Filed To Story: Spit or Swallow: Kiss Of The Basilisk
“Of what?”
She shrugged, refusing to say anything else. How could she explain it to him? He was a basilisk, the Serpent King-he wasn’t afraid of anything. Sex meant next to nothing to Caspen. But it meant everything to Tem. He had no idea what it was like to be her-to be fragile and human and vulnerable. This wasn’t something he could understand.
Caspen pushed her knees together gently, as if to undo what just happened. “We can wait until you are ready, if that is what you wish.”
When she still didn’t speak, he crawled so he was lying next to her.
They were silent for a while, and she knew Caspen was letting her determine what happened next. She wasn’t ready to confide her true fears. Instead, she whispered, “Do you like doing it?”
Caspen’s breath was on her cheek. “Why do you ask?”
“I’m just curious.”
He looked at her for a long moment before answering. “Yes. I like doing it.”
“Why?”
He shrugged, the muscles rolling in his shoulders. “Instinct, I suppose.”
“But what do you like about it specifically?”
She could tell this was the first time anyone had ever asked him that. Surely, he found this line of questioning bizarre. But he indulged her anyway, saying, “It is a way to bestow pleasure on someone. It is a way to understand them and to taste them.”
At his words, Tem realized she would not be able to avoid her fears. She would have to face them, no matter the consequences. So she asked the question that was gnawing at the edge of her throat. “What if you don’t like the way I taste?”
To her surprise, Caspen smiled. “That is impossible.”
“Why?”
“Because.” He propped himself up on his elbow. “This part of you tastes like heaven.” He brushed his lips up her neck, whispering the rest of his sentence right into her ear. “I have no doubt the rest of you tastes the same.”
A shiver went down her spine.
When Caspen pulled away, they looked at each other in the firelight, and Tem realized she’d never felt so vulnerable in her life. This was scarier, somehow, than when she had disrobed in front of him for the first time. This was the culmination of everything she had ever dared to fantasize about-that a man would want to taste her-and she felt as if she were falling headfirst off a cliff into an roiling ocean of unknown.
Caspen seemed to sense her distress because he pulled her closer. “This should not be a concern, Tem. You have nothing to fear.”
She nodded. But her doubt must have shown on her face, because Caspen sighed and said, “Shall I prove it?”
“Prove what?”
“That you taste good.”
She frowned. “How?”
Caspen paused. Then he took Tem’s hand and moved it slowly down her body until it was between her legs. He guided her first two fingers inside her gently, keeping eye contact the entire time. When Tem didn’t protest, he pushed her fingers deeper, only stopping when she let out a soft moan. Then he pulled them back out, holding her hand between them. Her wetness glistened in the firelight.
He paused, and in that moment, every one of Tem’s fears erupted inside her.
Then he smiled, and she knew what he was going to do. Still, it was an out-of-body experience to actually watch Caspen raise her hand, part his lips, and place her first two fingers gently in his mouth. She felt his tongue move between them, showing her exactly what he would do between her legs. When he was done, he kissed her fingertips. Then he smiled.
“As I said. Heaven.”
Tem had never felt anything close to the way she felt right now. Caspen had always made her feel safe, but this time was different. This gesture was deeper-more nuanced and profound than all the other times he’d touched her.
Caspen was looking at her with such calm patience, she could have cried.
“How do you always know?” she whispered.
“Know what, Tem?”
“How to make me feel better.”
He chuckled softly. “I never know. I just try something and hope for the best.”
Now it was her turn to laugh. At her response, Caspen laughed too, and for a moment, Tem was perfectly happy.
He pulled her against his chest, and they lay there together, bodies intertwined.
“Is there anything else you wish to discuss?” he asked quietly.
She considered the question. When she first met Caspen, she never would have imagined they’d have a conversation like the one they were having now. She never thought she’d be telling him her fears and secrets-never thought he’d be asking her to tell him more.
There was really only one other thing she wanted, and it had been on her mind for a while now. But to actually say it seemed insurmountable, like climbing the tallest mountain with nothing but her bare feet to carry her. Yet she knew if she said nothing, she would regret it.
“I wish you would let me in.”
He was silent for a moment before replying, “In what way?”
Tem considered how much she wanted to say. She wanted to ask about their mental connection, specifically why he could speak to her but she couldn’t speak back to him. It was just another way their power was imbalanced, and she wondered if he could control it-if he was somehow blocking her from accessing him. Rather than say what she was thinking, she raised her finger, tapping it gently against his temple.
He caught her wrist with his hand, pressing her palm against his cheek. “I cannot control that, Tem.”
“It seems like you can.”
He shook his head. “It is beyond the boundaries of my power.”
“Then why does it feel like there’s a wall between us? Why does it feel like you’re shutting me out?”
He shook his head again. “I do not know.”
Tem was silent. She believed him because she knew he couldn’t lie. But it felt like he was keeping something from her-like he knew more than he was revealing.
She decided to change the subject.
“There’s an elimination tomorrow.”
Caspen’s eyes fell to her lips. “Yes. There is.”
“Well?” she insisted. “Shouldn’t you give me some advice or something?”
A muscle tensed in his jaw. “I have no advice to give.”
“Seriously?”
She was pushing him, and they both knew it. She wanted him to validate their bond-to acknowledge the fact that there was something between them.
But Caspen only dipped his head, resting his lips on her throat as he said, “I do not wish to discuss this, Tem.”
A twinge of anger twisted her gut. “You don’t wish to discuss the exact thing you’re training me to do?”