He cocked his head. “Delah is a spy for us.”
I gasped. “For how long?”
He held my gaze. “Since before I found you. She’s safe now. We’ll get her out in time.”
Relief eased the tension in my chest. At least I was now on the right side of this conflict. Shards of shame stabbed into me, but the pain was less punctuated, less consuming. I could use it to fuel rather than whip.
Dom shifted closer, hungry. The boy who once offered solace had become the leader of a broken people who fought against the subjugation of a tyrant. I wanted to be at his side as he did it. I wanted to be his. Even if just for a little while.
My thighs clenched at the barely restrained desire radiating off of his body, clawing its way to mine. My heart broke anew for what time we’d lost and what violence lay ahead of us.
Dom’s shadows curled out from his knuckles, reaching for me. He extended his arm, swiftly grabbing my wrist through the bars. Water magic swirled out of my fingertips, entwining with his shadows, enveloping us both in ethereal bliss. A serene calm surrounded us as our magics danced and responded. Time stilled for a heartbeat.
“You are my greatest temptation,” he whispered.
He released me, forcing himself back. I didn’t want to forget how he looked in this moment. He was intoxicating to take in. His eyes an eruption of violent amber. His hair a riot of dark waves. He was magnificent in stature and character, even if hislife and his prophesied end were a tragedy. He was like an avalanche destroying the side of a mountain—both beautiful and terrifying. I understood the darkness that haunted him. And I witnessed the gentleness and hope he harbored in his soul. I couldn’t let this curse win; I wouldn’t let Nolan succeed.
“Have you changed your mind?”
I came back to myself, “About what?”
“Can I have a small taste?”
I did not contain the wicked smile that welcomed his request. A shadow flew out from him, snaking through the iced bars of his cage. It curled around my throat, searing my skin as it slowly, softly trailed up my neck, leaving goose bumps behind. My unrestrained moan had his shadows growing firmer as if they were Dom’s very hands. Dom sniffed, his entire body stiffening.
I could no longer make out his topaz eyes with his pupils blown out. I arched into the feel of his shadows moving down my chest and across my stomach, toying with my waistline. The metal in the bathroom began writhing. The brazier shook, and sparks flew upward. I met his fiery gaze.
“Control your magic or you’ll burn this place down.” I released my magical hold on the cage, the bars evaporated into the air, water droplets glittering the floor. The only thing separating us was our own brittle restraint. I let it crack.
“The next time someone is giving orders it will be me.” Step. “And you will obey.” Step. “And beg for more.”
He lurched forward and swiftly took hold of me. My back met the stone wall. He secured my hands above me, a subtle groan escaping.
His breath left a trail of heat as his lips grazed my jawline. Teeth scored my skin, straddling the line between pain and pleasure. I arched into his touch like he was a magnet whose pull I could not defy. I felt like a beggar, desperate for more of his teeth on my skin.
He spoke against my lips, “What I want to do to you is not the result of a bespelled tonic,m’est kisertes. It’s the truth of my heart.” My arms remained pinned above me while his other hand commanded my head, exposing the column of my throat. Excruciatingly slowly, he licked his way from my collarbone to my jaw, pausing at the scar from the Surveille parasite.
“Foka, I’ve wanted to do this for a while.” He slowly traced a circle around the scar with his tongue. I sensed his magic washing over me. My skin flushed as he coaxed my blood to the surface, so every brush of air and breath on skin lit me on fire, sensitive in a way I’d never before experienced.
“Can you feel it?” His breath was warm against me and I shivered. My veins pulsed as he manipulated my blood, lighting me from within. Every sensation amplified where his magic flowed.
My affinity spooled out, seeking to embrace him. Ribbons of water streamed in recognition of his metal magic. He released my wrists and my lips found his again, starving. He bit my lower lip, then soothed the sting with a tender lap. His tongue found its place with mine and my soul settled even as my body charged.
“Liora,” he groaned.
My breath hitched. “Say it again.”
He paused, confused as my words battled through our desirous fog. His eyes softened. “Liora, my light.”
His low tenor sparked an electrical tremor through my body. It sounded like a promise. From this point forward I only wanted my name, my real name, in his mouth. It kindled something within me—both terrifying and intoxicating.
I let my body and my magic say what my voice could not. We moved toward the bedroom, tripping on our boots in our haste. My hands could not have fathomed the feel of each rippled muscle as they roved along his body, mapping it. Letting mywalls down, opened up a thread of connection that drew us closer.
The ground beneath our feet violently shuddered. The entire inn swayed. I paused, distantly recognizing this had nothing to do with our colliding magic. The sound of an explosion deafened. Our explorations ceased, and we both jumped into action, regrettably alert. Our connection flamed even though the moment collapsed around us. Perhaps Dom was right; the siren’s spell was not the source of our desire after all.
I ran to put on my boots and secured my weapons. Dom did the same, stopping briefly to gently cup my jaw and give me one final, and very thorough, lingering kiss.
Bowen yelled for us, beating on our door. We opened it to both him and Evander. Evander tossed heavy furred cloaks to us, then pulled out gloves from a bag.
