Rushing to Elena’s room after hearing shouting, he pushed through the door. The scent hit him first—musky, sweet, the thick perfume of sweat and sex. The sound followed: wet, rhythmic sucking, a low, desperate moan that was unmistakably Elena’s. Then the sight.
Lisa Chen was bent over Elena’s hips, her face buried between Elena’s thighs, her own bare ass arched high in the air toward the door. One of Lisa’s hands was braced around Elena’s leg, the other was working furiously between her own legs, fingers rubbing circles on her clit. Elena was sprawled back, head thrown into the pillows, back arched, her hands fisted in Lisa’s streaked hair. Her body was taut, trembling on the very edge.
Liam froze. What had he just walked in on? He didn’t expect Elena to be like that, or for the two of them to be lovers. His world narrowed to the heat of that bed, the animal truth of it. Possession, a thing he recognized and understood. A strong impulse formed into something hotter and more violent in his gut.
Elena’s eyes, glazed and unfocused, drifted toward the doorway. They found him. A slow, languid smile touched her swollen lips. “Liam,” she sighed, the name a wet, acknowledging purr. “You’re here.” As if he’d arrived for a cocktail. Her head arching back again at another wave of pleasure asLisa’s mouth worked at her more. “Don’t stop,” she murmured, not to him, but her command was slurred, drunk on sensation.
Lisa didn’t stop. If anything, her fingers moved faster, her own muffled groan vibrating against Elena’s skin. The obscenity of it—the complete dismissal of his presence, the total immersion in their shared pleasure—shattered his stillness.
He moved. Three strides across the room. His hand wrapped around Lisa’s shoulder, not rough, but implacable. He pulled her up and away. Her mouth came free with a slick, protesting sound. She blinked up at him, dazed, arousal burning in her dark eyes, her lips glistening. “Wha—?”
“Enough,” he said, the word a crack of ice. He shoved her sideways, onto the side of the bed. She tumbled onto her side, ragged heap, whimpering as she continued to rub between her legs.
Elena cried out, a sound of pure loss, her body convulsing as the promised climax was ruthlessly severed. She reached for the empty air where Lisa had been. “No…”
Liam turned to her. He gripped her shoulders, pressed her down into the sweat-damp sheets. Her skin was fever-hot. “Look at me.” Her green eyes swam, trying to find focus. The look he was all too familiar with. “Fuck, Eros!”
He released her. Both women were panting, a tangled, glistening mess of limbs and frustration on the bed. The room reeked of them. Liam’s mind, now cold and clicking, assessed the situation: Effects of Eros. They needed a reset. A harsh one.
He quickly entered the adjoining bathroom. The marble was cool under his shoes. He twisted the tub faucet, then the shower knob. Both left on a punishing, semi-cold stream. He let them run, the water pounding a discordant rhythm.
Back in the bedroom, Lisa was trying to push herself up on trembling arms. He scooped her off the bed. She was slight, her body slick with sweat. She nuzzled into his suit jacket, mumbling something incoherent. He carried her into the bathroom and deposited her directly into the filling tub.
The cold water hit her. She gasped, a sharp, shocked inhalation that was the first sane sound he’d heard from her all night. Her eyes flew wide, the haze clearing into startled, humiliated awareness. She clutched the edges of the tub, shivering violently.
“Stay,” he commanded, and the Thorn authority was back, absolute. She stared up at him, naked and shrinking in the cold water, and nodded, mute.
As he returned to the bed. Elena had curled onto her side, her long hair a dark wave over her shoulder. Her hand was rubbing between her pressed legs. She watched him approach, her expression soft and wounded and still desperately wanting. He didn’t speak. He slid one arm under her knees, the other behind her back, and lifted her. She was pliant, her head lolling against his chest. Her heat seared through his clothes.
At the shower stall, he maneuvered her just inside the spray, holding her upright with one arm. With his free hand, he tore at his own clothes. His shirt hit the wet floor. His shirt buttons scattered. He kicked off his shoes, shoved his trousers and briefs down, stepping out of them without ever letting go of her. Quickly tossing them towards the countertop.
He joined her under the spray. The cold was a brutal slap. He winced, his teeth clamping together. Elena jolted in his arms as the water hit her back, a sharp cry ripped from her throat. Her body stiffened, the sensual languor shattering. She began to shiver, great, racking tremors that he felt against his own chest. Her eyes, wide and startled now, lifted to his. Recognition, slow and dawning, and then a flood of horror beneath it.
He held her there, both of them naked under the cold, cleansing rain of the shower.
*********************
Elena started to return to her senses. “What ha—” The realization of her body naked and pressed against his, stopped her terrified. The only thing keeping her moving was the shivering she was doing under the water.
“S-s-s-some o-on-e wa-a-nt to tell-l me wha-ats go-oi-ing on?” Lisa yelled from the bathtub.
Without giving a straight answer, he said, “You both can get out of the water now. Grab a towel and dry off quickly.” His voice carried a commanding authority that Elena recognized all too well. He gently releases Elena, and she quickly steps away, going for the door to the shower to find a towel. Looking back, the watered window, she sees his naked form blurred through the dripping water. He was naked with me.
She then turns and sees Lisa’s naked body climbing out of the bathtub, shivering as she aims for the nearby towel. Giving her a hand, the two shiver wraped in their towel.
REVIEW SPOT 1
The shower door clicked open. Relizing Liam was exiting the shower, Elena turned away. She couldn’t look at him. Just thinking about his bare chest against hers under the spray was a brand on her skin. Her eyes found Lisa instead, who was blinking water from her lashes, her gaze darting past Elena’s shoulder to where Liam stood.
Lisa’s eyes went wide. Her mouth formed a soft, stunned ‘o’. She saw him—all of him—the powerful lines of his body, the water sluicing down his torso, the utterly unselfconscious authority in his stance. Her eyes flew to Elena’s, a silent, shocked question. Elena gave a minute, frantic shake of her head. No. Don’t. Don’t say anything!
Liam ignored the silent exchange. He stepped out onto the bathmat, water pooling at his feet, and yanked open a drawer beside the sink. He pulled out a thick, white towel. The sound of rough fabric against his skin was loud in the tiled room—a brisk, efficient scrubbing over his chest, his arms, the blunt strength of his thighs. He dried himself with the same focused precision he applied to everything.
He turned, the towel slung low on his hips. The two women stood shivering, their arms crossed over their chests, towels clutched like shields. Lisa’s teeth chattered. “C-can I take a hot shower now? To warm up?” Her voice was small, plaintive.
“No.” His denial was absolute, a door slamming shut. “If you warm up too fast, you go into shock. Your bodies need to recalibrate gradually.” His blue eyes swept over them, clinical. “Get under the bed covers. Use each other’s body heat.”
They didn't argue. His voice held too much authority here. Elena and Lisa shuffled, hair dripping, from the bathroom into the cooler air of the bedroom. The plush rug felt warm under Elena’s feet. Together, they peeled back the heavy duvet and slid beneath, their wet towels abandoned on the floor. The sheets were shockingly cold, a fresh wave of shivering seizing them both. Instinctively, they turned toward each other, arms looping, legs tangling. Lisa’s skin was clammy. Elena pressed closer, seeking the faint warmth starting to bloom where their bodies met.
“What the actual fuck was that?” Lisa whispered, her voice hushed but urgent against Elena’s ear. Her breath was a warm puff in the chilling dark. “What happened to us?!? I mean, I remember, but I don’t understand how!” She then yelled to Mr. Thorn
From the bathroom came the sound of Liam’s continued, methodical drying. “You were drugged,” his voice answered, flat and clear through the doorway. “Eros. Its a drug that puts you into a similar state as being Intoxicated. You become Incoherent and extremely aroused. It’s a sex drug. Harmless, but can last for hours. The protocol is to trigger a light Hypothermic reaction. It’s how you negate the drug.”
“Protocol?” Lisa shot back, emboldened by the blanket and the distance. “You threw me in a tub!”
“Cold immersion brings lucidity. It worked.” A drawer slid shut. The rustle of fabric followed—the sound of him pulling on his trousers. Elena stared at the ceiling, tracking his movements by sound. The slide of a zipper. The click of a belt buckle. Her own skin was a map of remembered sensations: the brutal chill of the shower, the hard press of his chest, the terrifying intimacy of his bare skin against hers under the spray.
“Why were you even in here?” Elena asked, the question escaping her in a thin breath.
“Screaming is not a normal noise in my manor. At least not from this side of the home.” He answers. The second sentance causing her insides to burn a little more in anger.
“How did it happen?!” She demanded, slowly returning normal feeling as Lisa’s naked body continued to press against hers.
“That I don’t know. Eros is a drug, usually a liquid. Its smell needs to be inhaled or, for best effects, mixed with a humidifier. There are also methods to consume, but they must be in light doses, and it tends to taste disgusting. Very noticeable and not something someone you spike you with.” He finishes explaining. Then starts to walk towards the door.
“Hey! You better not be leaving! I have more questions! How do you know all this?”
She yells, watching as he approaches the door.
“I’m not leaving. It would be irresponsible to leave you two in this state.” He stated, with little annoyance shown in his monotone voice. He then steps to the door and takes one step out, reaching nearby. Through the gap in the door, Elena can see him grab a Bell and give it a good ring. Its chime a soft, melodic but piercing noise that seemed to echo through the manor. He then steps back inside. “Its because I made it. Or better phrasing, had it developed by my medical team.”
“Wh-what? You made it? Why?” Elena spoke up.
“Idk, El, that stuff was pretty fun aside from the whole getting spiked part. I never planned on doing that with you, but it definitely was something fun.” Lisa let out with her filter still gone, something she would probably never find.
Elena turned bright red. “No-no-no-no-no-no.” The sudden return of thought of everything started to overwhelm her.
REVIEW SPOT 2
Elena curled into a tight ball, her face buried in the cold pillow. The covers were a cave, a tomb. The facts hit her in a nauseating wave: the desperate heat between her legs, Lisa’s mouth, her own shameless moans, Liam’s hands on her naked skin, the cold water, his naked chest pressed against her back. A sob ripped its way out of her throat, muffled by the fabric. She shoved herself away from Lisa’s seeking warmth, retreating to the far edge of the mattress, pulling the duvet over her head completely. The world was dark, damp, and smelled of her own shame.
Lisa flinched at the movement. “Elena?” Her voice was small, tentative. “Oh, god. El, I’m so sorry. I don’t… I didn’t mean to…”
Liam watched the lump under the covers tremble. He didn’t move toward her. Instead, he turned as a soft knock sounded at the bedroom door. “Enter.”
Presley stepped inside, his expression impeccably neutral. His eyes took in the scene—the two women in the bed, one a rigid mound of blankets, the other naked half out of the covers, the wet towels on the floor, his employer standing by the bed in a state of casual, post-shower dishevelment. Not a single muscle in Presley’s face twitched. “Sir.”
“The girls were dosed with Eros. In this room. Tonight.” Liam’s voice was a low, dangerous wire. “I want the entire staff searched. Now. Anyone who prepared their dinner, delivered their wine, cleaned this room, or entered it after midday. I want their pockets checked, their quarters tossed. I want to know how a vial of one of my own compounds ended up in my home.”
“Understood, sir.” Presley gave a shallow bow. “I will handle it personally.”
“Make sure you do.”
Presley withdrew, closing the door with a soft, final click. The silence he left behind was thick, broken only by the ragged, hitching breaths coming from Elena’s cocoon and the patter of rain against the windows.
Lisa wrapped her arms around her knees, staring at the shape of her friend. “Elena, please talk to me. I feel like I’m going to be sick. I was so out of my head, but I remember it *perfectly*.” Her voice broke. “I’m so sorry.”
From under the covers came a raw, choked sound. “Stop. Just stop saying that.” Elena’s voice was shredded, muffled. “You didn’t force me. I was… I was right there with you. I wanted it. I was begging for it.” The admission was a torment. She dug her fingers into her scalp.
Liam walked to the foot of the bed. He stood there next to her, gripping his fists his knuckles white. “The drug heightens existing impulses. It is designed to boost arousal and help remove inhibitions.” His tone was analytical, detached. “It was never intended to be used in this manner.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Lisa snapped, her guilt sharpening into anger directed at him.
Elena threw the covers off. Her face was blotchy, tear-streaked, her beautiful hair a tangled mess. Her green eyes were pools of pure, furious humiliation. “You made it. You just said you *made* this… this poison. This is your fault!”
“It is a tool. A profitable one. Its presence in my home, used against my…” He paused, the word hanging. “Against people under my roof, is an act of war. Not an accident.”
“People under your roof?” Lisa echoed, her gaze darting between Elena’s devastated face and Liam’s impassive one. “Elena, what is he talking about?”
Elena ignored her. She stared at Liam, her chest heaving. “You were naked. With me. In the shower.”
“You were incapacitated and slipping. The protocol requires skin-to-skin contact to transfer warmth and prevent shock. Modesty is irrelevant in a medical emergency.”
“It didn’t feel medical.” The words were out before she could stop them, whispered and hot.
The room went utterly still. Lisa’s breath caught. Liam’s hand tightened on the footboard. His gaze dropped, for a fraction of a second, to her mouth, then back to her eyes. “Your perception was chemically altered. Your memories are unreliable.”
“My body remembers the cold,” she shot back, her voice gaining strength. “It remembers the water. It remembers your hands. It remembers your chest against my back. That’s not a dream. That’s not the drug. That’s *you*.”
A muscle ticked in his jaw. The clinical mask slipped, just for an instant, revealing something hotter, darker, more possessive. “Yes.” The admission was blunt. “That was me. Keeping you conscious. Keeping you alive. Would you have preferred I let you drown in your own pleasure until your heart gave out?”
Elena flinched as if struck. Lisa looked away, the intimacy of the exchange too much to witness.
Liam straightened, pulling the mask back into place. “You will both remain in this bed until your core temperatures normalize. You will not shower. You will not dress. You will stay under those covers. Is that understood?”
Lisa nodded mutely. Elena said nothing, just glared at him, her tears still wet on her cheeks.
He took her silence as compliance. He turned and walked to the door. His hand was on the knob when her voice, small and broken, stopped him.
“Who would do that? Who would want to… to see that?”
Liam looked back at her. She was sitting up, the sheets pooled around her waist, utterly exposed in her misery. His eyes held hers, and in their blue depths she saw no comfort, only a grim, shared understanding. “Someone who wants to watch me burn.” He opened the door. “Get warm. I have a staff to interrogate.”
The door closed behind him. The lock engaged with a soft, definitive thud.
For a long moment, neither woman moved. Then Elena crumpled, folding in on herself, silent sobs shaking her shoulders. Lisa hesitated, then slowly, carefully, moved across the bed. She didn’t try to hug her. She just sat beside her, their shoulders barely touching, a silent witness to the wreckage.