Edward’s voice was low. "Use your hand."
She blinked. "W-what?"
"Stroke it." he clarified. "Everything is already building up gradually."
Her stomach dropped. Stroke it. The words settled in her mind, heavy and obscene. She swallowed, her throat dry. "I—I don’t know how."
His grip on her neck tightened just slightly, not enough to hurt, but enough to make her pulse jump. "You’ll figure it out."
Thaleia hesitated, her hand hovering in the air between them. She could feel the heat radiating off him, seeing the way his cock jerked as if impatient. Her fingers trembled as she finally, finally, reached out.
The first touch was electric.
Her fingertips brushed against the hot, smooth skin, and she flinched. It was softer than she expected, the skin velvety over the rigid hardness beneath. She wrapped her fingers around it experimentally, her grip loose, unsure. Edward didn’t move, didn’t react, but his breath hitched—just barely.
Encouraged, she slid her hand up, then down, her palm gliding over the thick vein that pulsed against her fingers. His cock twitched in her grip, and she bit her lip, her own body reacting in ways she didn’t understand. A strange, warm ache settled between her thighs.
Edward was trying hard not to show how much he liked what was happening. His jaw was tight, and he stared right at her. He didn’t make a noise, but you could tell his body was super tense. He moved his hips forward a tiny bit, like he was telling her to keep going.
Thaleia started moving her hand faster, and she wasn’t shy about it. She was really watching him, interested in what was going on. She saw a little drop of clear stuff form at the end of his rod, and it was shiny under the light. She knew it was pre-cum from what she knows about in biology, but knowing what it was didn’t mean she knew what to do with it.
Then, Edward looked down and saw that drop too. He spoke, and his voice was a little rough. "Lick it."
Thaleia just froze.
Her hand froze. Lick it. The words sounded crazy in her head. She shook her head no, and her hand wasn’t holding him as tight anymore. "I—I can’t."
He put his fingers in her hair and pulled her head back so she had to look at him. "You can."
She swallowed hard because her mouth was suddenly really dry. "Is—is that safe? Like, to put in my mouth?"
"You already touched it." He rubbed his thumb over her bottom lip, and it felt really good.
Thaleia’s breath came in short, sharp gasps. She wanted to pull away, to refuse, but the way he looked at her—like he owned her—made her body betray her. Slowly, reluctantly, she leaned forward.
The first flick of her tongue was hesitant, barely there. The taste was strange—salty, musky, not unpleasant, but intimate in a way that made her cheeks flame. Edward’s grip in her hair tightened, just for a second, and she heard the faintest groan rumble in his chest.
Emboldened—or perhaps just resigned—she did it again, her tongue swiping over the slick tip, collecting the bead of pre-cum. His cock jerked against her lips, and she pulled back with a gasp, her heart hammering.
Before she could process what had just happened, Edward yanked her forward, his mouth crashing onto hers again. This kiss was different—hungrier, possessive. His tongue plunged between her lips, and she could taste herself on him, the salt of his skin mingling with the sweetness of her own arousal.
Thaleia melted into it, her body arching against his, her fingers clutching at his shoulders. The kiss was endless, brutal, his teeth nipping at her lip before soothing the sting with his tongue. By the time he finally pulled away, she was breathless, her mind a haze of sensation.
And then, without a word, Edward released her.
He stepped back, his cock still hard, still glistening from her touch, but his expression was once again unreadable.
"So, how did that feel for you?" Edward asked.
The question just hung there in the air of the room. Thaleia felt like a ton of bricks had suddenly landed on her shoulders. She wasn’t ready for such a question. Edward’s voice was even and calm. There was no judgment in his tone. He was watching her really closely, almost like her reflection. It wasn’t her body he was staring at, which she had been worried about. Instead, he seemed to be looking at her face, trying to figure out what she was really feeling inside.
Thaleia swallowed hard, her throat feeling tight and dry. "It was... overwhelming at first," she admitted, her voice barely a whisper against the walls. "I didn’t know what to do with my hands. I was worried I was doing something wrong, or that just being there was messing things up. I couldn’t stop thinking, and my thoughts were so distracting."
Edward nodded slowly, like he had been expecting her to say exactly that. He didn’t look bummed out, just observant.
"That’s the trouble," he said, his voice as calm. You’re in your head too much. "You’re overthinking everything."
Thaleia frowned a little, feeling a bit irritated. "How can I not? This is the first time I’ve ever done something like this. Maybe it’s no big deal for you, but for me, it feels like all the walls I’ve built around myself for years are falling down."
Thaleia immediately noticed her tone was out of line and she quickly apologized. "Apologies my Lord."
Edward didn’t take any offense in the way he spoke and he quickly continued, "I’m not saying you should stop thinking altogether," Edward said, taking a small step closer. "I’m saying you should stop doubting every movement. Dual cultivation is not merely the merging of bodies for the sake of physical pleasure. It is the merging of intent. It is a synchronization of two disparate currents into a single, unstoppable river. If your mind is full of hesitation, your mana will reflect that instability."
"Do you understand?"