The hunger didn’t let me rest.
It gnawed at me all day, a restless animal pacing the cage of my body. No amount of pacing, praying, or touching myself under silk sheets dulled it. If anything, each orgasm only sharpened the ache until I was trembling with exhaustion and still unsatisfied.
By evening, I couldn’t bear it anymore.
The House pulsed around me like a living thing. Laughter rose from the parlor, the music sweet and sultry, the air thick with the scent of wine and flesh. I descended the staircase slowly, one hand clutching the banister, my legs trembling as if they already knew what I was about to do.
Cassandra was waiting at the bottom.
Her eyes flicked over me—my flushed cheeks, the way I chewed my lip, the restless twitch of my thighs. She smiled knowingly.
“The hunger ha
