Page 31 of The Sunbound Princess
His eyes bulged. I loosened my grip, and he scrabbled behind the counter, producing a key. “H-Here,” he gasped, letting it clatter against the wood. “Third floor, end of the hall, last door on the right. You won’t b-be disturbed.”
I hurried Bel up the stairs with Dain on our heels. Bel clutched my arm, her fingers digging into my skin. Behind us, Dain’s breathing was labored. When I glanced at him over my shoulder, he’d clenched his jaw so tightly I worried he might crack a molar.
Moans drifted from behind doors as we stumbled onto the third floor and moved down the hall. By the time we reached our room, Bel ground my bones together with her grip.
I fumbled the key, almost dropping it twice before I managed to unlock the door. The three of us fell inside, and I slammed the door and leaned against it, arousal pounding through me like the king’s cavalry.
The brothel-keeper hadn’t lied. The room was large and well-appointed, with a big bed and a wide window that let moonlight slant over the polished floor. A fire crackled in the hearth. Someone had placed an oversize copper tub in front of it. Thedamn thing was big enough for a party—which was undoubtedly the point. Saldu’s brothels catered to all sorts of nighttime proclivities, and the Wayward Blossom was obviously on board withgroup sessions. The tub was already filled, steam curling from the surface. The brothel’s employees had likely prepared all the rooms in the same manner. Once the “festivities” started, the staff would undoubtedly be too occupied to fetch water.
Dain staggered to an upholstered chair and clutched the back. “Fuck,” he breathed, closing his eyes.
Bel yanked her hood down. She waited a second, then ripped her cloak open and flung the garment to the floor. “What do we do?” she gasped, pressing her hands to her flushed cheeks.
Blood pounded in my dick, which thrust against the front of my trousers like an animal trying to escape a cage. My head spun, the haze of desire making words big and blocky on my tongue. “The potion…should wear off…by morning.”
Dain gripped the chair, and the wood creaked ominously.
“Morning?” Bel asked in a strangled tone. The noise from the tavern was a faint, thumping beat below us. “What are we supposed to do until then?”
Arousal coursed through me. I dragged a shaking hand down my face, and I tried not to look at her—or Dain. I fixed my gaze on the window and spoke through clenched teeth.
“We wait it out.”
Chapter
Eight
EZABELL
Wait it out?
Impossible. Not when lust scorched my veins and arousal pounded like a drum between my legs. I’d told Nikolas I ached, but that was wrong.
Iburned, a hungry fire licking over my skin.
But that wasn’t quite right, either. It was too tame—too ordinary to describe what I felt. Because I felt like I’d been dipped in molten gold, and now the searing, dripping metal stuck to me, clung to me, sizzling my skin away to seep into my bones.
Every breath brought another blast. Every brush of my clothes against my skin stoked the flames higher. They were going to burn through me and into the floor and then keep going forever.
The need was all-consuming, every wave threatening to suck me under. Pain stabbed at my nipples. My skin felt too tight, like I’d stuffed my limbs into a gown made for someone half my size. I was soaked between my legs, the scent of my arousallike a cloud around me. And, oh gods, Nikolas and Dain could probably scent it.
I stood in the center of the room with my fists clenched and my heart racing. Nikolas remained against the door, his muscles straining under his shirt. The bulge between his legs left no doubt he was just as tormented by the love potion. His throat bobbed. He squeezed his eyes shut, a low moan escaping him.
The sound went straight to the juncture of my thighs. I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from echoing it.
“Fuck,” Dain muttered again. He leaned over the back of the chair, his labored breaths loud in the hushed bedchamber. Moonlight from the window turned his hair a lighter gold.
Immediately, scenes from the river appeared in my head. Dain on his hands and knees, Nikolas thrusting into him from behind. Nikolas on his back with his knees to his chest and moans spilling from his lips. A trail of Nikolas’s semen sliding down Dain’s thigh as he leaned over Nikolas with a predatory look in his eyes. They weren’t just friends or thieves-in-arms. They were lovers.
Undoubtedly, they could satisfy each other, perhaps blunting the love potion’s sharp edges. But I couldn’t suggest it without confessing that I’d watched them at the river.
Besides, it wouldn’t help me. I’d still be trapped in the fire, burning alive while they found relief with each other.
More heat blasted me, punching the breath from my lungs. I doubled over, my hips undulating without my permission.
“I can’t—” I gasped, tears pricking my eyes. My vision blurred as the fire roared higher. Hot moisture flooded me, and my inner muscles squeezed, desperate to clamp down on something.Aroundsomething. A sob ripped from my throat.
Footsteps sounded. Strong hands grasped my shoulders, and Nikolas’s gruff voice rasped in my ear as he pulled me upright. “Shh, my lady. It’s all right.”
