Chapter 20 #2
And then there were the dreams of things that hadn’t happened yet, dreams in a stone tunnel with a blue tart on her lips.
She would wake with the memory of his touch as if he had been there moments before.
Those images plagued her mind day in and day out, sitting across from him in the common area.
“I know what you’re thinking, and no.” She grabbed bread from Faron’s basket and shook her head at him.
“What?” He feigned innocence. By the way his eyes roved up and down her body, she could guess Faron wanted her to attempt it.
“I told you it won’t work. It’s too dangerous.” She held a flaming finger under her bread to create a lovely golden-brown toast.
“But you’ve had so much practice now,” he pleaded.
She bit into the toast with a satisfying crunch. “It takes too much energy, and I can’t hold it long enough.”
“Long enough for what? Even a moment is plenty long enough to prove you can do it.” He tossed her another piece of bread, his only indication that he wanted it toasted as well.
She obliged and tossed the piece back to him before saying, “Long enough to get somewhere so I’m not indecent.”
“Oh, you won’t bother me, I can assure you.” He winked, taking a large bite of his freshly toasted bread. He closed his eyes and groaned. “Even better than out of the kitchens,” he mumbled to himself.
“I’m sure you’ll do the gentlemanly thing and turn away.” She threw the remaining piece of untoasted bread at him.
He tossed the bread right back at her. “I thought you knew all nobles are rakes.” When he caught the smile that Tal tried to hide, he continued, “When are you going to admit you’ve wanted to kiss me since that night? You’ve been torturing me with those eyes ever since.”
She spared him another eye roll and shook her head with a laugh. “Are you confessing your own desires?”
“Obviously.”
From where she sat against the tunnel wall, she watched him, the last piece of bread a few inches from her mouth.
He mirrored her from his spot just a few paces away.
She watched as he licked his bottom lip, pulled it into his mouth, and bit the skin there.
His chest heaved from the deep breath he took.
He rested his arm on his propped knee, letting his hand hang.
Despite his relaxed posture, his hand fidgeted.
He rubbed his index finger along his thumb, and Tal felt the hairs raise on the back of her neck. The images from her dreams taunted her from within as much as he did. Fuck it, she thought.
Dropping the piece of bread, she shifted her weight forward and pushed herself onto her hands and knees.
She watched the knot in his throat bob when he gulped at her approach.
The cool floor against her palms contrasted the heat pulsing through her.
She closed the distance between them slowly, watching his every reaction.
Tal enjoyed silencing the flirtatious noble as she took the reins. It had been weeks, and he had yet to make a move, despite the suggestive commentary and smoldering looks. She would beat him at his own game, and she would enjoy it.
Lavender and rosemary filled her nose. She smirked, inhaling, and crawling into his space.
Her hand brushed his inner thigh. Their eyes met and his warm breath brushed across her lips.
For a moment, she stared into his eyes and saw the hunger there.
His pupils dilated. She heard, rather than saw, his jaw clench.
She licked her lips, and his eyes flicked to them before returning to hers.
“So, what are you waiting for?” she half-whispered.
He offered a wolfish grin before responding. “You.”
She needed no further invitation. Tal closed the one-inch distance between them and pressed her mouth to his.
Instantly, Faron reached up to her neck and pulled her into him.
His arm hugged her, and Tal melted into him.
She crawled into his lap, straddling him.
Their mouths parted and she tasted the deliciously sweet faerie water on his tongue.
Faron gripped the hair at the base of her neck.
Goosebumps traveled down her spine. She wrapped her feet around his back and pulled her hips into him.
Her fingers threaded through his infuriatingly silky hair.
She needed to be closer. Despite the summer heat, Tal reveled in the warmth from his body, an odd comfort she never thought she would crave.
His arms were sure and strong. He kissed her hungrily, as if the last few weeks had been as much torture for him as they were for her.
He ran a hand up her back, and an animalistic groan escaped Tal.
She gripped him harder and pushed into him.
In a flash, Faron had Tal on her back. The shock of the movement had Tal opening her eyes.
He cradled her head to protect against the stone floor and pressed into her.
Faron stopped kissing her then. Their eyes met.
She drank in the sight of him, studying the swirling colors she’d missed for so long.
So beautiful. And there, among the blues and greens, were her gold flecks.
She recognized now that they shifted in different lighting, but now that she’d seen them, Tal knew she’d always find them.
For a moment, Tal wondered if she should stop him.
After all, what right did she have to link herself to the noble, even if for a night?
But the pull to him had started that night at the incinerator, and it had only gotten worse ever since.
She reached up to kiss him again, and he pulled back out of reach.
“Tal, I—” he began, but she didn’t want to hear anything.
“Just kiss me.” She closed her eyes, pulling him down to her, and he obliged.
She kissed him as if her fury could be embodied within his embrace.
In fact, something strange grew within her chest. Her fury uncoiled in a way she’d never experienced before.
The magic usually stormed like a caged animal clawing to be set free, but kissing Faron felt like a warm blanket being wrapped around the two of them.
If she didn’t know any better, she’d say her fury had managed to get out on its own and filled the space around them.
She suddenly realized the warmth and brightness behind her eyes wasn’t imagined. Tal’s eyes shot open, and she turned her face away from Faron. She stared at the golden glow that surrounded them, terrified for a moment that she had set the two of them on fire.
“You’re glowing,” Faron said with a hint of wonder in his voice.
“What? No, I’m not. It’s in the air.”
“No, it’s definitely you. Look.” He gently grabbed her arm from around his neck, and indeed, it glowed a glorious shade of deep orange.
She pulled her arm out of his grasp and stared at it in shock. “What in all hells—?” She scooted out from under him and sat up. The light shone through her shirt and trousers as well.
Faron pushed himself off her. “That’s never happened before?”
She shook her head, trying to remember a time she’d ever been able to release light without flame or heat before. When the light faded from her skin, she warily met his gaze.
She should have known the playful noble would handle it without issue. When his knowing smile turned his concern to satisfaction, it was all she could do to stop from groaning.
“So, is that how I make you feel?” He leaned back on an elbow, all but inviting Tal back into his embrace.
“It doesn’t bother you?” Tal didn’t know if she cared either way. It certainly concerned her.
He nodded emphatically. “Oh yes. In fact, it bothers me so much, I think we should do it again to see how bothered I am.”
“Oh no!” She feigned concern. “I would hate to cause you any distress. We should avoid the bothersome behavior at all costs.”
“No, no. Please. I beg you. Bother away.” He reached for her, which only made her laugh and pull against him when he caught her arm.
He kissed the top of her wrist. “My lady.” When she didn’t pull away, he kissed halfway up her forearm, letting his lips brush her skin as he worked his way up, regarding her with hooded eyes.
When he reached her bare shoulder, Tal bit her lip against the goosebumps that traveled along her skin.
With his free hand, he reached up and pushed the hair away from her neck.
He placed a kiss below the corner of her jaw, and Tal exhaled a nervous laugh. She closed her eyes.
Faron kissed along her jaw until he reached the edge of her lips.
He paused, waiting for her to take the final step.
She could feel him grinning against her skin, and she mirrored the expression.
With a deep breath and an exhale, she turned ever so slightly, and their lips met.
Instantly, it hit like a shock to her system.
Her breath hitched in her throat. Kissing him felt like the world dropped away, and only heat stood between them.
Her fury quieted within her, almost as if it had finally found peace, something she had never experienced.
Tal had never been one to enjoy kissing, but the way she felt then, she could have spent forever in this man’s embrace.
She needed to. The space between them ached with a desperate hunger.
She gripped his shirt in both hands and pulled him on top of her.
After weeks of intense glances and carefully planned caresses, Tal had grown tired of waiting, tired of waking up from dreams she would much rather dive back into.
Heat filled her at the memory of all the things her unconscious mind had already done to him.
Tonight, Tal would make at least one of those fantasies a reality.