everything. It is another reason why they are so valued and cherished.” He paused briefly, and then added, “The shared pleasure simply adds to it.”
“Shared pleasure?” she asked uncertainly.
Magnus hesitated, but then asked, “When you were sitting on the side of the bed and touched me, did you not experience my pleasure as your own?” He already knew the answer, but was still a little relieved when she nodded.
Realization and amazement growing on her face, she asked, “So when you were touching me . . . ?”
“I felt your pleasure,” he said quietly, his previously flagging passion reawakening and stretching within him at the memory. He’d begun to lose his erection the moment the pain had struck, but now he was hardening inside her again.
“Something’s happening,” she said uncertainly. “Are you moving?”
“No,” he said at once, but didn’t explain, and instead said, “Allie, we cannot remain like this indefinitely. And I cannot answer your question about the healing. Do you wish me to go fetch Katricia or Drina so that you may ask one of them?”
“God, no!” she gasped at once, and then bit her lip briefly before saying, “Maybe if we just stay like this for a little bit the nanos will heal me around you and not completely rebuild my hymen.”
He thought that was a ridiculous idea, and was becoming uncomfortable lying there, chatting as if at tea, so teased, “Or maybe they will heal you to my member.”
“What?” she squawked with horror.
Magnus was immediately sorry he’d said that and tried to reassure her. “I am sure that will not happen. I was just—”
“Oh!”
Both of them turned their heads to stare at Katricia, who had opened the door and started in, but was now backing out of the room.
“Sorry. I didn’t know. I was just checking— I’ll go—”
“No! Wait!” Allie cried, her fingers tightening around Magnus’s arms.
Katricia paused midturn away from them, but kept her eyes pointed at the door and the side of her face to them as she waited.
Allie hesitated, but then sighed and asked, “Will the nanos heal my hymen?”
In her surprise, Katricia started to turn toward them, but caught herself at the last moment and asked carefully, “Allie, are you saying you were a virgin before . . . ?”
“Yes,” she admitted with disgust. “And now I need to know if it’s going to heal and I’m going to have this pain every time, or if there is something I can do to prevent that?”
Katricia blew her breath out on a sigh, and shook her head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even consider . . . I should have talked to you first.”
“Talked to me about what?” Allie asked, staring at the woman.
“The nanos won’t repair a hymen on a mortal who is turned after it’s been ruptured and healed. But I’m afraid that, yes, they will repair it if it is ruptured while you are immortal unless the man remains inside you for an extended time. Then they will heal around him and not close the gap.”
They were all silent for a moment, and then Allie asked, “Why do they not heal it on a mortal during the turn if it was ruptured before she turned?”
“Good question,” Katricia said wryly. “We think that the original programming didn’t include the hymen. Or possibly labeled it as optional because some would have it but some would not, so the nanos only repair it when it originally exists in their host and is ruptured. They immediately set out to repair what they see as a wound. But that’s not necessary on a mortal who was turned after losing her hymen and it has already healed.”
“But they won’t heal me to Magnus, will they?”
That startled a laugh out of Katricia. “No, of course not. Oh, God, wouldn’t that be a fix?”
Allie turned to scowl at Magnus, and it was he who asked, “How long must we remain joined to ensure she heals around me?”
“No one’s really sure,” Katricia admitted slowly. “I mean, it’s different for different women. We all have varying healing speeds depending on how much blood we have available in our system and what’s going on.” She paused briefly and then added, “I have heard of women who waited only ten minutes and were fine, and others who waited twenty and yet the healing wasn’t done and it grew back.” Smiling wryly, she confessed, “Breaching mine was so painful I waited half an hour my first time just to be sure I didn’t have to go