This close, I could feel the rumble of his laugh. “I gathered.”
“I’ll get off of you,” I stammered. “Just…whoops.”
I worked to regain my balance, pushing off his chest to get back to the safety of my corner of the cabin. But there was no avoiding sliding off the tent pitched in his pants, and I slid over him, hitting right between my thighs.
Raphael cursed, the word bitten off sharply. His hands remained frozen on the headrests. My face was aflame, especially with all the new blood inside me. I couldn’t look at him.
It didn’t help that the bite had stirred sensations in me as well. When I’d been focused on feeding, it had all been a blend of survival and satiating the craving in me. Now there was this warm feeling, my body tingling all over, like the massage from before, only I hadn’t realized every part of me was sore and now felt alive. Like a kairomancer was brewing a storm under my skin.
Raphael didn’t look even remotely embarrassed. “You remember what the bite feels like, I’m sure.”
I was embarrassed all over again. Oh, it wasn’t me that triggered that, er,effect. It would have happened with any vampire.
His hands were still on the headrests beside him. Only now, the immaculate fabric was ripped, his fingers buried in the cushion. The wood was splintering.
He hadn’t touched me, I realized. I’d grabbed his shoulders, bit him, and pressed my body against him. And he’d restrained himself. Even when I was in his lap.
If I looked, I could definitely see his trousers straining.
I was absolutely not going to look.
The silence stretched too long for me to tolerate.
“Um, thank you.” I still wasn’t looking at Raphael. “For letting me do… that.”
“I did tell you you’d be a wonder with fangs.”
I blinked at the comment for a moment. Right. Back when we’d first met. “I thought you were mocking me.”
Raphael’s stare was more piercing than any set of fangs. “Not at that particular moment.”
I snorted, some of the tension easing between us. Gods, I’d been so scared of him then. Now, I should fear him. If I slipped, if he discovered I was the necromancer he was meant to hunt down, he’d kill me. But I didn’t feelfear.
I’d known fear as a constant companion for most of my life. It was my held tongue, my hunched shoulders, as I constantly fought to stay invisible. It was a cloak I’d worn for safety, something to warm me against the coldness of treachery.
Raphael was more dangerous than anyone I’d feared. Nelson, my tormentor of so many years, was a joke by comparison. It was almost hard to remember why I’d been afraid. At least while Raphael and I rode in the cabin.
With my thirst quenched, however temporarily, I drew the curtains back once more. We’d advanced a fair distance. I stuck my head out. Up ahead were the beginnings of the farms Raphael mentioned.
By the time I tucked my head back in, Raphael had composed himself. His shirt was once more buttoned and pulled straight, the expanse of his chest covered. His hair had been brushedback with fingers, falling slightly forward in a way that looked intentional.
No trace of the way he’d looked beneath me. Except for the damaged headrests.
Limanos finally came into view. There were no walls around the city, not the way I was accustomed to in the Witch Kingdom. Instead, speckles of color grew larger and larger, vibrant buildings with low roofs sprawling in denser formation to make a city.
Excitement grew in me. Even though I’d probably only ever see the city at night, it was lovely.
I’ve seen so little of the world. The thought was wistful. With the fledgling bond, I couldn’t go far. But after, what places could I see? What wonders lay within Eurobis?
For a time, as a fugitive, I’d planned to go west. But if I was to be the necromancer, how could I ever leave the Witch Kingdom? A stab of disappointment went through me.
I leaned away from the window. Suddenly, it wasn’t so tempting to look out at the city.
“If not for this bond, would you have taken me with you? On this journey, I mean.”
Raphael considered me. “That depends. Would you have wanted to come?”
“It’s hard to say.” I thought back to our argument before leaving. The honest answer was, it wouldn’t have mattered since I would have left Damerel with the grimoire as soon as possible. But, if I’d been allowed to be selfish— “The idea of a new city, new country, is exciting. It’s not something I ever imagined I would get to experience.”
