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The world began to spin, a vortex of life and death and blood and bones, of leaves in a whirlwind, and al I could taste on his tongue were cognac and juniper and smoked venison stew. As I sank into the kiss, an ice-fil ed fire raced through me, fil ing every crevice, every niche, and my breasts began to tingle, igniting every point along my body.
As I pressed against him, he slid one leg between my knees, and I opened to him, but he did not reach for me, just let me rub gently against him as he sucked my life out with a single gasp and then--as I fought for breath--he pressed his lips to mine again and blew me gently back into my body and I came, moaning softly.
Spinning, the orgasm spread through me like melted butter, warm and vibrant, as smooth as glowing lava, crackling like a hearth fire. I gasped as he nuzzled my neck, his tongue playing each and every nerve in my body.
"My living bride, my living bride," he whispered, his hands careful y holding me by the waist. "I can't take you. Not yet--if I did, you'd die. But I want you.
There wil be a way . . . and then, one day, you'l join me in my world."
"You said you wanted me to bear your heir--how can I if you can't . . . if we can't . . ." I stared into his eyes, caught in the power of his spel .
"Oh, trust me, it will happen but not quite the way you expect. Until then, cry no more, my lovely panther. Cry no more." And then Hi'ran backed away, and I reached for him. It seemed so simple in his world--it was life or death. He was one of the Harvestmen, an avatar of Death, and it would be easier just to walk into his world.
He shook his head. "No, it's not your time. You have so much to do before I can think of claiming you to sit at my side. But I'l always be with you, always feel you, always know what you're thinking." And then, in the blink of an eye, he was gone.
"Delilah? Delilah? Are you okay?"
Menol y's voice echoed through me, bringing me back to myself. I turned, and she gasped and jumped back, her fangs lowering. Catching hold of herself, she closed her mouth.
"I'm . . ." I blushed, wondering if I'd put on a show in front of them, but Iris saw my fear and shook her head.
"Don't try to explain," Iris said, stepping in. "We can feel it on you. You've been with him? You were in a trance."
I nodded. "Yes." Slowly, I brought my hand to my neck where my skin stil tingled from the touch of his tongue.
Menol y leaned closer to me and gave me a long look. "That was some message, by the look of your neck."
I glanced back in the mirror and saw the massive hickey spreading across where he'd kissed me. "Uh, yeah . . . I guess it was." I smiled then, blushing.
And then it al fel away, and I dropped to the floor, done in by the night, stil smel ing of skunk, with punked hair, and awaiting the arrival of . . . wel , wherever it was the Autumn Lord was planning.
"Things are such a mess. Chase has changed so much since he took the Nectar of Life--"
"You and Camil e saved his life. He would have died without it." Iris bustled around, cleaning up the scattered strands of hair.
"Wel , he's not thanking me now. I think the reality of what it means is starting to hit him. And the lack of preparation--let me tel you, that ain't helping matters any. I feel like something's looming over me. The Autumn Lord has plans . . ." I couldn't speak Hi'ran's name aloud to anyone but him--it was a secret forged between us and kept solely for my use.
"What did Chase say?"
I shook my head. "Honestly, I blocked it out. He was so stiff, so aloof. Right now I can't deal with his angst. That makes me a bad girlfriend, right?"
"No, that makes you half-human. If you were ful -Fae, he'd be long gone by now." Iris sat on the ottoman next to me. "Honey, Chase needs more help than you can give him. Let Sharah work her magic. She has the training to deal with matters like this."
"I guess he's in better hands with her. I'l back off." The thought stil stung, but I couldn't waste any more energy. I was exhausted by trying to help when my help wasn't welcome.
As we sat there, a tableau il uminated by the Tiffany-style lamps that Morio had found in a thrift shop, the door opened, and Camil e's laughter echoed through the hal . I slowly picked myself off the floor and moved to one of the chairs, but stil , when she darted into the room, she took one look at my face as she tossed her cloak over the back of the rocking chair and sat down beside me, grabbing my hand.
"What's going on? Bad news? Was there news from home?"
That was her way of asking if our father had left a message through the Whispering Mirror. Reluctant to burst her bubble, I gave her a quick shake of the head. "No hon, no messages. Not that I know of."
She stopped short, staring at me. "What the fuck happened to your hair?" And then she burst out laughing. "I love it--you're so punk! You look great! But man, Iris was right." Waving her hand in front of her face, she grimaced. "You got skunked bad, babe."
"Yeah, but it was worse before." As I stood up, Camil e's men came trooping in. At least they were polite enough to avoid commenting on my brand-new do and perfume, though I noticed Smoky's lips curl into a smile, and Morio's nose twitched. Tril ian just offered to take the tray of debris from Iris and carry it into the kitchen for her.
"So . . . you going to keep it that way?" Camil e walked around me, studying my hair. "I like it. Makes you seem more seasoned."
I smiled softly. "I don't know. Maybe. Everything's changing, everything's moving."
