Elysia paced to and fro in the room, her heart pounding hard as she rubbed her palm together, she was supposed to be unaffected by the affairs of the king, yet for some reason, she couldn't stop thinking of the king and the woman he brought back from his journey. Who was she and why was she here? She asked herself.
She took a deep breath and wiped her sweaty hands on her dress as her maid walked into the room to prepare her for the night.
Elysia almost jumped out of her skin when the door suddenly barged open, her eyes widening as she watched Azreal walk into her room like he owned it.
"Y-your Majesty, welcome back," Elysia and Helen greeted calmly, bowing deeply. Her hand desperately trying to hold onto the dress.
"Leave," she heard Azrael command without breaking eyes contact with her, as Helen scurried away almost as soon as he barked out the command.
"Your Majesty, you arrived quite early. How was your journey?" Elysia spoke when the door closed with a thud. Her voice soft, sounding a lot weaker than she had expected.
"Why did you run off like that? Did you miss me already?" Azrael asked with a sly smirk, stepping forward. His hand was already working on the button of his shirt.
"N—yes," Elysia stammered, her cheeks flushing a deep red. She quickly tried to compose herself. So he had seen her? But why didn't he call her back, Elsyia thought to herself. Clearing her throat. "Helen had already prepared the bath, I thought to freshen up before coming to welcome you," she added, biting her lower lip.
Azrael smirked, his eyes glinting with amusement "Is that so?" he drawled, continuing to unbutton his shirt as he walked forward, coming to a halt only when they were a few inches apart.
Elysia's face reddened even more, and she averted her gaze, flustered. She replied quickly, her voice tinged with nervousness. "Yes, you Majesty. That is all,"
Azrael chuckled softly, He gently lifted her chin, forcing her to meet his piercing gaze. This was all too familiar to her, it reminded her of the day he marked her. "Ah, look at my mark," Azrael said in a low tone, sending a sensational shiver down her spine.
His long finger traced around the little tattoo that had formed, it was more visible now that the bruise was fading. "How does it feel?" He asked, his obsidian black eyes reflecting her.
Elysia almost let out a moan, the way his finger caressed her neck, making her almost roll her eyes backwards. She bit harder on her lower lip, trying to comport herself.
"Tsk," Azrael tutted his eyes gleaming with disappointment, "You are hurting yourself," he said, his finger stroking her lip till she let go.
In one languish motion, he wiped away the blood on her lip using his thumb, then he brought the thumb to his mouth, licking off the blood on it. Elysia's eyes widened in shock, her face already flushed. The king just licked her blood, did he not find that disgusting? She tried moving away from him, but he held her in a firm grip, circling his hand around her waist.
"Your Majesty," she breathed out, turning her face away. She refused to look at the king in the eyes again after that embarrassing moment. "It has been a long day for both of us, Your Majesty. We need to take a bath," she whispered against his chest. She could smell him, feel his body heat radiating into her.
"Yes we do, how about you undress while I watch you, huh?" Azreal suggested, his darkened eyes locked with hers.
Elysia was about to protest but stopped herself from doing so, she knew it was fruitless to argue with the king, he always had things done his way. Her heart continued beating wildly as she pulled off her dress letting the soft material slip from her shoulders and land on the ground leaving her completely naked in the presence of the man standing in front of her who looked like a predator.
"Step into the tub," She heard him say when they got to the bathroom, his deep voice sending shivers down her spine. Elysia did as she was told and stepped into the water, slowly lowering herself into the warm water.
"Good girl," Azreal praised, his eyes not leaving hers. He took his shirt off and stepped into the tub behind her, his legs brushing against hers as the tub was not big enough for the both of them. "I want to wash your hair now," He announced as poured the soap on his hand and began to massage it in her hair.
Elysia closed her eyes welcoming the gentle and relaxing movement of his hands, he was very good at this, her heart tightening as she wondered how many woman he had done this for. "I don't normally do this," He said as if hearing her thoughts, Elysia smiled to herself, pleased by his words.
They sat in silence as he washed the soap off her hair. Elysia could feel his warm breath fanning her neck, that was how close they sat.
"You smell so good," She heard him say as his fingers left her hair moving down her neck. His fingers tracing down her neck to her shoulder and down to her back sending shivers down her spine. "I want to see your face," before Elysia could respond, Azreal had turned her to face him, so close to him that she was kneeling in-between his long legs.
Azreal was beautiful in every shape and way, and he looked even more mouth watering with the candle light luminating on the side of his face. His eyes darkened, so dark that Elysia could lose herself in them. She felt his hand move to her neck as he pulled her closer to him, so close that she could taste his breath in her mouth which was slightly opened. His eyes moved from her eyes to her lips and stayed there for a few seconds before moving to neck. "I have to taste you Elysia," He whispered before pressing his lips on her neck so gently that Elysia feared she would cry from his gentleness.