Fifty-One ◑ The Bath (18+)

Dimitri's amber eyes darkened with an unmistakable feeling. As Lucille waded closer to him, he stared at her like he'd never seen her plainly before. "What are you doing?"

"Taking a bath," Lucille answered, trying her best to hide the fact that she was nervous as all hell. This was probably one of the stupidest ideas to ever come to her, but it was too late to back out. "Now I'm swimming towards you."

"I can see that quite well," he muttered. With a long sigh, he reached for the towel once more. "I'll just leave you to it—"

"No." Panic jumped at her. She didn't even bother to erase her pleading tone. "Please stay, Dimitri. I want to talk about it. I need to talk about it."

"Alright," he said after a pause, pointing at the other corner of the pool. "Keep your distance then."

Lucille swam back into the spot he gestured to. "Is this good?"

"Yes." He heaved a deep breath and closed his eyes. "Please make sure you're underwater from the neck below."

She obeyed. "It's safe to look."

Dimitri didn't open his eyes. "What is it about what I said that bothers you?"

"It doesn't bother me," she said. "I just want to know if you mean it. How you mean it."

"I mean it and I mean it in every sense possible." His eyelids fluttered open. When he saw that she was frowning at him, he added, "Look, it's not a big deal. Okay, obviously it's a big deal for me but it doesn't have to be that way for you."

"Why not?"

"Because a lot of things are happening to you and I don't want to add to that," he said patiently. "You're confused enough as it is."

Lucille didn't say anything. Her body was humming with energy. She couldn't stay in the corner and not do anything when he was right there in front of her, glorious and beautiful and just . . . him. Her hands were itching to get a feel of his skin, so she twisted them behind her back.

However, he seemed to have mistaken her restraint for utter shock, because he said, "I'm not asking you to love me back. I won't ask you for anything—"

"But I want to give you something, everything," she murmured.

His jaw tightened. "I'm happy with what we have. It's stupid of me to drop that on you and I'm sorry—"

"But it was exactly what I needed to hear," she interrupted.

With that, she moved closer to him, navigating through the water as slowly and as gracefully as she could until she was floating in front of him. That was one rule broken, but it wasn't enough. She decided to break the second one by rising above the water, its surface now around her middle.

Then, she closed the remaining distance between them and trailed her fingers down his broad chest.

Dimitri kept his gaze on hers. "Lucille. . . ."

His voice had dipped into a low, quiet hum, almost like a warning.

That alone sent another bolt of heat in her body. "Yes?"

"You're playing a dangerous game here, and if you don't take your hand off me, I'm going to think you're agreeing to finish that game."

Lucille let her hand travel lower, down to his abdomen, his navel. She felt him draw in a sharp breath.

"It's not a game," she whispered, reaching even lower. "But I'll finish it with you."

Before she could close her hand over her prize, he moved away from her. She thought this would be the part where he'd yell at her and leap out of the pool, but instead he grabbed her by the waist and spun her around. Now she was the one pressed against the corner, his arms propped on either side of her.

The sudden shift was shocking. For a while she couldn't speak. All she knew was that she was no longer the one in control.

And she liked it.

She grabbed his face and brought her lips on his in a deep kiss.

Immediately, Dimitri kissed her back, his lips moving urgently on hers. She parted her lips to grant him entrance, which he instantly took. His tongue swept over hers, sending currents of pleasure down to her core.

She wrapped her arms around him, moaning against his mouth as his hands gripped her behind. His touch was gentle but firm at the same time, like he was making sure that she'd feel every single connection of his skin.

And she did. She could feel him everywhere, and it was driving her mad with desire. It was pooling at the pit of her stomach, desperate to find a release. With her blood swimming, she angled her hips and grinded against him, reveling at the groan that escaped his lips.

Never had she wanted someone like this. Never had she been desperate and satisfied at the same time. Never had she melted with such passion, which made her question just how long she'd been yearning for him.

It didn't matter, Lucille thought vaguely, biting back another moan as Dimitri's mouth traveled down her neck. She was breathing hard now, her hand raking through his hair as he nipped at the base of her throat. She was afraid she'd just erupt like a novice at the first sensation of his thumbs brushing over her nipples, so she threw her head back, draping her leg around his waist to signal him that she was ready.

But of course, he happily continued with his lazy assault.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to take it much longer, she reached under the water and closed her hand over his hard length. God, she needed him inside her—

Dimitri pulled away from her. "We shouldn't be doing this."

It took her a good few seconds to register that. "What?"

"Let's stop." He was breathing rapidly. "This isn't right."

"But why?" Lucille half-whined, half-demanded. "Don't you want to?"

He let out a short laugh. "Oh, I really, really want to." He paused, clearing his throat. "Um, you're still holding the evidence that proves I really want to."

She squeezed him, watching his eyes go hazy with lust. "Then let's keep going."

"No," he said after a beat, swimming away from her, far enough that she couldn't touch him. Then, he carried her out of the water like she weighed nothing and set her down on the edge of the pool. He took one of the towels and draped it over her shoulders. "There you go."

Her skin was still humming with desire. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, darling." Dimitri planted a chaste kiss on her knee, but the sensation shot straight to her groin. "You didn't do anything wrong. I just don't want this to be a one-time thing."

"Good." She tried to slide back into the water. "Because I think it can be an everyday thing."

Dimitri laughed, gripping her thighs to keep her in place. "You don't mean that."

"I do." Lucille closed the towel over her, grudgingly accepting that it wasn't happening tonight. "You find this weird, don't you?"

He nodded. "That's right."

"Is it about him?"

Pause. She waited, her breath stuck in her throat.

"Partly." Dimitri ran a hand over his hair. "You know how it is. I can't help thinking about the possibility of you still in love with him."

"That's fair." Lucille finally relaxed. "But you don't seriously think I'm using you, right?"

"Not at all." He raised an eyebrow playfully, resting his chin on her knee. "Are you?"

"Of course not!" She ruffled his hair, loving the fact that they could be so open to each other without things getting awkward.

Still, it made her wonder: was she still in love with Cade? Had she really fallen in love with him again in the brief time they'd met each other as different people? What would it mean if she really had fallen?

As though aware of her thoughts, Dimitri smiled and said, "I'm still going to be here until you figure it out. Take your time."

◑≡◑≡◑≡◑

“Is everyone ready now?” Keiran asked, his voice echoing in the bathhouse.

Dimitri raised their makeshift bag, which was filled with a bunch of bread, extra robes, and the candle box. “All ready here.”

“Lucille?” Keiran raised an eyebrow. “All good on your end?”

“Yeah,” she answered, sitting at the edge of the pool with her legs underwater. “Let’s do it.”

At once, as Keiran raised a hand, the priests put out all the gas lamps in the bathhouse and exited in a neat, single file. The God of Fate then approached Lucille, positioning himself behind her so he could secure a blindfold around her head.

Instantly, darkness enveloped her. She could only hear Keiran’s gentle breathing and the lapping water around her lower half as she sank slowly into the pool. His hand was on the small of her back, slowly guiding her.

This was it. The real test of his theory.

Lucille had prepared for this for days, putting herself in a resolute mindset that would fit her first two experiences in opening portals. She had no idea how far she’d propel them forward (if this would even work at all), but the more present, the better.

“Okay, it’s showtime,” Keiran whispered, and let her submerge completely.

She clenched her body to avoid floating back up. The water pressed on the top of her head, barring any other sound other that the whoosh, just like Dimitri said it would, emulating the stillness of the lake. Bit by bit, she relaxed, letting herself touch the bottom of the pool.

And slowly, her consciousness traveled all the way to Crete, back to the night of her death.