Chapter 60

Lifting her head enough to look at Lucien, Elain could easily read the desire in his russet eye. Seeing how much he wanted her, she pressed her hands against his chest and pushed him backwards to the nearby outer wall of the palace. A wicked grin met her and Lucien raised an eyebrow. "What're you doing, Petal?" he asked, his hands already moving over her again. Elain just smiled at him, her hands slipping inside his cloak as she began quickly untying the laces of his pants. Lucien's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open. He didn't move to stop her however, so Elain continued what she was doing, her eyes still on his face.

"Is this okay?" she asked softly.

"Is what okay?" Lucien's hands were still on her, and his voice was a low murmur. Elain slid her hand into his pants, watching his face carefully, trying to read his reactions. She didn't know what was driving her, what was giving her the confidence to do this, but she did it all the same. Lucien's eyes fluttered closed for a moment when she took hold of him, but then he had opened them again to meet her gaze. "…Yes…"

Pressing closer, Elain held Lucien's eyes with her own. She had no idea what she was doing, only that she wanted to touch him. Biting her lip, Elain had been about to tell him that, when he'd moved to further undo his pants, shifting them out of her way so that she could have better access to him. A moment later she felt his hands over hers, guiding her to take a better hold of him, and then showing her how to move her hand over him. Elain heard a soft whimper slip out of Lucien as she continued to move her hand the way he had shown her, and then a shiver of excitement slid down the bond toward her. She couldn't help glancing down at him when she felt him stiffen beneath her touch. "Look what you did…" he breathed, one of his hands coming up to her cheek once more.

Elain looked, her own heartbeat thundering loudly in her ears. She continued to move her hand, watching as she did so and, when she heard Lucien's breathing hitch, she looked back up to meet his eyes. "Was that right?" she asked, uncertainty flaring within her.

"Yes, Petal…" Lucien's fingers moved across Elain's cheek, "Perfect."

Warmth spread through Elain at his words and a spark of confidence ignited. "Okay…" she murmured, meeting his eyes as he continued to caress her cheek, "Good…" Slowly, holding Lucien's gaze, Elain went down on her knees in the snow before him.

She saw Lucien's eyes widen and his hand froze on her cheek. "Elain…?" He bent as if to lift her back to her feet, but she stopped him. "You don't have to do that…"

Elain smiled, her eyes moving over his surprised face. "I know." She replied.

She watched Lucien think, could practically see the progression of thoughts that flickered through his mind, before he nodded. "Alright…" His fingers stroked her cheek and Elain watched him as he looked up and around them before another shiver of excitement reached her down the bond and she knew that he liked this, liked the risk of them being seen. Elain doubted they would be. Who would be looking out into this little alcove hidden away as they were?

"Lucien…" She looked up at him, a little unsure of how to proceed, and he nodded.

"Here…" He leaned noticeably back against the wall, reaching out to her, and Elain shuffled forward in the snow. She could feel the cold soaking through her dress, but ignored it as she looked up at Lucien again, waiting for him to let her know what he wanted.

"I don't know what to do." Elain breathed. She had never done anything close to this before and, apart from that one time Graysen had tried to force her to do this for him, she had never been in a situation she had ever had to consider it.

"I know." Lucien took hold of himself with one hand and, a moment later, his other came gently to Elain's cheek. "I'll help you…"

Elain sat a little higher on her knees, lifting one of her own hands to take hold of him, while her other rested against his thigh to help herself balance. Shyly, she licked carefully at him, surprised that he didn't taste unpleasant, and listening as he gave a slight hiss followed by a low groan. Lucien's gentle fingers brushed wayward strands of hair back from her face before he lifted her chin a little higher as she leaned toward him, licking her lips. Then, as Elain carefully took him into her mouth, she lifted her gaze to his face once more, pleased to see fire in that russet eye. As she watched, both of Lucien's eyes closed and he leaned more heavily back against the wall. "Cauldron boil and fry me…" he groaned, and his hand slid from Elain's cheek around to the back of her head, his fingers threading through her hair, and she knew that her braid would be destroyed.

Slowly, Elain tried to take as much of Lucien into her mouth as she could, pushing until just before she thought she might gag. "Easy…" he murmured, "Not too much…"

It wasn't long before Lucien opened his eyes again, looking down at Elain, and she felt his hand tighten in her hair as he began to gently guide her movements on him. She did as he instructed, listening to the soft moans that fell from his lips here and there, each one giving her more and more confidence. Carefully she began to run her tongue along him as he continued to guide her and then she felt his other hand slide into her hair. "Oh, shit…" he groaned, and Elain listened to how quickly his heart was beating. She could feel him trying to be gentle, with his hands in her hair, as he continued to guide her movements, and she could feel his self-control in forcing himself to remain leaning back against that wall, allowing her control over the situation. Most of all she could feel his disbelieving happiness, his utter joy that she would want this, that she would want him. "Elain…"

Elain sat a little higher on her knees, humming in response to her name. Lucien's hands tightened in her hair again as he moaned, and Elain kept her eyes on his face, pleasure flooding her at the realisation that she could do this to him. "Oh…" Lucien sounded like he was struggling to get the words out, "I… I…" his head tilted back against the wall as he looked to the sky, "I'm going to…"

His hands released her hair and Elain knew that she could pull away if she wanted to. He had given her that option, but Elain didn't take it. She kept her movements even and rhythmic, just as she had been doing, using her tongue on him in the way she had worked out he liked. Lucien's fingers went into her braid again when he gave a wordless cry and Elain swallowed everything he gave her, not stopping until he had sagged back against the wall.

Sitting back on her heels, Elain just watched him as he slowly pulled himself back together again. Wiping her mouth and massaging at her jaw, she watched as he caught his breath and straightened a little, looking down at her with a smile. When he reached out to her, his fingers gently caressing her cheek, Elain smiled back. She allowed him to carefully pull her to her feet, brushing snow from her as he did so, and she realised that her dress was soaked and freezing from where she had been kneeling on it. She tried brushing further snow from it as Lucien tucked himself back into his pants, fastening the laces quickly, before flicking his cloak around himself. Her fingers pulled the tie from her hair and she quickly untangled her ruined braid, letting her hair fall loose and wavy around her.

Elain went to take a step back, but Lucien's hands snaked out to grab her faster than she could follow and he'd pulled her to himself. Leaning into his warmth, she closed her eyes as he brought his lips to her ear. "Thank you." He murmured, and she nodded, opening her eyes when she felt his fingers beneath her chin, lifting her face up to him. Lucien pressed a gentle kiss to the tip of her nose and then between her eyes and Elain smiled again. She watched his eyes, both russet and gold, move over her before his hands went to her shoulders and he turned her around. Elain was confused for a moment before she felt Lucien's fingers move carefully through her hair as he gently pulled it back and she felt him begin to section it. Clever fingers moved quickly and a moment later he had taken her tie from her own hands, securing the braid he had just completed before turning her back around and smiling at her again.

"Let's get inside and out of the snow." He said, "You're going to want to get that wet dress off…" The grin he gave her then suggested that he rather liked that idea, too.

"Yes," Elain agreed, "I am wet…"

Lucien's grin grew more wicked and she gave him a gentle shove as they began to head back around the palace toward the large doors that would take them inside.