Page 81 of Anywhere

His hair was messy, and he looked like he was having as much trouble trying to sleep as I was. He had no shirt, and it was the first time that I’d seen a man’s naked chest up close. I’d caught a glimpse of some men when they’d gone to the streams to bathe, but none of them had looked like this.

His shoulders were wide, and he narrowed in at the waist. The muscles on display drew my eyes along his body. He was wearing some type of black bottoms that were different from the ones he had on earlier, and his feet were bare. I found him more dangerous than when he was fully clothed. The dark tattoos of power lined his chest and shoulders before travelling down his arms.

Rook leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, making them look larger. It was difficult to keep my eyes on his face.

“Hey,” he said softly, and that one little word made me shiver.

Biting the inside of my cheek, I squared my shoulders. “Ya came ta say somethin’?”

Rook rubbed the back of his neck. “Can I come in?”

That was certainly not a good idea, and yet I stepped back and let him walk into the room. The large space suddenly felt too small. Like the walls had jumped inward to close me in tight with the man who wanted to devour my soul. It seemed like a wild idea and yet the fluttering in my stomach and the pounding in my chest made me want to run and hide as well as find out what else he could do. It was a conundrum.

Then I noticed the little sparkles that looked like shining dust as it swirled around our feet. I stepped away from it, but it followed.

“Wat dis be?” I asked, pointing to the swirling substance.

“It has to do with the connection between us. Old magic, stuff I don’t understand.”

We stared at one another, and Rook must have realized I didn’t understand him.

He pointed to the floor. “Dat be magic, but it no come from me,” he said and pointed at his chest as he shook his head.

I chuckled at his poor attempt at the accent, but thought it was sweet that he tried.

My eyes travelled up Rook’s body. I stopped to stare at the black designs. The way they were laid out made them seem like a language made of pictures, and my fingers itched to touch him. His piercing blue eyes locked with my own. I couldn’t help thinking I was in a cage with a wild animal that was scarier than any of those that wandered through the woods. Even with the door wide open, I felt trapped by his gaze.

“I wanted to say I’m sorry for threatening your squirrel,” he said slowly.

“And?”

“And for trying to trick you into kissing me. I should’ve just kissed you instead,” he said.

“Ya tink just takin’ what ya want be better?” I crossed my arms over my chest.

His eyes went wide. “No, no…I didn’t mean it like that…I mean, I sort of did, but in a good way, like a sexy way. I’m not doing a very good job of describing this.”

I could feel his eyes searching my face, and the tingling sensation in my chest grew stronger by the second. My hand instinctively went to my chest and rubbed at the spot.

“You feel it, don’t you?” he asked, his voice dropping low. He was making me warm in places I didn’t understand and I wanted to rub my legs together.

Rook took a step closer, and my breathing quickened, making my head light. Run! My brain screamed, but my feet remained rooted to the floor as if I was nothing more than an animal in one of the villager’s leg snares.

“Naw, I dinnie no what ya be talkin’ about,” I said stubbornly, but that seemed to be the wrong thing to say.

A smile spread across his face. It was not the sweet, kind smile that Mari gave me. No, this smile spoke of a wicked personality. Every instinct told me that Rook could bring me great pain with equal parts pleasure. An image of my nails drawing lines down his back flashed behind my eyes. I staggered back with the force of the image that didn’t feel like it was my own.

“Don’t lie to me, Elewyen,” he said softly as he stepped in close enough that our chests were almost touching.

Heat from his skin seeped through the thin material of the sleep shirt. I was tempted to step away from the threat that he was, but my legs felt heavy, like they were made of great rocks.

“Who be sayin’ dat I’ma lyin’?”

Why was I poking at him? It only seemed to make things worse, and yet I continued to do it. I craved that glint in his eyes. My tongue darted out to wet my lips, and his eyes followed the movement. I remembered all too well what it had felt like to have the soft touch of his lips against my own.

Rook leaned down, and my body tensed as his cheek brushed mine. A surge of something passed between us, and I had to lock my knees to keep them from giving out.

He made a low groaning sound as his lips stopped at my ear. “I say you’re lying, because I feel the same thing right where you’re rubbing. I do like this flimsy nightgown you’re wearing,” he said slowly. Of course now was the time I was able to pick up every word he said. Each moment he stayed this close pushed my pulse higher and made my body ache in spots it had no business aching.