Page 68 of A Dance of Water (Moon Song #2)

The strap of her thin gown tickled her arm as it fell, and she tried to right it, but he stopped her with a soft clicking noise.

He trailed his finger over her arm, fingers tightening against the strap before he tugged it down harshly.

She gasped and tried to cover herself, but he didn’t allow it.

His breath fanned over the gentle swell of her breasts, warming the lingering wetness Bastian had left on her skin.

"Having fun without me?" Tharen taunted.

Luella blushed, feeling entirely out of her depth, but Bastian’s parting words gave her pause. She could do this; she could show him that she wouldn’t give in. She could be strong.

She was strong.

"Y-yes," she said, jutting her chin out. But as always, the waver in her voice gave her away.

He found her amusing. "When will the lamb learn to bite, I wonder? Perhaps you need something to help you relax."

This was too much. She couldn’t do this!

Luella wasn’t a temptress.

She fisted her hands on the edges of her gown.

Remember, pet, Bastian’s voice murmured in her mind. The sound of it curled through her, hot and aching.

She breathed in once, deep.

The air smelled of sweet potions, mingling with his snowy scent.

Enticing, designed to pull her in .

But then she remembered: she was made to entice him, too—all of them.

"I don’t need your help…" she said. "I found it in Bastian."

Tharen’s grip tightened on her thighs. "Did you, now? Because I don’t think so." His hand brushed along her chest, dangerously close to where Bastian’s mouth had just been. She gasped from the touch. "If you found relief, I doubt you’d still be so"—he placed his mouth by her ear—" sensitive ."

"I—"

He pulled away from her. "Don’t try to tempt me, lamb. I’ve had centuries to work on my patience. The same cannot be said for you. It’s only a matter of time before you break and beg me to give you pleasure."

A challenge was laced in his words—would she accept?

Or would she continue to let him think her weak?

Her hand fluttered to her chest, feeling the warm amulet nestled between her breasts.

"I don’t beg. And certainly not you," Luella whispered.

He merely hummed in response.

She felt him pull away from her, and the air shifted—emptier, colder without him. She snapped her thighs shut and tugged the hem of her gown down, quickly righting the fallen strap.

A rustle in the room, a soft trickle of liquid being poured, and the faint fizzing of potions.

There was a loud silence, and she wished for something to break it.

Finally, he spoke: "Any dreams?"

Her fingers tightened around the amulet, only then realizing she was still holding it. "No," she said, grateful for a change in topic. But she would never miss the taunting layer underneath his words. "I’ve been so tired lately from training. I wanted to ask you about it…"

She hated revealing she relied on him for anything, but the Prima held centuries of intelligence behind his icy eyes. She was not so proud as to ignore such a source of knowledge.

"That’s probable. Though, we’ll continue to watch it. If you remember any dreams, no matter how inconsequential they seem, you will let me know. "

Her lips parted, poised for a rebuttal to the demand in his tone, but she thought better of it and gave a soft nod.

She heard the grin in his voice as he said, "See, you can behave."

They were gaining on her. She felt the threads in her soul and heard the sound of their footfalls over the roar of the rain.

Her boots kicked up mud and leaves as she skidded to a stop, hands digging into the side of a tree.

"You can’t hide, Princess," Tharen called out.

They had been taunting her, deliberately working her up to get a reaction out of her. And with every passing day of endless training, she refused to give in—save for the display of lightning, the only time she had let her feelings get the better of her.

And she feared this time, she would have no choice but to give in.

Everything was different. The rain was harsher, the storm more violent. And her hunters were not going easy on her.

If I catch you, maybe I can have a taste again, Bastian’s words echoed in her mind.

Her pace faltered. She ignored him.

Crackling embers made her heart thunder. The King was close.

And she swore, over the sound of the rain, she heard footsteps, trailing closely behind her—a silent watcher. A cold shiver ran down her spine.

Tharen’s voice was the loudest of them all. "Come out, little lamb!"

A deep rumble of thunder resounded in tune with cracking bolts of lightning.

Her chest ached, and she whimpered as she tried to keep the power within her locked away.

She was scared, so scared to give in, to feel powerless. A need for control forced her to shove it down, lock it away.

The pounding footsteps grew louder. "There you are," a voice said right behind her.

And she gasped .

Strong arms locked around her waist and hoisted her up. "No!" she pleaded.

Her hands tangled in braids, and the crisp scent of winter wrapped around her as Tharen threw her over his shoulder.

"I think this has gone on long enough." Tharen’s voice was even but laced with cruelty.

The hard muscles of his shoulder dug into her stomach, and she slammed her fists against his back, feeling the blood rush to her head from being held so carelessly. He did not flinch from her punches; she felt his shoulders quake with barely restrained laughter. He merely saw her as a joke.

"Where are you taking me?" she demanded, but her words were drowned out by a fearsome quake of thunder, making her tremble against him.

He did not reply to her. She swayed with each step he took, lightheaded.

Finally, his steps slowed, the ground sloped downward, and she fisted her hands in the back of his shirt to keep from falling. His arm banded over her backside, keeping her from falling.

Fresh, earthy water misted her skin, more than just the pure, chilled water that fell from the sky. And she realized where he had taken her.

"No." She struggled against him. "Tharen, n-no. Please, stop it!"

Tharen only walked deeper into the lake. The water rushed around them, turbulent from the thick droves of rain that fell from the sky and disrupted its clear surface?—

But…

She blinked. The roar of the storm dulled for a moment, replaced by a hush. And she saw an untouched lake, two lovers lying on a bed of grass by its side. A male with dark hair and pale skin placed kisses on a willowy, dark-haired female’s body, going down, down, down.

And—

Tharen threw her from his shoulder, and she fell down into the water’s embrace like the arms of a lover.