A/N I know it's been a while but I promise I didn't mean for this chapter to end in sort of a cliffhanger! I intended to finish the scene before uploading but it was super late and I wanted to put out something. I've already started the next one and have a general layout for the next few chapters, so updates should come sooner.

-Windy

Rated M for the sexy times. Please read and review!
Disclaimer: All characters/settings belong to Cassandra Clare.

Tessa shut her book in irritation. She had been intending to revisit Lady Audley, but Will had put her and her body all in a tizzy. Tessa had to laugh at that thought.

I haven't used such an American expression in goodness knows how long!

It was true though. Her blood seemed to run hotter than it usually would and her often pale cheeks were flushed. She passed a hand across her face and stood from the chair.

I think I will take matters into my own hands…

Tessa blushed though she knew no one could hear her thoughts. Her blush deepened as she realized the Silent Brothers could, though she doubted any were currently in the Institute. Setting her book carefully on the nightstand, she crossed to her bed and drew back the covers. If she was going to do this, she was going to do it where no one could see.

She stepped out of her shoes. Her hands began to tremble though it was odd that she could not tell whether it was in excitement or at the knowledge of such impropriety. Tessa shook herself and decided that she did not care in the least, since, like Lady Audley, it would be her own little secret.

A voice, braver than Tessa felt, in the back of her mind whispered, "And look how well that worked out for her."

Part of Tessa shushed it while the other was already focused on the matter at hand. She could do this. It wouldn't be like the urgings she sometimes got while still in America, while still in the ordinary world. Things were different here. Maybe not in London, but definitely here in the Institute. This sort of behavior was allowed, though no one spoke of it.

She caught sight of her reflection in the mirror and nearly lost her nerve. She looked like one of those women. The kind Will would get caught bringing back in the late of the night.

Tessa frowned and then laughed.

No, I don't look anything like the sort of girl the boys would fancy.

For once, she was glad. Too pale usually, too tall, too plain. Boadicea seemed like an excellent fate after all if she kept up training with Sophie.

Her nether regions reminded her sharply of her revised intentions, stalling further self-reflection.

Tessa sighed as she remembered the dress she had picked out this morning. A long row of buttons down the center of her back. Too proud to call Sophie, she sat on her bed and got to work, using her nimble fingers for the first scheduled task of her morning.

Once undone, the dress proved no more difficult to remove than her undergarments, which is to say, not very.

28 buttons is an awful much, Tessa thought to herself as she straightened the dress in her wardrobe. No matter. I managed well enough.

She shivered, suddenly chilly in her bareness. Climbing into bed felt bizarre without her usual nightgown between her and the sheets. It was pleasant, though in an unexpected manner.

Deciding she'd had enough delays, Tessa hastened to have her relief. She slid a finger down her lips and into the folds. Rubbing up and down, she set a comfortable pace and was more ready than she had thought to be entered.

Starting with a single digit she pushed back and up into herself, crooking it slightly. It felt magnificent. An embarrassing sound fell from her mouth. She added a second finger to her slickness and the sound happened again. Tessa began to move her hand, causing a delicious warmth to spread up her spine.

Her other hand moved from next to her to her breast. Massaging it like she had heard Aunt Harriet once say while drunk, Tessa was rather disappointed. It was not what she had hoped or imagined. On instinct her hand went instead further south, eliciting a much better result dipping to the front of the apex of her thighs than her chest had.

As inexperienced as Tessa was, it didn't take long for her delicate fingers to draw out the feeling she'd been waiting for. She stifled a moan by biting her lower lip as she circled her clit.

The rhythm struck between her two extremities was breathtaking and she gasped as the one hand pressing as deep inside as it could was squeezed by her walls. Her hips bucked upwards against the pad touching her clit.

"By the Angel!" Tessa cried out as her whole body shook in release.

Tension drained from her body as liquid gushed across her thighs. Tessa's hands slid free and she rolled to her side, still breathing heavily.

She smiled. That was exactly what I wanted.

Her mind wandered to the activities of the other occupants of the Institute and she found herself thinking about Jem and Will.

Tessa groaned. That is exactly why I just did that!

She sat up, expecting a little tenderness and was pleased to find none. Satisfaction turned to disgust at the dampness between her legs and the sticky mess on her fingers.

Swinging her legs out from under the covers, Tessa stood and hurried to the bath, forgetting to close the adjoining door behind her. She pumped her own water from a faucet off to the side and painstakingly filled the large tub. By the end she had worked up quite a sweat and was more than ready to take her bath.

I really must remember to thank Sophie for always being willing to draw me a bath. I never imagined it was such a lengthy process.

Sinking into the hot water, Tessa felt her stiffened back muscles relax and she drifted back into her euphoric state. Eyes half shut, she lazed contentedly. She sat up and mentally catalogued how everything felt. Her whole body was tingly and Tessa let out a bit of a giggle.

More than worth the impropriety, she decided.

She dunked her head under. A childish idea came to her as she rose. Tessa dunked her head under again and blew out a stream of bubbles from her nose. She surfaced and laughed. Over and over she dipped under and watched the bubble streams she created before coming up for more air. The sopping girl was beside herself in peals of laughter that only got louder every time she surfaced.

The sound of the door to her room bursting open startled her from her antics.

"Tessa? Tessaaa!" Will called out for her in a sing-song voice.

She looked around in panic for her shift or something to cover herself with before remembering that she'd hung it up with her dress.

"Oh, dear lord, this isn't happening." She muttered to herself as she put her hands to her face.

"Tessa? I heard you from across the hall and wanted to see what the fuss was about. It isn't every day my favorite bookish girl is so entertained. Other than by me of course."

Will rounded the corner to the bathroom and gasped. He stood stock-still as he tried to process what he had done.

"By the Angel…" He whispered. Will didn't know whether to apologize and leave or laugh it off like he might with Jem.

Caught in an awkward in-between he stammered out, "I- I'm so sorry, Tessa. I didn't realized or I- I would've kn-knocked." His cheeks warmed.

Tessa was still frozen with a hand over her mouth. At his apology she drew her knees to her chest and pulled her hair forward to cover herself.

She was almost amused and somehow endeared by his awkwardness at their encounter. It was rare to find Will Herondale without a clever word or two ready at hand. She very nearly smiled.

Her muddled expression seemed to shake him out of his trance.

"I- I'll just be going now." He stared at the floor darkly and turned to leave, his own expression unreadable. He cursed himself for putting her in such a vulnerable position and further for making a fool of himself. More than usual, that is, and in a way he didn't plan.

A/N I am so sorry it's been a while since I last updated (since July? Longer?), but I've been dealing with a personal loss and now school. Hopefully I'll get things settled down soon and get you something new! Thanks, those of you waiting patiently. I love your love

-Windy