Chapter 25 Losing It
Lazarus turned sharply only to see that Emma was standing dangerously close to him. When did she pad her way here? "And what do you have in mind?"
Her lips parted and she blushed heavily. It was as if she was hesitant in speaking her thoughts aloud. She looked so enticing, blushing heavily that he stopped the urge to trace the line of her blush.
"What is it?" he goaded her, but his thoughts went awry with her proximity. He wanted to run his hands on her body. He wanted her to touch him so that the burn he felt inside him, soothed.
"I have a suggestion for you," she said with difficulty.
After the trial, when she had left Lazarus and gone back to her room, all she could think of was him and his deal with Maeve. What if she somehow created a fracture in their relationship? If she succeeded, she wouldn\'t be giving up her soul and continue to live. If she didn\'t, then she already knew what was in for her.
Emma analyzed the whole scenario carefully. She thought of ways to seduce him, but he was so arrogant and stubborn that every way she thought of was not fitting. She talked to Ginger about it and came to know that Lord Lazarus had never been with any woman other than Maeve. Interestingly, Maeve hadn\'t offered herself to him even though she was his betrothed. And that gave Emma an idea.
The only thing that he was interested in was her body. He cherished it. He said that he would protect it forever. Emma wondered what would happen if she offered him her body willingly. She had seen the lust in his eyes when he was with her. There was no harm in trying. If she was able to seduce him with her body, then surely, he would leave Maeve. Emma would then find a way of escaping.
"I am waiting," Lazarus said, closing his fists tightly. Her eyes had grown wide and they rounded at the corners making her even more beautiful than she was. The way she was blushing, it was as if she was flowering. It was the sort of blush that reminded him of wine, of hues of roses in spring. The ringlets of her golden hair fell around her creamy skin. But that wasn\'t even the best thing about her.
He wouldn\'t be surprised if Emma had the genes of a siren. She had everything in her to entice him and she was using it all. Or probably it was the mate bond giving him hallucinations. He hadn\'t felt this attracted to her earlier.
"I—" she hesitated again. She just didn\'t know how to frame the words that she was interested in offering him her body. She was just too embarrassed. Her face heated up and her heart thundered. The shy part of her soul warred with her adventurous part. She was trying to negotiate her own predicament internally. She was battling on the inside trying to look at every angle and every monster that she was going to face.
She had never ever been close to a man, which meant that she had no experience. She had to seduce him so strongly that he had to go against Maeve, who was a goddess. She let out a whimper thinking that her competition was against a goddess who was skilled in every art. Seduction must be a game for Maeve, but for Emma it would be a gargantuan effort.
Lazarus was so focused on Maeve that even if he used her body, would he be with her mentally? Even though she was contemplating so many points, most of which went against her, she was… excited. And that part of her adventurous spirit confounded her.
Finally, she took a deep breath and blurted. "What if I offer myself to you?"
His brows furrowed so deeply that they became straight. The effect of her words went down to his shaft which tented in his pants. "What did you say?" he asked her, as if not believing his ears. He was already losing control of himself and she was offering herself. In what way?
Emma bit her bottom lip. She grabbed her gown on the sides so tight that her palms started sweating. She wanted to run away from there but now she was neck deep into her own plan. If she backed away, he would never cease to make jokes out of her. A shudder of embarrassment passed through her. She mustered more courage and said, "I know I don\'t have time, but I wanted to propose to you something. I wanted to offer my body to you and—"
"Remember this mortal. I will never forsake Maeve," he said, cutting her off. "And how old are you?"
"I will turn eighteen the day after."
He narrowed his eyes on her. Grabbing her wrist, he dragged her all the way to the door and shoved her outside. "Get out!" he hissed. "And don\'t show your face!" He closed the door on her face. As Emma stood there dumbfounded and embarrassed as hell, the door opened again. He walked out muttering that this wasn\'t his bedroom. She watched him with wide eyes as he strode to his room, opened its door and closed it behind him with a loud bang.
Lazarus went to his bed and crashed on it. He pulled a pillow to cover his head to stop the thoughts that invaded his mind. She was going to turn eighteen in two days and she intended to offer him her body when he was struggling to stay away from her? "Maeevvveeee!" he let out a muffled shout. He was surely going to turn insane. He needed her now more than ever and regretted sending her to Vilinski.
After a long time, he decided that Emma was just too low for him and that he was going to focus on his work.
So for the next two days, he focused heavily on his work even though he would go hard thinking about her "offer". He avoided her for those two days, and in that time his tolerance and anger grew thinner, his sanity was on the verge of breaking. Finally, when he couldn\'t take it any longer, he traced to her room at midday.