I snagged my bag and slung it over my shoulder. The bedsheets were mussed, but apart from that, everything was the same way it was before we’d entered the room. Before she’d delivered another round of unforgettable sex and then vanished in the morning.
With a heavy sigh, I trudged down the steps into the first floor of the inn. Already Lynwell hunched behind the bar, and she glowered at me as I approached.
“Your friend is waiting for you there,” she muttered. “Breakfast is coming, so don’t go making demands.”
I whirled around.
Kali sat at one of the round tables, a pot of tea nearby, her bags at the chair by her side. She caught my eyes and offered a smile. My heart sped.
She hadn’t left?
I licked my lips as I headed in her direction. If she hadn’t left, then I wouldn’t waste this chance. I settled into the seat across from her.
“Tea?” she asked. Her dark hair framed her face so well, and this close, I could see a faint dusting of freckles across her nose. “I’m an early riser, so I didn’t want to disturb you.”
“I’ll admit, I slept longer than I normally do,” I said. “Most of the time, I’m up with the sun for harvesting.” I poured myself a cup of tea and watched the steam drift off the top. If I didn’t try now, I’d regret letting her walk away. “Where are you off to next?”
Kali took a sip of her tea, clearly stalling for a moment or two. She then let out a hum. “Well, that depends.”
“On what?”
“If the offer you made still holds,” she said, not looking up at me. “I haven’t been up north in a long while, and I wouldn’t mind seeing what a jewelberry farm looks like.”
My heart thudded. She wanted to join me?
Kali glanced up and flinched, and she opened her mouth—except I lunged across the table to kiss her.
My mouth collided with hers hard enough that our teeth clanked, and we both burst out laughing, even with the slight sting.
“Overeager, princess?” She took hold of my chin and drew my face to hers this time. I melted against her mouth in a kiss, one I’d been craving from the start. We might’ve met each other in an unconventional way, but in the short few days I’d spent with her, I craved so much more. More time, more touch, more moments. My chest fluttered as she deepened the kiss, her tongue stroking against mine. I soared. She tasted like tea and sweetness, and I savored the feel of her lips against mine.
This was all the potential I hoped for, of something that now might have the chance to come to fruition.
Kali was going to join me back to the farm, and if I had it my way, she’d find a home there…with me.
Fuzzy warmth filtered through me with each press of our lips, and everything else faded away.
“Knock it off, the both of you,” Lynwell called from over by the bar. “Want to be engaging in that, then pay for the room another night.”
Kali snorted, the puff of air hitting my face as she pulled back from me. Her dark eyes glittered with a tender affection I craved. “I don’t want to shell out for another night here, so I guess we’ll return to that later.”
Excitement rushed through me. “We’ll have about a week’s journey ahead of us to get back to the farm. Plenty of time along the road.”
Kali threaded her fingers through mine, the soft affection a surprise from someone who’d appeared so sharp. “Sounds perfect.”
Truly, it was.
Epilogue
Three Weeks Later
We’d reached the farm two weeks ago, and the rest of the commune, plus Mom and Dad, had alternated between welcoming Kali and giving us the privacy we needed. And we’d needed plenty, as Kali was determined to fuck me on every surface possible. It was one way of getting her comfortable with the farm, one I definitely didn’t mind.
Socks and her friend, who we named Leonin, were attached at the hip. Since he’d joined us on the farm, she hadn’t been making her usual escapes to scamper through the nearby trees. I was glad Socks had found companionship at the same time I did. Kali seemed settled, and even though she planned a mark to hit up in the near future, she already promised she’d come back after she completed the job.
I could live with that. I could live with that real well.
If we continued on like this, I was pretty sure I was on my way to falling in love.
