I smiled, my body warm and tingling from the wine, as I teased, “I have courage enough for the both of us.”
He exhaled a sharp breath. I was relieved to see the corner of his lips quirk up because it had been so long since I’d seen his smile.
His hands tightened on my waist. They were so warm I could feel them through my dress.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed he’d barely touched his food and I frowned. “Why haven’t you eaten?”
“Because I have been waiting for you,” he murmured and my breath hitched. “And trying not to challenge that warrior who dared to touch you.”
Jealous, indeed, I thought.
“He is my friend,” I told Seerin, “so you’ll do no such thing.”
His lips pressed together in discontent.
“Besides, considering your table is covered in goblets of wine, perhaps it isIthat should be the jealous one here,” I informed him.
He frowned. “I drank from yours so the rest do not matter,thissie.”
“Then it would seem there is no reason for either of us to be jealous,” I pointed out, raising my brow.
He quieted at my words. Realization flashed through his gaze and I was relieved at his short nod.
“Will you eat now?” I asked. He looked tired and I knew he would start a long journey tomorrow. He needed the sustenance.
“Only if you feed me,kalles,” he rasped.
I sucked in a breath, that voice curling lower in my body.
“People are watching, Seerin,” I told him. And they were. I could feel their eyes on my turned back, though I heard laughter and chatter and cheers during the dancing.
He took mercy on me and reached out to grab some food, popping it into his mouth and chewing. I’d seen him eat so many times, yet I was still fascinated by his strong jaw and the corded column of his throat as he swallowed.
It didn’t take him long to polish off the tray. Then he stood. I sucked in a breath, looking up at him, and he murmured, “Come, Nelle.”
The frost feast was still lively behind us.
“Won’t they care if you leave now?” I asked.
“Nik. They will be here until the early hours,” he informed me. “I would not be surprised if they are still here in the morning.”
His gaze was fierce and knowing. I knew what would happen once we left. I knew what would happen once we returned to hisvoliki.
And Iwantedit.
He knew it and I knew it.
At my nod, his eyes flared and a growl tore from his chest. He pulled me from the dais, leading us through the throng of dancing Dakkari at its base. I tried to look for Avuli and when I spotted her, she was watching me. She smiled and I inclined my head to her. No doubt she would ask me about what happened when I saw her tomorrow.
I tried to ignore the other stares, however. No one met Seerin’s gaze directly, I noticed, but they certainly met mine.
When we were away from the crowd, I felt like I could breathe again. Seerin’s pace was quick and I noticed that he’d forgotten his pelt.
“Won’t you be cold?” I frowned, looking at his bared flesh.
“Nik, thissie,I am certainly not cold right now,” he rasped. That voice reached me in places I didn’t know existed.
My swallow was loud and audible, given the quietness of the rest of the camp. It was deserted, since everyone was at the feast. I was suddenly very happy I’d had the wine because it helped ease my nerves.
