Two.
Two days separated us from Calder.
Two days—and an entire army.
I licked the roof of my mouth, suddenly filled with the taste of sour fear.
The ends of his curls began to thaw, leaving his chocolate ringlets dripping. I pulled my feet from his lap, climbing over his legs to seat myself there instead, curling into his chest and neck. My hand snaked into his roots and I called the water off him, sweeping it one drop at a time from his hair and skin.
Golden eyes hovered just over mine. “I wondered why I was so wet compared to you.”
“I’m never wet unless I want to be.”
The corner of his mouth lifted.
“Insufferable pig.”
His smile widened. “I love when you insult me.”
I snorted. “I always wondered how Nahli could continue letting men burn in her volcano before they impregnated her. Now I understand.”
Kye’s eyes glittered in the dark. “Are you inviting me to your bed?”
"I already invited you, you stupid lout."
"I know. I want to hear that you'll do it again."
My heart ticked, but I rolled my eyes. “Hardly an invitation when we’ve shared the same sleeping space for weeks.”
“Seems I should have burned by now, then.”
I looked up at him, molten eyes churning, and my blood heated at the low octave of his voice.
I burned for you as we stood under that altar. And I’ve been burning for you since.
I wondered if he remembered his words the same moment I did. If that’s why the scent in the air dropped into something thick and intoxicating. Why the threaded pulse of his neck jumped quietly against my wrist. Why his arm tightened around my middle.
“In my mind, you’ve been incinerated a hundred times over,” I said, realizing suddenly how close his mouth was to mine.
He turned his cheek, lips brushing against mine as he spoke. “What a delicious thought for you.”
“And boiled.”
“Mmmm.”
“And drowned.”
Kye chuckled. “I’d let you drown me, Leihani, if it meant someday sharing your bed.”
“Someday.”
“Someday.”
“You idiot. As if I could drown you.”
He grinned, though as his slender thumb guided a wild lock of my hair behind my ear, his voice grew serious. “You could. Thesea never had a thing to fear until the day you were born. You’re vast and deep and filled with every promise of darkness. You could drown oceans.”
Something deep pulsed within me. That he seemed so sure, his words so powerful. They left my lungs aching. I turned my cheek against his neck, watching the fire through glassy eyes.
