Ch. 80 - Arrival of the Azumabito

                                    

                                          
Yes, we were supposed to be getting ready for the night fairly soon.
Yes, we were currently in one of the training rooms allocated for our use while here in the interior.
But dammit, how could I possibly think of doing that when he looked like that?
After a fairly intense warm-up, followed by a fairly intense training session, followed by a fairly intense bout of sparring, followed by a fairly intense workout, I granted myself the opportunity to sit and take a break, even if just for a few minutes. 
So, I lazed back in a chair, my hips set near the edge of the seat so I could laze back, no matter how bad it was for my back. With a canteen of water in one hand, and the other resting on the arm of the chair, and one lazy ankle set over my knee, I'm sure I looked very much unlike a well-mannered, formal lady of the court and more like a crass, good-for-nothing soldier... which I supposed I was, in the eyes of some. 
Hell, I was closer to being that than a lady of the court, that was for damn sure.
Either way, I didn't particularly care. I sat there and in that position for several minutes if not longer, simply watching my husband - my husband - working out.
And goddesses preserve me if they can, but he was quite a sight to behold.
His dark bangs were slicked against his skin - which was glistening with sweat that clung to his body like the tight shirt he wore, which was sleeveless and provided me a clear view of the muscles of his arms at work as he did arm curls, muscles that seemed to manifest only when he was like this, for he seemed so lithe the rest of the time - and honestly, with a figure like that, alluring yet strong, thin yet powerful, lithe and lean yet capable of such dexterity and skill it was hard to believe, and abs so finely carved they could only have been the work of the most detailed artist... 
How could I possibly be content to keep my hands to myself?
He very much had the body of a sinner, which made it so incredibly adorable when he felt the weight of my gaze, met my eyes, and flushed immediately, from his cheeks up to the tips of his ears. I smiled slowly, the simple curl of my lip surely adding so much dimension to my gaze that he didn't know how to react. 
That's what I could gather, anyway. Outwardly, it was obvious that he didn't know what to say or do because he only just kept looking at me with those eyes that surely alluded to those thoughts that surely inspired him to do those things.
Oh, yes. I had this man wrapped around my finger.
With Emi being watched by Reyes already, we had the day to ourselves, for the gala was tonight and all we were instructed to do was relax and eventually get ready. But for now, this time was allowed for us and us alone.
And you know what? I wasn't about to let it pass me by.
With nothing more than the use of two fingers - my index and middle of one hand - I beckoned him to come to me. Very much like a man under a spell, he obeyed, stopping only to set his weights down, and then just before me, not looking hesitant, not quite wary, but nervous - but they were good nerves, I could tell. It was anticipation. It was excitement.
He'd always been bad at denying me anything, and so he obeyed.
"Where?" he breathed out, and I knew what he meant. To answer him, I only looked pointedly down at my lap, then back up into his eyes. The flickering candlelight of the wall sconces danced in his eyes, their warm hues contrasting beautifully against the cool blue of his eyes which now appeared to be closer to a gunmetal gray than anything else.