His terse response told her everything. “Is this when the island sank?”
“Aye. It was there one minute and gone the next.”
“Do you think the rebels could be behind this?”
“We checked. There weren’t any signs of destructive devices or chunks of debris scattered about to suggest they used explosives to shatter the foundation—”
The lights came on. She blinked at the brightness, then glanced over her shoulder. He stood a step behind her, bare-chested. And she wanted to lean into him.
Unable to hold his brooding stare or keep her emotions in check, she faced the deluge again.
“Don’t hide from me…” A taut whisper. His corded forearm slipped around her stomach, pulling her against his warm chest. He pressed his lips to her neck, stirring every nerve ending, and she shut her eyes.
He grasped her chin, turning her face to his, and covered her mouth in an intensely sensual kiss. Leya could do little but kiss him back, his touch like a live wire, setting her alight. God, she missed him so much.
Lightning flashed through the pane, lighting them up as his hand slid under her tank top to squeeze her breast, his thumb rolling her nipple. A light tug. And she whimpered into his mouth, pressing into him, his cock a hard bar on her lower back.
“Do you want me to walk away, Leya?”
The words to deny him stuck in her throat.
His eyes sparking like quicksilver, he nipped then sucked the fast-beating pulse on her neck.
Desire blazed like wildfire.
“Too bad. Because I’m not giving you up.”
With that decree, he stalked off, leaving her wild with need. She threw out a hand to the windowpane to keep herself upright.
Her mind in turmoil, she stared after him as he shut his bedroom door.
“What, Aerén?” she whispered. “What can help us now, when your world won’t allow us—allowme—to live with you?”
CHAPTER31
“My lady,are you sure about those pants?” Mihr frowned at the jeans Leya tugged on, wriggling a little before she could zip up.
“It’s chilly,” she mumbled absently. Not even her shower had eased the achy need for Aerén after their sizzling kiss. “It’s what we wear on my world when the weather’s this cold.”
“My pardon, my lady. I tend to forget mortals cannot raise their body temperature.” Sighing, Mihr picked up the gorgeous teal-green chiffon gown she’d selected, one Aerén bought in another lifetime for Leya, and hung it in the closet.
“Where’s Hana?” Leya asked, pulling on a long-sleeved t-shirt, her jacket, followed by her boots.
“Downstairs, in the library.” Mihr motioned her to a chair before the mirrored dresser and started combing her hair.
“Nothing fancy,” Leya said. “A ponytail will do.”
Mihr blinked, seeming scandalized, like Leya said she’d run outside naked. But she nodded, not happy at all as she wrestled Leya’s wavy hair in a high ponytail, then she cheerfully worked on two little braids, whipping them around as a decorative tie.
Her smile, however, made Leya feel bad.
Save him…
God!Leya rubbed her temples, the echo in her skull a faint plea now. The tug within her grew relentless, pulling at her to get back outside in the downpour. But she had to wait until Aerén left.
The moment Mihr stepped back from doing her hair, Leya jumped up and headed out, traversing the elegant circular landing for the grand staircase. The recessed orb lights in the walls brightened, emphasizing the enormous canvases hanging there.
Leya paused, taking in the scenic ones of Cidéra… Maybe she could feel the call to a place from the paintings? She rubbed her chest, casting her attention to the vast mountains and forests, the castle and its beautiful gardens, beaches with darker seas and reddish-gold sands, and a white forest against navy, rocky elevations…
