Chapter 3: Major Bitches and Body Switches
I stare at him in shock, my jaw smashing through the bed and denting the floor. Nipple piercings?
Now?
I've just been crowned as his queen, seen my mother kneeling before me in rags, and recovered from a good session of slow, sweet lovemaking. And he wants to do this
now
? I sigh. I love Lucifer, I do, but I will never understand this man...creature...thing that he is.
Taking a deep, ragged breath, I stare him in his bright gold eyes. "Really?"
He grins. "Yep."
"Why now?"
He shrugs. "Why not?"
I can't think of a good answer, but I'm apprehensive nonetheless. I raise my arms against my chest, covering what I can of my breasts. I start chewing my lip out of nervousness, my heart rate starting to go berserk.
Lucifer frowns at me, concerned. "Michelle."
"I don't know," I manage to whisper. "I don't like pain. I got my ears pierced when I was twelve and I screamed like a banshee."
That makes him pull away and think of a response. "It won't be that bad. It'll only hurt for a second."
My eyes flick down to the box of hoops and studs. "I'm nervous."
He offers me a small smile. "You know you get to pierce me, too."
I stop chewing my lip and cock my head slightly. That
does
make me feel a little better. If I get to give him a few piercings as well, then at least it's fair. I won't suffer alone.
"We could have them engraved." His grin is almost contagious.
Despite my apprehension, I can't help but laugh. "What? Like have our initials in the studs?"
He smiles and nods. "If you'd like. Might help with keeping other people's hands off our property."
I shake my head and scoff. "Lucifer, the only way Leyna is ever going to leave you alone is if you kill her or have 'Property of Michelle' tattooed on your ass."
He thinks for a minute. "I like the engraved piercings instead."
"Only because you get to manhandle my boobs," I counter.
He grins again. "Damn straight."
I smile and roll my eyes. He's certainly charismatic, almost impossibly so. He could convince the pope to lose his virginity or a demon to convert to Catholicism. I can understand why so many people fear him: his influence on the human soul is terrifying. And now, even as his queen, some of that charisma is starting to get to me.
I take a deep breath. "If that's really what you want to do..."
He nods. "Think of it as a wedding present."
"For whom? You or me?" I eye him cautiously.
"Both of us." He scoots closer, pushing the box of metal aside so his thigh touches mine. His eyes stare into mine, almost burning my retinas. "I promise to make you feel better once they're in."
I stare at him. "How?"
His smile turns wicked. "What's better than a warm tongue on a tender nipple?"
I let out an exasperated laugh. "You're hopeless."
"And?" He leans I close, his nose brushing mine.
"And you're crazy." I mirror him, pushing forward until our lips touch.
"And?" His mouth meets mine, doling out soft, tender kisses that make me shiver.
"And you owe me for this," I whisper against his mouth.
"Now or after?"
I pause, holding back on my end of the kiss while I think. "Later. It'll take what's left of the edge off."
He halts his delicious kissing and smiles against my lips. "Deal."
He pulls away and reaches over to grab the small box of studs and hoops. He slides it between us, holding it open for me to see our choices.
"Now...what'll it be?"
I stare at the assortment of tiny metal piercings, excited yet totally lost. I don't know which to choose. There are plain metal hoops and studs, barbells with small glass designs on the end, carved bone gauges and an array of small sparkling gemstones that can be attached to anything in the box. There are so many choices I can't decide what to have shoved into me.
A flashback races through my mind: my dream. My nipples pierced with small gold hoops, my belly pierced with a gold barbell. Each has a tiny black gem that dangles from delicate gold chains.
Alright. I guess we'll do that.
"Gold hoops," I whisper.
Lucifer's eyes flick to me. "Following your dream?"
I stare back, slightly stunned but elated. He remembered my dream and knows exactly what I'm planning. That's more than mom has ever done for me.
I nod. "Yeah."
"You know we don't have to follow your dream exactly," he nudges my hand. "You can do this any way you want."
I shake my head. "It kind of feels like that dream meant something, like that's what I'm
supposed
to have. Like my mind was trying to tell me something. A guarantee or a premonition. And if really that's the case, I'm not in the mood to tempt fate."
He laughs. "Alright then. If that will make you feel better about this, we'll copy your dream. Now, what else was there...Oh, yes! There was a belly piercing."
Damn. Someone's got a good memory