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“I can pick up scents far too clearly, and much earlier than should be possible over distance. For example, I knew I’d be sick from the smell of the old site before we even came up to it. I didn’t think much of it except Prince Landon said the drink was to recover my senses.”
“Recover what senses? I don’t know of anything that can give you stronger abilities, or better knowledge of smell. I’m not sure I understand what this has to do with right now,” he said.
“I know this is going to sound crazy, but a few paces back from where I walked from just now, I could scent cinnamon and cardamom. It’s the smell your dad had recently from this new tea he’s been into drinking,” I said. “He’s alive, Noah. And I think I might be able to find where if I can - follow that scent.”
Noah watched me, unmoving.
“Please say something?”
“Why are you just telling me now?” he asked. The hurt expression was nothing compared to the disappointment in his tone.
I shrugged. “It sounds insane. I wanted to see what happened with it. But I think if we can start from this area tomorrow, I might be able to help find him. If I can figure out the other smell that’s with his, too, it’ll hopefully lead us to where he is.”
Noah sighed, rubbing his forefinger and thumb across his head. “Okay, I believe you. I - “ he paused. “Nevermind. Let’s get back to camp.”
He held his hand out to me and his expression was one of utter exhaustion. The emotional toll, much less the physical one of the past 24 hours was immense. And he shouldered it all. I took his hand in mine, not bothering to let go when we got close to camp.
“Most of the men are alone. Processing. Preparing. We’ve heard of war, witnessed one off scenarios that were bad. But to see our own men like they were. Just rotting. People needed space,” Noah said.
He held my hand all the way back to his tent. “Stay with me?”
“Of course,” I said. There wasn’t anywhere else I’d rather be, and I already noticed he hadn’t asked for my own tent to set up.
I crawled into his space, lying down on the mats he’d brought along.
He stood by the entrance, zipping it closed. When he turned around, a tear escaped his face.
“Oh, Noah,” I said.
He fell to his knees before me and I immediately caught his body in my arms. His tears were silent though I felt the damp droplets hitting my thighs. I rubbed his back, his head, anywhere I could stroke out a small rhythm and silently let him know he wasn’t alone while he fought through the pain and grief.
“I’m so sorry,” I said softly, over and over as I rubbed his back.
The tears stopped after some time, though my movement didn’t. The air around me zinged as the feeling between us shifted.
I rocked as I ran my fingers slowly up his back, and down. He wrapped his arms around me, pulling my waist closer to his as he moved his head back away from me.
He stared at my lips, licking his own. “Coraline, I love you.”
“What?” I whispered.
“Seeing what happened in the blink of an eye to my men, I can’t let you exist in this world another moment without knowing that I love you. Completely. Whatever happens in this life, I will do everything to make sure we can be together, side by side for all of it. Even when I’m King. You will be mine, my Queen one day. If that’s what you want, of course.”
The foster kid voice in the back of my head was trying to yell at me that it was too good to be true. That those were just pretty words. Noah didn’t mean them.
But there was a stronger part of me now, one that knew my worth. One that recognized the bond we shared and how special it was.
And that louder part inside of me crushed the doubting one. With one look from Noah, that self conscious, negative voice drowned.
“I love you, Noah. I have for longer than I care to admit.”
With that, the electricity that had built around us crackled and we dove for each other, tangling into a mess of arms and legs and lips and tongues.
My fingers trembled as I reached for his tunic, pulling it upward. He let me take the lead and I pulled it up over his head, tossing it to the side and running my fingertips over his muscular chest, down his abs.
My nerves got the best of me, but Noah reached down, bringing each fingertip to his lips with a gentle kiss. He moved forward, unbuttoning my tunic.
Gosh I just needed him to touch me. Everywhere at once. Calm the fire that kept getting hotter and stronger between us.
