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The castle was always cold, but in the midst of that cold there was a little heart beating, full of life, capable of warming Bela.
There they were, in the enormous library, perhaps two hours ago or more, but all that mattered to Bela was being with her baby. Grace was sitting on the large red carpet near the fireplace with Bela lying on top of her, resting her head on Grace’s chest and hugging her gently while listening to the beat of her heart.
«The stepmother’s daughter became the most wicked seamstress in the palace, the stepmother was tied to a wild horse, and everyone knew and never forgot that whoever harbors evil in their heart is doomed to a terrible end...»
Bela said nothing for a few seconds; the human’s smaller hand stroked her unprotected blond hair.
—Mmm… that was the gloomiest story I’ve ever heard.— said Grace.—Is this supposed to be for kids? What kind of kid reads this? Eric Smith?
—The kids here aren’t as weak as where you come from— Bela replied boredly, burying her face in the shorter blonde’s neck to kiss her skin.
—Actually... there are statistics showing that Romania has a high rate of mental health issues among children and adolescents...
—Oh, for Mother Miranda’s sake, stop being such a nerd, Grace.. You remind me of the private lessons my mother used to give my sisters and me…
Grace frowned and sighed, muttering something like “unbearable.” Bela stood up and grabbed her face to force her to look at her.
—What did you say?— asked the taller one, even though she’d clearly understood; she just loved embarrassing Grace and making her take it back so she’d look at her like a damn dog in the rain.
—Mmmh… Bela!— she complained.
—As much as I love hearing you say my name with that blushing little face, that’s not the right answer.
Grace let out a squeal and kicked as hard as she could to break free. She stared at the blonde before trying to crawl away, though it was useless; Bela would catch her before she could reach the next bookshelf.
No sooner said than done, just as Grace began to stumble, the taller one caught her and lifted her effortlessly against the bookshelf.
—Mmmh… no, no, no… you always make the same mistake. When will you learn?— Bela hummed against the sensitive skin of Grace’s neck. She slowly kissed the curve and scraped it lightly with her teeth. A small moan escaped from the shorter one, clinging to the fly woman’s shoulders.
—B-Bela… s-s-someone might come in…
—Mmm?— Bela didn’t even flinch. She kissed her neck harder, slowly moving up her jaw and then to her mouth. Grace was already looking at her with her big, tender eyes.
Bela let out a soft chuckle, touched by the sight, and kissed Ashcroft’s cheek gently before biting it and kissing her lips. Grace moaned between kisses; she was completely flushed and starting to feel dizzy.
—Mom will be furious if she finds out you didn’t go hunting just to make out with your girlfriend.
They both pulled apart at lightning speed and looked at Cassandra, who had a mischievous smile and her arms crossed. Bela rolled her eyes as she let Grace step back.
—Don’t be a snitch, Cass. I’m still keeping the secret about when you fucked the maid from the east wing of the castle.
—U-Um… s-s-sorry, I didn’t mean to… uh… a-a-and I…— Grace couldn’t stop stuttering; she had her head down and wanted to bury it in the damn dirt like an ostrich.
Cassandra let out a laugh and Bela shoved her.
—Stop messing around, for Mother Miranda’s sake, what do you want? I’m not going to cover for you.
—Oh, of course you will, or do you want Mom to get mad? She’s already had a rough day.
—I’m not going to fall for your damn…”
Clearly, she had to cover for Cassandra so she could go meet up with another maid while her mother watched over them, because lately rumors had been spreading that Cassandra was “hunting” them down, and Alcina wasn’t an idiot—she knew her daughter.
Anyway, Cassandra kept her promise not to say anything, but in the meantime, Grace was mortified every time she remembered it and didn’t want to see Cassandra again for a century.