Page 26 of Hers to Rule

Rio nodded and drew in a deep breath.

Mari put down her bowl and then took his hand and held it. She wasn’t sure if she could do anything to help, but he’d done so much to help her the last few days that she wanted to if she could.

Rio smiled at Mari, holding her gaze while Greta worked. He winced when the tool pierced his skin, clenching his hand around hers. She felt the pain distantly, as if it was being conducted to her through her fingertips where she touched him, but she also felt his arousal. Driven by the pain, the urge to squirm where he sat tickled inside him. Mari reached for that sensation and stroked it, encouraging it to blossom and overtake the pain.

Gasping, Rio pulled her closer, desperate to kiss her. She covered his mouth with hers, inhaling the sounds that poured from his open lips up into her. Mari drew his pain away, leaving only the desperate arousal she had kindled. She hadn’t planned on doing anything like this, truly had no idea she could, but the instinct had kicked in when his pain had swelled and taken over.

“Saints, Mari,” Rio groaned against her lips. “It’s too fucking good.” He made a plaintive noise in his throat and kissed her again.

“Woah, okay, turn down the sexy vibes a little,” Greta said with laughter in her voice. “We don’t want him to come until after I place the hardware and heal it.”

Mari tried to dial it back but found she had to struggle against the sex witch part of her that had tasted his mingled pain and desire and only wanted more. After a few tense moments when she wasn’t sure which part of her would prevail—the witch or the woman—she managed to pull back the magic so that it was only stroking him with a featherlight touch and keeping his pain in check.

Rio moaned, sagging back against the table. He nodded to Greta to indicate she should continue, his breathing ragged. “You haven’t ever done that before.”

Mari smoothed her thumb over his cheek before reaching to catch her fingers in his hair. She stared into his face. “I didn’t know I could. I only wanted to take away the pain.”

“Sex witches and life witches are two sides of the same coin. We both hook into the tissues and nerves of the body to do our things,” Greta said as she worked the hardware through the piercing.

“You’re saying that I can create pain too?” The idea made Mari shiver.

“Sure. You can create all kinds of sensations,” Greta said. “You’re probably predisposed to one direction more than the other. At least that’s how most witches operate. I’m good at closing wounds, but I’m real shit at opening them.” She shifted her grip and placed her thumb over one ending of the piercing, making Rio squirm.

Mari leaned closer and put her hand over Rio’s chest, pressing him back into the table. He settled at once, exhaling a long sigh.

“Platinum is good for healing too,” Greta said. “Conducts the magic into the wound and resists the tendency flesh has to anneal when healing.” She nodded and backed away a step. “All done. Do you two want some privacy?”

Rio laughed. “That won’t be necessary.” He reached for his cock, smoothing his fingers up the shaft slowly until he reached the piercing and nudged it. Through the hand that Mari still held, she felt the peaking of his arousal that the light touch set off. “That’s going to be distracting for a while.”

Entranced, Mari watched his deft fingers play with the piercing. It looked hot as hell. “You need some help with that?”

“Mmm, tempting,” Rio purred. “But I think I’m going to hang onto this for a while. Might need it later.” He pulled up his joggers and winked.

Greta slid a pair of goggles with dark lenses over her eyes and moved on to the tattoos. Rio sat perfectly still while Greta worked, only squirming on the table a bit when she paused to give him a moment to relax between the cuffs. True to Greta’s word, once the marking pen was wiped away and his skin was healed, there was no trace of the tattoo.

After a few moments, Greta returned with a small flashlight. She aimed the beam at Rio’s wrists. The words “para siempre” glowed brightly where they were painted into his skin precisely in the elegant design.

With a muscular flex, he slid off the far side of the table and tapped the surface twice. “Your turn.”

Mari gathered her courage and climbed up. She felt awkward in the skirt until she realized she was going to need to remove it anyway. Then she felt downright scandalous. Rio just grinned, eyeing first her ass and then the long length of thigh that showed through the entirely excessive slit that went nearly to her waist. Finally, he took pity on her and helped her adjust the table.

“Okay.” Greta looked her over. “Let’s go top down because the nipples are going to be the easiest.”

“And the last one?” Mari asked.

“That one is going to be a true fucking adventure. Never done one for a sex witch.” Greta laughed good-naturedly. “I might have to numb you ahead of time so you don’t stroke us all out with the backlash.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I’ll have a better idea once we do the first couple, but sex witches are interesting because a lot of your magic works in reaction.” Greta gestured for Mari to remove her shirt. “Depending on how your magic works, you might lash out in response to pain.”

Mari pulled off her camisole and handed it to Rio. Being topless in front of people she didn’t know was still so new, and she felt her back trying to curl to hide herself, but she fought the urge. “How likely is that? I don’t want to hurt you two.”

Rio folded her camisole neatly and set it on the end of the table. “I don’t think it’s very likely. I’ve felt your magic a lot over the last few days. It’s never hurt.”

Greta shook her head. “Well, too much pleasure can be just as dangerous as too much pain.”

Rio set a hand on the back of Mari’s neck, and she felt herself relax from the edge of anxiety that had been creeping up. “You’re not going to hurt us, princesa.” Smiling, he leaned to kiss her temple.

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