13 #2
She wasn’t the girl he’d trained with years ago.
She was a woman now—graceful, capable, and utterly lovely in the soft glow of firelight.
They ate, having a small dinner from the food they’d brought along on their journey.
Then, there really was little to do except wait out the storm and get ready for sleep.
Kurt cleared his throat and busied himself pulling the bedrolls closer to the warm hearth.
“Despite the fire, we’ll freeze if we sleep separate,” he said, trying to sound matter of fact. “We should put our bedrolls together to share heat. I promise I won’t take liberties.”
She looked up from arranging her cloak to dry and gave him a small smile. “I trust you, Kurt. I always have.”
His throat tightened at that. He nodded quickly and knelt to smooth out their bedding side by side. When they were both finally settled, lying shoulder to shoulder under a shared blanket, the silence stretched between them—no longer awkward, but charged with something deeper.
Outside, the storm howled and rattled the sturdy logs of the little shack. Inside, her warmth seeped into him.
“I’m glad you’re here,” she said softly.
He turned his head toward her. “I’m glad I am too, though I could wish you were somewhere safe, out of harm’s way.”
She met his gaze, her dark eyes shining.
“You were always a protector, even when we were children. You always protected the younger kids, including me. But we’re grownups now, Kurt.
You’re different. Even stronger than you were.
More skilled and experienced. I’m sure you’re one of Isolde’s top operatives, though she’d never say as much, being the spymaster and all, but I can still see a little of the boy who used to tease me in the glass workshop. ”
He chuckled low in his throat. “That boy had no idea what he was doing. He ran on pure instinct.”
She shifted closer, resting her cheek on his shoulder. “Maybe so. But this man that he’s become, I think he knows a lot more of the world than most.”
His arm went around her before he realized he’d moved. She didn’t pull away.
“Malea,” he said quietly. “You’ve become someone extraordinary.
We were all impressed when Master Goldman chose you for his new apprentice.
You instantly became exotic to us glass workers when you started cutting gems, but it’s more than just that.
You’ve matured into a beautiful, intelligent and clever woman. ”
“I’m still just me.”
“No. You’re much more. If only you could see it,” he whispered, gazing into her eyes and moving closer.
Then, he kissed her, softly at first, testing their connection and her willingness. She answered with warmth and growing fire that blazed into his veins. The storm raged outside, but inside, in that quiet, firelit space, two hearts found each other in a way they hadn’t dared before.
Kurt’s lips were warm against hers, at first a gentle, questioning touch. She answered with the truth of her heart. Yes .
Yes, she’d wondered for days what it might feel like to be held by him with real passion. Yes, she’d seen the way he looked at her when he thought she wouldn’t notice. And yes—now that his arms were around her—she wanted more.
The storm outside didn’t matter anymore. The only thing that mattered was the storm raging between the two of them. His touch anchored her, the rough calluses of his fingertips brushing her cheek, her throat, her collarbone. She arched into his hand, needing his warmth, his strength, his presence.
“Kurt…” she whispered, breathless as he trailed kisses from her lips to the line of her jaw, pushing her gently onto her back in their nest of blankets.
He pulled back slightly, his forehead resting against hers. “If this isn’t what you want, tell me now.”
She didn’t answer in words. Instead, she rose onto one elbow and cupped his face, guiding his mouth back to hers with deliberate care. Her fingers slid through his hair, still damp from the storm, and her other hand moved down to rest on the strong line of his chest.
“I want this,” she said at last, her voice low and husky with need. “I want you.”
His groan was quiet and full of restraint, but his hands moved with more confidence. He unfastened the ties of her tunic, slow and reverent, as if unveiling something sacred. She helped him, and soon, they were both bare beneath the blankets, skin to skin in the warmth of the firelight.
She marveled at the way he looked at her.
He made her feel beautiful. Precious. He touched her as if she were a piece of spun glass that would shatter at the least bit of rough treatment.
His care undid her more than any hurried passion could ever have.
Every kiss, every brush of his fingers, was a promise spoken in silence.
His hands cupped her breasts, his thumbs playing with her nipples in a way that made her breath catch. Then he lowered his head and sucked one into his mouth, sucking and teasing with his tongue as her inner fire ignited. The cold and storm were forgotten in the heat of desire as she moaned.
He moved to her other breast and repeated the delicious torture, her responses seeming to ignite an answering fire in him as his touch became a little bit rougher and more urgent.
His free hand moved downward to cup between her legs, then his fingers parted her folds and slid within, learning what she liked.
She was going out of her mind with need as he touched her in places and ways that she’d never experienced before.
Her explorations with the opposite sex had been few and not quite as tempestuous as this encounter.
In fact, she’d never felt the level of excitement that Kurt seemed to instill in her with just a look or a simple touch.
He lit her fire in a way she hadn’t even known existed before meeting him.
Any other encounters she’d had with other men were as nothing compared to the way Kurt made her feel.
He was the master of her pleasure, and she was fast falling under his spell.
He teased her clit, bringing her to a fast, hard climax, then repositioned them slightly, moving over her more fully.
He lifted his head, staring down into her eyes as he coaxed her legs even farther apart, settling his hips in the cradle of her thighs.
One hand went between them to help position his cock in the exact right spot.
He held her gaze as he pushed inside. He entered her with care and deep emotion whispering silently between them. She gasped at the sensation of being filled completely, feeling as if he’d been made just for her and vice versa. Then, he started to move.
His rhythm was slow at first, letting them both adjust to this new version of their connection. He whispered her name against her skin, his breath hot on her neck. She held him tighter, needing to feel every inch of him, inside and out.
Their bodies moved together, straining, while outside, the wind howled. Inside, there was only warmth, and heat, and the unbreakable tether of something that had been building between them for years without either of them realizing it.
When they reached the final peak, it was quiet.
No cries, no declarations. Just the sound of breath, fast and shallow, and the long, shared exhale as they clung to each other, undone and remade by the storm within.
It was perfection. Gentle, as only friends become lovers could be, and filled with the promise of even greater passion to come as they learned more about each other in the most carnal way.
Their relationship was forever changed, and she couldn’t bring herself to regret anything about that.
It was about time he looked at her as the grown woman she was and that she saw him as more than just one of the other males at the glass workshop.
This entire journey so far had proven they were a good team.
Now, they’d proven they were magic together in bed.
She would never go back to what had been and didn’t regret it for one minute.
Malea rested her head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.
His arms wrapped around her, protective and sure.
Neither of them spoke as the wind outside continued to howl.
Kurt traced his fingers over her skin, as if learning her every curve and all the soft places that begged for his touch.
Before long, their hunger rose again, this time with more urgency now that they knew the heights that could be reached together.
They came together once more, reaching an even higher pinnacle of pleasure as they began to know each other more completely.
As far as Malea was concerned, she could happily spend the rest of eternity learning his body and his passion, giving as good as she got.
Kurt was special. Oh, so special. And she was happier than she’d ever been to have shared this passion—and hopefully would continue to share it—with him.