“We couldn’t,” he says, turning.His face is marred with sadness.“There were bigger concerns, and after, I wanted to talk to you.I wanted to tell you everything, but I waited too long, and you accepted the proposal.I couldn’t jeopardize your chance at happiness.”
I grab his hands and pull him to me.“How could I ever be happy without you?If this is how you felt, why wouldn’t you come with me?”
“And torture myself every day, watching as you gave your heart to someone else?”
“Never.”I pull him down into a kiss.“I cannot give away what is already yours.”
He wraps me in his arms, lifting me easily.He fits perfectly between my thighs, hard and hot, and I’ve never needed anyone like this before.These clothes need to be gone.I have half a mind to shred them myself, claw my way under and finally get my hands on him.My lips.
“Please,” I plead.“I need you.”
Something cold and solid touches my back, and—oh, it’s the wall.Good.Sterling presses me against it, and the friction is delicious.I rock against him, tasting his answering groan.
“I wish I could put into words what I feel for you,” he says, kissing the hinge of my jaw.“You’ve reignited a fire inside me that I thought long extinguished.I’ve been consumed with want, aching every time you step into sight.My heart wails every time you leave, then fills my dreams with you as punishment.Now that I have you, I’m going to make up for every lost moment.I’m going to strip away every thread that stands between us and relish every inch of you until you are screaming my name, and then I’m going to do it again.”
Oh God, yes.
There is a knock at the door.
We freeze.My heart stills in my chest.It’s far too polite to be my brother, but who else knows we’re here?Could it be a passing farmer, checking in?Or a guard from the castle?Perhaps our tracks aren’t as lost as Sterling thought.
The knock comes again.
“I’d much rather not wait here all night, but I can.”
Lucky.
He sounds more playful than mad, but Sterling looks like he’s seen a ghost.He lets me down and steps back.
“How did you find us?”he asks, his voice strangled.
There’s a long pause, and with much less humor, Lucky says, “Miss Finnegan made mention of this earlier today.I thought it best to check my hunch before I said anything to Louis.”
I’m gutted.In the rush, I completely forgot that I’d told Lucky about the cottage.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper, but Sterling shakes his head and opens the door.
“Lucky.”
“Hello, Sterling.”
They stand feet apart.All at once, I know why Sterling refused to meet him.Refused to join me.The breadth of a shared history hangs in the air between them, thick and vicious and raw.
Outside, the sun peeks over the horizon, splitting and shimmering through the trees, painting the forest floor in a bright glow.
“Come inside at least,” I say, pulling a blanket tighter over my shoulders.“And then one of you is going to tell me everything.No more secrets.”
The sky is light by the time the story is complete.They met as boys, grew together into men, then friends, then more.They ate, trained, slept, and dreamed in unison, but it didn’t last.
Sterling sighs and seats himself on the bed.“When the world split, many of us were asked to leave, to help protect and train the other realms, and I accepted.We fought, and I left.We haven’t seen each other since.”
“Did you know he was here when you asked for my hand?”
Lucky reaches for me, his tone earnest.“No.When you said his name yesterday, I was blindsided.My intentions to you were—and still are—honorable.”
I squeeze his hand.Running from my problems isn’t going to work and helps no one.I have a responsibility to meet, no matter where my heart lies, but surely, this makes things easier?
My fear was always leaving Sterling behind or being locked in an uncaring and unkind marriage.It’s clear neither needs to be the case.
