“Rules? Rules for what?”
“Us. This.” I waved back and forth between us, then wrung my hands in my lap. “I didn't discuss how far I could take this with Xae and Rath.”
Keltyr smirked. “So, you're already thinking about fucking me, eh?”
“Yes. Of course,” I admitted freely. “That's what this is about, isn't it? I mean, not the sex, but what will hopefully come with it.”
He leaned in closer, propping himself on his forearm, and his grin went wicked, “You mean falling in love with me? Don't worry, I'll go easy on you.”
I sighed. “Can we not do the jokes? This is serious, and it's been weighing on me. To be honest, Kel, I don't want to take another lover.”
Keltyr sat back, his expression falling instantly into grim lines. “So, you don't want to be here with me? Is that what you're saying?”
“No, I do. I'm having a wonderful time. I just don't want to hurt Xae or Rath. And I'm afraid of falling for someone else.”
“Why?”
“What if you don't love me back?” I shrugged. “You're kind of notorious for fucking around.”
“What Wraith Lord isn't?”
“You know what I mean, Kel. All of them have meaningless liaisons, but you take it to another level.”
He let out a heavy breath. “I told you it would be different with you, and I meant it.”
“But you don't know that for sure.”
“Of course, I don't. But just because I've never fallen for anyone doesn't mean I won't fall for you.”
My chest clenched in panic. “You've never been in love?”
“Here you are,” Eline said as she set a basket of steaming, sliced, crusty bread down before us along with a pot of butter. “Your appetizers should be out shortly.”
“Thank you,” Kel said, his stare locked on me.
“Certainly.” She glanced at me, then hurried away.
“No, I've never been in love,” Kel said. “What about you? Did you love anyone before Ratharin and Xaedren?”
“No,” I admitted. “But I didn't have a lot of options. I've been with two other men besides them.”
“Two?” Kel's eyes widened as he leaned forward. “You've only had four lovers in your entire life?”
“Well, I'm only 28, and I had to keep to myself before I came to the citadel. So the lovers I took were in secret, and I never allowed myself to get attached to them.”
“Holy fuck,” he whispered. “That explains a lot.”
“Like what?” I scowled at him.
“Like your whole rules thing. There can't be any rules to this, Ember. Love doesn't work like that.”
“You just want to get me in bed.”
“Yes, I do. But I'd never try to trick you there.” He took a sip, groaned, and briefly closed his eyes, then set his glass down. “I like you. You, not just your pert ass and pretty face. Could I love you? I think so. But nothing is guaranteed with either of our emotions. Even after love enters a relationship, shit can happen. But it becomes even more difficult to fall in love if you lay a bunch of rules on it. Why don't we just spend some time together and see what happens?”
“All right.” I grinned as I picked up my glass. “I like that idea.” Then I focused on the liquid inside the glass. “Why is my wine bubbling? It doesn't feel hot.”
Kel snorted a laugh. “It's sparkling wine. Something in the fermenting process produces the bubbles. And this is the best I've ever had of it. You're lucky that this will be your first experience with the stuff. Go on, try it.”
