Chapter 120: Preparations Begin
Chapter 120: Preparations Begin
The rest of the day practically flew by for Mirabelle.
She spent the afternoon brainstorming gift ideas for the Queen together with Lonan, while a decidedly grumpy-looking Silas stood against the kitchen wall with his arms crossed, silently watching her.
She had told him several times that she was perfectly capable of managing on her own. He insisted on staying anyway.
Only after the kitchen had filled with the irresistible aroma of freshly baked pastries, and she had absentmindedly fed him one... then another... straight from her fingers, did his mood noticeably improve.
The head chef, meanwhile, pointedly ignored the panther altogether and devoted his full attention to his work.
Secretly, he was rather excited. He had been chosen to accompany them to the Royal Hunting Party. Even if it meant someone else would have to keep the castle kitchens running in his absence.
By the time they finished, Mirabelle had eaten so many taste-test samples that she couldn’t manage another bite during dinner.
She had expected the evening to be uneventful.
Instead, to her surprise...
Kaelith offered her a massage. And really...
Who was she to refuse?
Outside, the castle lay wrapped in darkness, while inside only the fireplace painted the walls in warm shades of creame and gold. Every now and then, a log settled with a soft crackle, sending a shower of tiny sparks dancing up the chimney.
Mirabelle lay on her stomach across her bed.
Her cheek rested on a pillow. She hadn’t bothered changing into anything elaborate. A loose linen nightdress draped comfortably over her body, exposing only the back of her neck and shoulders.
Kaelith sat beside her. His tail flicking excitedly.
He remained silent for a long moment.
"So...", His deep voice was barely louder than the fire. "Where does it hurt?"
Mirabelle let out a tired sigh:
"...Everywhere."
A faint chuckle escaped him.
"Helpful."
"It is."
She buried her face deeper into the pillow.
Kaelith smiled to himself:
"I can work with ’everywhere.’"
He rubbed his palms together first.
Enough to warm them. Only then did he place them gently on her shoulders.
Mirabelle instinctively tensed. Not because she expected pain. Simply because someone was touching muscles she hadn’t even realized she’d been clenching.
Kaelith didn’t press.
He waited.
Patiently.
"You don’t have to help."
She blinked.
"What?"
"Your shoulders. They’re trying very hard."
Only then did she notice.
She was practically holding them against her ears. Embarrassed, she exhaled.
"I didn’t even realize..."
"I know."
Very slowly, his thumbs began making small circles along the tops of her shoulders. Just hard enoughy to encourage the muscles to let go.
First nothing happened.
The former Mirabelle had hated massages.
Somehow, she’d simply been in the mood to give them another try.
Besides...
She had assumed massage was code for...
...something else.
She hadn’t expected Kaelith to mean an actual massage.
And now here she was. Lying on her stomach. Waiting for...
Well.
Waiting for what, exactly?
Then...
One side softened.
Kaelith: "...There."
"I felt that." Mirabelle hummed into the pillow.
"I think something just melted."
"It did."
His hands moved a little farther outward.
Along the ridge of her shoulders. Down toward her shoulder blades.
Every now and then he paused, finding another knot she hadn’t known existed.
Instead of forcing it, he simply stayed there.
Steady pressure. Waiting. The muscles yielded on their own.
Mirabelle hadn’t expected a massage to feel like this.
She had imagined pain.
Cracking joints.
Someone digging elbows into her back.
Instead...
It felt strangely quiet.
As though every slow movement gave her body permission to stop carrying something it no longer needed.
Without realizing it, her breathing slowed.
The warmth from the fireplace settled across her skin. Kaelith’s hands remained warm and reassuring against her back.
Outside, the wind stirred softly through the trees. Somewhere in the distance, an owl called into the night.
She started to feel sleepy. Her thoughts began to wander.
"...You’re thinking again."
Mirabelle opened one eye.
"Am I that obvious?"
"You’ve been trying to solve the same problem with your forehead for the last five minutes."
She snorted softly.
"My forehead?"
"Mhm.
You wrinkle it."
"...I do not."
"You are."
She considered arguing.
Instead...
She noticed he was right. Her brow relaxed
"So bossy."
"I’m massaging the future Duchess."
Mirabelle laughed quietly. The sound faded into the crackling fire.
For a while, neither of them spoke again.
There was no need.
Only the steady rhythm of Kaelith’s hands, the warmth of the room, and the comforting realization that, Mirabelle wasn’t thinking about the next crisis.
She was simply...
resting.
Before she knew it, Mirabelle had fallen asleep beneath the hyena’s hands.
It was the best sleep she’d had in days.
Kaelith had tucked the blanket around her before lying down beside her. Sometime during the night, she’d apparently climbed halfway onto him.
She woke with her upper body draped across his chest, one leg thrown over his thighs.
...
Was that a drool stain on his shirt?
Mortified, she reached up to brush her curls out of her face.
Only to forget, as always, that she now had lynx ears on top of her head.
"You missed one."
Kaelith, one arm resting comfortably behind his head, reached up and gently brushed his fingers along her cheek, freeing a loose curl that had caught at the corner of her mouth.
She wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole. Flustered, she quickly looked away and hurriedly wiped at her face.
"Good morning," she mumbled.
"Good morning."
Kaelith chuckled. His voice was still rough with sleep.
He reached for her wrist and gave it a gentle tug.
With a startled yelp, she toppled fully onto his chest and found herself looking straight into his eyes.
The softness of the early morning lingered in them.
"Don’t I get a good morning kiss?"
Smiling, she granted his wish.
"You could’ve gotten a lot more than that yesterday," she purred.
A dangerous gleam appeared in his eyes.
With one swift movement powered by his shoulder, he rolled them both over.
Mirabelle squeaked again as she suddenly found herself on her back... a hyena Beastman hovering above her.
This time...
He claimed her lips.
She let it happen with a contented smile.
As he leaned down toward her, she felt his very firm morning greeting pressed against her lower abdomen.
Oh.
Her hand slipped from his chest, traveling lower until it wrapped around Kaelith’s aroused length.
The hyena Beastman groaned against her lips, and she answered with a gentle squeeze.
He thanked her by nuzzling and playfully nibbling at her neck.
Warm shivers raced across Mirabelle’s skin before gathering low in her belly, where a pleasant, anticipatory warmth slowly settled.
Once again, Kaelith effortlessly rolled them over until she was lying on top of him.
As he began stroking her body with slow, deliberate caresses, she quickly realized why: He wanted both hands free.
Beneath his gentle touch, Mirabelle’s body awakened a little more with every passing second until a faint tremor ran through her.
Yet the Beastman seemed unable to get enough of touching her, even though she could clearly feel his dick pulsing impatiently against her.
Then she lost all restraint.
"I want you now."
She pushed herself upright until she was straddling him, which only pressed his hard morning arousal more firmly against her.
She bit her lower lip.
Her hands hurriedly found the hem of his shirt, eagerly pushing it upward.
"You already have me," Kaelith countered.
Even so, he helped her pull it off, lifting his upper body so she could slip the fabric over his head.
"Ohhh..." She rolled her eyes dramatically before giving him a playful shove, sending him back onto the mattress. "You know exactly what I mean."
The mischievous grin spreading across his face was answer enough.
She caught the hem of her nightgown, which had ridden up around her thighs. A heartbeat later, she was sitting naked atop him.
His gaze slowly wandered over her breasts in open admiration.
Then she slid off him and flopped onto the mattress beside him with a soft whump.
Kaelith stared at her with wide eyes.
"What?"
She pointed vaguely toward his trousers without even looking properly.
"As long as you’re still wearing those, nothing’s going to happen anyway."
She had never seen a man take off his trousers that quickly.
An instant later, Kaelith was over her with a low growl.
She let out a startled squeak and wrapped her arms around his neck as her legs instinctively spread wide to welcome him.
Once again, Kaelith leaned in to kiss her. His aroused cock brushed against her aching, throbbing center, drawing a soft, wet sound from between them. She was ready.
But he remained exactly where he was. Poised at her entrance, burning hot, hard, and quivering with desire.
Torture.
Pure torture.
Aroused, Mirabelle began to writhe beneath him, hoping he would finally...
Then she’d had enough.
"Fuck me. Now," she hissed.