MINE
He’s gone.
My hand skimmed across empty furs, and a hollow ache opened inside me. I sat up, my heart thudding. Where was he? Why did he leave? I slipped out of bed, throwing my wool dress over my head. The cloak went next, then I shoved on my boots and walked outside.
Snow drifted in lazy spirals, catching the last hints of light as I scanned the camp. I strode into a thicket of trees as the fluttering in my belly worsened. I kept going for a few minutes, then stopped as a muscled back peeked through a bush.
Kairos stood alone, shirtless.
I stepped forward. He turned, his eyes crashing into mine, and then he strolled toward me. His silver-white hair was mussed from sleep and each step pressed his bare feet into snow.
I winced. “Kairos, your feet.”
“The cold doesn’t bother me.”
I rolled my eyes. “Male bravado. Pretending the weather doesn’t affect you.”
Kairos huffed a laugh. “I seem to recall you nearly freezing to death in the forest.”
I groaned. “I was not.”
“If I hadn’t dragged you in my lap, you would’ve been very ill,” he said, stepping closer. “And you still fought me.”
“I had every reason to.”
He smirked. “And yet you fell asleep on me anyway.”
Damn him and those linen trousers. Slung so low on his hips, they were barely decent, clinging to the hard curve of his ass. My thighs clenched together. My fingers itched to touch, to drag those useless pants down?—
Stop it.
I forced my eyes to his amused face. “What are you doing out here?”
“Meditating.”
“Youmeditate? How?”
He nodded. “I stand in nature, focus on my breathing, and let the silence settle me. It’s good for clearing my thoughts before battle.”
Snowflakes melted on his shoulders.
“Do you want me to leave?”
He shook his head, taking my hand. Slowly, he placed my palm over his chest, and I gasped. He was so warm.
A tight pulse of lust slammed into me. The longer I touched him, the dizzier I felt, like sipping wine on an empty stomach. His hand came up, stroking my hair as he pulled me into his arms.
“Oh. That feels really nice,” I murmured.
A sound rumbled, deep within his chest.
“I feel…like I’m drunk.”
He made an assenting noise as he kept moving, working through knots. Gods, he was so gentle. I pressed a kiss over the giant rune on his chest.
Kairos growled. “I’m trying to get myself under control.”
“I’m barely touching you.”
