Yes, hammer. I was back at Fress, working on the walls of one of the three houses that were going up simultaneously. Caleb was on my left, repairing what was left of a fireplace. Vardan was across the lane, working on another house, his wings bound with a big leather strap to keep them out of the way. I saw him glance over often. I tried to meet his stare and smile when he did.
It had been two days since Vardan had joined us for dinner and Taroc had given me that baffling glare. Vardan had taken Taroc's place at our table, and Taroc didn't seem to give a shit. So, there went the game anyway. If he cared about me, Vardan's presence should have made Taroc jealous and brought him back. I guess I had seen things that I liked in him, but he hadn't seen the same in me.
So why couldn't I focus on Vardan?
Tap, tap. Slam! I hammered a nail in and reached for another out of the pouch on my belt. Tap, tap. Slam! I got into a good rhythm, but then it was time to move on to the next plank. I hooked my hammer in my belt, picked up another plank, and held it in place while I fumbled for a nail.
“Let me help you,” someone said.
I dropped the nail. “Fuck.”
Vardan chuckled and picked it up for me. “Hold the board. I'll hammer it in.”
My mind tried to process what he was referring to while my eyes tried to process the sight of his hard chest on display. Most of the Wraith Lords were working shirtless, but Caleb and I had kept our tunics on. The weather was cool, and I wasn't working up a sweat. Neither was Vardan, but the cold didn't seem to bother him. Although his dark pink nipples were very tight.
I cleared my throat and said, “All right.”
Then I put the plank in place and watched Vardan pull a few nails from his pouch and his hammer from his belt. He glanced at me, grinned, then set a nail against the wood. With one strike, it was in, and he was moving on. Crouching as he went down the wood, he hammered in the rest of the nails. As he got the last one in, I fetched another plank.
A few minutes later, we had a nice rhythm going. It got to the point where I got the next board in place as Vardan stood to set the first nail. Smooth. Perfect. We finished a wall in five minutes. As soon as Vardan hammered the last nail, there was clapping. We turned to see the two other Lords and Caleb applauding.
“You two work well together,” Caleb said.
“Thanks,” I said as Vardan and I grinned at each other.
“You up to keep going?” Vardan asked me.
“Sure.”
We started on the inner walls, putting frames in place first, then adding the boards. Together, we made quick work of it. And then we went over to the house Vardan had been working on before and finished the walls there. Finally, when sweat started to soak my tunic and drip down Vardan's chest, we decided to take a break.
I pulled my tunic off as Vardan removed the strap from his wings, then rinsed his face and chest with water from a barrel that had been set up in the street for that very purpose. I splashed myself when he was done, gasping when the cold hit me. Pushing my wet hair back, I watched water drip down Vardan's broad shoulders to ripple over his spectacular muscles. There was something about flying that gave Makhans exceptional torsos. Not that the rest of Vardan was lacking.
“Keep looking at me like that, and I'll have to kiss you,” Vardan said, his voice gone low.
I blinked. Cleared my throat. Didn't look away.
Vardan took a step toward me.
I bit my lip. Should I kiss him? Did I want to?
“Excuse me,” someone said gruffly and stepped between us.
I flinched, then flinched again when I saw it was Taroc. I hadn't even known he was working in Fress with us. He glanced at me with the same look he'd given me days ago, but with a little more hurt. Then he splashed water over his face and chest, not caring that he got some on Vardan and me too. I couldn't help glancing at a chest that was even more spectacular than Vardan's, but it was Taroc's expression that held me hostage. What was he so angry about? And why did I feel so guilty about it?
“There's another barrel, just over there.” Vardan waved toward the other barrel of water, several feet away.
“This one is closer,” Taroc said and walked away.
I watched him go, then looked at Vardan. He was frowning after Taroc. When he looked back at me, our moment was gone. I was surprised that it didn't bother me to have lost it.
Vardan made a halfhearted grin, then pulled on his tunic, wrapping it around his wings and waist with swift movements. “I think I'm done for the day.”
“Me too,” I said. “Lunch?”
He brightened. “Sure.”
Instead of going back to the citadel, we went to the tent that had been set up near the church. It was where we took our breaks and ate. A few Creen manned the food table in the tent, refilling platters of cold chicken, bread, cheese, and vegetable salad as well as pitchers of water. It wasn't as impressive as the lunch back at the citadel would be, but it was more than I needed and right there.
