Decade | | Azriel

7

Kyla was entirely correct about her energy levels today. She didn't put in nearly as much effort as she usually did into faking it. Finn, at least, didn't seem to notice—as confident in himself as ever.

Kyla absentmindedly almost thought it was a little sad. He really believed he was doing it for her. She faked moans and gasps at all the right times and his ego shot into the sky as he believed every second of it.

She was aching in entirely unpleasant ways by the end of it. Finn was grinning ear to ear.

"I bet Mondays are your favorite," he boasted proudly, admiring the marks he had left on her back from the different impact toys he had decided to experiment with.

"A lovely way to start the week," she lied, flashing a pretty smile from where she lay with her cheek resting on the pillow. "Send for a healer on your way out," she requested, "don't forget this time."

"Of course, babe," he replied as got dressed, "I'll ask them to send someone."

Kyla let out a sigh before she forced herself to smile at him again.

"See you next week," he said with a wink, and she pretended to be excited.

Kyla waited for an hour before accepting that Finn did, in fact, forget again. Quyn might ban him for it. She nearly did the last time he forgot. She got up with a wince, found a robe to cover up with, and limped her way to the healer's room.

"You look like hell," the lead healer, Iza, commented when she saw the angry red welts, "I thought it was Finn you were seeing? This looks more like something Aralas would have done. At least he would've bothered to direct us to your room."

"You've been spending too much time with Quyn," Kyla mumbled as she laid on her stomach on the cot Iza motioned her to.

"Olson is the only one of your regulars I like. Him and the secret one," Iza said, ignoring Kyla's comment. "Your walk-ins are always so fun but your regulars are just...ugh. Olson is kind but he's so boring. I don't know why he pays your price instead of booking with one of the softer girls. He doesn't ever do anything interesting."

"He likes pretending he's into things he doesn't know a thing about," Kyla told her, earning a laugh.

"Males are so foolish sometimes," Iza noted before she grinned, "your secret client certainly isn't boring though. Sometimes I wish he didn't do my job for me just because I want to see the state he leaves you in."

"Get yourself a private room and I'll refer him to you," Kyla offered, only half joking.

"Don't tempt me. The male pays you to do things you like and then goes off and buys you dinner. If there's anything that might convince me to switch professions, it's him."

Kyla went quiet after that, finding her thoughts drifting. A part of her wondered if Azriel would even be back or not. A part of her hoped the answer was no. A part of her didn't know how she would even continue here if the answer was no. She was nervous to see him again, to face those things that had undoubtedly changed between them.

She was pulled out of that train of thought when a substance against her back had her hissing in pain.

"He broke the skin a bit," Iza muttered, eyebrows furrowed, "I'm reporting him to Quyn."

"You don't have to do that," Kyla muttered, "it's the first time in fifty years he has done that. She'll ban him for it."

"He broke the skin and didn't bother to let anyone know. At least Aralas has the decency to tell us when he does it," Iza replied bitterly, "I'm reporting him."

Kyla stayed quiet, knowing better than to argue with the healer any further on this. She could let Iza report Finn and then have the argument about whether or not he should be banned with Quyn. He hadn't broken her skin on purpose. He just tried using a toy he had no clue how to work with. The real issue wasn't that mistake—it was not sending for a healer the moment he realized what he did that would be what landed him in trouble.

"That's the other thing I like about your secret client," Iza remarked with a thoughtful hum, "he actually knows what he's doing. So many of those males are just big talk and pick up a whip like they know how to use it when they really have no clue. He at least knows what he's he's doing!"

"You sure are fond of the male for never having met him," she muttered, and she felt Iza's hands still against her back for a just a moment.

"Has he done something to upset you?" she asked softly, worry clear in her voice.

"No," she assured her, "we just had...I think we both needed to be reminded that this isn't as personal as we made it."

"You know, one of the girls here before ended up marrying a male who had been her client for fifteen years," Iza informed her, "it's not unheard of to find something more than just sex here."

"Iza! I don't want to marry him," she denied, face gone red in embarrassment.

Iza hummed in response as she focused on tending to Kyla's back.

"I remember when you first showed up here," Iza brought up quietly after a few seconds of silence. "I didn't think you'd be here for long. Most girls who show up at our doors that young don't stay."

"I wasn't that young," she mumbled, and Iza rolled her eyes.

"Quyn almost wouldn't hire you because you were only eighteen," she informed her, "it's why she only let you work as a server at first. You were barely even of age and had no history in Velaris. She's still the only one here who knows anything about where and what you came from."

"Are you trying to say I should be more open?" Kyla asked, a bit of a bite to her tone.

"I'm just saying you tend to run from personal in any relationship," Iza said carefully, "and you shouldn't let that ruin a potentially good thing. If you like your secret client and feel safe getting more personal with him, don't hold back."