She scowled. “This is not what I would call being ‘very, very good.’”
“That is a matter of perspective,shei’tani. From where I’m standing, it looks very, very good indeed.”
“Ninnywit.”
“Happy mate,” he corrected. He spun Earth again. His weapons disappeared and re-formed in a neat pile on a blanket spread beneath the broad fronds of a nearby pella tree. His leathers were transformed to a robe and loose trousers as flowing and sheer as her garments. Unlike her, he didn’t try to hide his bits, not even the one growing more interesting by the moment. Her eyes went wide. “And impatient groom,” he added with a shrug and another grin.
It felt good to be in the sun and laugh with his truemate as though neither of them had a care in the world. Too good, almost. The gods were rarely so kind for long.
He jumped to his feet and held out a hand. “Come swim with me.”
She hung back. “If I get in the water in this outfit, the cloth will turn completely transparent.”
“I know, and I’m looking forward to it more than you can imagine.”
Her cheeks turned a pink so bright it put the pella tree’s blooms to shame.
He laughed and swept her up into his arms, twirling her around in circles several times. “You bring me such joy.” He kissed her until they were both breathless, then tugged her once more towards the waves. “Come. Swim with me.”
“You’re serious.”
“You’ve never seen the ocean as a Fey sees it. I’d like to share the experience with you.” That was part of what he had been doing during their courtship bells, sharing with her the joys of being Fey. Showing her in every way he could that for all the difficulties and danger that came with being his mate, there were great rewards, too.
She hesitated for a moment, then put her hand in his and let him lead her into the surf.
Yet another little act of courage. There’d been so many in the last few days. She was still so innocent—she likely always would be in some ways—but beneath that innocence was a spirit of adventure. For years, Ellysetta had suppressed every hint of it, wanting desperately to be the modest, obedient daughter she thought her parents expected, but now, like a tairen kitling driven by an instinctive yearning for the sky, she was learning to spread her wings and fly. He encouraged her, true, but the effort, the desire, was all hers.
He tossed his robe to the sand, leaving only the thin trousers covering him from waist to ankle. She stared at him for several long moments, a look he could only describe as hunger on her face, and then, with a slow deliberation that nearly drove him mad, she shrugged off the outer robe he’d woven for her, leaving only the simple shift, held up by two narrow straps. The tops of her breasts rose above the bodice, alluring curves that drew attention to the small points of her nipples thrusting against the thin fabric. The bodice flowed down into fuller skirts that swept across her ankles and trailed behind in a short train.
It was Rain’s turn to stare, and his look wasn’t merely hungry—it was ravenous.
She lifted a brow, cast a siren’s look over her shoulder, and dove into the waves.
“Spit and scorch me.” Shaking himself free of his dazed paralysis, he closed his mouth and dove after her.
A simple weave of Air and Water let them both breathe under the water and see with as much clarity as they did on the surface, and together they explored the secrets of the world hidden beneaththe waves. Sunlit reefs not far off the sandy shores gave way to deeper waters with mysterious caves and undulating fields of shimmering kelp alive with darting fish and other sea creatures.
In the glittering aqua depths, Ellysetta’s hair shone like waving fans of coral. Her sheer gown was molded to her and the skirts fluttered languidly in the current, teasing him with flashes of smooth, pearly skin—a thigh, a calf, the delectable curve of her buttock, and the soft, rounded fullness of her breasts tipped with the darker circles of small, puckered nipples. He swam slightly behind her to torment himself with the view.
As he watched, she knifed downward through the water, her hand reaching out towards a school of rainbow-colored fish swimming near the kelp beds. They scattered quickly when her questing fingers came too close. Bubbles of air billowed around her as she laughed and chased after them again.
Even with the long—and very pleasingly transparent—skirts of her gown trailing behind her, she swam as if she’d been born to it like the Sea Folk who inhabited the warm waters of the western ocean. He would take her to meet them too. As delighted as she was by this small bay, he knew she would adore the Sea Folk, with their glittering tails and long, flowing hair that came in all the shades of the sea.
«Look!»Ellysetta called.
She reached down to the sandy ocean floor and lifted a large shell the size of both his hands. It was oval-shaped with long spikes curling back from the mouth, and it had a wide, broad lip colored a deep opalescent blue, with streaks of green and purple. The snail that had once occupied the shell was long gone.
«Isn’t it beautiful?»
He looked at her smiling face and shining eyes.«Youare beautiful.»
Her smile faded as he swam closer. He reached for her hand and pulled her up from the ocean floor until her body was pressed lightly against his and they were floating, weightless, beneath thesurface of the sunlit waters. He kissed her, offering her all his joy and devotion.
Rain summoned Earth, and the tantalizing, translucent fabric of her gown parted beneath his hand, falling away to bare the perfection of silky skin and gentle curves. Shewasbeautiful. Her long, bright hair, like flame on the water, floated about her, as lovely as any Sea Maid’s, her limbs long and slender. Her small, round breasts fit perfectly in the palms of his hands. He bent his head to draw the soft bud of one nipple into his mouth, and the dark skeins of his hair floated in the current, teasing her other breast with feathery brushes.
Her fingers curled in his hair, gripping his head and holding it to her. The tingling laps of his tongue, the teasing brush of his hair...mercy! She was weightless, floating in warmth and sensation. Nibbling kisses trailed down her belly and lower. Her eyes flashed open.«Rain?»
He smiled and lifted his head from her breast but did not release the Spirit weave that pressed tantalizing kisses all around the soft, flame-colored curls between her legs.«Las, shei’tani. Let me give you this. I promise you will like it.»The Spirit weave moved lower, directly into those curls. Her eyes widened, but she didn’t ask him to stop. Taking that as encouragement, he ducked his head to capture her lips. His tongue dove into the sweet, soft cavern of her mouth just as his weave dove into the softer, more secret cavern between her thighs.
