The slight brush of his fingers told Aisha that Tarkus wanted her close during the ritual, as he had kept Layla close.  She knew what she was supposed to do, and was fighting an internal battle between that, and what she wanted to do.  She was well accustomed to fulfilling all of her Prince's wishes.  His desire was her desire.  His happiness, her happiness.  Never before had she struggled to do anything that he asked.  She'd always taken the greatest pleasure in indulging his every whim.  But this was different.  This required her to share him - his love, his body - with another woman, something she'd always hoped would never come to pass.<br/><br/>What she really wanted was to strangle Layla with her bare hands.  Or, at the very least, leave the soft waters of the bath and let the new couple complete the ritual on their own.  However, her sense of loyalty to Tarkus would let her do neither, and ignoring the screams of every cell of her body, Aisha reluctantly moved back towards her Prince.  Every moan that escaped Layla's lips cut deep into her heart, and she could do nothing to stop the tears that slid down her cheeks.  Keeping her head turned away, lest Tarkus see her pain, she got as close to him as she could bring herself to be.<br/><br/>Covering her ears with her hands, she hoped that the ordeal would soon be over.