Chapter 37 #3
A violent tug jerked his body forward before he could firm his footing. His golden eyes flashed as he slid toward her. His entire being was caught in the draw of her as his boots scraped across the polished stone floor.
Aela narrowed her gaze at him. “What are you doing?”
“Would tell you if I knew,” Eros grunted as he gripped the dining table with a firm hand and brought his body to a stop.
Aela drew her brows down and turned to snatch up a red apple from the bowl laden with them on the table. Silence encompassed them for a few tense minutes as they regarded each other.
“What are you doing back here?” she asked him, trying to fill the silence. “I can manage traveling to Neser on my own. Surely you have other things to do than…” her voice trailed off.
His feet moved on their own, finding it equally impossible for the rest of him to stay away as he stepped closer, wishing she’d finished her thought.
“I am always where I am supposed to be,” Eros said.
Aela gave him a droll look.
Unable to resist baiting her, he continued. “Are we going to address what just happened?”
“In your own words, ‘we’re not untouched.’ I trust you’ll keep the sight of me far from your mind. It was an accident. Also, you could learn to knock, you know.”
Eros lifted three fingers and began ticking them off.
“One, I could never rid my mind of the sight of you. Two, you pulled me. Hardly what I’d call an accident.
And three, despite my baser nature, I’m not a male to invite myself where I’m not wanted.
” He added another finger. “And when it comes to you, I can never stay away.”
Aela drew in a harsh breath. From the flaring of her eyes, she was about to reprimand his evocative comments when she realized what she had done and words evaded her.
Eros’ gaze dipped to her parted lips. “Do we need a lesson in using our words, Timora? You’re never going to get what you want from me if you can’t find your words.”
Aela’s turquoise eyes narrowed, and she took a step toward him. “And what do you think I want from you?” she said, looking him up and down, making her distaste clear.
He knew better. Eros closed the distance between them, just one step, and whispered in her ear.
“I know what you need.”
Time seemed to slow as Eros deliberately withdrew from her. Aela’s eyes fluttered. With bated breath, he tensed along with the realm, waiting for her to make a decision. One that would lead to his salvation or his destruction.
The red fruit tumbled from her grasp, forgotten, as Aela surged forward and clasped her hands behind his neck, hauling his lips to hers.
With a groan, Eros hoisted her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist. He pivoted them away from the table, colliding her back with the rough stone wall of the dining room.
As Eros returned her kiss, Aela took every thread of conflicting feeling, every uncertainty and every ounce of grief and locked it down tight.
Deep down in the recesses of her watery essence, where no light could shine.
If she were honest with herself—and in that moment she didn’t want to be—she couldn’t stay away from him either.
Aela pulled apart from his lips for air and Eros placed hot, open-mouthed kisses down her throat and nudged her jaw with his nose to give him better access.
She complied, tilting her head back against the wall while clinging to his wide shoulders.
Her thighs squeezed his waist tighter, and her heels dug into his lower back to press him closer still.
She felt as if she were drowning in him as she clung to his impossible strength like he was the only thing keeping her from disappearing forever.
Aela speared her fingers through his hair and yanked back on the silky black strands to bring his mouth back to hers.
She could feel his smile on her lips and found herself smiling back.
A deep growl reverberated in his chest. “Timora,” he groaned, his tone laced with warning.
“What?” She taunted, nipping at his bottom lip. “Afraid I’ll make you bleed?”
Eros’ entire demeanor changed. His liquid gold eyes went black, and the rest of his body dissipated into black vapor. She could still feel him beneath her hands, could still feel his breath on her skin, but she couldn’t see anything aside from the dark. There was no light.
He slid a calloused hand over her exposed shoulder where her robe had parted before resting his hand at the hollow of her throat. Her pulse quivered wildly beneath his palm, and for a moment, just the soft sound of their shared breath was the only sound.
“What do you want?” Eros asked in a guttural voice. His considerate words contrasted with the intensity of the moment.
“I don’t know,” Aela answered truthfully.
Eros released her.
The sudden absence of him made her shiver.
Everything was still dark as she panted into the void.
The darkened haze lazily, reverently, caressed every inch of her in its retreat as the force of Eros slunk away from her and departed through the dining room archway.
With the last of The Darkness gone and Eros nowhere to be seen, Aela was left trembling with want.
“Fates,” she cursed.