Page 15 of Sereis
The vehemence in his voice made me shiver, and he noticed immediately.
"You're cold. And you need—tomorrow, we'll begin your transformation."
"Transformation?"
"Your body needs to change to survive here long-term. The cold would kill a normal human in days, even with the palace's protections. The bond will guide the process, but it takes time. You'll become something between human and dragon—not a shifter like us, but . . . enhanced. Stronger. Immortal, if we seal the pact." He paused, studying my reaction. "Does that frighten you?"
"Should it?"
"Yes," he said simply. "You're choosing to become something other than human. The girl who was sold to Caelus will cease to exist. In her place will be something new. Someone who belongs to winter and storm, to ice and dragon-kind."
The girl who was sold to Caelus. As if that was all I'd been. As if that defined me.
"She already doesn't exist," I said quietly. "She stopped existing the moment the bond activated. I'm already becoming something new."
His smile transformed his face from beautiful to divine. With a gesture, he pulled something from the air itself—a nightgown that seemed spun from moonlight and snowflakes. The fabric was impossible, soft as whispers but substantial enough to preserve modesty. White as fresh snow with ribbons at the throat that sparkled like captured starlight.
"May I?" he asked again, and this time I understood he was asking permission for so much more than just helping me dress.
"Please."
He helped me into the nightgown with hands that barely touched but left trails of sensation everywhere they passed. The fabric settled against my skin like a blessing, warm despite its appearance, perfectly fitted despite never being measured. When his fingers tied the ribbons at my throat, brushing against my pulse, I felt the claim in it—soft as silk but strong as chains.
"Perfect," he breathed, stepping back to admire his work. Through the bond, I felt his satisfaction that ran deeper than aesthetic appreciation. I was wearing something he'd created, something that marked me as his without pain or brand.
"I'll be in the tower room if you need anything," he said, but through the bond I felt what it cost him to step away. The need to stay was so strong it made my knees weak with secondhand desire. "Any time, for any reason. Just call through the bond and I'll come."
"What if I need you for no reason?" The words slipped out before I could stop them.
His eyes flashed silver again, and for a moment I thought his control would crack entirely. When he spoke, his voice carried harmonics that resonated in my bones.
"Then I'll come even faster."
He turned and left before either of us could break, but through the bond I felt him pause just outside the door, fighting the urge to return. I felt him climb the tower stairs, each step a battle against instinct that screamed to claim what was his.
I felt him settle into meditation that was doomed to fail, because I was three floors below, wearing his gift, bearing his mark, loving him with an intensity that defied logic or time.
Tomorrow, we would sign the pact. Tomorrow, I would transform.
Tonight, I would discover what my body was becoming under his influence.
Thestarlightbedmoldedto my body like it had been waiting for me, conforming to every curve and hollow with perfect support that felt like floating. The aurora canopy shifted through its colors above me—green to blue to purple to silver—casting shadows that danced across the nightgown Sereis had manifested for me. Every breath brought his scent from the fabric, winter storms and midnight promises that made my head swim with want.
Alone for the first time since the bond activated, I could feel it properly. Not just the mark on my shoulder, though that pulsed with steady rhythm like a second heartbeat. The connection went deeper, threads of awareness that told me exactly where he was—three floors up, in a circular room with windows opento the night. I could sense his attempt at meditation, the careful positioning of his body in forms practiced over centuries, the controlled breathing that should have brought peace.
Should have, but didn't. Because I was here, three floors below, and my presence disrupted his calm like stones thrown in still water.
My body had never felt like this. Every nerve ending seemed exposed, hypersensitive, awakened. The nightgown's fabric against my skin was almost too much—silk whispers that made me shift restlessly, seeking relief from sensation that only led to more. My breasts felt heavy, fuller than they'd ever been, nipples hard and visible through the delicate fabric. Between my thighs, wetness had already gathered, my body preparing for something it had never experienced but somehow knew was coming.
When my hand drifted to my breast, just the lightest touch through the nightgown, the sensation shot through me like lightning. But more than that—through the bond, I felt Sereis's breathing catch. Felt his meditation shatter as awareness of my arousal flooded through our connection.
This was nothing like the furtive moments I'd stolen in the servants' quarters, quick release sought in darkness while others slept. This was exploration, discovery, luxury of time and privacy I'd never had. My fingers found my nipple through the silk, rolling it gently, and the pleasure doubled, tripled as the bond carried it between us.
Three floors up, I felt Sereis grip the arms of his chair, wood creaking under his fingers.
The knowledge that he could feel everything made me bolder. My other hand traced down my stomach, feeling muscles jump under the touch, until I reached the hem of the nightgown. The fabric lifted easily, exposing my legs to the cool air that only made the heat between them more pronounced.
I'd touched myself before—survival in Caelus's household sometimes required quick, mechanical release just to function. But this was different. My fingers found wetness that surprised me with its abundance, slick and warm and more than I'd ever produced. The first brush across my clit made me arch off the bed, a cry escaping that I didn't try to muffle.
