Vincent turned toward me, his coat flaring in the wind, revealing the silver ablaze daggers beneath. I took a closer look and saw that he was armed to the teeth, the ablaze weapons he had summoned secured all over his body. It was as if he were afraid that if something happened, he wouldn’t be quick enough to call one to stop the approaching threat.
“I’m not really hungry,” he said.
I sighed. “Vincent, you haven’t really eaten in the last few places we’ve stopped.”
He said nothing, just turning back to his watch over the city. Lights glowed from windows, the buildings edging up to the silver ribbon of the river, and beyond the trees, the forest was an unrelenting black.
“You pay too much attention to me,” Vincent said, his back to me.
“Someone has to,” I quipped.
He spun and closed the distance between us in a couple of long strides. I registered the crunch of his boots against the old roof, but everything faded when he cupped my face in his cold hands and slanted his lips across mine. Hunger burned in my gut, and it wasn’t for the platter of food I held. We were desperate for this, but both of us had been very focused on ensuring we maintained some distance between us. In the palace, we had become accustomed to hiding our feelings and sneaking tiny, secret moments like this quick kiss. Now, Elianna was with us every second, and we were running for our lives. I wanted so much more, and the need ate at me.
He pulled back, his nose brushing mine as he sighed, his breath mingling with mine. “Is this how you want to be taken, Camilla? Against a crumbling chimney in a half-deserted town?”
“Vincent, I just want you. I don’t care where,” I said, meaning every word. He could take me right here, right now, and I wouldn’t care. I was already his.
Vincent lifted his head, the thick heat of lust in his eyes melting into a softer emotion. When he leaned forward to kiss me this time, it was featherlight. He pulled back and whispered, “I would never disrespect you as such.” He nipped gently at my lower lip. “At least not the first time.”
My laugh was a little breathless, and I clung to him with my free hand, wicked thoughts running rampant through my imagination. “What about the second?”
Vincent’s smile was lovely, lighting his face and turning him devastating. It was fleeting, his somber mood chasing away the moment of joy.
“What is it?” I asked, sliding my fingers along his jaw.
He shook his head and stood a bit straighter. I bit back a whimper, feeling the barriers he was erecting between us even though he hadn’t moved. “I have been thinking about that. About us.”
“Well, I would hope so. Would you like to share?”
“I have been thinking. While her brand remains on me, I am unsure if we can fully be together physically.”
It was my turn for my smile to turn sour, my fingers lightly gripping the plate. Even hearing about that damn brand made me want to melt Nismera’s insides.
“Why would that matter?”
“Because if I’m with you, I don’t think I’ll be able to leave.”
My heart sputtered. “Leave? Are you planning on it?”
Vincent lowered his gaze and tried to twist away from me, but I refused to let him.
“Camilla,” he started. “Be reasonable. We cannot run forever, but I can have them follow me enough that you can get away with that medallion. Maybe hide yourself until Samkiel is finished with her.”
“No.”
His eyes flared with anger. “I’m trying—”
“You’re trying to run away and not just from her, but whatever this between us could be. No.”
His hand raised, brushing a loose strand of hair near my temple. “When she has me within her clutches once more, she will make both of us pay for that indiscretion in the worst possible way. I cannot allow her to touch you. Worse, I can’t stomach the thought of what she could command me to do.”
Magic swirled beneath the plate, floating it from my hands to the ledge. I placed my hands on his shoulders and looked up at him. “She will not have you again. I swear it.”
His eyes softened. “Not even Samkiel could stop her.”
I shrugged. “Well, I’m not Samkiel.”
An unexpected smile brightened his face. It was so deep that it revealed dimples I hadn’t known he had. “No, you are far prettier,” he said, his fingers dipping under my chin and lifting.
