“What do you want?” I could tell that she wished to take back the question almost as soon as she voiced it, but I wasn’t going to let that happen.
I quickly closed the space between us, my fingers gripping her robe, pulling on the loose material. Her slender figure was easy to make out as I tugged the material to the side, stretching it over her shape before releasing it to flutter back into place against her skin.
“Take this off,” I ordered. “I want to see you glow.”
I waited for her reaction, knowing very well that I had asked a very steep price for my first repayment from her. I was sure that she would throw something at me, or yell at me for ordering her around, but she didn’t. She thought about it, her eyes holding mine steadily. I wasn’t delusional enough to think that she was grateful to me; she was still pissed that I had locked us inside a cave, threatening to wait as long as it took to discover her power. After several clicks, she began to tug on the ties of her robe. My legs were suddenly weak, but I took a moment to send my power out and repair the bed and most of the furniture. I’d left it that way as a punishment of sorts, but it was time for all of us to heal.
Striding across the room to where she stood, my hands found the sides of her face, my fingers gripping her firmly, but gently—turning her face up to meet mine. I kissed her curiously, tasting her need for me, feeling her short breaths against my mouth, the flushed skin of her face beneath my fingers, and hearing the breathy sounds she made whenever she thought I was about to pull away. I needed to assure myself that while Iwascoercing her … she wasn’t unwilling. I was never going to stop ordering Emmy around, just as I was never going to stop pushing her boundaries. She existed to test me, so it was only fair to test her back, but I had an innate fear of pushing her too hard, too fast. She had lived her life as a dweller, which made her more fragile than the sols who trained their whole lives to bear the possible burden of immortality and magic. I was afraid that by pushing Emmy too far, I would break her in some way.
The kiss grew desperate in a matter of moments, her hands pulling at my shoulders, my hands shaping to her ass. I had to keep reminding myself not to break her. When both of us were panting, I stepped back, walking backwards until the post at the end of my newly formed bed hit my back. Emmy stood there with rubbed red lips and tousled hair, her robes askew.
Yes, now she looked like she wanted what I was asking of her.
“The robe,” I reminded her, my words almost a groan.
Gods, what has this woman turned me into?
