Page 76 of The Wolf and Her Shadows

“I suppose all good things must come to an end,” I say, letting my arms flop back down onto the mattress.

Mariane giggles softly, slowly lifting her head off my chest while swinging a leg over me, pinning me in place beneath her as she straddles me. Staring down at me with a mischievous smirk, she drags her hair back and forth across my bare skin, purposely making sure it brushes over my nipples.

I can’t help but chuckle, playfully rolling my hips from side to side in a half-hearted attempt to buck her off. She only laughs harder, grabbing my wrists and pulling my arms above my head. My own laughter dies in my throat when her grip on my wrists tightens, effectively restraining me.

The look in her eyes hints at a hunger for more than just food as she leans down and kisses me. My own eyes immediately fall closed and it’s all I can do not to whimper. Not to writhe beneath her and beg her to devour me. Better yet, beg her to tie me down and use my face as her throne while I devour her.

Clenching my fists, I use every ounce of self-restraint I possess to pull my mouth off hers and force my eyes open, knowing they’re no doubt glazed over with lust.

“Mariane, we can’t.” I shake my head, giving her what is hopefully an apologetic look. “Not here. Not with your mother in the next room.”

A positively feral growl tears its way out of her throat as she throws her head back in obvious frustration. I dart my gaze to the door, praying her mother didn’t hear it and feel the need to investigate. A low chuckle instantly draws my attention back to the woman on top of me.

“Unfortunately, you’re right. But, tonight…” Mariane rolls her hips against mine once. “Me and you are going to take care of some unfinished business.”

“Whatever Her Majesty wishes,” I whisper, fearing if I spoke any louder my voice might crack.

“I was hoping you’d say that.”

And then, as if nothing had happened, Mariane lets go of my wrists and climbs off of me, and the bed, snatching her shirt up off the floor and tugging it over her head. For a moment, I simply stare at her in shock, my mind still muddled thanks to my arousal. Until she raises a brow at me, that is, then I quickly scramble out of bed as well.

Heading to the door, she chuckles, and I barely manage to pull my own shirt over my head in time to avoid flashing her mother, who happens to be on the other side when she opens it.

Sera lets out a squeak of surprise, her fist held aloft as if she’d been about to knock. “Oh. Good, you’re awake. I was just about to ask if you two were hungry.”

Mariane glances over her shoulder, giving me a seductive smirk. “Ravenous.” I pray my blush isn’t noticeable as she turns back to her mother and asks, “Does that mean you’ve, by any chance, already made lunch?”

“Of course I have.” Her mother crosses her arms, narrowing her eyes in a playful glare. “You think I’m foolish enough to wake you up without having food ready to offer you?”

I clear my throat, doing my best to sound casual as I say, “Apologies if we kept you waiting. I only just woke up.”

“Oh, that's quite alright, dear.” She waves away my apology. “I had a feeling you’d both be sleeping in pretty late. Hells, I’d still be in bed myself if Greyva hadn’t come knocking earlier.”

“What did she want?” Mariane asks, brushing past her mother and heading towards the kitchen.

Sera chuckles, following her daughter on her quest for food. “She just wanted to make sure you were alright. I told her you hadn’t tested your magic yet, but that you’d at least woken up and had seemed all there in the head.” She glances over at me, brows raised. “She is, right? All there in the head?”

I shrug, taking the same seat at the table as the night before, beside Mariane. “From what I can tell, she is.”

“My mental faculties are perfectly fine.” Rolling her eyes, Mariane reaches over and places her hand on my thigh, giving it a tight squeeze. “And don't worry, I intend to test my magic out later tonight. Thoroughly.”

It takes a great deal of effort to focus on the delicious meal on the table and not start squirming in my seat.

“Good.” Sera nods, oblivious to my current situation as she begins filling the three cups on the table with what looks to be a pitcher of wine. “Just make sure you do it outside the village. We wouldn’t want a repeat of what happened the last time you’d decided to test your magic.”

Something about the way she said that piques my interest. Glancing over at Mariane, I see her eyes are downcast and she’s biting her lip. There’s also a deep blush reddening her cheeks. Hmm.

Shifting my gaze back and forth between the two women, I ask, “And what exactly did happen last time?” Fixing my stare on Mariane, I pointedly add, “I find myself quite curious all of a sudden.”

To my amusement, she merely lets out a huff. Sera on the other hand laughs, placing a cup down in front of each of us before taking her own seat. “It’s alright Mariane. You go ahead and start eating.” she says, gesturing to the large platter filled with the same roasted meats and vegetables as we’d eaten at the celebration last night. “I’ll gladly tell Vannaria the story for you.”

“Don’t you fucking dare,” Mariane growls, jabbing her fork in her direction. “You swore you’d never bring it up again.”

Placing a hand on her chest, her mother gasps, “I didn’t bring it up. You did. Don’t act as if that wasn’t exactly what you were just referring to, Little Wolf.” When her daughter simply stabs her fork into a large piece of chicken, grumbling to herself, Sera turns to me with a broad grin. “To answer your question, Mariane had waited until I’d left the house to invite her partner at the time over for a bit of fun. They’d been together for a while and my daughter apparently decided to spice things up a bit, using her magic. Long story short, the entire village was made aware of what they were getting up to thanks to how loud the other girl was–”

“That’s enough, Mother!”

Knowing my own cheeks are likely glowing a bright purple now, I turn to Mariane, barely able to contain my laughter. “But, it was just about to get to the good part.”