TWENTY-ONE
After filling up on fresh crab cakes and calamari, Layla was stifling yawns, but Quin was looking fine as hell with his clean, bare chest and smooth, dimpled jaw. Plus, they were way overdue for some sexual release and could use a dose of love to get them through the following day.
With a twitch of her fingers, she sealed the doorway. Then she took Quin’s hand and led him toward the bed. “Come make out with me.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes. If you want.”
He took a large step and swept her off her feet. “I definitely do.”
His lips connected with hers before her back found the mattress, but he didn’t dive straight into a deep make out session. First, he sprinkled her in soft pecks, provoking giggles as he moved to her cheeks and nose. Then he slowed to a stop, mouth to mouth as he closed his eyes and breathed her in. The next time he kissed, he parted her lips, and his tongue wasn’t far behind, spreading tingles while making her bonded light go crazy. Her pulse accelerated, taking his with it, and her heaving lungs were about to push her hard nipples through her bodice.
Pausing to let her breathe, he vanished her clothes with a glance. Then he turned his attention on her breasts. “Are they sore?”
“A little.”
“Stop me if I get too rough.”
She breathlessly nodded, awaiting the return of his lips, and he came through while filling his palm with sensitive flesh. By the time his hand ventured lower, she was writhing with arousal and desperate for more, so she bent her knees and lifted her hips, inviting him into whatever position he pleased.
His kissing halted as he glanced down. Then he returned his gaze to her face and reached between her thighs. “How is it always as exciting as the first time?”
Her lungs deflated with a laugh, which warped into a choppy moan when he pressed a finger inside. She gripped his jaw and instinctively rotated toward him, but he pushed her back with the base of his palm before slipping another finger in. She flexed, increasing the pressure sending stimulating waves across electrified nerve endings, and her eyes rolled as his breathing deepened, his hand steadfast in its quest to loosen her up.
He muttered a curse while lowering his mouth to her ear. Then he lightly nibbled before whispering. “I can’t wait to be inside you again.”
“Then don’t.”
Quin drew a slow and steady breath, void of patience and draining of willpower, but she wasn’t ready, so he abandoned her body then pressed back in, inciting a gasp. Moisture flooded his fingers as he twisted them around, making room for more. Then he trailed kisses down her throat while spreading her legs further apart. She clutched a fistful of his hair, trembling with what he hoped was anticipation, because he ached from head to toe, as if he’d split open if he didn’t get his way with her tight body.
He vanished his shorts while moving over her, but when he freed his hand and looked down, he froze, his pulse faltering before racing to catch back up.
Shit.
Swallowing the expletive, he glanced at her face and was relieved to find her eyes closed. She didn’t know yet, so he had a few seconds to scramble for solutions.
Shit, shit, shit.
Following a quick bit of thinking, he cupped his palm between her thighs. Then he leaned close and touched his lips to hers. “Hey.”
She shuddered and opened her eyes. “Hey back.”
He kissed while bracing to break the news. “We have a situation.”
Her perfect eyebrows drew together. “What do you mean?”
“It’s nothing bad, but I want you to stay calm.”
“If it’s not bad, I should have no problem staying calm. Now tell me what’s going on.”
He explained as casually as possible. “You started your period.”
She blinked, as if she didn’t know what that meant. Then her eyes bulged as she pushed on his shoulders. “Gross! Get your hand out of there.”
He resisted, keeping her pinned down. “You’re supposed to be staying calm.”
“Calm? You expect me to stay calm while getting period blood all over the most handsome man on earth?”
He managed to stifle a grin, but he didn’t let up. “Yes, because I’m not some random man. I’m the man who’s going to love you through hundreds of periods. We might as well get used to discussing them.”
She closed her eyes as her cheeks brightened. “This is so embarrassing. And bloody inconvenient. Literally!”
He couldn’t stop a laugh from skipping free, but the humor didn’t reach the angel who made the joke.
Her nostrils flared as she laid a palm over her eyes. “I forgot periods even exist. I haven’t had one in months.”
“I know.”
“Of course you do. I suppose you also know why they just now decided to come back.”
“You stopped breastfeeding.”
She sighed and shook her head. “This sucks.”
She continued to hide, but he could tell by her voice she was on the brink of tears. “Okay,” he breathed, using magic to clean his hand. Then he scooped her up and climbed out of bed.
She stiffened and flailed. “Quin! What are you doing?”
He warmed up the tub with a glance. Then he stepped in and sat down with her. “I’m proving this doesn’t have to suck. Brace yourself.”
She tensed, and he summoned a shower of warm water, aiming the spray at their legs.
“Open up.” He had to pry apart her thighs. Then he ignored her blush while rinsing away the mess vexing her. “Let me guess, Katherine’s the only person who’s ever witnessed the fact that you get periods.”
“Yes.”
“And I bet you hid feminine hygiene products like they were incriminating evidence in a shameful crime.”
She meekly sunk into her slouched shoulders. “Maybe.”
“A lot of hexless girls do that. I saw it in high school. The first time I witnessed a tampon fall from a locker, the girl tripped over her bag in her scramble to snatch it up. Imagine the look of horror I got when I picked it up for her.”
“Oh – my – god. That poor girl.”
“Yeah. If I’d known it would cause her such anguish, I would have pretended not to notice it fell.”
“Is it too late for you to pretend not to notice my period?”
“Yes, and I don’t want to pretend with you.”
“Fine, but that doesn’t mean you have to put your fingers in it.”
He touched his lips to her head while watching the flow of her aura. Then he moved to the side and looked for her face. “Are you really going to cut me off every time you get your period?”
Her nose wrinkled as she searched his expression, probably trying to decide which was worse – the embarrassment or a recurring dry spell. “You don’t think it’s gross?”
He reached between her legs. “No.”
“Really?”
“I swear, love.”
“Hmm… I think most guys find it gross.”
“Then most guys need to grow up and stop being big babies. If their women can deal with it for several days a month, they can deal with it while making love to them. It’s not like they have to dive down there and swim in it.”
“Eww…” she laughed, scrunching her nose again. Then she watched him out of the corner of her eye while twisting the coral ring on her left hand. “It sounds messy.”
He pulled his hand from her thighs and wiggled his fingers. “Good thing I’m a magician. You wouldn’t even know you started if I hadn’t told you.”
“I should have seen it coming. I’ve felt sluggish since we got here.”
“It’s been a while since you’ve been in this position.”
“True.”
“And you’ve been sick.”
“That’s true, too. No wonder I missed the signs.” She hugged his arm, pressing her lips to his knuckles while staring at her lap. “Have you ever done it?”
“Had sex with a woman on her period?”
“Yeah.”
“No, but only because I’d never been with one long enough to cross that road.”
“So you don’t know if you’d like it.”
“I suppose that’s accurate.”
“What if you hate it?”
“Impossible. It may not be my favorite way to do it, but there’s no way it will make me hate the experience.”
“What if I hate it?”
“Then I don’t want to do it.”
She used his forefinger to tug on her pout while thinking it over, and he practiced patience while dissecting her aura. When he realized the haze bore more evidence of exhaustion than arousal, he hugged her close and shut his eyes, vowing to abstain for another day.
“Let’s go to bed. We can revisit this topic tomorrow.”
She sniffled and wiped her face. “I’m sorry, Quin.”
“I’m not. This was a conversation we needed to have. Now that it’s out of the way, we can broach the subject without so much discomfort. We have time, love. We don’t have to figure it out all at once.”
He gave her one last rinse. Then he vanished the water and draped a towel over her shoulders. “Do you want me to call Skyla in here to tell you how she handles her periods?”
“Oh god. I didn’t even consider what I’d do about hygiene products. Do witches use tampons or pads?”
“I don’t think so. I’ve never seen one carrying them, and disposable products like that tend to butt heads with the nature lovers in us. I’m sure our magic gives witches better options.”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I guess I better ask. Will she be embarrassed to talk about it in front of you?”
“I doubt it. If she is, I’ll step out.”
He left the tub and donned a pair of shorts, but she stayed put, waiting for a solution to protect her clothes before putting them on.
Quin mind searched his cousin while lighting up a smoke. Then he sat next to the tub and passed the herb to Layla. “She’s on her way.”
“Was she asleep?”
“No, but she’s been drinking.”
He’d unsealed the doorway, so Skyla entered without knocking, but when she saw Layla sitting in the tub, she stumbled to a halt. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” Layla answered. “I just started my period, and the only solutions I’m familiar with are the hexless ones.”
Skyla gawked at her while holding a hand to her heart. “Oh, you poor soul. If there’s anything worse than starting your period while you’re travelling, it’s using hexless sanitary products.” She pulled up a chair and sat beside Quin. “Don’t worry. I’ll fix you up.”
“Thank you,” Layla replied. “Is it okay if Quin stays?”
“Sure. Why wouldn’t it… Oh… the embarrassment. I’m okay if you’re okay.”
“Yeah. He’s showing me it’s okay.”
“It is,” Skyla insisted. “Most wizards don’t give a shit if you’re on your period, and they certainly don’t let it get in their way.”
Quin raised his eyebrows at Layla while taking a hit, and she smirked at his told-you-so expression before returning her gaze to Skyla. “So, you’ll have sex while you’re on your period?”
“Sure, as long as I’m not too tired and lazy. The first day is usually my worst, but by day two, I’m good to go. Getting freaky can be a little messy, but magic makes the cleanup easy, and we’re more sensitive during periods, so it feels really good. You should give it a try sometime.”
Layla looked down and fidgeted with her towel. “I probably will. What am I supposed to do until then? Plug it with spells?”
Skyla giggled while summoning a black pouch. “You could say that.” Then she dove into an explanation on how to use small pieces of washable fabric in lieu of disposable products. “The material is just to remind you it’s there and give you a base for the spellwork. Plus, it provides a layer of protection if the magic wavers, but you can do this without the fabric if you adjust the magic to compensate. The trickiest part is customizing the spells for your body, but you’ll pick it up in no time, and once you do, it will be a million times more comfortable and convenient than hexless products.” She laid the bag of fabric on a nearby table. “Those haven’t been used, so you can have them. They’re your basic colors, no frills, plus a few that are flesh colored. You can buy more, but most of us make our own. I’ll show you how if you want to learn.”
“Thanks, Sky. I’ll probably take you up on that when I need to restock.”
“No problem,” Skyla chirped, taking her leave, but she halted on the threshold and looked at Quin. “Do you know what’s going on with Wey? He’s being particularly barbaric tonight.”
“Yeah,” Quin admitted. “I pissed him off.”
“Really? That’s rare.”
“I know. We’ll work it out later.”
“I hope so, because he’s acting more like a grizzly than a teddy bear.”
“Everyone’s tired,” Layla added. “Things will look better in the morning.”
Skyla agreed with a spacey nod. Then she smiled and waved while closing the curtain.
“Do you really believe that?” Quin asked, grabbing the pouch of material off the table. Then he proceeded to examine the soft fabric, as if he were the one who had to shove it down his pants.
Layla reached into the bag and withdrew a piece of black material. “Believe what? That things will look better in the morning?”
“Yeah.”
“Sure. It’s bound to be better than this, right?”
“This isn’t so bad.”
Layla swept her gaze over the ridiculous scene – her in an empty tub, him beside it, both of them engrossed in feminine hygiene products, stretching and rubbing the material as if it was a foreign substance.
“You’re right,” she laughed. “This isn’t so bad. I’m just tired.” She tucked the fabric in two fingers and held it up. “Suppose they have a name?”
He searched the case for an answer. Then he laughed while showing her the lining, which was embroidered with hot-pink stitching that spelled out the words Pussy Pouch.
A laugh burst from Layla’s chest, but her cheeks warmed with a blush. “Is that the name of the bag or its contents?”
He shrugged, as lost as she was as he continued his search, eventually coming across a compartment containing a travel-size bottle of vodka, a joint, and a chocolate bar.
Layla’s mouth fell open as her hand dove for the latter. “Is she for real? This is genius!” She tore open the wrapper and took a big bite, unconcerned about Quin’s laughter. “Make fun all you want. This is what I call a first aid kit. She should market this. She’d be a millionaire in no time.”
“I’ll have to remember her tricks.”
“Just keep me buried in chocolate, and we’re golden.”
She popped the last bite in her mouth. Then she licked her lips and fingers before displaying them for Quin. “Am I good?”
He smiled as he took her chin and ran his thumb across her lips. “Golden.”