“Aspeth.”

“And I want to be your wife. I want to do the Conquest Moon with you, just like I promised.” Her cheeks flush pink. “Even if I married strategically, no one would care about me. They just want my title. When you look at me, I feel like you want me…even if you hate the fact that you do.”

I groan, the hunger rising once more. “Aspeth.”

“I know my timing is terrible and you think I’m manipulating you. I’m not. I just…I like it when you touch me. I like talking to you. I like talking to you more than anyone else in this world. And I want more of both.” Her mouth teases up in a sly smile. “If I was truly manipulating you, I’d suck your cock.”

She pauses.

“Though now that I mention it, I really do want to suck your cock. Just like those women in the alley did to those Taurians. Is that wrong?”

I groan, because her words are filthy and yet exactly what I need to hear. This thing between us, it’s gone past a simple transaction. There’s a strange attraction between us. I like her. I like her intelligence and her optimism. I like that she’s utterly frank with what she wants. “I’m not one to be manipulated by my cock.”

She bites her lip. “So that means I can suck it?”

I groan again, scrubbing a hand down my snout and then tugging at the ring in my nose. Of all the ways I’d imagined our conversation going, Aspeth confessing her lies and then asking to suck my cock anyhow was not an option I’d considered. It could absolutely be manipulation. She’s good at hiding her feelings…and yet her cheeks are flushed, her breath escalated. Those things, she can’t hide.

Aspeth gets to her feet. “Like I said, I know my timing is bloody awful. I know I should be thinking of ways to apologize to you and to show you my sincerity, but ever since the alley, I keep thinking about you touching me, and me touching you. I thought about how you put your mouth between my thighs and pleasured me, and when I saw the women in the alley, I realized I could do the same to you. And I see it whenever I close my eyes. It’s a thing regular women do to their husbands, too, isn’t it?”

“Aye,” I say, voice ragged with need. She stands in front of me and I sink my hands into her soft, thick hair. It’s tangled from her recent bath, with just a hint of lingering soap to her scent, but I like it. “You know you could do whatever you liked to me and I’d go along with it.”

“I can?” Her expression brightens.

I nod.

She reaches for the ring in my nose and tugs my face down to hers, then plants a kiss on the end of my nose. “Thank you for trusting me.”

I want to tell her that I don’t. That I’m letting her use me because of the Conquest Moon…but it’s not quite the truth. I want Aspeth. I want her nose kisses and her caresses. I want to bury my muzzle between her thighs and make her come. I want to feel her clenching around my cock, milking my knot with her sweet, tight cunt. I want to hear her laughter, too. I want to hear her talk about Old Prell for hours on end. I want to watch her dote on her ridiculous cat because I know she’s got an incredibly soft heart that needs something to love.

I want to be one of the things she loves.

All of this was a mistake. I know that now. The gods push us in a direction, heedless of the consequences upon our lives, and the Conquest Moon is no different. I should have kept my distance, used her as needed, and moved on with my life. Now I’m too far in.

Now I’m picturing waking up every morning with Aspeth wrapped in my arms. I’m picturing her with more ridiculous cats, just so I can see her smile as she pets them. I’m picturing her with artifacts in her hands, her eyes shining with excitement.

I’m picturing her in my life, as my wife.

It’s a life I can’t have. Not with a holder’s daughter.

I should turn and leave, but I know I won’t. I know that even before she reaches for my cock, her hand eager and hesitant at the same time. She strokes the bulge of my shaft through my clothes, outlining it with her fingers. “I keep forgetting how big you are,” she whispers. “I know Taurians are large, but I forget just how large until I touch you, and then my mouth goes dry.”

Her hand slides lower, and she cups my heavy sac. She looks up at me, her gaze full of questions.

“What is it?” I stroke her cheek, fascinated by the arousal shining in them.

“This is a foolish question, but…I knew a lady who claimed she could take her husband’s balls into her mouth and suck on them both at once. Yet…” She frowns and gives my balls the barest of squeezes. “I don’t think it’s possible. Not when I see this.”

“Not all men are built the same.”

“And Taurians bigger than most?” Her eyes are wide, guileless behind her spectacles.

She’s killing me with her flattery. “We’re built to scale.”

“It’s an impressive scale.” She caresses my sac again, and it feels tight, full to bursting. “May I ask a favor?”

I stiffen, and in that moment, I realize I don’t trust her as much as I want to. It’s disappointing, because I don’t know what she’s going to ask for. “Mmm?”

“I wasn’t wearing my spectacles before when I looked at you. Can I get a second look—a better one this time?”

Oh.

I’m an arse, assuming the worst. “Of course. Just one request.”

“What’s that?”

“Can we get the cat out of the room? I don’t want him staring at me while I do filthy things to my wife.”

Aspeth giggles. “Squeaker is a ‘she’ and she won’t stare at anything, I promise. But yes, we can put her out of the room. I’ll set her a plate of chicken in the kitchen, how’s that?”

I nod, and she trails her hand down my chest as she heads out. Immediately, the fat orange cat waddles after her. I run a hand down my muzzle, trying to compose myself. My thoughts are jumping wildly, and all I know is that if she wants to fool around with my cock, I am absolutely going to let her. Part of me thinks I should leave her untouched, that she should be sent back to her father an innocent virgin.

But then I remember that’s not what she wants, and her father is a fuckwit.

If Aspeth wants to fondle my cock, better mine than some spoiled lordling’s. Better I educate her than someone who won’t give two shits about her feelings or whether she’s enjoying herself.

When she returns, she leans against the door, closing it behind her. Aspeth’s eyes are big and dark behind the lenses, and she looks worried. “What’s wrong?” I ask. “What now?”

“Do you think I’m ugly with them on? The spectacles?” There’s a wariness on her face that tells me she’s been insulted about them in the past.

“I think you are beautiful with or without them, but if you want to take them off so you can shove your nose up against my cock again, you are more than welcome.” I gesture at my groin. “I certainly don’t mind you taking a closer look.”

Her smile returns, and she moves toward me. Her hands go to my chest and she gazes up at my expression, hesitating, and I wonder if she wants to kiss me. But then she presses her face to my chest, her hand sliding back down to my cock, and I forget everything but that squeezing hand exploring my length.

“Can I get you naked?” she asks.

“Of course.” I strip my guild unform off, layer by layer, while she steps back and watches. My waist belt jingles, along with my weapons belt. Then it’s my jacket, my shirt, and pants.

“I guess a Taurian undressing is quicker than a human,” she points out in a nervous, breathless voice. “No boots or socks.”

“I’d look fucking stupid in socks.”

Her giggling takes on a manic edge, and she presses her face to my chest again. She’s nervous, I realize. I don’t think she’s ever taken the lead with a man—human or otherwise—before. I stroke her hair back from her face. She’s still in her guild uniform, still dressed in all the layers the guild demands for proper attire. “Now doesn’t have to be the time, Aspeth. We can do this later, when you’re more comfortable.”