Page 132 of Beast and Remedy
My eyes rake over his body, craving and itching to kiss my way down his torso.
I want to trace every ridge of his ribs. To nibble along the waistband of his trousers and sink to my knees. I want to grip his ass as he thrusts his cock against the back of my throat, and revel in the small sting of pain of him threading his fingers through my tresses and pulling.
Desire simmers beneath my skin at my dark thoughts, and I lick my lips. I need him to act out the words he teased me with on our first watch together. And I need to act out my carnal urges.
Restrain yourself, Vi. You have other shit you should be prioritizing.
I wish we could have more time.
I inhale a slow breath, clearing my mind before taking his tunic and rubbing the fabric. “Turn around.”
His lip quirks up. “You know I can andhavealready seen—”
“I know what you’ve already seen.” I tuck the shirt to my chest, needing to remove all temptation for both of us. “Doesn’t mean I want you gawking while I dress.”
“But what if Ilikegawking?” He winks.
“That’s beside the point.”
“Why?” He wiggles his brows with mischief. “Afraid I’ll immediately undress you and fulfill what you mentioned before a little flame decided to appear?”
It takes everything in me not to react to the vivid image painted in my mind.
“N-No,” I say in a clipped tone.
Beau smirks. “You are such a tease.” He turns, catering to my demands.
Quickly, I pull off the cloak and put on Beau’s tunic, taking a moment to sniff and enjoy his scent clinging to the fabric. His shirt ghosts up the middle of my upper thigh and only when I put the frock on do I traipse toward him.
“Thank you,” I say as we resume our steps, the quiet chatter of our friends growing louder the closer we get.
“It’s my pleasure,” he whispers before he reaches and separates the bushes for me to walk through. “Always.”
After explaining everything and being bombarded with so much understanding, I regretted doubting my friends. Everyone took the news in stride, offering suggestions for the next steps into Unterkirch, as well as when I’d need to start tapping into my magic willingly.
I didn’t mention anything of the curse, reluctant to steal everyone’s focus on creating a cure.
We all agreed my shifting should wait until we were on the way home, first needing to write Queen Verena and ask for an audience.
Beau offered to send that message and thankfully, we were permitted into her lands. A letter from her and the healers in her household arrived as we reached Torrhal, and they wanted to share their discoveries about the infection in person.
The prospect of good news bloomed in my chest.
We took the chance to send word of our stop in Unterkirch to our loved ones in Belmur and Torgem, relaying our hope that the new information from the healers would steer us down the right path.
Marian and I also had another letter from Papa, which stirred homesickness for us both. And Tove’s note reassured me that my father and my people were doing well, all things considered.
Their messages were a reminder for me to remain steadfast, and I updated them both with the anticipation of us making a groundbreaking discovery soon.
Camping outside of Oundalk tonight, Jules and Christine extend small mugs to each of us.
“Is it going to be worse this time or better?” Leo grumbles, sniffing the contents warily.
The two women gathered more lavender these last few days than I thought necessary, taking time each day to test different ratios of the plant to see if it eased Marian’s symptoms. But to make her feel more comfortable ingesting their concoction, we all agreed to try it.
“It’s always going to taste worse, you know,” Marian snaps, reluctant to even take the mug.
Her irritability and mood swings are hard to avoid these days, not to mention the fever returning at the start and end of each day.
