Chapter 210: Little Bird

Marita stood outside in the sprawling grounds of the villa, wearing a soft, flowing cream-colored sundress that danced around her knees in the evening breeze. The delicate fabric clung gently to her petite frame, the thin straps leaving her shoulders bare. Her wild curls whipped around her glowing face as she closed her eyes, tilting her head back to let the cool wind kiss her skin. Goosebumps rose all over her arms and chest from the chill, but she smiled softly, breathing in the fresh air like it reminded her of home.

A deep, calm voice suddenly came from right behind her.

“You’re gonna catch a cold.”

Marita yelped in surprise, stumbling forward. “Merde!” she cursed in French, heart jumping into her throat.

A strong arm wrapped around her waist instantly, steadying her before she could fall. The touch was firm but careful.

She relaxed the second she recognized the familiar scent and solid build. Turning in his hold, her face flushed bright red with embarrassment.

“Mr. Lucius… it’s yu,” she said breathlessly, pushing a stray curl behind her ear, eyes shy but sparkling.

Lucius kept his hand on her waist a moment longer, looking down at her with that intense, quiet focus he always had whenever she was near.

“You shouldn’t be out here in just that dress,” he said, voice low. “The wind is cold tonight.”

Marita smiled shyly, cheeks still pink. “Mi like the breeze. It feels like home… the sea wind in Vanuatu. It makes mi feel free.”

Lucius studied her face for a long second, thumb unconsciously brushing her waist through the thin fabric.

“Why do you keep calling me ‘Mr. Lucius’?” he asked, a faint hint of amusement in his tone.

Marita blinked up at him, then let out a soft, cute giggle. “Because yu are older than mi… and very important to Mr. Ravial. It feels respectful. Mi no want to call yu just Lucius like mi know yu long time. It no feel right yet.”

Lucius’s lips twitched, the closest thing to a smile he ever showed. He lifted his hand and gently stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers.

“You can call me Lucius,” he said quietly.

Marita’s face heated up even more. She felt butterflies explode in her stomach. “Mi… mi feel weird when yu do dat,” she whispered, voice small and shy.

Lucius tilted his head slightly. “What do you feel?”

She looked away for a second, biting her lip, then peeked back at him through her lashes. “Hot… and mi heart go boom boom fast and mi stomach is full of small birds.”

Lucius’s eyes darkened with something deep and hungry. He stepped a little closer, still holding her waist.

“I like when you feel that way around me,” he admitted, voice low.

Marita’s breath hitched. She smiled shyly, looking up at him. “Yu are very direct, Mr. Lucius.”

“Lucius,” he corrected gently, thumb brushing her cheek again.

She giggled. “Lucius…”

He leaned in just a fraction. “Did you like the tour yesterday?”

Marita’s face lit up like the sun. “Yes! Mi liked all the places yu showed mi. The big park with the lake, the tall shiny buildings, the river… everything was so beautiful. Mi never see anything like that before. Thank you for taking mi. Mi felt like a real princess yesterday.”

Lucius nodded slowly, his fingers moving from her cheek to tuck a curl behind her ear. Marita shivered at the touch, cheeks burning hotter.

“You make ordinary things feel new.” He said.

“Yu making mi feel very strange again…” she whispered, voice breathy.

“Good,” he murmured, eyes locked on hers. “I want you to feel strange around me.”

The wind picked up again, blowing her dress against her legs. Lucius pulled her a little closer, using his body to shield her from the cold.

Marita looked up at him, heart racing wildly, completely lost in the quiet intensity of the moment.

Lucius studied her face for a long second, then asked quietly, “What were you thinking about before I came?”

Marita sighed softly, her shoulders dropping a little. “Well… mi life.”

He tilted his head slightly. “Explain.”

She looked down at her hands, playing with the hem of her dress, suddenly feeling shy and a bit foolish.

“Yu know dis mi first time in America,” she said quietly. “Mi really happy to be here with Leitana. She is like mi real sister. But… what mi going to do with mi life now? Mi never go to proper school. Mi no get any skill like the other girls. Mi just know how to clean, how to cook, how to take care of small children, how to sing hymns… but dat one no go help mi here. Mi feel… useless.”

She laughed a little, embarrassed, cheeks turning pink. “Though mi know how to cook very well especially island food. And mi can weave baskets and mats fast. Mi can also sing… and mi very good at telling stories to make small pikinini sleep.”

Lucius listened without interrupting, his hand still resting gently on her waist. His gaze never left her face.

When she finished, he was quiet for a moment.

Then he spoke, voice low and steady.

“You are not useless.”

Marita blinked up at him, surprised.

“You survived an orphanage. You raised other children and kept joy alive in a hard place. That is not nothing,” he continued, thumb brushing her side. “And here… you don’t have to figure everything out alone. Not anymore.”

Marita’s heart fluttered wildly. She looked down again, biting her lip to stop herself from smiling too big.

“Yu… yu always say things like dat,” she whispered. “Mi no used to it.”

Lucius gently tilted her chin up with two fingers so she had to meet his eyes again.

“Get used to it,” he said simply.

The wind blew again, but this time Marita didn’t feel cold at all.

She was warm, burning, actually from the way Lucius was looking at her.

Then he leaned down and kissed her.

It wasn’t soft.

It was hungry.

His mouth claimed hers with sudden, fierce need, tongue sliding past her lips like he’d been waiting too long. Marita gasped into the kiss, hands flying up to grip his shirt. He kissed her deeper, harder, one hand cupping the back of her head while the other pulled her flush against his body.

When he pulled back just enough to breathe, his voice was rough.

“Suck on my tongue, little bird.”

Marita’s eyes widened, cheeks flaming. “W-what?”

“You can’t kiss yet,” he murmured, lips brushing hers. “So suck on my tongue like a good girl and learn.”

Before she could answer, he kissed her again, pushing his tongue into her mouth. Marita whimpered softly and obeyed, shyly sucking on it. Lucius groaned low in his throat, the sound vibrating through her body as he kissed her even harder, devouring her.

He kissed her like he was starving, deep, messy, possessive. His hands roamed down her back, gripping her waist, then sliding lower to squeeze her ass through the thin dress. Marita moaned into his mouth, knees weak, completely lost in him.

When he finally pulled back, both of them were breathing hard.

Lucius rested his forehead against hers, voice husky.

“Instead of following Leitana to piano classes every day,” he said, thumb stroking her bottom lip, “you can work with me.”

Marita’s eyes went wide. “Work… with yu?”

He nodded slowly. “I need someone to help organize certain things. Private matters. You’re smart and I want you close to me.” His lips brushed her ear as he added, “Very close.”

Marita’s heart was racing so fast she felt dizzy. Her face was burning, thighs pressing together instinctively.

“Mi… mi don’t know what to say,” she whispered, voice shaky. “Mi never work proper job before…”

Lucius tilted her chin up again, eyes dark with want.

“Then let me teach you,” he murmured, voice low and filthy. “Starting tonight.”

He leaned in and kissed her again slower this time, but no less possessive, sucking on her bottom lip, then her tongue, like he couldn’t get enough of her taste.

Marita melted completely, fingers curling into his shirt, lost in the heat of his kiss under the night breeze.