and all that we intend is scrawled in sand
Flora huffs out a laugh at his murmured verdict, the sound soft and a little breathless, and then she turns away to deal with the dress without ceremony or performance. There is no attempt at grace, no teasing pause or glance over her shoulder; she simply steps out of it, letting the red lace slide down her hips and pool at her ankles like shed skin. She kicks it aside absently, left in nothing but black lace she had very much imagined Kaisel removing with his teeth under entirely different circumstances, and sighs quietly at the thought before it can turn sharp.
She watches him wrestle with his own clothes from the corner of her eye, the longer process of it almost endearing, and by the time he finally flops onto the bed she has already tugged an oversized shirt down over her head, the fabric swallowing her up to mid-thigh. "Mmm, lucky you, you get both," she says lightly, amused, when he mentions the bed and the water in the same breath.
As if summoned by the sentiment, icy glasses wait at either side of the bed, condensation already slicking the bases thanks to the quiet, loyal efficiency of the spirits and Spice alike. Flora barely spares them a glance before she slides into the silk-soft sheets, the fabric cool against her skin as she moves across the mattress and into Kaisel’s arms without hesitation. She turns, wriggles, adjusts, fitting herself against him with the familiarity of muscle memory. A long sigh leaves her as she finally stills, cheek tucked close, body relaxing in degrees rather than all at once, as though she is carefully lowering herself out of the tension rather than dropping it outright.
Above them, the house creaks and settles. Below them, through the floorboards, the party is anything but quiet. Laughter breaks, then dissolves into breathless sounds that are unmistakably not laughter at all, punctuated by muffled voices and the rhythmic thump of movement that sends a faint vibration through the floorboards. Someone groans, low and unashamed, and someone else answers it with a sound that makes Flora press her lips together, torn between humour and exasperation.
She exhales slowly, nestling closer into Kaisel, letting the noise fade into background and doing her best not to try and match moans with the party attendees she knows are staying over. "Mmm, wanna know a secret?"
She watches him wrestle with his own clothes from the corner of her eye, the longer process of it almost endearing, and by the time he finally flops onto the bed she has already tugged an oversized shirt down over her head, the fabric swallowing her up to mid-thigh. "Mmm, lucky you, you get both," she says lightly, amused, when he mentions the bed and the water in the same breath.
As if summoned by the sentiment, icy glasses wait at either side of the bed, condensation already slicking the bases thanks to the quiet, loyal efficiency of the spirits and Spice alike. Flora barely spares them a glance before she slides into the silk-soft sheets, the fabric cool against her skin as she moves across the mattress and into Kaisel’s arms without hesitation. She turns, wriggles, adjusts, fitting herself against him with the familiarity of muscle memory. A long sigh leaves her as she finally stills, cheek tucked close, body relaxing in degrees rather than all at once, as though she is carefully lowering herself out of the tension rather than dropping it outright.
Above them, the house creaks and settles. Below them, through the floorboards, the party is anything but quiet. Laughter breaks, then dissolves into breathless sounds that are unmistakably not laughter at all, punctuated by muffled voices and the rhythmic thump of movement that sends a faint vibration through the floorboards. Someone groans, low and unashamed, and someone else answers it with a sound that makes Flora press her lips together, torn between humour and exasperation.
She exhales slowly, nestling closer into Kaisel, letting the noise fade into background and doing her best not to try and match moans with the party attendees she knows are staying over. "Mmm, wanna know a secret?"
