“Allright, it’s not hard for you. Well done, Cerian. Now do it while you’re holding me.”
“With air between us.”
She tries not to smile too widely. “Yes, with air between us.”
“For now.” He takes her in his arms again, only needing slight coaching on his hand placement.
“Now you step,” she says. “Just as you did by yourself.”
“I’ll step on you.”
“I’ll step out of the way first. Watch. Step forward.”
Reluctantly, he complies, and she steps back as he steps forward.
“Ah. I see. So I just move, and you’ll stay out of the way?”
“Well, it’s a little more romantic than that. You use your hand on my back to direct me as you turn me across the floor. Just light pressure so I know where you’re leading me next. But master this part first.”
“So something like this?”
He steps forward, and she steps back. And he keeps going, each step perfectly matching what she showed him.
Stars above.
He’s already better at this than Rominy is. How complicated must elven dances be if this is so easy for him?
“I missed that step,” he mumbles.
“I couldn’t even tell. Cerian, you are good at this.”
“Is there more to it than this?”
“There are turns and spins, but—”
“Show me.”
“All right.” She demonstrates some more advanced moves for him, helping him with his hand placement.
But he picks it up just as quickly as everything else.
“So...like this,” he whispers near her ear before leading her in the most breathless dance she’s ever experienced. The more her heart pounds, the bigger his smile grows.
“If only we had music,” he says as he spins her back into his arms, only this time, he catches her against his chest and holds her there.
“No more space between us?”
“Nothing between us.” He finds her lips in a slow kiss, and she melts against him.
When he pulls away, she clings to his shoulder as he rests his cheek against her hair, and they sway to music that doesn’t exist.
“Meet me in the heartlanding?” he eventually whispers. “I have a good feeling about tonight.”
She looks up at his face. “You have a good feeling?”
He shrugs, but his lips twitch into a smile, and he pulls her close again.
What is he planning?
