Chapter 1353
Jude held Lucy’s hand tightly, their fingers still laced. Around them, the wives moved like a tribe reborn - nude, glowing, their skin marked by light pollen from the garden behind them. Each of them carried the scent of the island, and the island itself seemed to recognize them in return. The very ground pulsed beneath their feet, sending heat up through their soles and into their bones.
They followed a path of silver vines that curled ahead, snaking like veins through the forest floor. The vines pulsed with the same rhythm as Jude’s heart. He didn’t know where they were leading, but his body responded like it had always known.
"It’s guiding us to the heart," Rose whispered beside him, her voice rich and calm. "We’ve awakened the seed. Now she wants to plant us deeper."
Emma brushed her lips along Jude’s shoulder, the tip of her tongue catching the curve of his neck. "We are the garden now."
The path opened into a new clearing, wide and lush, with tall stone columns twisted by vines and flowers that shimmered with colors they didn’t have names for. At the center was a massive basin, shallow and glowing, filled with golden water that rippled without movement. The air hummed with sensual tension.
Stella stepped forward and sank to her knees at the edge of the basin. "This is where we become more."
"More what?" Jude asked.
Susan walked behind him, her fingers dancing across his back. "More than human. More than touched. We become part of her fully. This is where she binds us."
Zoey leaned forward and kissed his jaw. "It’s not just ritual. It’s desire. She knows it. She was born in it."
Lucy turned and faced him, her eyes glowing faintly again. "We make love here, Jude. All of us. Together. In her basin. In her sight."
He swallowed hard as the women moved around him, hands brushing, lips teasing. Sophie wrapped her arms around his chest from behind, her breath hot in his ear. "You don’t have to carry us anymore. Let us carry you. "