An Illicit Arrangement
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Fable. The lyrics below are snippets from When Your Evil, by Voltaire. They really are perfect for a certain industrialist, no?
When the Devil is too busy
And Death's a bit too much
They call on me by name, you see
For my special touch
To the gentlemen I'm Miss Fortune
To the ladies I'm Sir Prize
But call me by any name, Any way its all the same
I'm the dagger in your back
An extra turn upon the rack
I'm the quivering of your heart
A stabbing pain, a sudden start
A long moment passed by as she stared blankly at Reaver, who was looking like the cat who'd just caught the canary, her mind trying to process what he said and refute it at the same time.
"It was an...a-aphrodisiac...?" She stammered stupidly. Surely he was jesting.
"Yes, and quite an expensive one too. In its homeland the smallest slices could be sold for outrageous sums of gold. Well, before it was made illegal, that is. Seems due to its wicked potency, you gain an addiction the more of it you consume." He said while placing the Dragonstomper back into the black leather holster snugly fastened at his left thigh now that she was no longer armed and dangerous. Not that she was a threat before, mind you, it was just nice to know she couldn't go singeing any hairs on his head.
Nix paled visibly at this news, a mixture of horror and understanding dawning on her face as her hand flew to her throat.
Eyeing her perceptively, he asked. "Just how much of it did you eat?"
"All of it..." She said breathlessly, reeling at the bizarre turn of events.
Hatch's eyebrows shot up in shock and the expression of alarmed amusement on Reavers face didn't bode well, and his sharp laughter afterwards set her even further on edge.
"What's so funny?" She demanded angrily. As the pressure of her spiked blood increased, she became even more light headed, swaying on her feet. She placed a hand against the doors behind to steady herself.
"Careful, the faster your heart beats, the quicker the full effects of the fruit will take you." He cautioned, though he couldn't have sounded any further from being concerned.
Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and focused on trying to calm her nerves. It wouldn't do to give him what he wanted. Opening her eyes again to see Reaver sauntering over to the ornately carved chair at the head of the table, she couldn't help but admire the surety of the fluid, panther like grace he moved with. The ripple of his muscles...
Sucking in another breath, she gave a sharp shake of her head. This was bad.
Sinking onto the plush gold trimmed crimson cushion, Reaver leaned back and regarded her silently, smirking. Gesturing to the seat next to him, he said. " Come, sit by me so we can discuss this out more thoroughly." The soft and inviting tone he used for her gone when he addressed the man servant.
"Hatch, stop loitering about. Go lock those up and have a late dinner brought up for her majesty."
Nix watched the valet make off with her gun and gauntlets longingly. When he was out of sight and with no where else to go, she walked on unsteady legs to the chair by Reaver. As she passed by, though, he unexpectedly leaned over and snagged something from her pouch.
"What have we here?" He asked, elevating a single brow and lifting the undergarments she'd forgotten into the air by thumb and index finger.
She flushed guiltily, wishing she would have shoved those further into her pack now. "I can explain that..."
"No need. I have a fairly good idea of who these were for."
Laughing softly, he tossed them back at her. "Keep them, though I do believe you could fetch a little more money for these than my dear Benjamina can pay."
Jumping in surprise at having the dirty laundry so casually tossed back at her, she fought to catch the things without having to touch too much of the silky material. Irked by his silent amusement, she folded them over and replaced them back into her pouch and moved to the chair. Relief flooded her that he said no more on the subject.
Sitting down, she had to bite the inner side of her bottom lip to keep a sudden moan from escaping her lips. The pleasure caused by the mild pressure put on her nether regions was shocking to say the least. Easy, just calm down...she thought, clasping her hands together and placing them in her lap, her spine ramrod stiff as she tried to maintain composure.
"Dinner?" she inquired, struggling to keep a cool voice. " As you know, I've already eaten so I don't think I really need anything else." She didn't also mention she didn't trust him to feed her anything else of that nature.
"You'll need to eat something, princess. You're going to need all the energy you can get, I assure you." He said meaningfully, an impish smile on his face.
"I won't sleep with you." She blurted out, causing his smile to evolve into a full out wicked grin.
"Who said anything about sleeping?"
The gleam in his eyes and that rather dashing expression caught her off guard, and she had to give her head another shake before she started staring like one of his love struck fans. "You know what I meant. Don't think that I'll be doing any unsavory things with you just because I may have eaten something you claim is an aphrodisiac." She said vehemently.
"I'm not claiming it is, I know for a fact, dear girl. I've been serving it at parties ever since I brought some back with me. It really is an amazing thing, you should see how out of control my guests can get when they're on it." He said with reverence, as if fondly recalling one of his unwholesome get-togethers.
Nix was actually a little surprised to hear this. "Since when does the great Reaver," she said with caustic dryness "need help? Is someone losing their touch?"
She regretted saying this the second the words left her mouth. Reaver was in her face before she had time to react, his hands on the armrests of her chair, effectively trapping her. Damn he's fast.
"Now, pet, that wasn't very nice." He said chidingly, lifting a hand up to gently caress her cheek, dark emerald eyes alight with lazy sensualty. "Not everyone is as charming or intrepid as I, and several of my male guests found they rather like the feeling of women fawning over them when otherwise they would normally go ignored, however temporary it may be. I, on the other hand, require no aid, men and women alike clamor for my attention of their own accord."
The cocksure bastard leaned in closer, close enough to where she could smell the dark, rich cologne he wore and his own unique underlying scent of masculinity, and it took everything in her to keep from melting into a pile of brazen, wanton need.
Lips ghosted ever so softly over the shell of her ear as he whispered "Since you have your doubts about my touch, perhaps you'd let me set your mind at ease. I can do things to you that you couldn't imagine, even in your darkest fantasies." His fingers stroked across the delicate set of her jawline before dancing tantazlingly down the column of her throat.
"Get..away..from me." She ground out breathlessly, his words alone almost sending her over the edge, hands now clenched into tight fists, fingernails biting into the flesh of her palms. Normally she would have pushed him, punched him, or even just batted that teasing hand of his away but she feared merely touching him could erupt into something more cataclysmic. She'd been wrong eariler when'd she thought this was bad. This was positively disastrous.
Leaning back, he simply canted his head to the side and arched a regal brow at her. Noting that a blush had returned to her cheeks, he gave his trademark smirk.
"I'm not like you...I don't have "dark fantasies"." She denied, waging a mental war to banish what naughty images her virginal mind had conjured at his words.
A low chuckle. "Oh? Then why are you blushing that lovely shade of red? You know, red is my favorite color..." He remarked thoughtfully, his eyes heavy lidded and filled the intent to kiss. She really hoped he wouldn't, she wasn't sure she could take it.
He'd just started to lean in for it when the sound of a door opening broke the moment. It was Hatch, a silver trencher laden with food in tow. She couldn't help but smile with relief.
Saved by the bellhop!
With a knowing smile Reaver backed away and resumed his seat, letting Hatch set the tray of food down in front of her.
"Dinner is served, your royal rebelness." Hatch chimed pleasantly, backing away until he stood by the hearth, but not before he'd snuck a quick peek down her shirt.
Oblivious, Nix shot Reaver a seething glare then glanced down to the tray. Her stomach gave a eager little rumble. Alright, so maybe she was still a little hungry, and by the looks of the food nothing was too out of place. A few cubes of cheese, a wedge of freshly baked bread, and an assortment of easily identifiable fruits. Popping one of the small blocks of cheese into her mouth, she was delighted at its oaky nuttiness.
"So, as you sate your needs," he began with blatant perversion "I shall get back to the issue at hand. In your attempt to break and enter into my home, no doubt planning on stealing countless goods from me to fund your vapid rebellion, you decided to eat one of my Tears of Venus. The price of that alone is staggering, and in our altercation my home and property have sustained some damage. Now seeing as you've parted ways with your brother on less than amicable terms, I daresay you've probably been cut off from the royal treasury, therefore having no means with which to pay me back with."
"You were the one who started shooting!" She complained after swallowing a bite of bread, not liking the way he was making her out to be the bad guy. Sure she'd been in his house when she wasn't supposed to be, but at least she wasn't a ruthless, gold obsessed murderer.
"And you're the one who broke into my home." He countered easily, brushing a wayward black tress from his eyes. Nix watched as he leaned back toward one corner of the chair, crossing defined, muscled arms across sculpted chest. One long leg drawn up and bent at the knee while the other was strecrched out. He looked every inch lord of the manor, especially with that smug half smile he wore. Quickly she snatched her eyes away, staring down at her plate. Even trying to keep up her cool facade was becoming increasingly difficult, and she had a hard time battling the urge to look back at him.
Needing something to keep her mind from straying into the gutter, she plucked a ripe yellow banana from her plate and broke the stem back.
"So what would you have me do?" She asked resentfully, she didn't have much money this was true and the only things worth bartering would be her weapons, but how could she fight for the throne without them? That was really all she had, she thought dismally. Once finished peeling, she brought the tender fruit to her lips, nearly ready to take a bite when she realized he hadn't answered her. Odd.
Looking over, she caught him watching her intently, his intense eyes fixed on her mouth, sparkling with depraved anticipation. Noticing that she'd stopped, his gaze flicked upward and he offered a risqué grin.
"Oh, for the love of Avo..." She said with exasperation, putting the phalic shaped fruit back down and pushing the plate away.
"Well?"
"Well what? Oh yes, where were we..." Clearing his throat, he continued." Since you now owe me a good deal of money, but have no gold to spare, I have thought of a solution to our little problem. That is, of course, if you're willing."
You know what they say about deals with the devil...
"And if I'm not?" She was pretty sure she already knew the answer to that, but it didn't hurt to try.
"Then I shall simply dispose of you. No one will know what happened to the rebel princess who just mysteriously disappeared one day. No one will know, and eventually no one will care." He said blithely with a non-chalant shrug of his shoulders, a hand playing lovingly across the handle of his favored gun.
Immediately she felt her temper flare at his cruel words, and she shot to her feet, slamming her palms down on the table.
"You, sir, are a vile, fiendish monster."
Reaver simply threw his head back and laughed. "There's that fiery temper. I must say you were aptly named, my dear Phoenix."
She was just about to really give him a piece of her mind and demand that he stop calling her by her full name when a wave of unadulterated, carnal heat came crashing down over her. Gasping when the dull throb of pleasure between her thighs she'd been valiantly trying to ignore turned into an aching need. Her knees went weak and nearly buckled and she had to grab hold of the table's edge to anchor herself to the spot.
"I did tell you that intense emotion's will only hasten your inevitable descent from grace. Frankly I'm surprised that your still able to think straight. I suspect that Hero's blood running through your veins must be acting against it, but it shan't save you for long." He said, looking positively thrilled at the prospect. It sent another shiver running down her spine.
"How can I be of use to you, then?" She asked softly in resignation, gently easing back into her chair. Rubbing her temples, she took three deep breaths in attempt to calm herself and the quickening pace of her heart.
"Ah, theres a good girl. I knew you'd come around." A victorious gleam in his eye. He knew he had her then.
"Research." He said simply, propping his elbows up on the arms of the chair while lacing his fingers together.
"In exchange for your life and the costs you have thusly incurred, you let me study what you're about to go through. As of the moment I have only seen up to two slices eaten, and I'm eager to see what such a large quantity will do. You'll be given accomdations here in my humble abode until the fruit has run its course."
"You mean... you'll be watching me?" She didn't like the sound of someone keeping such close tabs on her and also hated the mixture of trepidation and excitement she felt at hearing this.
"Don't look so hesitant. You may be damning your ill fortune at being caught, but you're actually better off this way. Would you rather be roaming around out there when the full effects hit you, helpless to whomever and whatever happens upon you? You'll be safe from bandits and the like here."
Yes but whose going to keep me safe from you? Her inner voice questioned.
"I meant what I said earlier, don't expect me to be throwing myself at you. That will never happen." She clarified, wanting to make sure he knew that on no uncertain terms would she ever sleep with him. If she could get him to verbally agree to that, maybe his own pride and vanity as a casanova who required no help, as he'd stated previously, would keep him from trying anything with her. That is, if she really got as bad as he was assuming, he did say that he thought her Hero's blood was fighting the effects. What made him think this she wasn't sure, but it was a small hope for her.
"Tsk, such a prude. Very well, I shall touch nary a hair on that charming head of yours. Your loss, though." He said and rising to his impressive height, he loomed above her, shadows cast in the valleys between each defined muscle in his torso by the firelight. Her eyes couldn't help but to be drawn to him, and gliding down his chest and abdomen, she saw a faint sprinkling of dark hairs just below his navel, leading down into the waistband of his pants...
A deep laugh that reeked of complete male smugness came from Reaver, causing her to startle as if physically burned. Wrenching her gaze from him once again, she cleared her throat.
"Then I suppose we have a deal." What had she gotten herself into? She thought dryly, half expecting an ominous scroll of parchment to appear before her with a quill and an inkwell of blood.
"Marvelous!" Clapping his hands together, he turned to Hatch.
"See our guest to her 'accommodations', will you?" A dark smile passed between the two men. Hatch came forward to stand next to her, presenting his arm out for her as if she'd take it. With a huff and as much dignity as her pleasure fogged mind would permit, she rose to her feet by herself.
"Once you've seen to it that she's comfortable, bring up a fresh shirt and my coat to the study. I'll be leaving shortly."
"Yes, master Reaver." Hatch said simperingly. Nix didn't even want to imagine what was the reason for the valet's apparent and disgusting affection for his twisted employer.
"Right this way, if you will m'lady." He said before taking off, back in the direction of the bedrooms. She gave Reaver a confused look, wondering why he was leaving after just saying he wanted to study her.
As if reading her mind, he gave her a flirtatious wink and said.
"Don't worry, I won't be leaving you for too long. You've clearly expressed your desire to remain celibate during your stay here, and since our little heated exchange earlier scared off my guests, I'll be venturing out to find more willing bodies."
"I was not worried." She snapped and turned away, disgusted by his promiscuity.
She had barely taken two steps to follow the black and gold clad servant when Reaver grabbed onto both of her arms from behind her. Dragging her roughly back against his hard body, he leaned down and murmured.
"I would never expect for someone as high and mighty as Albion's own virtuous princess to throw themselves at me. No, you see, for someone as pure and righteous as yourself that just wouldn't be enough. The stronger the moral convictions of the person I intend to conquer, the lower down I like to bring them. I'd only be satisfied with you crawling to me on hands and knees, begging to be filled in the way only I can please."
His torrid and shameless declaration caused her mind to go blank, every thought cast easily aside. An arc of electric lust lanced through her body and she nearly fainted. The blank void in her mind then suddenly filled with more naughty images. Images of him completely undressed, and her too. Of what they might do together if only she'd give in...
By the time she came to her senses and turned to lavish him with scathing retort, he was walking out the doors to the grand foyer. Without sparing her a glance, he gave a suave wave of his hand over his shoulder and chimed. "Tatty-bye!"
With a frustrated growl, she stomped off in pursuit of Hatch. I can handle this, she told herself, trying to quill the dread and lusty anticipation she was feeling. She sent up a silent prayer to Avo, asking for to watch out over Regal who was no doubt worried sick about his mistress by now. Although, she thought sardonically, he seems to have gotten the better end of the deal. Nix knew he could fend for himself for a little while, and at least he didn't have to put up with Reaver.
What she really needed to be worried about was herself.
Author's Note: I feel like I'm having to say this every time I post a chapter, but I'm sorry for the wait I would have had this out at least a day sooner but somebody in my house decided to flick off the switch to the power strip my mac is plugged into while I was in the middle of writing...yeah, not fun. I lost some stuff and had to redo it all. But enough with the ranting its here now and all is well,...or is it? :menacing laugh: I know it wasn't as fast paced as the last chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it all the same. And to everyone who reviewed, thanks I seriously appreciate. They keep me going :D. Now review!