I breathed out a sigh of relief and let my head fall back against the stone wall. It worked. I controlled the power.
Well, mostly. Miniscule wisps of smoke curled up from where I singed a few holes in my tunic, but at least they were small and barely noticeable.
I opened my eyes to see Sin leaning back against the opposite wall, his hand rubbing over the prominent bulge straining against his breeches. “Gods, Rain, I love watching you come,” he murmured, and my cheeks reddened. Despite everything we had done together, he still made me blush.
“Well, I’d like to return the favor but…” I held up my hands which were fully engulfed in flame.
He smiled and gave one last stroke over his cock before moving closer to whisper into my ear, “It’s okay, Rain. I love the idea of you owing me one.”
A small shudder ran through me at the sensual promise in his words. “I can’t wait for you to collect,” I said, turning my head to look at him, our faces so close my lips nearly grazed his.
He shifted slightly to press a kiss to my mouth, then began the journey deeper into the tunnels. “Coming, Fea Remia?”
I squeezed my thighs together, forcing my body to ignore the pulsing ache that had already bloomed again between my legs, then jogged after him down the dim tunnels, my flames the only light in the darkness.
We walked in silence for a while so I could focus on keeping my fire lit, but after a while I found it easier to maintain without effort.
“Can all igniservians wield their magic without burning?” I asked, waving my hands around in front of me, loving the way through the reds, oranges and yellows danced in the dark.
“No,” he replied, dodging to the side as my fire got a little too close to his face. “All elemental casters are able to do is manipulate. Igniservians can burn. Aquiservians can drown. Aeriservians can suffocate.”
“And terriservians?”
Sin footsteps stuttered and his back stiffened, but he continued along.
“They can be buried alive.”
His words were so reserved that I knew I shouldn’t pry despite how badly I wanted to. Corym said Sin’s mother died of the plague, so who had he lost in such a tragic way?
I allowed the crunch of gravel beneath our feet to echo through the uncomfortable silence, waiting to see if he would say anything more. When he didn’t, I decided to practice my Rivellan to break the tension. I did what Corym mentioned and focused on the words I recognized, bringing the foreign language to the front of my brain.
“How did you discover this tunnel?” I asked, hoping it came out correctly.
“The information is passed from one Cennux to the other,” Sin replied in what I was pretty sure was Rivellan. “It is a closely guarded secret that only a handful of people know about at any given time. Not even the kings are told lest they accidentally let it slip.”
“Why the secrecy?” I asked, maintaining my grip on the Rivellan tongue.
“Safety precautions," he responded in kind. “Were the castle to fall, we would need a way to get the royal family out. The more people who know about these tunnels the easier it is for them to be compromised.”
I nodded. “So only you and who else knows about them?”
“Peywyn is the only other.”
My flames flared a bit brighter at the mention of her name, and Sin eyed me curiously. “She is just my second, Rain. No need for jealousy.”
I huffed out a breath and reigned in my fire. “It’s not like that. I trust you, Sin. It’s just…” I didn’t know how to finish my sentence. How to explain that it wasn’t the kind of jealousy he imagined. “I’m jealous that she knows you so well. That she gets to spend so much time with you out in the open. It also doesn’t help that she’s gorgeous.”
Sin laughed. “You wouldn’t say that if you saw her during her awkward phase.”
“See,” I pointed out. “It’s that right there. She has your past, Sin. Even if you weren't, you know,with her, she still has a piece of you I never will. I don’t blame her, but I also can’t help the little spark of envy.”
Sin’s hand drifted up to my face, careful to avoid the flames, and he cupped my cheek. “She might have my past, but you have my future. If you want it.”
It should have been exactly what I wanted to hear, but I couldn’t help the hint of nausea simmering in my stomach. I wanted his future. I just didn’t think I was going to get it.
Sin dropped his hand and continued down the tunnel. “And for what it’s worth,” he called over his shoulder, “I was never with Peywyn. She never felt that way about me. You might have a shot with her though.” He gave me a wink, and I nearly stumbled.
Oh.
