The Whispers of Shadows - Azriel

40

When the sun began to peek above the mountains and the room fell under a glow of apricot, Aurora opened her eyes with a stretch. An arm was latched around her bare waist. She looked down to see Azriel's face buried into her side, her arm resting on his neck. His breath feathered her skin. It felt strange waking up nude with a male, but something about him felt completely comfortable. She didn't mind that his face was just beside her breast, or that his other hand rested on her hip.

They had only slept for a couple hours, having stayed up the entire night having round after round. Their bond didn't let them sleep. Aurora ran her fingers through the hair beside his temple as she whispered his name. Azriel groaned, pressing his face further into her. Aurora doubted he could breathe now.

"Az, we need to bathe and get ready, Rhys wanted us to leave when the sun came up," she murmured. Azriel let out a puff of air and lifted his head. Sleep filled his eyes, shadows kissing the skin beneath them.

"Tell him to shove it," he grumbled, reaching his face up to press a kiss to her lips. Aurora giggled against him, pushing a hand against his chest.

"I doubt your High Lord would appreciate that," she retorted, pressing both hands against his arm to shove it off her. Azriel rolled to his back and rubbed his eyes as she tried to get out of the bed, but everything ached. She fell back against the pillows with a grunt.

"Are you okay?" Azriel asked as he sat up, eyes scanning her for any injuries. Aurora felt a blush cover her cheeks as she grinned.

"Um, I'm a bit sore," she responded. Azriel's lips lifted into a smile as he shook his head.

"And you kept asking for more." He climbed out of the bed and rounded to her side, sliding an arm beneath her back and legs and lifted her. Aurora laughed again.

"And you kept offering." Azriel chuckled as he brought her into the bathing chamber and leant down to turn the faucet on.

"Well, as an apology, I'll scrub the scent of sex off of you. Is that enough?" He asked, lowering her feet into the water. Aurora felt like a child being placed into the tub by him, but beamed.

"Only if you join me," she responded. Azriel rolled his eyes as he dumped soap into the running water, suds beginning to surround her. The smell of pine rose again. When he decided it was sufficient, Azriel turned off the faucet and climbed into the tub behind her. Aurora sighed as she leaned back against him. "How do you think things will be when we get back?" Aurora asked as Azriel began to run a soapy washcloth along her arms and chest.

"I think it's going to be very awkward," he responded softly, pressing a kiss to her neck as he squeezed the water from the cloth over her shoulder. Aurora sighed and relaxed against him more.

"I hope it all goes over smoothly, I hope we don't need to pretend anymore."

Azriel didn't respond, he just continued to run the cloth along her body. Silence consumed them as he cleaned her, his fingers growing far too close to her core as he ran his hand along her thigh.

"Turn around," Azriel hummed. Aurora did as she was told, straddling his hips as she sat on his thighs. Azriel smiled at her while running the cloth over her cheeks. "As much as I love this makeup, it's ruined after last night." Aurora laughed, closing her eyes. Azriel ran the cloth over the smudged brown pigment and washed it away. He then ran it over the faint red that remained on her lips and around her chin and cheeks.

Aurora spotted a smear of red along his own lips and jaw, reaching to take another cloth from the table and soak it beneath the water. She lifted it and began wiping the evidence of their night from his skin. Azriel dropped his hands to her waist, closing his eyes with a content smile. She couldn't help herself but peck his lips.