I drift closer. He turns, his face nothing but obscured shadow. But I swear I can make out the line of his nose and the curve of his lips. My fingers remember everything, a phantom touch.
Unconsciously, I take another step. This single pane is the only thing between me and that mysterious smile I’ve seen in my mind’s eye. The only thing between me and his skin…
My eyes drift down. His back is to me now, and I chide myself as I wonder if he only turned—
“Just finishing up washing,” he says. “I’ll be out in a moment.”
“Oh! Uh, yeah. No hurry.” Heat rushes from my chest up to the tips of my pointed ears, and I stiffly walk back to the bed and sit on the edge.
A shuffle and thetingof metal sounds from beyond the glass, and then Ezryn steps out.
He’s wearing a helm I’ve never seen before; the same style, but a brilliant starlight silver.
And he has a towel wrapped around his waist.
And that’s it.
Every nerve in my body lights up. There’s a voice in my head screaming at me not to be a lecherous perv, but the lecherous perv part is too strong, and I fully drink him in from the bottom of his long legs to the crest of his helm.
He stands with one arm leaning against the pane of glass, well-defined chest, covered in dark hair on full display. Water drips down his tawny skin, begging to be licked. Muscles ripple over his arms and abdomen.
He tilts his helmet, and the glint of light on the visor almost makes it look like he’s narrowing his eyes. “So…”
“Huh?” I answer. Then I realize my mouth is half-hanging open, and my eyes are practically out of their sockets. And I was the one who showed up in his room. Words would be nice right about now.
It’s just that I’ve only ever caught glimpses of his skin: the line of wrist between his armor and his gloves, the beautiful curve of neck under his helmet. And each of these were like treasures to be squirreled away. But now…
Now he’s on display like a piece of art, and merely looking doesn’t feel like it could ever satisfy.
“You needed me?” he adds. I always thought it was his armor that made him seem so still, but even like this, he barely moves. The subtle nods of his helm are all I have to go on.
I look down, folding my hands in my lap. “I wanted to make sure you were okay. Everything happened so quickly yesterday.”
He sighs. “Everything may have happened quickly for us, but I think things have been brewing in the Spring Realm for a long time. In my heart, I knew I was needed here. I only hope I’m not too late.”
“We’ll get to the bottom of this. Dayton and I can start investigating the stolen Spring steel. And Kel and Farron should be here any day.” I stand up and close the distance between us. It feels like the easiest thing in the world. “You’re not alone, Ezryn.”
His hand drifts up and pushes a curl of hair off my face. “Trust me, Petal, I have never doubted your intrepid heart.”
I place my hand over his, holding the warmth of his palm to my cheek. “Then what are your doubts? Ever since we’ve returned from Autumn, you’ve been distant. If you’re not in the Briar, you’re training or alone in your chamber.”
His other hand cups the opposite side of my cheek. “You find the good in all things. But trust me when I tell you, every decision I have ever made has been the wrong one. Even coming back to Spring and sitting upon the throne … Who am I to claim myself a better leader than Kairyn? Now, I must decide his fate once again.”
“I don’t buy it.” My fingernails dig into his skin. “Every decision has been the wrong one? What about choosing to stand with Farron in battle? What about saving Dayton’s life? What about—” My voice breaks with laughter and emotion. “What about not killing me on the bridge all those months ago? What about this?” I grab his hand and place it on my left wrist, on the skin he healed for me back in Autumn.
His helm shakes side to side. “Those weren’t choices to be made. They were just the right things to do.”
“Everything is a choice.” My hand drifts to his chest. I flick a smoldering gaze up at him.
He’s quiet for a long moment, breath reverberating through the helm. “Rosalina, I’ve warned you about the decisions I make.”
“Tell me,” I whisper, “does this feel right?”
Because for me it does. Like all the anxiety I’ve felt since I arrived in Spring and saw him facing his brother alone in the throne room, all but ebbs from my body. Like despite everything on the horizon, this moment could protect us from the world.
Another aching beat passes in stillness, my pounding heart and the rushing water the only sound. Then Ezryn grabs me around the waist, spinning us until my back is against the mist-sprayed wall. His hand tightly grips my jaw, the visor’s gaze penetrating. “Isn’t that just it, Petal? Why does this feel so right? You are mated twice over—”
“My matesloveyou. They love you, Ezryn. For once, stop thinking about everyone else. And choose me.”
