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"You are very handsome. You also smell like my papa, and that's just weird." I leaned my head against his very strong arm. "But can I ask another question?"
"Always," he promised.
"What if I end up selected for the Path of Obligation?"
"Won't happen."
"But what if itdoes?" I insisted.
"Then you will find something that you're passionate about. Baking, as an example, or maybe making the clothes for these priestesses. Something, Nari. If I know you, it will be something magnificent."
And strangely, that made me feel a lot better about all of this. So did his story, because if the God of Temptation could figure out a way to give him and Amerlee a happy ending, then maybe I would find one as well.
Chapter 8
Nariana
Jamik escorted me proudly to the far side of the temple, but this time he didn't go around the outside. He cut right through the center, patting my hand gently when we passed a room that leaked moans through the door. There was nothing at all to see, and I'd known that this part was here, but I'd always been considered too young to understand.
In a way, it was a big compliment. It was also Jamik's way of showing he trusted me. The center area of the Temple of Temptation was meant for new priests and priestesses to perform. It kept them in a controlled environment, so if things got out of hand, their equally inexperienced guardians would have someone to assist. I knew all of this, and yet I couldn't understand what getting out of hand would mean exactly. I also wasn't quite sure how to ask.
"So they just have sex in there?" I asked.
Jamik chuckled. "'Just' and 'sex' are not two words that should go together. The people who seek out our priests and priestesses aren't looking for something boring. Not usually. There are also places where men come to hit a woman. Sometimes, it's a man who wants another to beat him - or a woman, I suppose. There are many temptations of the body, and it is our duty to offer them all."
"But what if she doesn't want to?" I grunted, knowing that wasn't enough. "Like, if someone was in there hitting Amerlee, and he hit too hard?"
Slowly, he licked his lips. That always happened when he was choosing how to answer me carefully. "Each session has an agreement. Priests of the Word typically set those up in advance. On the date it's scheduled, a Priest of the Body - or Priestess, although for now let's assume they're the same - will show up. It's always someone who could accept the conditions. In the rare cases where a specific priest is requested, they're allowed to counter offer with their limits."
"Ok..."
He nodded, knowing that didn't make much sense yet. "But the priest always has the right to stop things. Doesn't matter what it is. If a man wants to lay with Amerlee, and she actually agrees? Well, she can call it off because he has bad breath. That's where my job comes in. If he won't respect her decision, then I make him."
"So that's why you're in the room the whole time?" I asked. "Why can't she just call out to you?"
"Because sometimes that's not possible. It could be part of their session that prevents it, like a gag in her mouth. It could be that the person she's with decides to choke her until she can't breathe. That is why our priests always have a guardian assigned for them by our god. I amsworn, Nariana, to keep her safe in all ways. Not just prevent bruises to her body or broken bones, but also to keep them from shattering her mind, wounding her heart, or anything else that would hurt her. Sometimes, the patrons don't want to stop. Telling them isn't enough, so we have to haul them out. Then there are the ones who fight back."
"Against a guardian?" I asked, because they were trained to be very good in all types of protection.
"Yeah," he admitted. "When I was in my ninth year, a man tried to cut a priestess's throat. He'd requested a scenario that would involve a knife, and then he broke the script partway through and did his best to remove her head. Thank Zeal, there was a group passing through like we are now. The second guardian was able to pull the man off, and the other priestess administered aid. The woman who was cut? She healed without even a scar."
"Because Zeal made it possible?" I asked.
"I like to think so. Needless to say, she refused any knife play after that. The patron was arrested, though, and tried for attempted murder. It's still a crime to hurt us without consent." He rubbed my hand where it lay on his arm. "Our service isn't always easy, Nari. That's why our god spoils us more than the others. We're given access to the finest clothes, the best food, and rather lavish lifestyles because we pay for it in our own way."
I bit my lips together, thinking about that. "When do we get to learn about the other gods?" I finally asked.
He chuckled. "Um, most of that comes in your last two years. You'll assist with the holidays, and groups of acolytes are assigned turns at the Temple of All Gods. Not the Day of Surrender, though. That's hard for even the most experienced priests."
But the mention of it made me curious. "Is there any way to see where my real brothers are? My sister should probably be in a temple by now, too. Possibly even my little brother, but it'll be a while before the baby is old enough."
"The baby isn't a baby anymore," he reminded me. "You've been gone for five years, you know."
"Four and a half," I teased. "I'm onlyfourteen!Besides, my mother probably had more babies. I always wonder if my parents were trying to single-handedly populate the temples."
Jamik chuckled. "No, that's not really how it works. People simply love contact, and not all are as lucky as us." Then he paused at a door, making me realize we'd come to Amerlee's room from the opposite side from what I was used to. "I wonder if we beat her back."
He knocked, and a voice from the inside called, "Come!" but it wasn't Amerlee's.
