Tessa's Duet in Velvet Shadows

The steam rose like a lover's breath in the dimly lit sauna, curling around Tessa de Groot's slender form. Her light blue eyes sparkled behind the raven-feathered mask from our last session, her auburn hair pinned in a low bun that begged to be undone. She spotted me across the mist-shrouded room, her cheerful smile promising the kind of duet that would echo long after the shadows faded. I leaned back against the warm cedar wall of the private sauna, the air thick with eucalyptus-scented steam that blurred the edges of everything. The revelry had drawn a select crowd—masked figures lounging on tiered benches, their identities veiled in velvet and feathers. But when Tessa de Groot slipped through the arched door, towel cinched around her lithe 5'7" frame, the haze seemed to part just for her. Her auburn hair was twisted into that familiar low bun, a few damp strands already escaping to kiss her light tan shoulders. Those light blue eyes found mine immediately, bright with her trademark optimism, even behind the raven-feathered mask that framed her face like a forbidden portrait. She waved cheerfully, navigating the slick wooden floor with the grace of someone who owned every room she entered. 'Elias!' she called, her Dutch lilt cutting through the humid murmur. 'I didn't expect to see you here. After the studio... this feels like fate, doesn't it?' I grinned, patting the bench beside me. 'Fate or invitation? I might have pulled a few strings.' Her laugh bubbled up, light and unburdened, as she settled close, our thighs brushing through the towels. Lena Hart, another masked guest with sharp features and a knowing smile, nodded from across the way—a friend of Tessa's, I'd learned—but it was Tessa who held my focus. We talked easily, her cheer infectious as she...