A gasp tore from her lips, her head tipping back against the jagged rock. Her teeth caught her lower lip, a futile attempt to contain the breathless whimpers spilling free, betraying just how completely he unravelled her.
“So beautiful,” Leukos murmured again. Then he lowered his head, mouth replacing his fingers, lips closing over her with aching deliberation. His tongue teased her sensitive peak, a maddening wave of sensation crashing over her, drowning out the world until there was nothing but him—the heat of his mouth, the gentle scrape of his teeth, and the devastating intensity with which he claimed her.
“Leukos.” She gasped, her fingers threading through his hair, tugging him closer, desperate, needing more.
He responded with a guttural sound, his grip on her tightening, hips grinding into hers with deliberate pressure that ignited a fire low in her belly. Every inch of her body thrummed in answer, alive with need.
Then—shouts. Distant, faint beneath the thunder of the waterfall, yet undeniable.
Alena went rigid, breath catching, reality clawing its way back.
Leukos froze, his mouth hovering against her skin, his body stilling as his head tilted, listening.
“Leukos!” A deep voice echoed in the distance. “Where are you?”
It sounded like Theo, but Alena couldn’t be sure.
Leukos exhaled sharply, the sound heavy with frustration.
“We should go,” Alena said, though her heart screamed at the interruption.
Leukos’ hands lingered on her waist as if he couldn’t bring himself to release her. Finally, he lifted her from where she clung around his hips, lowering her until her feet found the stone beneath them.
Heat flared in her cheeks as she fumbled with her bindings, fingers clumsy beneath the weight of his nearness. Then his hands brushed hers aside, tugging her tunic back into place with care—each graze of his fingers a ghost of the intimacy they’d just shared.
When she dared to look up, the intensity in his dark eyes held her captive, making her pulse quicken.
“Later,” he murmured, his breath warm against her cheek as he rested his forehead against hers. “I’ll make sure we have all the time in the world so I can show you what you mean to me. Nothing and no one will take that from us.”
A shiver coursed through her, the promise in his words stoking a fire that left her trembling with need for what was yetto come. His hand found hers, their fingers weaving together in a tender grip, the simple contact steadying her even as desire still coursed through her veins.
The shouts drew closer, tearing at the fragile cocoon around them. The fleeting moment they’d shared slipped further from their grasp. Yet as they stepped away from the sanctuary of the waterfall, one truth blazed within Alena’s heart: no matter how often the world intruded, their bond would endure.
“The legions are on the move,” Theo said as soon as he spotted them, his urgent tone breaking through the stillness of the forest. If he noticed their intertwined hands, he gave no sign—his focus fixed solely on the pressing news.
Behind him, Elishat followed, her sharp gaze scanning the terrain while her buzzards wheeled in ominous circles above. “The Rasennans are gathering along the coastline. Close to the Rodanos River.”
Leukos tensed, his grip on Alena’s hand tightening. “They can’t cross it. The river gods will drown them.”
“They must’ve found a way,” Theo replied, the weight of something far more troubling in his words. He glanced at Elishat, signalling that more bad news was coming.
The chief scout stepped forward, the furrow in her brow deepening the unease in Alena’s chest.
“What is it?” Leukos pressed.
“There was another uprising in Eluvia,” Elishat announced. “Slaves from the salt mines have broken free and seized the nearby settlements. The Sixth Legion was dispatched to suppress it, but…” A shadow of doubt crossed her scarred face. “The Undefeated isn’t with them.”
Leukos’ features hardened. “What?”
“Our spies confirmed he’s in Kisra,” Theo added, his voice carrying a note of foreboding. “Attending to… an important matter.”
The words hung in the air, heavy with implication. For a long moment, silence reigned, broken only by the rush of water in the distance.
Theo’s focus shifted to Alena, an almost imperceptible change in his expression.
She blinked. “I don’t understand. What could be more important to Dalmatius than crushing a slave rebellion?” The question left her lips, but her mind was already churning, piecing it together until the answer struck her like a blow to the gut.
Leukos’ thumb swept over her knuckles, a quiet comfort against the sudden weight in her chest.
