“What about you?”
“Oh, I’ll eat, believe me. But I want to read you a few passages first.”
“Poetry and wine? Are you trying to get lucky?”
“Lucky? I fail to see what luck has to do with?—”
“Ugh, forget it. Just read to me, Mister.”
A warm smile warmed Draikis’s cheeks. “With pleasure.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Draikis read quite a few of his favorite passages to Ella as the duo casually lounged in the shade, nibbling the delightful sampling of delicacies he had brought for the outing and sipping on what proved to be a particularly delicious bottle of wine. It was a bit tighter on the palate than Ella normally preferred, but then the wine blossomed on her tongue, opening itself to her tastebuds and revealing fruity, floral notes that were sweet and warm on the back end. It was an unusual wine to say the least, and quite good once she adjusted to the unexpected flavor profile.
“Drink slow,” Draikis gently warned her. “It is stronger than it seems at first impression.”
Ella hadn’t felt it at first, but his words shifted her focus slightly, the delightful sensation of a happy buzz settling over her after only the first glass.
“What’s the alcohol percentage?” she asked.
“Percentage? I have never considered such a thing. It is wine. Is that not enough?”
“It’s just, back on Earth they always label it with the percentage.”
“Why?”
“So you know how strong it is.”
“I understand. But why?”
“Why?”
“Yes. Why? It seems extraneous.”
“It’s to keep people from overdoing it, I suppose. Back home there are a lot of rules about that sort of thing.”
“Which seems unnecessarily restrictive. We all know what wine is. The effects it has. Is it not the same on your world?”
“It is. But some people can’t control themselves. It can be a problem.”
Draikis’s expression shifted, his confusion softening. “Ah, I see. Addiction.”
“Yeah.”
“Interesting that is still a concern among your kind. Most worlds within the Dotharian Conglomerate have embraced the Vallin extract treatment. That sort of addiction is readily negated, at least among most races.”
“Vallin? I haven’t heard of that,” Ella said, immediately remembering herself and the compounding lies she’d been layering during her convalescence to keep her true nature, as well as that of her homeworld, a secret. “Uh, but us Earth people, we’re really new to the conglomerate,” she quickly added.
Rather than pry, the gorgeous alien priest simply smiled at her with such warmth in his eyes that she felt herself grow wet from nothing more than his entrancing gaze, his bright eyes making her body react in a way she’d never experienced before. The sensation was novel. Alien, even. The pigment living in her skin tingled, her Infala heating on her chest, sending waves of almost magnetic energy low in her belly, the powerful rune pulling her toward this incredibly sexy man in a way she could hardly control.
There was a spark in his eyes in response, a smoldering look that contained multitudes. Affection and care, yes, but also somuch more. Something had been kindled, and for a moment it seemed possible even his blocking runes and sacred vows might not be enough to hold it back.
A look of confused realization flashed across his face. Draikis shook it off with a shudder, turning his attention back to the book in his hands.
“Another?” he asked, his voice catching in his throat.
“I’d be delighted.”
