“What? No, I’m fine.” But when she tried to stand, another burst of pain coursed through her left ankle, and it collapsed from under her. Altair caught her around the waist, and she noticed his shirt was in tatters, his chest covered in scratches. She absentmindedly touched one, and he hissed. Pulling her hand away quickly, she apologized. Finally acknowledging her ankle, there was a pool of blood staining the snow red. The pain set in, then, becoming a deep throbbing, and she was grateful for Altair continuing to hold her up.
He scooped her up by the knees and cradled her close to his chest.
“Altair, please, I can walk. You’re injured. You shouldn’t be carrying me.”
Looking down at her like she was crazy, he replied, “They’re only minor scratches. I heal fast.” He smiled. “No need to worry about me, my star.”
With one arm around his neck, Iyana’s other hand began exploring the wounds on his chest. There was a deep one on his left side over his heart, but true to his word, it was already healing, the skin knitting together. Flattening her palm on the area, his heart beat steadily beneath her fingertips, which brought her some relief.
“This was not a minor scratch,” she chided.
Altair shrugged as best he could while carrying her. “It’s healing though, is it not?” Walking for another few minutes through the trees, he finally found what he was looking for. They ducked into another cave, and Iyana’s breath caught in her throat.
She first noted the humidity contained within the cave, instantly warming her, and found the source was a hot spring. But what really took her breath away was the ceiling dotted with little glowing blue areas, lighting up the entire space. It all made for an exceptionally comforting environment, reminding her of a starry sky. Altair set her down gently on a bed of moss. She hadn’t realized how sore her ass was from only sitting on rocks the past two days.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” said Altair, smiling as he glanced upward. “The ceiling contains a bioluminescent fungus. It makes it feel not so enclosed here.” He focused again on her injured ankle. Kneeling before her, he gently lifted her foot and slid off her boot. His hand traveled lightly up her foot to the wound on the side. She gasped.
“Did I hurt you?” he asked, frowning.
“No,” she said breathily, telling the truth.
“The good news is it isn’t as deep as I first feared.”
Iyana leaned forward to inspect it herself and agreed with his diagnosis. “I can pack it with some moss and wrap it until I can get my kit. I’ll need to go back for that.”
“I’ll go,” he said, standing. He nodded toward the hot spring. “Why don’t you address your wound, then take a soak?”
Iyana tipped her head back, moaning in anticipation of a warm bath.
Altair stared at her hungrily, running his gaze down her body. She shivered, despite the warm air. “My star…Iwillhear you make that sound again. That’s a promise,” he said, and strode out of the cave.
Forcing the interaction out of her mind, Iyana inspected her ankle more closely. Altair was right, it wasn’t deep. It should heal nicely once she got a poultice on it. She stared at the warm water longingly, then back toward the entrance, deciding she could definitely get in a bath before Altair returned. He didn’t even know where her pack had fallen. Stripping off her clothes in record time despite her injury, she slid into the blessedly hot water. Her ankle stung in the heat, but the rest of her body felt so relaxed she didn’t care. Reveling in the moment, Iyana found a rock shelf to sit on, and, laying her head back, she closed her eyes.
An unknown amount of time later, she was startled out of her reverie by the sound of athunkon the ground. Sitting up in a panic, water sloshing around her naked body, she saw the sound was her pack, and Altair stood in the middle of the cave, staring. Ogling, really. It was then she realized when she sat up, her breasts had been exposed. That was what Altair was looking at now, pupils wide, and her nipples hardened into peaks. With a smirk, he raised his eyes to hers and shucked off his tunic.
A mousy squeak escaped her as she submerged her body fully, eyes snapping shut. Altair chuckled, followed by the sounds of his clothes hitting the floor. The water rippled around her as he waded in, and Iyana hazarded a peek. Really, she couldn’t help it. Gods, he was glorious. Fully and unabashedly taking him in, he stood an arm’s length away from her, allowing her to drink her fill. His chest had already healed, and his body was all muscle and strength. Sweat beaded on his upper body, running in rivulets down his abdomen. Iyana followed one droplet lower, lower, and she found herself disappointed the water obstructed his lower half.
Altair stalked toward her, creating small waves that broke against her body. Paralyzed, she couldn’t have moved even if she wanted to, and gods knew she didn’t want to. All of her previous reasoning left her in a rush, need racing through her instead. And unless she was reading the signs wrong, he desired her as well. When he finally reached her, he crowded in close enough that the evidence of his desire pushed against her side. Eyes locked with hers, he stroked his hand through her hair around to the back of her head. Leaning forward, his lips brushed against her ear, causing her to gasp. Wetness pooled at her core, and it wasn’t from the hot spring. Iyana felt his lips against her skin curl into a smug smirk.
“My star,” he whispered adoringly. “I want you…” Altair nipped at her ear. She should push him away, tell him to stop. “…to touch…” But his body was firm beneath her fingers, and his breath fluttered over her skin. Iyana tilted her head back to give him better access to her neck. Someone here needed to be the sensible one, and it clearly wouldn’t be her. “…your magic.”
That—that was not what she was expecting. Sour disappointment poured over her, but he continued to nuzzle her ear and neck with his nose—lips placing feather-light kisses along her skin. So she did as he asked, closing her eyes to block out the infuriating star, instantly finding her little flame of magic. This time, when she reached a finger for it, it reached back without hesitation. The fire melded with her soul, racing through her veins, looking for an outlet. Iyana didn’t know how to direct it yet, and the rush this victory caused made her lose her concentration and connection.
“I did it,” she whispered. Altair still pressed firmly against her, his mouth exploring her damp skin.
As she raised her hands to explore him further, Altair retreated from her body. “Good girl,” he growled. And when Iyana thought she couldn’t be surprised anymore, Altair turned away from her and climbed out of the hot spring. The star, and his glorious ass, simply walked away from her and dressed for bed.
Gods, this journey was going to be torture.
Chapter 13
Emmeric
It took Emmeric seven days to reach the town of Huton, which was still a three-day ride out from Athusia. Evenafterhe had stolen a horse. Instead of visiting the next village over and trekking across the Aula Pass, like he told Iyana he’d do, he’d instead pilfered a horse from them, riding to the edge of the Sea of Stars. He hated stealing the horse but decided it was a necessity and left some money as recompense. After a day and a half, he reached the sea and was forced to wait there for two days until the next ferry was available. At least he still had some coin and was able to stay at an inn, fed and warm, instead of finding a stable and bed of hay somewhere. Fortunately, once he was on the ferry, it only took half a day to reach the shores of Athusa. Then it was another three days’ ride to Huton. This was the most he had ever traveled on his own, and he found it to be absolutely terrible. And quiet. Typically, there were multiple people taking turns on watch, but when it was solely him, hehadto sleep. But he also didn’t want to be killed in his sleep by bandits or a jaguar or some shit. That would be embarrassing. So he jerked awake at any little noise, his horse sleeping peacefully beside him, gaining maybe an hour or two of rest each night.
Emmeric also began talking to the horse to pass the time. Not usually one for conversations or crowds, he found himself within the new territory of craving human company.
By the time he made it to an inn, he felt close to passing out from sheer exhaustion. He’d had to sell the horse to pay for his stay and determined it was well worthit as he tumbled into bed. Without bothering to eat, undress, or bathe, Emmeric slept.
