escordvi | closed 🪶⚡ all i really, really ever want is under the mistletoe

[That sends a jolt to places it shouldn't at a time like this, and she bites her lip, her eyes darkening as they rove over him.]

Would you like me to move?

[As she scoots a little over the desk, laying back until she's propped up on her elbows. It gives him plenty of room to lean over her now—]

[Oh so is this how she wants to play it, hm?

His eyes slowly travel down the length of her torso, lingering at the way her cleavage is revealed more, the top of her dress looking as if it's only barely hanging on. As he slowly leans over, his hips press more against hers while his hands slide up her sides until he's pressed more on top of her.

Now their faces are within hairbreadths of each other, his eyes now back on hers.]

Hmmm, depends on the kind of movement.

[A low voice, lips brushing against hers.]

But think there's something over here...

[His lips travel down her chin to the underside of her neck, one hand reaching out on the desk as if to grab something...

...

While the other has moved over to that gap in her chest, slipping beneath to find something else grab.]

[Her head falls back in invitation, something else falling to the floor as she arches even further, and when his fingers start to travel, she has to bite her lip to stifle the sound that nearly leaves her. There is so much wrong with this, but perhaps that is the thrill of it all, and it certainly has been a while since they've shared a moment like this. With all the risky business that comes and goes in their days, especially lately, this is the thing that gets her blood and aether thrumming the most, sending an overwhelming heat through every inch of her.]

Is there?

[She teases, coming back in so that she can search for his lips, and her other leg slides up his other side.]

Something better than the gold, I should hope?

Far better.

[His lips brush against her skin as he continues to travel down her neck, perhaps sharing a little of that same thrill. They could be caught at any moment, and yet what was a joking cover story may not be such a "joke" after all. Should anyone see them like this, would they really question why? Well, maybe, but they could play it off.

Still...]

However.

[His teeth nips the top of her breast, a place that would be somewhat hidden by the dress, while fingertips slide over her skin as if appraising the soft, smooth feel of it.]

I may want to savor this piece of treasure later. Take my time with it to discover all its little secrets.

[The heat of levin will dig into her skin before he pulls back and she'll feel the coolness of some gemstones that were in that drawer, a dotted line right down the center of her cleavage.]

[His teeth on her skin manage to draw soft, pleading sounds from her lips, quiet in his ears for only him to hear, and at the heat of the levin, her hips jolt beneath him, her already threadbare restraint at risk of snapping completely. His name leaves her on a sigh, one that turns into a sound of frustration when he pulls away from her.

The touch of something cold sends a shiver over her skin, raising goosebumps, and as she shifts to see what they are, they cascade down her chest and into the cleavage of her dress.]

It would seem there are far more riches than even I anticipated...

[She smiles approvingly at him, and lets the last of those jewels fall and gather in her dress.]

You will want to explore it...

[It's her turn again, the clatter of coins as shaky hands reach clumsily for them filling the space in between her breaths. Her fingers trail slowly along the length of his belt, dipping just beneath his shirt to touch the warmth of his skin, before she drops more coins into his other pocket.]

Thoroughly.

[Heat continues to rise as he watches those gemstones disappearing, provoked even further when she touches him and drops those coins.]

I will be sure to.

[She really is terrible for him, tempting him away and distracting their focus. He's usually better than this, but how he so wishes to indulge a little more, mess her up a little more...

But just as he moves in to perchance steal another kiss, there are voices outside the door. Immediately the spell is broken and he glances before looking at her, pulling her up. He then quickly mouths, "Put everything back," before quickly grabbing what's fallen.

Wouldn't do to have them sound the alarm if they start noticing things missing too quickly.]

[She is moving to meet him halfway, but only he is the one who draws back when those voices sound out from the other side of the door. One voice more familiar—a squawking sort of noise. And she swears she hears him asking about the lady in the feathered black dress. She would have been happy to continue, happy to accept that kiss regardless, so when he pulls her up with him, there's a fiery, frustrated look in her eyes, and a woeful growl that comes with it.

She lifts one finger, mouthing "you owe me one kiss" to him before she kicks her legs off the desk and picks up the black book as well as the papers that had been thrown askew. She puts the book back into the drawer where it belongs and takes a few coins before she shuts it.

With a glance around, Benedikta motions to the door on the other side.]

[He just gives her a wry grin and a wink at that, and after making sure everything is back in order (or at the very least not so obvious things were disturbed), he quickly moves over to her while glancing at the other door.

The voices are louder, closer, but fortunately so far nothing amiss. It seems there's some chatter, and a new voice that's loud and boisterous can be heard as well as another.

"I do believe we can work out a wonderful deal! Here, we can speak more in my office for a moment."

If Benedikta had been working to get that door open, she better have gotten it now!!]

[It takes a few tries for her to get the door unlocked, but she manages to swing it open just as the other door clicks. There's a panicked sound from the bird as he realizes his own keys have disappeared, but no time to linger on it. She grabs Cid by the hand and pulls him through, closing the door quietly behind them when the opposite one swings open.

It leads them out into a darker, quieter hallway, further from the sound of the party at one end, and as soon as they are through, Benedikta can't help but smile at him before she glances around. There are several more doors, but her interest falls on the set of double doors at the end of the hall.]

[He's quick to follow after her and he only listens for a moment to the voices inside before looking out into the hall, squeezing her hand at her smile.

Not wanting to risk being heard, he just gestures with her head if she wants to go down that way before some servant passes through and they're discovered.]

[She is about to nod her head at the door further down when another one closer to them opens. She is equally quick to act, grabbing him by his jacket and pulling him with her until her back hits the wall, knowing that he will follow suit...

...

As some servant comes out of the room with a pile of fresh napkins in her arms.

Benedikta's arms immediately go around his shoulders, her leg hooking at his waist as she giggles into the crook of his neck, hiding her face from view.]

[He knows instantly what she's trying to do as she pulls him, one arm immediately wrapping around as the other goes to the back of her head, further shielding her from view as he tilts his own towards her. Although there may be a bit less pretend as his teeth find her ear, whispering in a deep, low murmur—]

Sly little fox.

[—as they keep the not-so-much charade. The servant is of course surprised to see them in a place where guests shouldn't be, but given their act, she is quick to look away, face quite flushed as she hastens past them. Even if she were to gossip, Cid had pressed his body close up against Benedikta's so that her dress would be obscured, and there are many who are wearing black dresses.]

You enjoy it.

[A whisper back to him, masked by a delighted squeal when he nips at her ear. She can hear the hurried footsteps rushing past them, can hear the soft clearing of the woman's throat, and Benedikta grins to herself as she lets her lips run over the sharp, stubbled curve of his jaw.

And once they are in the clear, she does not seem so inclined to pull back just yet, taking a moment to savour the coarse feel of him before she takes his lips for that owed debt.]

It worked, didn't it?

[He's also not so quick to pull away, her scent, taste, and warmth, so very tempting, so he is quite eager to return that kiss that he owes. Eyes gleam for a moment as he answers not with words but with rougher kiss, pushing her back more against the wall. As if in reward, his tongue will find hers, paying that debt along with a bit of interest and promise for more before he pulls back just enough so he can answer.]

Well enough.

[A light tease with a smirk before he steps back to look at her.]

[She rewards him with a soft moan into the kiss, a keen as her body arches into his when he parts her lips. If they did not have more to do, it would have been a no-brainer. She would have been happy to just find an empty room, and she is so very tempted with all the doors surrounding them, but perhaps a victory will make it all that much sweeter when they are finished.

When he steps back, he'll find her looking just a touch dishevelled, her dress askew and her hair a bit of a mess. Her chest rises and falls with stuttered breaths as she looks him over, his own clothes a bit out of sorts from where her hands had roamed earlier, the sight of it making her eyes darken.]

You'd best be careful.

[As if she is not the one who had started it all. Pushing herself away from the wall, she reaches over to straighten his jacket for him.]

We've a job to do, Cidolfus. Do try to keep that in mind.

[He in turn will straighten her dress...though he ensures that his touch leaves traces as he does, even when it goes to her hair to brush it out.]

Oh I haven't. In fact I thought I was doing quite well.

[A smirk, implying she was the "job."]

[It's her turn to brush back and straighten out his hair, and her hand comes down to rest against his cheek when she's finished.]

You are ever the expert, as always.

[A knowing grin before she looks around, the keys jangling lightly around her finger.]

And now it is a game of which door will be the most fruitful...

Well we know the servant came out from that door and then went through that one, so I'd say no to either of those.

Should we take the obvious?

You mean the big, fancy double doors at the end of the hall?

[She closes the distance between them until their hips touch. ... Just in case someone else comes out of any of the half a dozen doors they are surrounded by.]

I think we should. A bedroom, perhaps?

[Her hand slides into his, taking it.]

Mmm, I'd wager the bedrooms are on another floor so they can better see their property.

[When she takes his hand, he pulls them so that her arm loops through his to bring them even closer and better allow them to speak quietly.]

But there must be something grand if they make it so extravagant.

Pity. [A dramatic sigh.] I would have liked a bed...

[As they walk together down the hall quietly, she eyes the other doors that they pass.]

Could you keep watch while I try to unlock this one? [She eyes the keys in her other hand, doubt pulling her brows tight.] I may need to try the old traditional methods...

[He glances at the keys before giving a nod.]

Do what you need. But if it takes too long we should try elsewhere.

Please. As if I would take long. Have you so little faith?

[She reaches up into her hair and pulls out a pin that had been holding some of it back behind her ear. It falls free, tumbling into place as if it had never left it, and she hands it to him. It may look like a pretty pin, but it is most certainly a lockpick as well.]

I always come prepared.

[A slight arch of the brow before he takes it, examining it.]

Should I start buying you lockpicking hairpins as gifts instead of the fashionable kind?

[Said in jest...but also serious contemplation.]

Who says that they cannot be both practical and fashionable at the same time?

[She motions to the one that she's placed in his hand. Case in point.

But she'll start working the keys into the lock, trying them one at a time. Some fit and then don't turn while others do not work at all, and so she'll eventually beckon to him with her fingers.

Meanwhile, there are footsteps approaching, and Benedikta nods to him, and then down the hallway.]

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