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I watched as Sel disappeared down the twisted corridor that led in a round-about way to the Palace kitchens and then took my own route, which led to a seamstress I knew I could trust.
I wished that I could stay and assist my Lady with her bath instead. I wanted to scrub every inch of her skin until the Glow of Lolth emerged. She was beautiful, even now, though the human dross had created a kind of shell around her true form. But I knew that once she fully emerged and came into her power, no male in the Court would be able to resist her.
Well, with the possible exception of Mordren—the Lord Regent had been plotting his conquest of the Throne for years now. He wouldn’t be easily swayed from his desire for power—not even now that the Lost Princess had come home.
I thought of the flow of magic I had felt coming from her when she touched my Markings and I admit it made me weak. I wanted to offer myself to her—to serve her in any way she wanted—any way she needed.
For as long as I could remember, I had dreamed of having a true Queen to serve. One I could give myself to completely in any and every way. But I knew it could be dangerous to offer myself without reservation. Once the Princess’s powers began to emerge and she took her true form and came of age, her Thirst would start to grow.
It was said that back in the days of Lolth, the Spider Queen might drain as many as twenty Mortals at a time. And then she would sip from her Chosen Ones—the Fae courtiers she chose to wait on her and serve her at Court, giving both pain and almost unbearable pleasure with her bite.
Just the thought of that—the image of the Lost Princess sinking her fangs into my throat, just where the Markings were, made my shaft so hard it hurt. It would be dangerous but the danger would be so very sweet…
No—I pushed the impulse away. Right now my main focus needed to be tending to my Lady’s needs and keeping her safe. She was vulnerable at the moment—not powerful enough even to defend herself, let alone to fight one as strong as Mordren. Her magic was there, just under the surface, but it couldn’t emerge until she shed the human shell that had formed over her true beauty.
Later I might be able to indulge my fantasies but for now it was enough to keep her safe. I hurried on my way.
9
Lily
Alone at last. I started the water running in the vast marble tub but it was so big I knew it would take some time to fill. I spent a few minutes wandering around the magical Cavern just looking at things and touching them.
I trailed my fingertips over the carved wooden bedposts and rubbed my palm over the white fur bedspread—as I had thought, it was amazingly soft and warm. And to think, I had resigned myself to sleeping in my minivan that night, cold and cramped and miserable. Who would have thought I’d be staying someplace so luxurious instead?
Take it easy, Lily, I told myself. It’s not like this set up doesn’t come with a price. They still think you’re the Lost Princess.
Which was impossible, I was sure. Any magic here was just the result of the cavern itself—hadn’t Krynn said it was the place where the first Queen of the Dark Fae had stayed and that her magic still lingered here? Surely that was all I had felt when I’d touched him and Seldarin.
It was nice of the two of them to want to serve me, but I was going to head back to my minivan in the morning and be sure it wasn’t towed. I didn’t belong here in this glittering magical palace and I certainly didn’t want to get mixed up in the court intrigue going on here. Someone had already tried to kill me once and that was once to much for comfort as far as I was concerned.
The tub finally filled and I was able to shed my clothes and slip into the steaming water. The tub was deep and I was submerged up to my chin—it felt amazing.
If you’ve never lived in your car, you have no idea how difficult it is to bathe on a regular basis. If you can afford a membership to a health club, you can use the showers there. But if you can’t, you’re stuck going to truck stops and paying to shower in places that aren’t always very secure. After a few scary run-ins with men who were definitely after more than personal hygiene, I had started going longer and longer between showers. Better dirty than sexually assaulted or dead.
I’ve always been a very clean person though, so not being able to bathe regularly had really bothered me. It was such a relief to finally get clean again—especially in such a luxurious tub. Now if only I had some shampoo and soap…
As though someone had heard my thought, I saw a shimmer from the corner of my eye. When I turned my head I saw a marble ledge beside the bathtub I hadn’t noticed before. On it were some expensive looking bottles and jars. They were all made of colorful crystal that sparkled and threw rainbow patterns on the walls when I picked them up and turned them this way and that.
Delighted at my find, (I’ve always loved fancy bath products,) I opened them and sniffed experimentally. All of them had delicate, delicious scents like flowers from a magical realm—which I supposed was technically where I was.
The contents of one of the jars made foam when I rubbed the sweet-smelling paste between my fingers. I decided to use it on my hair and I scrubbed my scalp vigorously, enjoying the lovely scent as I did so.
After rinsing, I poured what seemed to be a thin kind of conditioner from a tall, fluted crystal bottle into my palm and rubbed it into my hair as well. I worked the tangles out with my fingers and then rinsed again, frowning as I noticed that I seemed to have a lot more gray in my hair than I had the last time I’d had a chance to bathe.
I used to have long, golden brown hair that fell almost to my hips when I was younger, but now it was cut just around my collarbones. The shorter haircut had been practical and easier to take care of but now I wished it was long again. Also, it would be nice if it wasn’t going gray just at a time when I couldn’t afford to go to the salon and get it dyed. Hell, at this point I couldn’t even afford a box of dye to do it myself. I sighed and told myself to get used to the gray.
Pushing the doleful thoughts out of my head, I investigated a few more of the cut-crystal jars. I used a sandy, foamy scrub I found in one of them to exfoliate myself thoroughly which felt so good.
After rinsing, I drained most of the water and refilled the tub. Then I relaxed against its sloping side and just let myself drift and soak.
Wouldn’t it be nice if I really did belong here? The thought floated into my mind, and I admit, I indulged it. Because, well, it would be nice. I could just imagine being treated like a Princess and living in the amazing Fae Palace. Dressing in gorgeous clothes and sleeping in a huge bed. Not to mention being waited on by two huge, muscular, handsome Fae who made me feel things that no other man had ever made me feel before. It all sounded like a fairytale come true.
I lingered in the daydream and couldn’t help remembering how hot and bothered I had gotten when I was stroking the Markings on Krynn and Seldarin’s necks. How tight my nipples had gotten and how achy and wet I felt between my legs…
I confess that just remembering how aroused I’d gotten turned me on all over again. I kept picturing the way Krynn’s glowing green eyes had gone half-lidded and the way Seldarin’s bronze eyes had burned with lust. I kept hearing the growl in his voice when he demanded that I touch them…
I normally never masturbate—I’ve never had much of a sex drive and as I had gotten older, what little I had seemed to completely disappear. But it was back now—back with a vengeance and suddenly I found myself in serious need.
