Chapter 20 Kaspar #3
He leaned forward and kissed my forehead, letting his lips linger there for a few seconds. The sweet gesture made my eyes water again.
Earlier, he’d been so pissed off at me, so hurt, and I didn’t think he’d ever want anything to do with me again. Let alone for him to hug and hold me, comfort me, like this, and then to kiss my forehead so tenderly.
Phoenix tails, he had such a good heart.
When he pulled back, his eyes searched mine, and I couldn’t stop a tear from escaping. Max cupped my cheeks, wiped away the tear, and pressed a soft kiss to my lips. It made me sniffle, and more tears trickled down.
“Shhh. It’s okay.”
I shook my head. “No, it’s not. I never wanted to hurt you, and I… I’m so sorry.”
“No more of that, okay? It hurt, yes, but I understand why you did it. Especially so close after what your friend did to you.”
I nodded and reached up to grab his wrists, not wanting him to let go of my cheeks. “I swear I was going to tell you.”
He sucked in a breath. “I believe you.”
That made me close my eyes, and a moment later, he pressed his lips to mine again. I hummed in approval and deepened the kiss, savoring his flavor even as it mixed with my salty tears. The kiss was soft and filled with so much meaning, my heart swelled with it.
When he broke away, he rested his forehead against mine, and I closed my eyes, so relieved and grateful he was here with me right now.
He whispered, “Don’t worry about anything tonight, okay? We’ll figure it all out in the morning.”
“As soon as I go to my hammock, they’re going to bombard me with questions or…” Or just beat me up.
“You’re staying here tonight. I won’t let them hurt you.”
I kissed him again, this time with more force, and he held me tight.
I wanted to push him back on the bed and undress him, but I wasn’t sure if he’d forgiven me enough for that yet. But then again, maybe it would help. Although I was so tired, I wasn’t sure I could do much of anything anyway. It had been a very long and stressful—and emotional—day.
Before I could make a decision, I felt one of the fluxstones in Max’s prosthetic reach out for me, begging me to recharge it before it ran out, and I sucked in a breath.
Should I tell him? Would he want to know?
He wished I’d told him about my magic sooner, but did that mean he’d be comfortable with me using my magic around him? Would he want to know I could feel it every time one of his stones ran out of energy?
“What?”
I blinked and found him staring back at me with a curious expression. “What, what?”
“You’re making a face.” He tilted his head to the side. “Tell me. Whatever it is, I can handle it.”
I blew out a breath and gave him a firm nod. “I can tell one of the fluxstones in your prosthetic is about to run out of power.”
His eyes widened fractionally. “You can tell that?”
I nodded. “Any time a nearby fluxstone is close to empty or has already run out, it’s like they sort of… call to me and let me know they need more power.” I fidgeted with his shirt collar. “I don’t think I’m explaining it well, but I can feel it.”
“Wow. That’s impressive.”
I shrugged. It didn’t feel impressive. It felt…
normal and unassuming to me. Back home, where fluxstones originated, I’d felt them calling to me all the time.
Sometimes from within others’ homes, sometimes from deep within the ground, sometimes from the surrounding mountains or forest. It was so common that I’d learned to ignore it unless a stone was very close to me.
Out here in the open air, with only a certain number of stones on the ship, it’d become more noticeable when one had run out. It was still pretty constant, but it was mostly smaller fluxstones, so they didn’t bother me as badly. The engine fluxstones were a different matter.
And because I spent so much time with Max, so very close to him, I was vastly aware of the stones in his prosthetic.
“Do you mind if I…” I trailed off, gesturing to his prosthetic as I slid off his lap to sit beside him.
He blinked. “Oh. Uh, sure.”
Without waiting for him to change his mind, I placed my hand on top of his prosthetic. I swore my magic sighed in relief as I pushed power into the fluxstones there. It was such a relief to finally fix that for him, even if my body—and my magic—was exhausted after all that’d happened today.
My eyes blinked closed as I topped off each stone in his leg, and I slumped into Max’s side as I finally pulled my magic back. His stones were fully charged and ready to go, and I was the opposite, exhausted and ready to sleep.
He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, kissed my hair, and pulled me down to lie on his bed. I snuggled into him, burying my nose in his neck and praying he didn’t let me go—ever.
He pressed his lips to my temple. “Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere.”
My brow furrowed. Did I say that out loud? Or did he read my mind somehow?
I murmured, “Thank you, Max. I… I don’t want to lose you.”
He sucked in a breath, and his voice broke. “I don’t want to lose you, either.”
My heart felt heavy—with affection, with worry, with fear—but just for tonight, I decided to let Max help hold some of the weight.
Tomorrow would be different. Tomorrow, I’d face the consequences, face the crew, and find out exactly what kind of plans Viper had for me.
I shivered, and Max pulled a blanket over the top of us, holding me even tighter in his arms. So I focused on that, on him.
I focused on his hard body pressed against me, on his rough fingers brushing over my skin, on his stubble prickling my face, on his scent—the ocean mixed with the desert air and his musky sweat—on his heartbeat, steady and strong.
I focused on him until he was all I thought about, and then finally, I let my body fall into a restless sleep.