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Seth hovered at the edge of the cliff watching Lorelei work her way up a horrendously steep path. If she started to slide, he fully intended to race straight down through the trees and catch her. He felt intensely protective of her. He could no longer deny that so much about her made him content, as though on a deep level her realm vibration soothed him, like building a fire that warmed an icy room.
The last few yards were the worst and he waited, poised to fly as she scrambled up, creating small rockslides behind her as bits and pieces of the unstable path gave way.
But she made it, tongue lolling, sides working like bellows.
She looked up at him and if wolfs could smile, she smiled. He could feel how happy she was, that running filled her with euphoria.
He turned and flew slowly, guiding her in the direction of a small, shallow valley where mist curled from a depression in the snow.
When he reached the hot spring, he turned, surprised to find Lorelei had already shifted back to her fae form, her fur hat in hand. The amethysts along the ridge of her ear glinted in the night, calling to him once more.
“Do you come here often?” She smiled, teasing him.
He laughed at her joke, but added, “Not as often as I’d like. You interested in taking a dip? Although with your shifter metabolism it might be too warm.”
“After that run, I could use a bath.”
Moving to the edge, she reached down, and with her fingers, tested the water. He was going to be polite, wait a few minutes to see whether she really did want to jump into the hot spring. But the next moment she started stripping off her jacket and before he’d blinked twice, she’d lost her shirt and her bra.
She’d already removed her boots and was working at her pants, when his brain finally figured things out, that he had to hurry to catch up. But he had a fine view of her naked back and buttocks before she dropped into the steaming water and sank below the surface.
His Guard uniform, while perfect for battling Invictus wraith-pairs, took some work to divest. He eased out of his boots and snug battle leathers. His coat and shirt came next, then his briefs. She didn’t hide her frank interest in his body, so he hovered above the water and sank slowly, letting her get a good look.
“Sorry,” she said, blushing. “It’s the shifter part of me. I love your body, Seth. You’re so perfectly muscled and lean, which leads me to say that before we go any further, I have a small confession to make.”
Chapter Five
Lorelei floated in the warm water. Steam rose all around her, then disappeared quickly as the water vapor hit the frigid air.
Her realm night vision warmed up so that she saw Seth as though a soft light poured over his features. He finally disappeared below the waterline, then surfaced quickly, the water beading and rolling off him. He had long eyelashes and the water gathered them into star-like clumps.
He was so handsome, she could hardly bear it.
She felt as she had that first day at the castle, butterflies teasing her stomach, excitement rolling through her veins, heating up her entire body. She wanted Seth with every dominant fae-shifter fiber of her being.
He smiled ruefully. “We’re supposed to talk. That was Davido’s purpose here. But if you keep sending me such strong drifts of apple blossom scent, I won’t answer for how we spend the next two hours. Besides, I’m waiting to hear your confession.”
She nodded, her heart thumping. She drew in a deep breath as she moved her hands through the water and kept herself floating, knees up.
Finally, she made the leap. “I saw you at the castle, two months ago.”
He was so tall that even standing on the bedrock of the spring, the water came up just below his pecs. “You did? But I don’t remember seeing you there.”
She told him the entire shameful incident, not sparing a single detail about how she’d used her enthrallment shield and spied on him while he worked out and afterward on the balcony.
He watched her closely, his gaze never wavering until she finished.
Putting
a hand to his arm, he frowned. “Did you touch me, here I mean?” He tapped his fingers against the dip of his shoulder.
“Not exactly. I got close, but then I could tell you felt something, so I stopped.”
“I remember. It was a strange sensation, like a zap of electricity.”
“I’m sorry, Seth. I shouldn’t have done it.”
