“But I respect you for doing it.” His eyes flicked back and forth between mine, his chin dropped slightly to meet my gaze because of our height difference. “And I’m grateful.”
“I would do it again.”
“And I would do anything for you.”
I swallowed, feeling that heat flush through me again. I’d never experienced anything like this, a level of intensity that made me tremble. I’d never wanted something so much that it made me afraid of it.
“I’m yours.” His powerful stare continued to burn into mine, claiming ownership with just his sight. He burned me without flames, touched me without moving a finger. Breathed air into my lungs but also made me suffocate. “Are you mine?”
The most powerful sensation struck me, like a shooting star cratered into my heart and sent shocks to every extremity, every toe and finger. My heart danced then toppled straight onto the floor. The surge of fear I’d felt at my proximity to a Knife still didn’t compare to the emotional turmoil he caused me. An earthquake that could crumble a castle, a hurricane that could bring down a flying dragon. I knew the affection in my heart was forged on a foundation of trust, but these streaks of heat in my core came from the appearance of his flesh. The hardness of his jawline, the dark beauty in his eyes, the masculine strength that had captured Allegra’s fascination before it captured mine. I never struggled to express my thoughts, but this man made me lose my grasp on language. “Yes.”
His eyes sharpened slightly, like that was the answer he wanted and expected. The tension continued to burn between us, and I wondered if it affected him the way it affected me. Or perhaps his experience with others had numbed him to the excitement.
“I—I’ve never done this before…” I needed to defend my hesitation, to explain why I was easily paralyzed by his stare. Why I didn’t have Allegra’s confidence. Why I didn’t know how to seduce a man like a courtesan.
“I know.”
“I kissed someone once…but that’s it.” It was an embarrassing statement, but I felt obligated to tell him he wasn’t taking on an equal partner, but an inexperienced virgin who had only explored sex in stories that shouldn’t have been in the library in the first place.
The intensity of his eyes didn’t wane in disappointment. “I don’t want you less. Whoever came or didn’t come before me doesn’t matter. My heart ached for you before my body, and now, my body desires you the way a fire yearns for a forest.”
I lost my breath.
“I will continue to yearn for you until the time is right—and I know that time is not now.”
First, there was relief—and then the overwhelming pain of disappointment.
His stare continued to burn into mine with the flames he’d spoken of. Deep inside me. Touching me in places no one had ever reached. He stepped toward me, his head tilting farther down to maintain eye contact as he moved into me.
Then he touched me.
His arm circled the small of my back. A fire against my flesh. A tremble that infected my fingertips. He moved farther in, moving his other hand to my neck, my cheek, and then deep into my hair, like he wanted to grab it.
I inhaled a sharp breath at the new sensation, being cradled and clutched at the same time, claimed by a man who wanted me to himself. My hand went to his arm, and I felt another rush when I actively touched him, when I felt the hardness of his muscle, the warmth of his flesh. I returned my other hand to his heart, wherehe’d placed it once before so I could feel it beat…feel it beat when I touched him.
He looked into my eyes, our mouths so close we could kiss.
I ached for that mouth, ached for it more as I watched him ache for me. But I was paralyzed by his touch, by his stare.
He seemed to content just to stare at me, to look into the eyes that sometimes made me self-conscious. I didn’t notice it at the castle, but here in the Depths, I noticed the way people stared at their unusual color. Whenever I spoke to someone, they seemed distracted, like the eyes were too disconcerting.
But I didn’t feel self-conscious now.
He cradled me closer, guiding my face into his chest as his chin rested upon my head. His hand stayed fisted in my hair, and he tightened his arm around my back, bringing me flush against him, my chest feeling a hardness that resembled a tree trunk. But it was warm. It was safe. It was right.
It was him.
I closed my eyes and felt myself drift off on the high, floating like a cloud in a peaceful sky. I stood upon my feet, but it felt effortless, like I lay in my soft bed in the castle, not a care in the world.
Fulfilling. Satisfying. Meaningful. I didn’t realize how much I’d wanted this until I had it, when I felt our bodies come together and our souls touch. A bridge formed between us, and our hearts met in the middle.
We stood that way for a long time, holding each other in the silence, pleasure in an innocent touch.
He was the one to pull away first, his eyes softer than they’d ever been before. His fingers remained deep in my hair, the strands were the reins and I was the beautiful mare. His touch started to fade as he pulled away.
In a split second, I acted on impulse and tugged him back in. Tugged him right to my lips.
His mouth landed on mine and went still in surprise.
