“After you,” Elia gestures to the ladder. I hesitate for a second too long. “Unless you wanted to sleep in the same room as Rafe?”
I hastily climb up the loft, not wanting to linger on the image that had passed through my mind of Rafe and I sharing a bed again.
The loft is small, but cozy, and anywhere is better than being in the cabin right now. We can’t stand up in the space, but Elia manages to find some old blankets in a corner and some filled feed bags we can use as pillows.
We lay down side by side, staring up at the wooden slats of the barn roof. To the right of us, there is a large enough hole in the ceiling that we can catch a glimpse of the stars. It reminds me of our stargazing on theMidas.
I gaze at the constellations again through the roof, noticing the Queen, the King, and the Hunter, and their presence helps ground me.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Elia asks. She brushes her hand lightly against mine. I hadn’t realized that my hand was shaking slightly, so I firmly clasp her hand in response.
“Not particularly.” Elia doesn’t press the issue further, but I find myself opening up to her. Maybe it’s because of what Rafe had said earlier, or maybe I am finally tired of shouldering everything.
“He told me why he never returned, and it was all because of a miscommunication. He threw away years of our lives for something that wasn’t true.”
“Did you tell him that?”
“He didn’t want to hear it.”
“He’s afraid to hear it.”
“What do you mean?” I adjust my body so I’m facing Elia, propped up on one of my elbows.
Elia mimics my position. “I mean, if thiswasall a miscommunication like you suggested, Rafe would have to come to the realization that hedidthrow your relationship away for practically nothing. That would be a hard truth to swallow.”
“I didn’t think of it like that.”
Elia waves a hand in a small motion. “He’s angry because he cared. If he realizes he was upset for no reason…” She trails off.
“You really want Rafe and I to smooth things over between us, don’t you?”
Elia nods enthusiastically. “You both have your own half-truths about what happened, and until you sit down and talk it all through, you’ll never land on the actual truth.”
“And if we do, somehow, fix the mess between us? What happens then?”
“We take it one day at a time, like I told you before. I won’t hold you back from Rafe, but nor will I give you up. Love is rare in this world. I believe that if you’re lucky to find it, no matter where it’s found or who it’s with, you should hold on to it.”
“You might be the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Siren.” I trace her lips with my fingers, outlining her smile that spreads across her face.
“You might be right.” She opens her mouth, capturing my finger in between her plush lips, and sucks lightly.
The sensuality of her motion makes my cock jump to attention. “Oh, I’m definitely right.”
“Maybe I’ll prove it to you, just in case.” Elia’s lips crash to mine in a heated embrace, and I kiss her back with a desperation I haven’t known before. A part of me acknowledges that I’m trying to prove to myself that Rafe’s presence doesn’t affect me, that I could love Elia wholly and completely without caring about Rafe. I also know that this kiss might be overcompensating for the fact that Rafe did linger in my thoughts, that I enjoy both Elia’s soft curves and Rafe’s hard lines and angles.
Elia pulls back slightly, hand working its way down my body to skim my bulging erection. My pelvis jolts forward, trying to make full contact, but she continues to tease.
“Stop thinking so much,” she murmurs against my lips.
“Make me,” I whisper back, grinning as she captures my lips again. Her hand palms my cock fully and she eagerly swallows my groan that escapes.
I know this is not going to be a long rendezvous, no foreplay or preamble necessary. We both need this time to ground ourselves to each other, to remind ourselves of the connection we share with one another.
Elia strokes me a few times through the fabric of my pants. I can tell she wants to make this about me, but I would die before I would surrender my chance to touch her body.
Lips still locked together, my hands reach for the hem of her shirt and help her throw it behind her. I take a chance to breathe, enjoying the vision of Elia in the patches of moonlight, looking like the temptress and siren she is.
“You’re absolutely stunning,” I praise. “I don’t know what I did in life to deserve someone as beautiful as you.”
