I looked away, feeling Frid’s eyes burning into me.
“And by the way, what was your plan? There is absolutelyno place for someone like you to go,” the brash man continued.
“Why’s that?” I could not stop myself asking.
“Crawlers are everywhere around us. You’ll never make it,” Victor continued.
I looked down, dismissing his words, although without the previous confidence.
When we returned to Tynan’s room later that night, I sat on the bed, stretching out my legs. My eyes followed Tynan as he walked to the water basin and washed up. His damp hair laid flat against his face and I watched the sparkling droplets of water slide down his cheek to his neck. I swallowed, looking away. The wave of panic hit me unexpectedly. I did not know why I was so nervous. Maybe it was because I was going to seduce him and I had never done anything like that before. Or maybe because I had not been with anyone for more than two years since my fiance was killed. I was not even sure if I had it in me anymore.
What if he doesn’t find me attractive? What if he could see through my ploy?
I took a deep breath, clenching the bed cover with my hands. It was not a good time to be nervous. I only hadtonight. It was my only chance. I bit my lip looking up to the ceiling.
Tynan stretched on his bed, and fluffed his pillow.
I swallowed and sat up right.
Don’t mess it up! Don’t mess it up!
“Do you know what I want right now?” I said in a breathy voice.
My heart fell. It was like I just leapt into freezing cold water. There was no other way out. I had to see it through now.
Tynan turned his head watching me, surprise flickered in his umber colored eyes.
“I haven’t had any fun for so long. You know what I mean?” I placed my feet on the floor, feeling his gaze on my face.
“Go to sleep,” Tynan said quietly, but I could see that his attention was on me when I stepped closer to his bed.
“I saw you looking at that woman downstairs. I think we can help each other,” I whispered, stopping by his side of the bed.
“What?” His eyebrows shot up, and it would have been comical if I had not been so scared of my daring ruse.
“Don’t you want me?” I asked.
He froze, watching me as I leaned over him. The strands of my hair landed on his cheek, and I placed my hand on the headboard.
“What are you doing?” His eyes narrowed.
He was suspicious of me. He was not buying it.
“I saw you watching me all night,” I lowered my voice, trying to emulate the flirting I frequently witnessed between my brother and his wife.
I paused, fully aware of the cold sweat that was beading on my skin. I was never any good at flirting. My fiance was my friend first, then it got more serious. I never tried to be sensual with him. We spent time together, laughing and goofing around, but I never needed to seduce him.
I lowered myself closer to his face, inhaling the spicy, intimate scent of leather and tree bark. He smelled so captivating. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I had stored that scent as Tynan’s way before this, but I never paid enough attention to realize how alluring it was.
My knee pressed against the mattress of his bed and I watched as his eyes landed on my thigh.
“Don’t you want to know how good it can be?” I whispered.
He stayed silent and I took that as a positive sign. My lips almost touched his. Tynan’s warm breath caressed my skin, and the feeling was not unpleasant. My eyes darted to his mouth. He had the most amazingly shaped lips. Not too full and perfectly lined. His eyes were on my mouth; I could almost feel his gaze as the lightest, most gentle of touches.
“Don’t,” he whispered and his words released millions of butterflies in my stomach.
“What?” I asked, half dazed.
