Page 61 of Traitor Witch

More splashing follows a long silence. “We’re told it’s a test of devotion and dedication. If you’re too easily distracted and you let yourself focus on the pain rather than the intention, you won’t be able to control the magic, anyway. After they're inked into our skin, we're unable to use magic for the next day or so while they settle."

“That’s shit.” I have a new admiration for witches. “What do you have to do to go home?”

She goes quiet and there are no more splashing sounds to let me know she’s still okay.

“If you don’t want to say, that’s okay,” I blurt.

“No, it’s just... I have no idea how to even start. I thought Alletta would help, or at least give me a clue.”

“We’re worldly pir—men.” I barely refrain from calling us pirates.

I suspect Nilsa already knows, but confirming it is another matter. She already doubts her place among us, it's probably best not to add our illegal activities into the mix.

“Maybe one of us could help?" If my visions weren't bestowed upon me at the whim of the Goddess Fate, maybe I'd be more helpful. That doesn't mean the others will be as useless as I am. "Kier is almost seven hundred years old, and Val’s been to every port in the kingdom.”

She sighs and the splashing resumes. “I don’t suppose I have many other options."

“Certainly nothing to lose,” I agree. “Are you still okay?”

“That’s relative, isn’t it?”

Her evasive answer has me moving instinctively closer before I realise what I’m doing.

“Cas picked out some new clothes for you.” Switching the topic seems like a safe bet. “There were no Solar robes but—”

“I don’t want to wear Solar robes ever again,” she blurts, then continues, her voice softer. “So much… so much of what I thought I knew is wrong. What does it matter what we wear when Alletta wears both black and white and calls down the powers of both the Sun and the Moon?” She laughs, humourlessly. “I’m sure, now I’m an exile, they don’t care one bit.”

“Either way, the fabric is soft.” I can’t really describe more than that to her. “We also found some herbs and things. We weren’t sure what a witch would need, but we got a bit of everything.” I hear her dip down into the water. “I could wash your hair for you, if you want.”

Shit, I shouldn’t have said that. But the words are out there now, with no way to take them back.

Another long pause.

“Alright.”

My heartbeat soars.

“Shampoo is to your left.”

I extend my hand until I feel a bottle, and bring it over to her, placing it on the floor beside me before reaching for her. I almost worry that I’ll accidentally punch her in the face, butshe takes my hand in her soft ones and leads my fingers to her scalp.

I say a silent prayer of thanks that Cas isn’t here. I love my twin, but he would insist on helping. Nilsa trusts me to know what I’m capable of.

Pampering my mate? I’m always going to be capable of that.

Now that I know where everything is, it’s a simple matter of tipping the contents of the bottle into my hand and massaging it into her thick tresses.

The moment I start, she moans.

My cock goes rock hard in an instant. I have to shift to make sure my front is pressed against the side of the bath where she won’t see. My fingers trace soapy trails along her scalp, and I can’t help brushing them against her ears, trying to learn their shape the only way I can.

Delicate. Slightly pointed and not pierced.

What does she make of Rysen’s piercings?

So much of me wants to trace the line of her nose, learn the shape of her cheekbones and the curve of her brows. But she hasn’t given me that permission yet. I’m skirting the lines as it is.

When I’m done, she gives a happy little sigh and dips down into the water to rinse, but I can’t move.