her power more obvious. Lyric ran her fingers in wonder over the flexing muscles of the girl’s shoulder-blades, enjoying the newness of her body and the way she stopped breathing the moment she felt her touch. “Hands behind your back…wrists together,” she purred, and when Kaylee hastily obeyed, she looped the belt around her hands and pulled it tight, securing them just above her buttocks. Kaylee whimpered, but didn’t protest. Still, Lyric reminded herself of the girl’s inexperience, and let her test the bonds. “That’s not too tight, is it?”
Another quiet whimper and a breathless, “No, mistress,” confirmed that Kaylee was enjoying the experience.
“Perfect.” Lyric pressed her upper body against Kaylee’s back, brushing her stiff nipples against her soft skin and slipping a hand around her body to explore. She brushed the thick, brunette hair back from Kaylee’s shoulder and nuzzled her face into her neck, breathing in the scent of her and sighing in pleasure. “Gods, I can smell your excitement, pet! Are you wet for me already?”
Kaylee only whimpered again, words beyond her, but Lyric let her wandering hand quest between her thighs. Her fingers found the girl swollen and dripping with arousal, and she kissed and gently bit her neck. “Oh yesss…very wet indeed.”
Kaylee tugged at her restraints slightly, her hips surging forward. “Please, mistress!”
Lyric let her fingers stroke the girl a few seconds longer, then withdrew. “Not yet. Your pleasure comes only after you've earned it. Here…lie back.” She gently guided the younger girl so she was lying face up on the bed, still exploring her captive body with her eyes and hands. Kaylee gazed up at her, imploring and eager, and Lyric smiled and leaned down to taste her lips once more. Her position allowed Lyric to take full control of the kiss; she let their tongues slide together, consuming the younger girl’s mouth but pulling away every time Kaylee sought to press the initiative. Kaylee learned quickly, however, and soon surrendered herself completely to Lyric’s intimate exploration of her mouth.
When she finally broke the kiss, Lyric gazed deeply into her new lover’s soft, dark eyes. “Are you ready to pleasure me with that lovely tongue? To show me all those forbidden skills you've learned from Dae’s instruction?”
“Yes, mistress…very ready.”
“Excellent.” Lyric settled herself on the bed beside the supine girl, feeling a shiver of excitement course through her at the thought that this was Dae’s bed they were using…and it wouldn’t be long before the sheets were soaked with the flood of her release. Grinning, she positioned herself over Kaylee, carefully settling her knees on either side of the girl’s upturned face and looking down at her eager expression. Raising herself over the girl and scooting forward, she held her center just above Kaylee’s face, out of reach from her tongue and feeling her breath panting against her intimate flesh. Kneeling over her in this position gave Lyric a complete and unobstructed view of every inch of Kaylee’s body, and she reached out to lightly smack her inner thighs.
“Spread those legs, pet,” she purred. “I want to enjoy the sight of you while you’re licking me…every little bit of you.” Kaylee readily parted her thighs, displaying her most personal charms for Lyric's enjoyment. This was by far Lyric’s favorite position; she recalled spending hours like this with her handmaiden, and the memory only made her need intensify. Gods, how she wished she had her old crop in hand! Very slowly, she lowered her glistening sex to Kaylee’s waiting mouth. When she felt the girl’s tongue dart out to lap eagerly over her labia, Lyric hissed and pulled away. “Uh-uh, pet,” she scolded. “Not until I tell you.”
Kaylee whimpered and squirmed rapturously, her excitement doubtlessly increasing with the delay…and with that teasing taste she’d claimed. Lyric could tell the girl was desperate to feed on her arousal, but she refused to grant her permission for several long minutes, holding her center a mere inch above Kaylee's pretty face and savoring her obvious frustration. Only when she could stand the wait not a second longer did Lyric whisper, “Lick me.”
Kaylee’s tongue responded before the last syllable had left her lips, rising up to dart between the folds of her sex and gathering every drop of her abundant honey. The intensity of the assault took Lyric by surprise. “Ahh! Slowly, pet! Slowly and gently,” she instructed, overwhelmed by the pleasure that ripped through her at the direct attention. “Remember, I haven’t been tasted like this in more than two years…and after all of Dae’s teasing antics, I’ve been on the edge of release for days now. I want this to last a loooong while…and I'd think you'd want to spend as much time worshiping me as possible.”
She felt more than heard the happy little hum of Kaylee’s reply against her sensitive sex; her ministrations became instantly more languid and thorough…although a minute later, Lyric felt that devilish tongue flicker out to tease her stiff little clit quickly, then return to her labia almost before she’d registered the contact. This happened again, and then a third time, and Lyric grinned, knowing Kaylee was deliberately pushing her arousal higher. “Careful, naughty girl,” she scolded, running her fingernails over the other girl’s stomach and up to her breasts, enjoying the way her muscles contracted under her touch. “You don’t want me to take your treat away, do you?”
Kaylee whimpered and withdrew her mouth a moment to say, “No mistress…please! I’ll be good.”
Lyric’s fingers circled Kaylee’s perky nipples lightly, then suddenly gave them both a quick, sharp pinch. Kaylee squeaked, her whole body tensing at the light pain. Lyric grinned and repeated the action; this time she didn’t try to squirm away.
“Not that being naughty can't be fun, too,” Lyric purred, her fingers gentle again.
Kaylee’s devoted tongue returned to lapping at her slowly after this, and Lyric closed her eyes in rapture as she enjoyed the forbidden ecstasy she had thought never to feel again. As Kaylee sucked on her labia and ran her tongue over every secret fold of her sex, Lyric accepted a simple fact; she would never find any level of happiness married to a man. These pleasures were too great, too intrinsic a part of her, for them to ever be caged or contained again. In that moment, gazing down at a beautiful young woman whose entire being was focused on nothing more than bringing her pleasure, feeling that wickedly slick, powerful muscle tease and delight her senses, Lyric didn’t care a whit about her family’s plans for her future. There was only this sensation of power and ecstasy…Kaylee’s body surrendered and laid bare for her to enjoy…and the knowledge that this was what she wanted—what she needed—to be complete.
The young brunette was every bit as good as she’d promised, especially considering how recently she had begun developing these talents, and Lyric stared down the length of her body to the glistening petals of her sex…knowing she would be enjoying a feast of her own shortly. Kaylee’s tongue was driving her mad, relentless and inquisitive. She arched her back lightly and began rocking her hips slowly back and forth, dragging her center over Kaylee’s tongue and pressing her clit against the firm jut of her chin on every second stroke. Her eyes closed in rapture, the rising pulse of a powerful climax scalding her senses, and she knew it wouldn’t take much longer before she spiraled out of control.
Lyric was so focused on enjoying the dance of Kaylee’s tongue against her that she didn’t hear the door open, or the quiet footsteps entering the room. She only snapped back to awareness when a familiar voice, sultry and amused, broke her concentration.
“Well…this is unexpected.”
Her eyes flashed open and she tensed, turning to find Dae standing by the door, her emerald eyes sparkling as they drank in the spectacle of her and Kaylee. The tongue between her thighs paused a long moment, then, apparently dismissing the interruption as inconsequential, it continued lapping away at her honeyed sex. Though startled by Dae’s sudden appearance, Lyric was in no frame of mind to stop what she'd started…and from the expression on her face, it appeared Dae was anything but offended at finding the two of them in her bed. “I thought you were busy saying your farewells.”
“And it appears I chose the perfect moment to slip away.” Dae grinned, taking a step into the room and closing the door behind her. “Should I be offended that you reject my proposition just a few days ago, and now I find you stripped naked and enjoying my friend’s attentions with no sign of shame or guilt?”
Lyric snorted. “This is your fault; how am I supposed to react to all your teasing and endless invitations to warm your bed? I haven’t slept more than a few hours this whole week!”
“Well I think a few good, toe-curling climaxes should exhaust some of that pent-up frustration. You should have accepted your desires sooner.” Dae’s sparkling, verdant eyes ran over Kaylee’s naked body, studying the angle of her arms and her spread thighs. “You alright down there, Kaylee?”
Kaylee withdrew her mouth just long enough to moan, “Mmhmm. She tastes…mmm…sooo good!” Her voice sounded muffled and dreamy.
“You tied her hands?”
Lyric shrugged, her hips resuming their lazy movements. “She can still move her tongue freely…and for now that’s all that matters.”
“Since you’re using my bed, it seems only polite to offer me an invitation to join you,” Dae said, reaching for the hem of her blouse. She paused, however, looking at Lyric questioningly. “Or will you deny me the pleasure of your company yet again…mistress Lyric?”
Those ravishing emerald eyes were so filled with hunger and lust that Lyric immediately shook her head. “Oh no…not this time. You need disciplining even more than your pretty friend here.”
Dae quickly pulled her blouse up and over her head, shaking her long blonde hair back over her shoulders and standing there, bare breasted, letting Lyric enjoy the sight of her. Lyric smiled and patted the mattress beside her.
“Time to test the truth of your boastful flirting,” she said huskily.
Lyric’s sexual appetite, starved and subjugated for more than two years, was a ravenous beast too long denied satiation. As Dae kneeled beside her, her even white teeth revealed by her enormous grin, Lyric grabbed the back of her head and pulled her into a searing, deep kiss. She was surprised by how readily the girl surrendered complete control to her, and with Kaylee’s tongue continuing its assault on her sex, Lyric moaned into Dae’s mouth hungrily.
Two tongues were better than one, Lyric told herself…and her need was great indeed.
* * *
Inside the audience hall of the Everdeen estate, Zafirah waited in a shadowy alcove off to the side, Falak and several of her best fighters flanking her. Great shutters made from slates of lacquered oak had been drawn over the high windows, allowing only a single broad shaft of sunlight to filter into the room. Richard and his wife were standing directly under this ray of light, but in the deeper shadows around the perimeter he’d positioned several of her warriors; their faces were granite masks, stern and resolute, and every hand rested on the hilt of a sword. Zafirah waited, arms folded across her chest, until finally the doors to the hall swung open to admit a small retinue of soldiers led by a large man dressed in similar fashion to Lord Everdeen.
She did not entirely approve of Richard’s plan. Political intrigue had always irritated her; so much devious manipulation and maneuvering, and false words disguised as truth. Zafirah was reminded of the council of elders in El’Kasari…old men who represented the interests of each tribe under her rule, all of whom cared for nothing more than seeing their own status improve, rather than what would benefit the Jaharri nation as a whole. She would have preferred to settle this matter with a swift and final act of violence…but this was not the desert, and she would abide by Richard’s decision.
Zafirah’s eyes narrowed to slits as she studied the man approaching Lord Everdeen. It seemed to her that half the man’s face was taken up by a sweeping moustache of such enormity it looked—at least to her eyes—quite comical. Even so, she could read the smug smile that bent his lips, and when his eyes fell on Richard and his wife, they were bright with gluttonous victory.
“Lord Everdeen,” the man greeted when he drew near, holding his arms out in welcome. “I apologize for my late response to your message, but other matters demanded my attention. Truly, I have been grieved to hear the tales of your trouble with the Jaharri savages…but I'm honored you would call upon me for aid in ridding your lands of their filth. I’m certain we can arrange terms for an alliance between our Houses, and see them bother you no more.”
Richard gave Lord Blackwood a cold smile. “You're most generous to offer aid to a rival, Lord Blackwood…however, the situation has changed since I wrote you. I’m sorry that you traveled all this way, but fear your assistance will not be needed. I have already secured another alliance, one which promises more agreeable benefits to my estate.” He gestured to the shadowy alcove where Zafirah waited.
Blackwood turned as Zafirah stepped forward into the light, and she felt a vicious sense of satisfaction when the smug expression froze on his face. He stared at her, then turned back to Richard.
“What is the meaning of this?” His voice had lost its superior tone, sounding cautiously defensive. “I had not expected to find you entertaining your enemy so warmly.”
“The Scion and I are enemies no more, Lord Blackwood. In fact, I have just now finalized the formal pact between us; it merely awaits our signing.”
Blackwood appeared caught entirely off-guard, and his mouth opened and closed several times in silence before he recovered enough to find words. “That’s…joyous news to hear, Lord Everdeen…though surprising. You know as well as I the capricious nature of the Jaharri; they can turn on even their allies without provocation or cause. It would sadden me to see your generosity toward them repaid with betrayal.”
Zafirah rested her hand meaningfully on the jeweled pommel of her sword and glared at the pompous man, but Richard held up a hand to calm her. “I’m certain it would…but the terms of our alliance are such that a betrayal seems unlikely.”
“And may I ask what has happened to change your attitude so quickly?”
“The Scion and I found common ground,” Richard said. “There have been two separate and unlikely attacks made in the last weeks, against both myself and the Scion…and it seems both were orchestrated by the same individual to achieve the same goal. A mutual enemy who, it appears, has been trying to incite our two forces to conflict.”
Blackwood had recovered his composure, and his expression became carefully neutral. “I see. And have you identified this enemy?”
“Well, that’s the strangest thing. According to certain well-placed sources, the mastermind of these attacks was you yourself, Lord Blackwood.”
“Me?” Blackwood’s expression was the perfect blend of offended and confused, but Zafirah saw the tiny flicker of fear in his eyes. “Surely you’re not so foolish as to think I would stoop to such tactics? I fear you have been misled, Lord Everdeen. This is slander! I demand to know the name of your informant!”
“These words were overheard from the lips of your own son, your lordship,” Richard said complacently…and Blackwood’s expression faltered. “Apparently Jonathon was boasting of your plan to his cousin when he last visited her at the reformatory.”
At this, Blackwood’s face reddened, and it looked to Zafirah as though the man was in danger of chewing the moustache off his own face. His eyes darted nervously around the audience hall, noticing for the first time the silent guards standing at stern attention in the shadows. “My son?”
“Indeed.”
“I’ve never heard anything so ridiculous in all my life! Surely you don’t believe whoever it was who told you of this outlandish plot?”
Richard regarded his rival mildly. “I do.” He paused, his stance growing more relaxed. “And yet, I must concede to some confusion as to how a man of your intelligence ever came up with such a clumsy plan. If there was any proof, any hard evidence, linking you to an attempted assassination of a fellow lord of the King, the consequences for you would be too terrible to think about. Gerald would not be merciful to anyone—even the patron of a noble House—who jeopardized his relationship with the Jaharri. My new ally—” He gave a slight bow to Zafirah. “—has in fact argued that I not suffer restraint over a lack of such proof. She would rather see this unpleasantness ended with your head upon the floor.”
Blackwood looked at Zafirah a touch nervously, and her lips split in an accommodatingly feral grin. He swallowed hard and eyed Richard warily.
Richard smiled lightly and continued. “But as you say, the Jaharri do not understand the subtleties of civilized government. I won’t embarrass myself by leveling a formal accusation against you…but do not think me a fool, Blackwood. I know how much you covert greater power; removing me as a rival would go a long way toward elevating your position in the kingdom.”
Lord Blackwood scowled darkly, dropping his civil facade now and regarding Richard with open malice. “If you didn't bring me here to seek my aid, or to accuse me of outlandish crimes without justification, then why am I here?”
Zafirah took a step closer to the man, eyes glinting like steel in the dim light. “You are here to witness the official ratification of the treaty negotiated between El’Kasari and the House of Everdeen.” Her tone was cold and deadly calm. “When my Consort is returned to me, my people and I shall depart these lands…but we will not hesitate to return if our new ally is threatened again.” She glared at the man until he broke eye-contact, unable to meet the intensity in her gaze. “Lord Everdeen has shown you a mercy I myself would not. An attempt on my life, however carelessly it was carried out, is a crime of utmost gravity not typically met with mercy. If ever your greed overwhelms your common sense again, my people shall return to cure you of your ambition more permanently.”
Blackwood glared up at her. “I will not be threatened by some…some Jaharri whore!”
Zafirah’s sword was half-way out of its scabbard before Richard intervened, calmly stepping between her and the recoiling Lord Blackwood. “It would not be wise to offer further insult to my guest,” he warned, and though his tone was mild, his expression suggested he would have enjoyed nothing more than seeing Zafirah carry out her threat. “At least not if you hope to leave this hall alive. Scion…shall we complete our business here so Lord Blackwood can be on his way?”
Zafirah’s blazing eyes remained fixed with murderous intent on Blackwood, but after a long pause she nodded and slid her scimitar back into its sheath. Before she turned away, she whispered coldly, “Be grateful we are not in the desert, little man; I would serve you up as a fine feast for the jackals and crows.”
A large scroll of parchment had been laid out on the table in the center of the hall…a list of the details pertaining to the alliance that had been so painstakingly negotiated between Hazim and Edmund. While Blackwood looked on in impotent fury, Richard took up a quill and, with a flourish, signed his name at the bottom before handing it to Zafirah.
Although she could neither read nor write, Zafirah had learned to sign her name in the Common tongue as a function of her position as Scion. Hazim had gone over every aspect of the treaty with her in the last three days, the details of which were mostly trivial, but included concessions for Lord Everdeen to trade freely across the Jaharri desert with the western empire, and, more importantly for Zafirah, guaranteed the prices she would agree to pay for any goods he sold in El’Kasari. It was a good deal for both parties, and the Scion knew the merchants in her city would be pleased when they learned of it…particularly the shipwrights and captains who sailed from the port of El’Kasari. Much of the timber they relied on to keep their navy in good repair had to be imported from the lands across the northern sea. Zafirah already had plans in mind to increase the strength of her navy now that a cheaper and easier source had been secured. Taking the quill from Richard, she added her own name beneath his signature.
“Excellent.” Richard held out his hand and Zafirah clasped it firmly. “We are officially united. You may send one of your, um…servants, to retrieve your Consort. Dae has waited long enough to be reunited with you, Scion.”
* * *
Dae willingly allowed Lyric to control their passionate kiss, twirling her tongue around and over the older girl’s, swallowing her breathless whimpers and pants. She hadn’t expected to find this scene unfolding in her room when she slipped away from the farewell celebrations being held in her honor, but was overjoyed to have this chance to finally play with Lyric. She began exploring the other woman’s slender body, starting at her hips and rising up over her gentle curves to her chest. Just before she could cup Lyric’s almost flat breasts, however, Dae felt a stinging slap against her left buttock. She gasped and pulled back, feeling a tingling warmth spread from under Lyric’s palm where it gripped her ass.
Lyric raised a slender eyebrow at her look of surprise. “You will touch me only when I invite you to do so,” she commanded, and Dae felt fire race through her blood at the tone of her voice. “Hands behind your back.”
Dae pouted, disappointed; she’d been aching to explore the older girl’s body for so long now, but reluctantly obeyed the order. Lyric smiled fiendishly, giving her own hands the freedom to wander that she had just denied Dae. Linking her fingers together to prevent them from forgetting Lyric’s directive not to touch her, Dae arched her back and sighed as the older girl’s fingers spread over her breasts, her ice-blue eyes fixating immediately on the piercing at her nipple. It was obvious Lyric found the jewelry fascinating, and Dae hummed in approval when she gave the ring an experimental tug.
“Does it hurt?”
By now Dae was accustomed to this being the first question anyone ever seemed to have about her marital piercing. “It makes me more sensitive, but no…it’s not painful.”
“Hmm…” Lyric held her gaze intently as she continued exploring the sapphire-studded ring, toying with it and measuring Dae’s reactions. She gained confidence quickly; Dae’s jaw dropped, her eyes flaring wide, when Lyric took both her nipples between her fingers and pinched them firmly. When she squeezed harder still, Dae winced and gasped, pain and pleasure shooting through her sensitive nerve-endings at the rougher attention. Lyric seemed to like her reaction; she tugged even more firmly on the ring, and Dae stifled a little cry.
“Did that hurt?”
Dae whimpered, but never broke the intense eye contact. “Yes.”
“Did you like it?”
A long pause, and Dae’s cheeks flushed with excitement. Her voice was no more than a breathless whisper. “Yes.”
From the hungry grin that spread over her face, her response seemed to please Lyric greatly. Her fingers continued to tease Dae’s nipples more gently, but when she leaned in for another long, deep kiss, she pinched and tugged on them hard again, and Dae offered no protest since her body reacted to the pain with a confusing rush of arousal. As Lyric’s tongue dueled with her own, Dae whimpered and moaned in pleasure, impressed by how well the older girl read her body. Lyric seemed to understand how her senses responded to the mild pain better than Dae did herself…seemed to know just when to be gentle, when to be rough, and how to balance them perfectly to express her control. This kind of submission was something of a new experience for Dae, but she could tell that Lyric was enjoying taking an assertive and dominant role over her, and that fact was more than enough to stoke the flames of her arousal higher and hotter.
When they finally broke their ardent kiss, Lyric abandoned her breasts and buried her fingers in Dae’s long blonde hair, using her grip to hold her head still as she licked her tongue over her parted lips. They were both breathing heavily when their eyes met again, though it was obvious Lyric was struggling to contain a rising climax. Glancing down, Dae saw Kaylee’s mouth avidly working on the slick mound of Lyric’s sex with fixed devotion.
“Does she please you, mistress?” she asked, her hands itching to touch the older girl…to caress her body and help drive her on.
Lyric nodded. “Gods, yes! It’s been too long since I felt the joy of such service.”
Dae couldn’t help but feel a little flash of pride at the sight of Kaylee feeding on Lyric’s desire; this was the fulfillment of a fantasy she thought had likely been stirring within all three of their minds for quite a while now. Kaylee’s chin was already shiny with Lyric’s juices, her tongue working faster and with greater purpose against the woman straddling her face. “She’s been dreaming of doing this to you since before she even knew how two women could bring each other such pleasure,” Dae said softly.
“She’s learned her lessons from you very well,” Lyric sighed. Her thighs were starting to tremble, her movements losing some of their focus, and Dae recognized the signs of an impending climax.
It was almost unbearable not being allowed to touch the older girl…having to watch the rise of her pleasure and not be able to contribute with her own hands. Her desire must have been obvious in her expression, because Lyric grinned at her even as the first shudders of ecstasy rolled through her. She transferred her hands from Dae’s breasts to her own, cupping her smaller mounds and watching the jealous, hungry look on her face.
“Are you going to come for her?” Dae whispered, wishing Lyric would grant her permission to let her hands roam.
Lyric's breathing was growing more ragged, the movements of her hips more urgent. “Yes!” she gasped, arching her back and tossing her head while her fingers pulled at the stiff points of her nipples. “I’m so close, pet! Faster! Lick me faster!”
Kaylee hummed, shaking her head back and forth between Lyric’s thighs as her tongue worked relentlessly against her center. Lyric shook and shivered, her thighs starting to clamp down on the brunette head between them, locking her in place. Dae watched her face, and just as she screamed with the force of her climax, flooding Kaylee’s open mouth with a torrent of juices, she reached out and wrapped her arms around Lyric's slender body, pulling her tight against her. Her lips descended on Lyric’s neck, sucking and kissing, tasting her sweat and feeling her rapid pulse flutter under her tongue. No punishment Lyric could inflict on her could possibly be worse than having to watch her climax while her hands remained idle.
Lyric responded by hugging Dae back weakly and gasping as she ground herself into the girl beneath her. The shivering tremors wracked her willowy figure for long minutes before Lyric pulled herself away from Kaylee’s diligent tongue, still clutching at Dae’s back while she caught her breath. Dae ran her fingers up around Lyric’s shoulders and into her fine, silvery hair, kissing her way up the older girl’s chest until they were once again sucking the air from each other’s lungs.
Face flushed from her efforts and breathing almost as hard as Lyric herself, Kaylee rolled onto her side and looked up at them, licking the moisture from her lips and grinning hugely. Dae only broke their kiss when she felt Lyric scrape her nails softly down the ridge of her spine to her buttocks…and though she guessed it was coming, she still flinched a little when Lyric gave each cheek a firm smack.
“Did I give you permission to touch me?” Lyric purred, her eyes no less ravenous than they had been before her orgasm.
Dae bit her lower lip to keep a smile at bay, but there was surely no mistaking the excitement in her eyes. She shook her head and whispered, “No, mistress.” A second later she gave a startled scream as Lyric pounced on her, grabbing her by the shoulders and, in a single fluid movement, twisting her around and pushing her back onto the bed, simultaneously throwing a leg over her body and straddling her chest. Dae’s cry dissolved into giggles when she looked up at Lyric, feeling the heat of her center pressing into her sternum just below her breasts. “Must I be punished?”
Lyric leaned over her and claimed a brief but searing kiss, her hands still holding Dae by the shoulders and pressing her into the sheets. “Punishment comes after service,” she said, flashing an arrogant smile as she slid her still-dripping sex up until it was poised just above Dae’s mouth. “First I want to ride that pretty face of yours. For two years I’ve kept my desires contained, denying them any form of satisfaction; I intend to take full advantage of you both while I still have you.” She lowered herself against Dae’s lips, which parted instantly to allow her tongue to dart against her. “Show me what a Jaharri pleasure-slave can do. Make me come again…and then we might explore the matter of your punishment.”
Lyric’s sex was every bit as beautiful as the rest of her, with thin labial lips flushed coral-pink with arousal and a very stiff clitoris bursting from its protective hood. Only a light dusting of soft hairs framed her intimate flesh, silvery white and almost invisible against her pale skin. Dae only had a moment to appreciate the sight before Lyric settled herself just above her waiting mouth, and she wasted no time with foreplay, sensing the girl was now more interested in experiencing as much ecstasy as she could stand. Dae’s senses were filled with Lyric—the scent of her arousal, the taste of her juices, and the inspirational vision of her looking down into her eyes. Her tongue bathed itself in her sweetness for a few moments, then stiffened to a point and drove firmly into her core.
Kaylee was right, Dae thought to herself. She does taste good. While she speared her tongue into Lyric, Dae felt the mattress shift as Kaylee struggled to sit up, the task made more difficult with her hands still bound behind her back.
“What about me? Did I please you well, mistress?”
“Well enough that you may be freed.” Lyric leaned over and deftly slipped the belt from Kaylee’s wrists. “In fact, I think you deserve a reward for pleasing me so well,” she added, cupping Kaylee’s chin and bringing her face closer to her own so she could taste the honey of her release on her lips. Kaylee’s entire body yielded to the kiss, and Dae heard her friend whimper happily as Lyric licked the clear liquid from her chin. Though she kept her focus on the task in front of her, Dae couldn’t stop her body from writhing in anticipation when Lyric said quietly, “While Dae demonstrates her skill, you may touch her as you wish…but don’t lay so much as a fingertip on her center. She hasn’t earned that yet…and if you let her climax, there will be consequences.”
A heartbeat later Dae felt her friend’s hands begin exploring her, their touch light and extremely stimulating. She could feel the cool air against the heat between her splayed thighs…could feel the moisture dripping down her sex and into the crack of her ass…and she wondered how long Lyric planned on making her wait. Although she’d never really explored the joys of bondage herself, Dae had a sense of what she might expect, having once witnessed Suhayla tied and ravished to the point of unconsciousness by Hayam and Johara. With her tongue still trying to gain greater depth of penetration into Lyric’s core, she recalled how Suhayla begged for release again and again, growing ever more frenzied and desperate…but not allowing herself to tumble over the cliff until she received Hayam’s permission to do so. When Kaylee’s hands caress from her abdomen to her hips, her thumbs brushing perilously close to her naked center, Dae moaned against Lyric’s sex and wondered what kind of punishment she might receive for climaxing without the older girl’s consent. Already she could feel her hips moving instinctively, anxious for more direct contact.
As she licked and sucked at Lyric’s core, Dae watched a bead of sweat trickle down from her neck, between her breasts and along the contours of her stomach, before it was swallowed by the river of moisture flowing from her sex. The way Lyric flexed her hips, the undulating muscles along her abdomen, recalled another memory from the harem to mind; Lyric moved like a Jaharri dancer…and Dae almost lost herself in a fantasy of how erotically she might dance with a little instruction before Lyric's impassioned voice called her back to the more important present.
“Yes girl! Fuck that tongue nice and deep inside me! Make me come hard, and perhaps I’ll forgive your earlier lapse,” Lyric moaned heatedly. “Your wife is a lucky woman.” Her hips suddenly stilled and she looked down at Dae with a brief expression of uncertainty. “I trust she would not be angered we’re doing this…right?”
Dae withdrew her mouth from its slippery feast and flashed a playful grin; she sensed Lyric was a little intimidated by Zafirah after seeing her in the flesh, and really couldn’t blame her for double-checking that this liaison wasn't going to get her in trouble…especially in light of the fact that a peace was finally coming. “Have no fear,” she said breathlessly. “Zafirah will soon reap the benefits of your instruction, and I'm certain she'll enjoy hearing the tale of our encounter.”
Lyric didn't appear to be in any hurry to doubt her. “Good. Then get that hungry mouth of yours back to work!”
An order Dae was happy to obey. Lyric’s moaning, passionate responses drove Dae to flick her tongue faster and faster until it was just a blur sliding back and forth over slick, satiny skin. Lyric’s fingers tangled in her hair, nails digging into her scalp as she rocked herself into Dae’s mouth, pulling her face tight against her need and making it difficult to draw breath. Dae could feel Lyric’s juices dripping down her chin, down her throat, but she refused to stop and savor the taste fully; all that mattered now was bringing her to the edge of a release she’d been too long denied. While Kaylee fondled her breasts and teased her nipples, Dae finally felt Lyric’s thighs spasm around her, heard her scream with joy as a new flood of rich honey flowed into her waiting mouth.
Lyric rode her climax for a long while, indifferent to the fact that she was smothering her. Just as Dae was starting to see colorful spots dance behind her vision, she gave a shivery, rapturous sigh and lifted her sensitive flesh away. Dae took a huge gulp of air, feeling a little dizzy and sweaty, but she didn’t move as Lyric swung her left leg over her body and sat beside her, looking down at her with a pleased smile.
“You do not disappoint, Dae. No wonder you’ve been so successful in luring the other women to your bed.”
Dae ran her tongue over her lips, gathering more of Lyric’s arousal into her mouth and swallowing it with a happy little hum of pleasure. “I’m just glad I walked in when I did,” she said. “As anxious as I am to be reunited with Zafirah, I’d hate to return to the desert absent the memory of your taste upon my lips.” She smiled up at Lyric, her eyes warm and sincere. “Thank you for finally granting me this honor.”
Lyric gazed back at her, caught by the sincerity in her voice, and Dae saw a brief expression of shy vulnerability wash away a fraction of her lust. “You’re welcome.”
“Mistress?”
Kaylee’s voice broke the moment between them, and they both looked to where the girl was still caressing Dae’s naked body with both hands. Her hazel eyes were fixed on Lyric with hopeful longing.
“I didn’t let her come.”
“So I see.” Lyric grinned at the hopeful tone of her voice. “Shall I assume you wish to be rewarded?”
Kaylee nodded quickly, never ceasing the movements of her hands.
“Hmm…first I need to see how good a job you did stirring Dae’s passion.” Lyric leaned over Dae’s body and slid two fingers along her sweat-slicked skin, tracing her hipbone inward to the shaven mound of her sex. Dae squirmed as those two fingers caressed her clit and split along the length of her sex, testing her arousal. Her hands rose again to touch the parts of Lyric’s body that were within easiest reach—she just couldn’t stop herself—and this time to other blonde did not object. When Lyric dipped into her core teasingly, Dae hissed and arched her back…and when those fingers then traced the river of honey flowing from her core down into the cleft of her buttocks, her eyes squeezed shut in delirious pleasure. “Very nice, pet,” she heard Lyric purr. “From the way she’s dripping I’d say you’ve driven her to the edge splendidly. I daresay it would only take a few good, firm strokes to push her over…right Dae?”
Dae whimpered at the teasing words, knowing Lyric had no intention of giving her release any time soon. “Yes, mistress.”
“Too bad she'll have to wait until after I’m finished with you, pet,” Lyric grinned, withdrawing her fingers and turning her attention to Kaylee. Dae made a quiet sound of disappointment, but she set her own desires aside for the time being and sat up to watch Lyric move in on the wide-eyed brunette. “You’ve been wanting to feel my hands on you for a long time, haven’t you Kaylee?”
Kaylee blushed and lowered her eyes, but Dae could hear it in Lyric’s voice that the high-born girl was flattered and pleased by her long-standing crush. “Yes, mistress.”
Lyric moved closer, her eyes intense and posture predatory. “And you’re going to be a good girl for me while I fuck you…aren’t you, pet?”
A visible shiver ran through Kaylee’s body at her words. “Gods, yes…mistress.”
Lyric was mere inches from her goal, her eyes running from Kaylee’s face down her body to the soft tangle of dark hair between her thighs. Her hands were quick to follow in their wake, and she claimed the girl's lips with a surprisingly gentle kiss. “Mmm…how I wish I had more time with you, pet,” she whispered when they parted. “I have a feeling you'd take to a little training very nicely.” Kaylee's mouth—struck mute by the sensation of Lyric's fingers teasing against her center—hung open and her eyes were unblinking. “Would you like to feel me inside you? My fingers…touching you deep?” asked Lyric, her finger moving in tight, teasing circles around the opening of Kaylee’s sex.
Biting her lower lip shyly, Kaylee nodded. Dae watched Lyrics fingers press into her a fraction, very slowly slipping them deeper, as though testing to see if they would encounter any resistance from her hymen. When they didn’t, Lyric glanced up at Dae and she answered her unspoken question with a shrug. “Don’t look at me. Her maidenhead was gone before I ever laid a hand on her…I’m assuming from an incidental cause.”
“Well…no matter. At least it should make this a little less painful,” Lyric said, gazing into Kaylee’s eyes as she pressed her finger inwards. Kaylee tensed, taking a deep breath and forgetting to exhale at the sensation of being penetrated. Lyric’s thumb circled her clit as she began taking short, shallow strokes into her. “Gods, you’re so tight, pet!”
Kaylee could only moan, her eyelids fluttering.
While Lyric slid that single finger into the tightness of Kaylee’s sex and suckled at her full breasts, Dae moved behind her friend and pulled her hair back over her shoulder. Leaning down she nuzzled the brunette’s neck and whispered in her ear. “Lean against me, sweetness. I have you.”
Kaylee practically melted back against her, extending her legs and drawing them back so Lyric could settle between them, her finger never withdrawing from its snug nest. Glacial eyes stared up the length of Kaylee's body and held the brunette captive as her mouth descended.
Dae had sensed the strength of Lyric’s hidden passion, but watching her feast on Kaylee’s most secret flesh with ferocious hunger was a sight to behold. She didn’t waste time with teasing kisses, but suckled and licked avidly over her sex while—in contrast—very slowly and gently twisting her finger in and out of the girl.
When Kaylee’s head fell back against Dae’s shoulder and her eyes squeezed shut with pleasure, Lyric instantly withdrew her mouth and slapped her inner thigh lightly with her free hand. Kaylee squeaked in surprise, her whole body tensing for a second at the mild sting. Lyric looked up at her with eyes filled with a demanding, consuming need.
“Keep your eyes open and on me, pet. I want you to watch me fucking you. I want to look into those pretty eyes while I make you come.”
Holding Kaylee against her body, gently fondling her breasts and upper torso, Dae felt her friend inhale as though in concentration, obeying Lyric's command.
Lyric returned to rewarding Kaylee with her tongue, her clear eyes luminescent against the dark circles that ringed them—evidence of how little sleep she’d found the last few nights. She stared up at Kaylee's face, reading her reactions and using them to better guide her pleasuring. Dae could feel how well her efforts were doing by the way Kaylee's muscles were flexing against her. If Kaylee glanced away, if her eyelids squeezed shut in ecstasy for even a moment, Lyric would withdraw her mouth and deliver two quick smacks directly to her glistening vulva, making Kaylee squeal and writhe but forcing her to maintain the intense eye-contact. Overwhelmed by the combination of pleasure and pain, it wasn’t long before the brunette was pushed to edge.
“It’s coming!” Kaylee cried, gripping Dae’s arm with crushing strength. Her face was flush with excitement, her hips working to match the motions of Lyric’s finger thrust for thrust. “Please mistress, just a little more!” Lyric's movements appeased her cries, and a moment later she was screaming, “Coming mistress! Gods yes, fuck me!”
Kaylee squirmed and flexed and flailed in rapture as Lyric drove her pleasure on with her tongue and finger, never giving her a moment to recover her senses. A second climax tore through her before the first had fully faded, and her thighs scissored together convulsively around Lyric’s hand. Dae was having a difficult time holding Kaylee steady in the wake of this pleasurable assault; the sweat that covered her body in a fine sheen made her skin slippery, and she wriggled and thrashed about like an eel. Kaylee had one hand around Lyric’s head, pulling her mouth tighter against her, while the other hand was on her shoulder trying to push her away from her over-sensitized sex. Her body seemed at once desperate to climax again and again, and simultaneously unable to endure further intimate attention.
“Easy, Lyric…she’s not used to this much pleasure,” Dae cautioned, speaking quietly even though she doubted Kaylee was in any condition to comprehend her words. She hadn’t yet introduced her friend to this kind of ravishing…had never shown her how the pleasure could flow from one climax to another without pause. Kaylee looked to be nearly out of her mind with ecstasy.
Lyric glanced up at her from between the brunette’s thighs, pausing her feast to consider her enraptured victim. “Do you still remember the word, my pet?” she asked, swirling a glistening fingertip around her swollen clit. “That one special word to make me stop?”
Breathless and red-faced from her exertions, Kaylee managed a nod.
“Will you speak that word to me now? End out play?”
Kaylee stared resolutely into Lyric’s intense, crystalline eyes, keeping her lips tightly closed.
Lyric grinned and glanced up at Dae. “She’s fine.” Her mouth descended hungrily upon Kaylee’s dripping core.
Dae had no idea how long Lyric continued her erotic assault on Kaylee’s body, but she could no longer distinguish one orgasm from the next. Kaylee begged for mercy with one breath, and with the next pleaded for Lyric to never stop licking and fucking her…but she never spoke the word that would make Lyric end her torment. She swore and cursed and pleaded until her words became incoherent, but still Lyric gave her no reprieve. Finally, she twisted and thrashed her legs to push herself away from Lyric’s relentless efforts, laughing and crying and whimpering at the same time…and this time the older blonde let her go.
“Gods please! Mercy! I can’t! I can’t come anymore!” Her words were choked and breathless, forced from a constricted throat, finally quieting to incoherent animal sounds. Kaylee covered her over-stimulated center protectively with both hands and curled into a ball on her side, with her trembling legs drawn closed tightly around her hands. Her body was flushed and drenched in sweat, and Dae could hear her panting and sobbing; the sheets where she had lain were soaked with the honey of countless climaxes. But between her pants Dae could hear her whimpering, “Thank you. Thank you!”
Lyric gave the near-comatose brunette a pleased look, and Dae saw splashes of moisture running down her chest and forearm; Kaylee’s last few climaxes had been loud and—obviously—explosive. Then those clear, intense eyes settled on her, and Dae swallowed hard.
“Your turn, Dae…and I think the first things I should attend to are those wandering hands.”
Dae assumed what she hoped was a look of coquettish submission…but she couldn’t keep the excited sparkle from her eyes. “My body is yours to command, mistress,” she whispered.
“I think if I tie you up a little first it might help you to behave.”
An image recalled from her experience with Suhayla seared through Dae’s memory, and she willingly moved to comply. “Are you still with us, Kaylee?” she asked as she held her hands behind her back and allowed Lyric to bind them with the soft belt.
The brunette was still shaking, her breathing starting to slow down but punctuated with frequent quiet sobs. “It felt so good,” she whimpered weakly. “I just…I couldn’t stop coming! Gods, it’s like she’s still inside me. I’m still throbbing!”
Dae grinned, quite familiar with how her friend was feeling; Zafirah had left her in a similar state on more than one occasion. Her grin vanished in a gasp when Lyric gave her bonds a sharp tug; she felt the belt snap tight, and fire shot straight to her center. Lyric heard the sharp intake of breath and smiled down at her, hungry and excited.
“You’ve really never been tied up like this before?”
Dae shook her head. “No…not like this.” She paused, not wanting to break the mood, then added, “The last bonds to hold me were the rough iron shackles put there by the slavers. This is hardly the same.”
Lyric’s lustful expression faltered, and she seemed to reconsider her actions. “Are you sure you… I mean, if you’re not comfortable with this we don’t have to—”
Dae didn’t let her finish. “No, it’s okay. Really. I’m fine.” Testing her bonds by twisting her hands subtly against the cloth belt, she felt confident she could free herself from the restraint if she wanted to. Not that she had any intention of doing so, but it was reassuring to know she could. Nevertheless, something had changed. It was a simple, subtle thing, but that belt around her wrists shifted the power dynamic heavily in Lyric’s favor…and that sense of vulnerability added a sharp twist to her arousal.
Lyric was watching her closely, still a touch hesitant, so Dae added, “This is actually something I’ve wanted to try for a long time now.”
“Good…because you look absolutely delicious in restraints.” Reassured, Lyric began running her hands over Dae’s body freely, taking full advantage of her helplessness. “The Scion doesn't know what she's missing.”
Truthfully Dae had invited Zafirah to do this to her before, but her partner had been reluctant to rush her introduction to new and more adventurous styles of pleasure…at least until she’d grown more comfortable with her sexuality. But all the experiences she’d had since returning to her homeland allowed Dae to see just how much she had grown in El'Kasari; she felt more confident and capable, and more comfortable exploring her sexual desires. She looked into Lyric’s eyes invitingly. “I don’t doubt she’d enjoy watching a repeat performance, should you care to offer one.”
“Let's not get ahead of ourselves; we're far from finished with this ‘performance’ yet. Lie back and spread those legs as wide as you can,” Lyric ordered, placing her hand between Dae’s breasts and pressing her down onto the bed. Dae complied happily, drawing her knees back to fully expose her swollen and glistening sex for Lyric to enjoy. The older girl leaned over her, holding her body just above Dae’s and gazing deeply into her eyes. Her lips descended on Dae’s throat, kissing and gently biting her, and with her hands bound behind her back she could only squirm in helpless abandon, unable to guide or encourage her newest instructor.
The way Lyric used her mouth was different from any lover Dae had yet experienced; as she descended down her body, she used her tongue to seek out her most sensitive areas…the places that made Dae writhe or gasp. She would then take the skin between her teeth, biting her gently before kissing and licking over the faint marks she left behind. She did this to Dae’s breasts and ribcage, her stomach and sides, until finally she had settled herself between her spread thighs. Here she paused, mouth poised above bare, secret flesh, looking up at the young Consort with eyes made more intense by the dark circles around them.
“You will endure what I give you for as long as I care to give it,” Lyric told Dae in a firm but quiet tone. “Be fair warned, I won’t stop until my thirst is quenched…and I intend for you to climax until the pleasure becomes pain.” So saying she began planting a tantalizing line of wet kisses up Dae’s left inner thigh, slowly moving closer to the aching mound of her glistening sex.
Over the gentle ebb and flow of her pleasure, Dae felt the mattress under her shift and she looked to the side where Kaylee appeared to have recovered her wits somewhat. The brunette had rolled over so she could watch Lyric subject Dae to the same ravishing that had left her spent, her eyes dreamy and distant. Dae’s arousal, already inflamed from all the foreplay, only increased when she saw her friend had both her hands between her clenched thighs and was gently petting and stroking her mound.
But Dae wasn’t the only one to notice Kaylee coming back to her senses.
“If you’ve properly caught your breath, pet, you can pull those wayward fingers from yourself and help me with Dae,” Lyric said.
Kaylee was so thoroughly sated she didn’t appear at all self-conscious at Lyric’s words; she merely sighed, blinked her glassy eyes languorously and stopped fondling herself so she could sit up. “What would you have me do, mistress?”
“Straddle her stomach and hold her legs open,” Lyric told her. “When she starts to move, keep her steady. And when she starts to struggle and try to move away from me as you did, I want you to pin her down and make certain she can’t escape.”
Kaylee flashed Dae a slightly apologetic look and did as instructed, throwing a leg over her waist and grabbing the inside of her upper thighs firmly. Dae nearly climaxed right then; the weight of her friend’s body pressing her into the mattress, combined with the certainty that Lyric intended to make her scream long and loud before she ended their play…and that there wasn’t a damn thing she could do to escape her ravishing tongue or fingers with her hands tied and body pinned down.
Though Dae couldn’t see what Lyric was doing to her, she could certainly feel it. Her view was obstructed by the impressive vision of Kaylee’s sweat-slicked back and ass—a view she would have enjoyed more had she been able to admire it with her hands as well as her eyes—but she froze when Lyric’s wandering tongue finally reached the sensitive folds of her sex. Two slender fingers stroked her gently, coating themselves in the slick flow of her juices before teasing the entrance to her core. They paused a moment, poised and waiting, and she mewed in anticipation.
“Does it make you sensitive?”
“Huh?” Dae was so distracted with anticipation, it took her a moment to realize Lyric’s question had been posed to her.
“Grooming yourself this way,” she heard Lyric clarify. “Does it make you more sensitive to direct stimulation?”
“I don’t…really know. It’s a common practice among Jaharri body-slaves and pleasure-servants, but I hadn’t really had much experience of these pleasures before I did it. I just…I like the way it looks, and the way it feels.”
“Mmm…as do I.” Lyric’s tongue swirled around her exposed clit, and Dae could almost feel the smile on her lips against her bare skin. “I like the way you taste, too…’Consort.'” Those nimble fingers dipped into her fractionally. “And the way you squeeze my fingers.”
Dae’s hips stilled when they filled her, thrusting slowly at first but building speed as that long, powerful tongue washed up and down the full length of her dripping slit.
Lyric did not lack for skill; she would move from stimulation that drove Dae toward that first shattering orgasm, only to shift her attention suddenly to somewhere that felt desperately good but allowed her to come off the edge. Lyric worked her body like a virtuoso worked her instrument, driving Dae nearly insane with lust before seizing her clit and sucking hard. Once it was in her mouth, she buzzed her tongue back and forth over the sensitive bud until Dae screamed out in pleasure, wrestling against her bondage as wave after surging wave of pleasure tore through her senses, each crest higher and more powerful than the last.
“Thank you, mistress!” she cried, knowing the words were what Lyric expected to hear.
“Oh, I’m just warming up, naughty girl,” she heard dimly over her own thunderous heartbeat. “I can feel the muscles inside you squeeze my fingers. You’re so wet and tight around me…and sooo hot!”
Dae panted, the steamy words doing nothing to calm her down. Lyric’s tongue flicked at her clit and she hissed, her hips instinctively trying to pull her sensitized flesh away from the stimulation but held firm in Kaylee’s grip. Lyric repeated the action, chuckling when Dae tried again to squirm away.
“Such a sensitive little flower,” the older girl purred, blowing cool air against Dae’s heated core that sent shivers racing over her skin. “So ripe and sweet. How many more kisses will you endure before I’m done?” A second later Dae’s clit was once again being suckled into the moist heat of Lyric’s mouth.
Whimpering, Dae felt Kaylee’s strong hands grip her tighter and press her knees even wider…and her bare sex now felt incredibly exposed and vulnerable. She could hear the wet sounds of Lyric’s mouth and fingers working on her, sucking, licking, thrusting into the clutching tightness of her inner muscles…and it was even better than she’d ever fantasized. Closing her eyes, helpless yet eager, she allowed her new lover to lay waste to her senses.
Lyric’s mouth never let up. She set her lips around the throbbing little bud of Dae’s clitoris and suckled at it relentlessly, at the same time flicking her tongue over it faster than seemed possible. A second climax galvanized Dae's muscles quickly, but rather than slowing Lyric down it only seemed to spur her on. Dae twisted in her bonds but could barely do more than wriggle. Kaylee’s full weight held her pressed against the mattress, and no matter how she twisted or contorted herself, the strong brunette kept a tight grip on her upper thighs, holding her open for Lyric’s merciless attention. Dae could also feel her friend softly grinding the heat of her slippery sex against her belly, and the sensation only added to her excitement. She couldn’t draw enough air into her lungs, couldn’t hope to form words to beg for mercy from the determined onslaught…she could only whimper and scream as Lyric’s fingers curled within her and sent her spiraling higher with a third shattering orgasm.
Dae was so sensitized she could feel her heartbeat in her clit…a drumbeat rising to an ever-faster tempo under Lyric’s lashing tongue. As intensely pleasurable as the combined suction and tonguing of her charged nerve-endings was, the relentless attention without a single moment of pause was too much, pushed her senses to the limit. There was pain, but it only served to underscore her passion. Her eyes rolled upwards and she felt her inner muscles spasm with a series of powerful contractions around Lyric’s long, dexterous fingers…felt a torrent of sweet juices explode out from her core, gushing like a waterfall across Lyric’s pale, lovely face, soaking the sheets beneath her. The overload of pleasure left her faint and dizzy, but there was at least a moment’s reprieve while Lyric lapped up the sudden flood. Dae managed to catch a few desperately needed gulps of air, and heard Lyric’s voice through the fog of lust clouding her senses.
“One more, Consort,” her voice demanded. “Just give me one more and I’ll let you rest.”
Dae was hardly in a position to deny the older girl’s desire, but with the promise of respite finally in sight, she did her best to control her shaking body. Kaylee was still rubbing her velvety core along her stomach, and Dae could feel the trail of juices against her skin create a tantalizing friction between them. Hearing Lyric’s words, Kaylee began moving with greater purpose, and Dae guessed she wanted to climax with her.
But Lyric didn't let her go so easy. Her tongue only traced the edges of Dae's petals, and her finger withdrew entirely. Sensitive as she was, the teasing was even more deliciously unbearable than the previous onslaught. It wasn't long before Dae was squirming toward the promised pleasures of Lyric's tongue, rather than trying to pull away. “You want it?” she heard the girl ask playfully.
“Yes, mistress!”
“And how do you ask your mistress properly to reward you?”
Dae was only too happy to beg if it got Lyric's tongue moving, and she did so, loudly and convincingly. Certainly her response seemed to satisfy Lyric, whose mouth began working over her sensitive flesh with firmer contact. Soon enough, Dae's cries of gratitude diminished into wordless sobs.
She began to tremble from the final crashing wave of ecstasy that rose within her, and when the pulses finally faded and Kaylee released her grip on her upper thighs, Dae closed her eyes and lay on the damp sheets of her bed, exhausted and still trembling from the intensity of the experience. As her breathing slowed to something less likely to give her a heart-attack, she felt Kaylee move off her and a moment later giggled and squirmed at the sensation of her tongue lapping the sweet honey of her release from her ticklish belly. The mattress shifted under her and she felt the light touch of Lyric’s finger painting her lips with moisture. She parted her lips and sucked the slick digit into her mouth, tasting herself and rolling her tongue in sensuous circles. When she cracked her eyelids and looked up, she found Lyric smiling down at her, face gleaming with moisture, her platinum-silver hair soaked with her come. She had a slightly smug expression on her face.
“Was that too much for you, Consort?”
Dae was still dazed, but she had recovered enough to rise to the bait. “It was more attention than I’m accustomed to receiving all at once,” she admitted, “but I’m not one to complain about excesses of ecstasy.”
Lyric smiled, still tracing her finger languidly over Dae’s lips and face. “Consider it payback for that note you slipped under my door. After all your efforts to tempt me back to these delights, you can’t expect me to make your pleasure easy.”
“Then consider me well-chastised…if unrepentant,” Dae blew a tendril of sweaty blonde hair from her face, flexing her arms against the belt still binding her hands together behind her back. “Can you untie me?”
The grin that spread across Lyric’s face only made her more beautiful in Dae’s eyes, but her expression remained wickedly playful. “Oooh…I’m not sure I’m ready to free you just yet,” she purred, her finger now drawing idle, intricate patterns down Dae’s chest and around the stiff points of her nipples. “What do you think, pet? Has Dae had enough…or is there more you’d like to see her endure?”
“Hmm?” Kaylee looked up from her task of cleaning her arousal off Dae’s stomach, confused.
Lyric gave the brunette a daring look, teasing the sapphire-studded piercing between her fingers. “Your mentor has shared many pleasures with you, I’m sure…but is there any fantasy she hasn’t yet satisfied? No secret wish…no deep desire…you’ve not yet shared with her?” The color that rose in Kaylee’s cheeks was answer enough. “If so, now is your chance to see it realized. Surely there's something you wish to do to her…or have her do to you? Some fantasy that deserves fulfillment before she returns to her wife's tent?”
Dae expected Kaylee to blush and offer a polite but shy refusal…and her eyes widened when instead her friend glanced at her with hungry consideration. “Well…maybe…”
“She is my slave for now, bound, helpless…and you have my leave to use her body as you see fit.”
“Really?”
“Just say the word and see your desire fulfilled.”
Kaylee chewed on her lower lip, and Dae realized she was giving the offer serious thought. “She looks a little worn out.”
“She’s recovered enough for you to play.”
Kaylee’s gaze roamed slowly up Dae’s body, and when their eyes met the young blonde felt her over-sated senses stir anew. She gave her friend a slightly pleading look and Kaylee ran her right hand slowly up her body. “You’re really sexy when you’re all sweaty like this,” she whispered, her tone slightly apologetic. Dae knew in that instant there was still more pleasure coming. “I just want to feel you climax one more time…once more…just for me.”
Dae didn’t have much choice in the matter, letting Kaylee guide her into the position she wanted, on her knees with her upper body resting on the bed. With her hands bound behind her she felt the muscles around her shoulders strain, and she widened her knees when Kaylee gently pressed against her inner thighs. Arching her back slightly, she knew her intimate flesh was wantonly displayed for her two lover’s appreciation.
Turning her face to the side, Dae was able to look back behind her and watch as Kaylee ran her hands over the firm curve of her buttocks, and the look on her face was so filled with lust and hunger that her excitement rose quickly. Those wandering hands explored her for long minutes before Dae felt the girl’s fingers caress her more intimately, seeking the wetness between her thighs. She moaned at the gentle touches and moved her hips, trying to gain firmer contact against her sex. Her clit was still extremely sensitive from all the attention it had received from Lyric’s tongue, but Kaylee seemed to understand this and kept her touches light and gentle.
Behind Kaylee, Lyric was sitting with her back against the headboard and watching them both avidly, one knee bent to afford her own fingers access to her center. When Kaylee finally slipped first one finger, then two, into her tight core, Dae sighed and rocked back against the penetration.
Kaylee moved a little to her side, and when Dae caught her eye, she saw the girl watching her with a sweet, longing expression. “I don't want this to end,” she said quietly…and Dae understood she was talking about more than their current entanglement.
Though distracted by those ceaseless fingers, Dae managed a smile. “You'll be free to choose whatever life you please when you leave here, sweetness…I'll make certain of it.”
Kaylee stared at her a long moment in silence, then her gaze drifted along the length of her body appreciatively. With her free hand she took full advantage of Dae's captivity, exploring and caressing every sensitive area she could reach while her fingers stroked her arousal higher. Dae wriggled her wrists against the sweat-dampened belt binding her, trying to find a rhythm against her friend's gentle thrusting.
“This feels good, doesn't it?” Kaylee asked—a little unnecessarily, since Dae was expressing her appreciation quite vocally.
'You know it does!” she whimpered pleadingly, seeing Lyric smile wickedly at the desperation in her voice. “Please don't tease me!”
“How badly do you want to come?”
“Very!”
Those fingers twisted into her deeply. “What will you give me if I let you come? Will you grant me my heart’s desire?”
“Anything! Please, Kaylee, I’ll give you whatever you want, do anything you want, just please don’t make me wait!”
Kaylee’s fingers stilled suddenly, and the tone of her voice became softer and more serious. “Will you take me with you back to the desert?”
Dae froze, the question taking her by surprise. “What?”
“When you return with Zafirah to El’Kasari…will you take me with you?”
The innocent yearning expressed in that question plucked at the chords of Dae’s heart, answering the question she hadn’t yet found the courage to ask. “Yes,” she whispered. “If it is your wish…then yes, you may return with me.”
There was a long moment of silence, Kaylee’s fingers still motionless within her, before she spoke again. “I don’t want you to say it just so I’ll let you come,” she said quietly, shyly. “I’m not so cruel as to deny you release…though if you say no, I might make you wait a little longer for it. If you say it…I want you to mean it.”
“I do mean it, Kaylee,” Dae said hoarsely. She could see Lyric had stopped touching herself and was watching them both with an expression that was difficult to read—intrigued…and perhaps even slightly envious. “This isn’t exactly how I planned on broaching the subject, but why do you think I’ve been telling you so many stories about the palace and the city, and how wonderful the people are? I’ve wanted to ask you to come back with me for a long time now, Kaylee…to tell you there's a place for you in the palace if you want it.”
“Really?”
“Yes! Now please, damn it, let me come!”
Kaylee’s fingers were still a few moments longer, but then they resumed their delicious thrusting once more, and Dae sighed with renewed pleasure. “You would take me as a pleasure-servant?” Kaylee asked, sounding at once shy and very flattered by the thought.
“If that is what you wish, sweetness, I would be honored to invite you into the harem. But I’d never want to pressure you to take on a role you don't fully understand. If you would prefer it, I’m sure I could arrange for you to apprentice with the Jaharri healers…perhaps see your dream realized.”
“Hmm.” Kaylee was smiling broadly, her eyes bright and excited. “Could I do both?”
Dae was so close to the edge now her senses were starting to fray, her inner muscles clamped tight around Kaylee’s thrusting fingers. “Whatever your desire, I am certain it can be appeased. You’re my friend, Kaylee…and I treasure our friendship enough to want to preserve it.”
Lyric was again stroking her fingers through the fine silver hairs above her sex, only occasionally slipping them lower to tease her prominent clit. “If you wish to find a place in the desert harem, Kaylee, now is your chance to show the Consort your suitability.”
“Good advice,” Kaylee said, her fingers thrusting with short, shallow strokes and her thumb worked in circles around the swollen bud of Dae’s clit. “If I’m going to be your pleasure-servant, I shouldn’t leave your desires unsatisfied.”
Dae wanted so badly to have the use of her hands back, but Kaylee was obviously enjoying her restraint and she wouldn't take that from her. At least she could still move her lower body, and she rocked her hips happily against her friend’s hand to stimulate her desperate sex. The thought of bringing Kaylee back to El’Kasari thrilled her; she didn’t doubt her friend would find happiness in the palace, and had been looking for the right moment to make the offer for over a week now. Imagining all the delights they might share in the future—introducing her to the other girls in the seraglio, watching her explore her desires with them and deepening their bond of friendship—was almost enough to bring her over the edge even without the additional stimulus of Kaylee’s fingers pleasuring her so delightfully.
The girl was no longer teasing; in fact, Dae sensed she was trying to demonstrate her worthiness of a place in the harem. Dae couldn’t hope to deny release for long. When Kaylee leaned over her prone body, dragging her tongue from her ass up along her spine to her neck, she felt the first delicious ripples flow outward from her center. Warm breath whispered against her ear.
“Come for me, Consort. You’re so beautiful when you come.”
Ecstasy gripped her immediately, cascading through her muscles like electric fire and making her gasp and cry out. This release was far sweeter after everything Lyric had done to her…a gift, not a demand, and Dae’s entire body seemed to melt and dissolve into a conduit of pure sensation. As the peak came, she screamed and bit at the sheets under her, growling low in her throat while Kaylee held her fingers still inside her. The pleasure finally ebbed, leaving a mild and warm tingling sensation in its wake.
Dae felt her friend loosen the belt from her wrists with her free hand, and as soon as she was freed, she twisted about and pulled Kaylee against her. They kissed deeply, their tongues twining and caressing, exploring the now-familiar territory of one another’s mouths until they had to pull away to catch their breath. Dae hugged her friend tightly, feeling the younger girl wrap her arms around her waist and grip her ass. When they parted, Dae brushed Kaylee’s disheveled hair back from her face and smiled at her. “Are you sure this is what you want? You would be leaving behind your family…all you have ever known.”
Kaylee nodded, not hesitating for even a moment. “Maybe one day my father will be able to accept me as I am,” she said quietly, “but that day will be long in coming. I want to see the world…see all the wonders of the desert you’ve told me about. I…I want to be with you.” Her eyes were shy and hopeful. “Do you think Zafirah would find me pleasing?”
Dae laughed lightly at the note of concern in her friend’s voice. “Fear not, sweet one. I told you before, you’re every bit the equal of any woman in the harem.” She glanced at Lyric, who was still caressing herself lightly, and raised an eyebrow in invitation. “I would make you the same offer, if it holds any appeal for you. There are many in the seraglio who’d enjoy nothing more than helping you to explore your wildest desires.”
Lyric lifted her chin slightly, some of her customary arrogance slipping back over her stunning features. “My temperament is hardly suited to a life of sexual servitude, Dae,” she scoffed. “I am high-born…and I would sooner die than find myself in some Jaharri hovel.”
“The role of a palace pleasure-servant is not the same as a body-slave; you need not submit to any if you do not wish it,” Dae said. “And the palace in El’Kasari is hardly a hovel. You’d be accorded great respect by the Jaharri.”
Lyric’s cool eyes flickered away for a moment, considering. “Your wife does not strike me as the submissive type,” she said quietly.
“Zafirah finds pleasure in all expressions of passion, including many that would suit your skills.” A wicked smile flashed across Dae’s lips and her eyes sparkled playfully. “I’m sure she’d also enjoy watching you ply your craft on some of the other girls; as you might imagine, they can be extremely naughty.”
Lyric had stopped fondling herself and was looking at the two of them seriously, and Dae could see she was struggling to process the possibilities. “I would…need time to consider,” she said at last.
“You betrayed your uncle’s plan to me, Lyric…and even if he’s too dim to realize it, he'll only marry you off the moment you're released from this place.” Lyric’s eyes darted away again, guilty and uncertain. “Will you go back to denying this part of yourself? Keeping your true desires caged and subdued, never letting them find a voice? You belong where you will be accepted and appreciated for the person you are, not simply viewed as a beautiful trophy for some man’s ego, or a pawn in your family’s aspirations for greater power.”
“I said I will consider it,” Lyric said…and as she spoke her eyes ran heatedly over Dae and Kaylee’s sweat-slicked bodies. Her hand drifted back to the soft silver curls between her legs. “Although I’m sure I would enjoy letting you persuade me.”
Dae laughed weakly, not sure she would survive another round with the ravishing blonde without at least taking a few minutes to recover her strength a little first. But before she could beg for a rest another voice, sultry and heavily accented, startled all three women.
“If the Consort is too fatigued to try, I would be delighted to act in her stead.”
Three sets of eyes turned to the door, caught off guard by the latest interruption, and while Lyric immediately blushed with embarrassment and pulled the tangled sheet up over her exposed body, Dae and Kaylee both smiled at the sight of Inaya standing in the doorway, her expression amused. Behind her, watching from the hallway, stood Cass, who also appeared wickedly appreciative of the sight of the three of them together. Dae shifted on the bed. “Inaya? Wh-what are you doing here?”
Inaya took a few strides into the room, scooping up Dae’s discarded blouse and tossing it to her. “I came to inform you that your father has reached a peaceful settlement with the Scion. You are to be released at once…although I think perhaps a bath may be in order before your reunion.” Her nose crinkled daintily and Dae blushed a little, knowing the air in the room was heavy with the scent of female sex. It took a second for her lust-addled brain to properly process Inaya’s words, but when she did her whole face lit up with joy.
“My father has seen reason? Really?”
“I would not say he is pleased to think he will once more be parted from you, or that he yet approves of your love for another woman…but your parents have both realized that continued hostility and resistance will cost them any chance to remain a part of your life in the future.”
“So…it’s finally over? We can return to the desert?” Dae looked at Kaylee, who gave her a pleased and slightly hopeful smile.
Inaya nodded, her gaze settling on Lyric with sultry interest. “There are still preparations to be made before we depart. It will be a few days yet before our path home has been plotted, so you shall have time to bid your family a proper farewell, but yes…we will be leaving. You may return to the Scion’s tent with your father’s blessing.” Inaya studied Lyric’s features curiously, reaching out a delicate hand to caress her cheek. The platinum-haired girl stared back at her, but did not recoil. “I sincerely hope you will join us on the return trek, pretty one. Dae is right—you would find a ready place among my fellows and I.”
Dae was already pulling on her blouse, grinning at the look on Lyric’s face—equal parts embarrassment, confusion, and stark desire. Clearly she was not immune to Inaya’s considerable charm. When the Jaharri girl turned to Kaylee, the brunette smiled shyly.
“And what of you, little Kaylee? Will my brethren have the chance to enjoy your company as I have been fortunate enough to do?”
Kaylee looked to Dae for confirmation, then gave an enthusiastic nod. “If the Scion agrees, I will go with you.”
Inaya’s eyes danced and sparkled. “I have already told my companion Nasheta all about you, and she is eager to make your acquaintance. If it would please you, you may share our tent with us on the journey. It will afford us a chance to…get to know one another better.”
Kaylee blushed, reading the promise of more pleasure in Inaya’s invitation, and she nodded shyly. “I-I would like that.”
Dae was pulling on her skirt now and running her fingers through her disheveled hair to settle it somewhat. “We can discuss sleeping arrangements later. Right now, I want to wash up so I can see my wife again.” She looked around and located Kaylee’s clothes on the floor, bending down to pick them up and toss them to her friend. “Come on…I want to introduce you to her. Oh! I nearly forgot!” Dae quickly opened the trunk at the foot of the bed and dug out the knapsack containing the gift Rashida had given her in honor of her union with Zafirah. “If I'm to return to the Jaharri camp, I should at least look the part of the Scion’s Consort.”
As pleasurable as these last few weeks in the reformatory had been, and as much as she would miss all of the friends she’d made here, Dae had dreamt of this reunion every night since she’d been taken from the Herak encampment. She had been absent from her partner’s arms for too long now…and as she walked with Kaylee toward the showers, Dae’s whole body felt tingly with anticipation. She could almost taste Zafirah’s lips upon her own…could almost smell the ghost of her scent in her nostrils.
It was time to go home.