“I’m not sure. Something feels… off. I can’t put my finger on it,” Taryn said, scanning the room. “Fortunately for them, I’m too fucking tired to care.”
Taryn stalked over to the bar cart and swiped a bottle of whiskey and a cloth. His stab wound still throbbed with pain, but he would live. It wasn’t the first time he had a wound of this severity.
“Let me see it,” Airess demanded. Taryn sighed and strode up to her, but she softly pushed his chest backwards, forcing him to sit on the couch. She peeled his shirt up, and Tary grimaced as the fabric was ripped away from his healing flesh. Pain mixed with pleasure at her touch, and flashbacks of their kiss at the inn flooded his mind.
Airess grabbed the whiskey from his hands and poured the liquid into the cloth. She looked at him, silently asking for permission to continue.
Taryn nodded.
The alcohol stung as it made contact, but it was nothing compared to her fingers touching his body. He inhaled sharply, not from the pain, but to compose himself. A single touch from her made him dizzy.
If they were standing upright, he would have fallen to his knees.
His eyes trailed her every move as she cleaned the wound in agonizing silence. When she was done, she poured the whiskey into two glasses and handed one over to him. Airess slumped on the couch next to him, no doubt from exhaustion.
“Well, Taryn. I’ll allow you the honors.” Airess commented, raising her glass in the air.
Taryn grinned. He raised his glass as well. “To finally making it to Rune, despite all odds.”
“To making it to Rune.” Airess nodded. “A month and a half ago I was to be the future queen of Luciena. Now I’m halfway across the world, free, and somehow ended up meeting a sarcastic bastard along the way. Who knew?”
“The Gods knew,” Taryn said as he took a sip of the whiskey, bringing his lips to the glass rim.
Airess lifted her cup, a subtle smile on her lips. It was a look he committed to memory.
She nodded, eyes twinkling. “The Gods knew.”
Chapter 29
‘It has been several months after The Twin’s failed attempt to recreate Tevye. Although they perished, they did create their wall.
The cost? Magick.’
— Written entry from Zaro Lucien’s personal journal
Airess
“Ma’am?”
A voice pulled Airess out of a rare, dreamless slumber. She felt a hand lightly press her shoulder, and when her eyes shot open, she realized she was still in the living room of the guest house.
Airess met the eyes of a servant who looked down at her expectantly, and then glanced over to an unconscious Taryn sleeping next to her. Heat crept up her cheeks and neck as she took in the position they were in. Airess had accidentally fallen asleep on the couch with him, her body pressed into Taryn’s, his arm around her.
“It’s time for you to get ready,” the attendant said with a raised brow. Airess cleared her throat and nodded, gently removing Taryn’s arm from her body, careful not to wake him. She knew he needed the rest.
The attendant led her to a room and got to work. Airess fought the urge to pull her hand away as four attendants filed her nails, scrubbed her skin, combed her hair, and painted her face. She had only been awake in her quarters for ten minutes, yet was admiring the astonishing difference in everything of the Runean culture.
All the furniture was low to the ground, even the masterfully wooden-engraved bed sat on the floor surface. The room was decorated in a multitude of deeply rich colors, the color palette favoring reds and golds that was showcased on the rugs, bed quilt, and curtains.
Even the art was different here, paintings showcasing nude Fae people–of all shapes and sizes–seemed to be the norm here. The windows were constantly left open, letting in a warm, moist air she wasn’t quite used to. It seemed as if the people of Rune had nothing to hide, from the way they dressed, to the openness of their architecture.
Airess did her best to not breathe too deeply as they painted a rose-colored substance on her lips and lined her eyes with black paint. Even the makeup was different here, Rune leaning towards a more liquid kind of makeup rather than the powder she was used to back home–
Not home.
The thought stung worse than she thought it would. Even here, even now, she still felt homeless. Hopefully in time she would settle here comfortably.
Finally, they were done. “Beautiful. You will present nicely to the king.” One of the attendants admired, stroking a lock of hair in awe. Airess stepped in front of the mirror, her mouth parted open at the sight of herself.
