Page 118 of Dark & Dreadful Brutes

“Mmhmm.” He nipped at my ear as his hand slid under the large shirt I was still wearing, and stroked my thigh lightly.

My body warmed at his touch, and he pulled me closer with his free arm, so his erection pressed against my ass.

“And multiple couples use these caves at the same time?” I whispered.

“Sometimes. It depends on the couple, and the cave. Some fae are too possessive.”

“How would you know if anyone else was already in there?”

“With your ears, Lae.” Ravv nipped at my earlobe.

Right.

He added, “If they want to be alone, they’ll throw a small ice barrier over the opening, like this.” A short, thin sheet of ice appeared over the cave’s entrance, blocking it completely. “If they want it soundproof, they just thicken the ice.”

In the blink of an eye, the ice disappeared again.

His tongue trailed down my throat, making me flush hotter, and his fingers brushed my core.

“Can anyone remove the ice just like that, though?”

I didn’t have anything against people who were interested in orgies, but I personally didn’t find the idea appealing. After living with Jern and Gora, I’d heard enough of other people having sex for my whole life.

“No, it’s much harder to alter ice that isn’t your own. If I build a barrier, there are only a few fae in the city strong enough to take it down—and taking a barrier down here without permission would get a fae murdered in a heartbeat. We are warriors, after all.” He resumed walking, and since I was pressed against him, I did too. “Most of the male fae who make love in the caves with others around ask their females to leave their clothing on. We aren’t particular about nudity, but it’s one thing to see a fae’s body and a completely different thing to watch their lover enter it.”

My eyebrows shot upward again. “You’ve been down here to watch before?”

“When I was young and inexperienced.”

I supposed that wasn’t surprising.

We passed the entrance to another cave of hot springs, and another cave full of ice sculptures. All of the sculptures were of men with massive ice erections jutting upward.

I didn’t ask for a description of how that one was used, or allow my mind to consider the possibilities.

Ravv’s breath brushed my ear again in front of that cave as he murmured, “If you ever want to ride an ice statue, it will be a statue of me.”

I snorted—and then my humor died with a thought. “Tell me there’s not a statue of you in there.”

He chuckled. “There’s not.”

He went still for a moment though, and when I looked back at him, I got the feeling he was using his magic to check each of the statues.

A relieved breath escaped him after another minute, though, and he repeated, “There’s not.”

We passed a few more caves with interesting lights and crystals before we came to the final one at the end of the tunnel. It was smaller than the others we’d passed, and the ceiling was covered with even more of the crystals from the first cave. I let out a relieved breath when I didn’t see any statues or ropes or anything.

“You scared me,” I grumbled at him.

He flashed me a grin. “You scare me all the time, Lae.”

That was fair.

And veil, his grin was heart-stopping.

A barrier closed over the entrance, making it entirely private.

“So which kind of possessive are you?” I asked him, as he turned me in his arms so our eyes met. I was pretty sure I already knew his answer, but I had to ask anyway. “The kind that puts up barriers, makes his female wear clothes, or is all about nudity?”

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